The River Maid (27 page)

One morning after they had been travelling a week, Gaspard left to find food and water and Christian came down to the bank.

“I’m sure he goes off and has a hot bath and eats roast beef and then brings us back stale bread and cheese,” Christian said, as he trailed his hand in the water. 

Adrianna laughed. Suddenly, he flicked his hand, splashing water at her. She looked at him in shock as water dripped down her face. She lifted her tail up and brought it down, sending a wave of water over the prince. He didn
’t move out of the way fast enough and he was soaked through. He tried to grab her arm, but she swam out of his reach. She laughed at him from the safety of the river.

Standing up, he pulled off his boots and
stripped off his jacket. Surely he wouldn’t dare? As if hearing her thoughts, he dived into the river. She held her breath until his head appeared. He swam out to her with strong, easy strokes. He stopped before her, treading water to stay afloat. He shook the water from his eyes.

“
Don’t you get cold?” he asked.

“
I’m not human remember,” she replied. 

“
You look like an ordinary girl when you’re in the water. I would never have known that you weren’t.”

“I am an ordinary girl,” she said, not wanting him to see her as different.

“No, you’re not. You’re extraordinary.”

She didn’t know what to say. She flushed and looked down at the water, away from the intensity of his gaze.  

“So if I met someone, I should only meet them when I’m in the water and they will think I’m human,” she said teasingly.

“
You shouldn’t have to hide who you are. Not from anyone. Not to make them love you.”

He had turned from playful to serious.

“Would you have loved Lorelei if she had shown you what she truly was?” Adrianna asked.

“
I didn’t love Lorelei because I never knew her. She showed me what she thought I wanted to see.”

They were so close in the water, their faces only inches apart. She could feel the warmth from his body. She looked up and met his gaze. She couldn
’t look away from the intensity of his eyes. He stared back and then his gaze drifted down to her lips.

There was a shout from the bank. Gaspard had returned. Whatever had been between them was broken. They swam toward him. Christian pulled himself up onto the bank, but she couldn
’t follow him. She was trapped and confined to the river.

“
What happened?” Gaspard asked, riding over to them.

“
I fell in,” Christian said.

Gaspard laughed and Adrianna did her best to smile. Christian pulled out a dry shirt from his saddle bags. She quickly looked away as he stripped off his wet shirt. Her cheeks felt flushed. She was no better than Lorelei, watching him from a distance. But for a moment Christian had looked at her
and she had almost forgotten what she was. She wanted him to look at her like that again. They had been so close in the river; close enough for her to feel the warmth from his body and the breath from his lips. But even if she wasn’t a mermaid, even if she found some way to get her legs back, he was still a prince. There could never be anything between them.

~~~~~

Gaspard took his time finishing his ale as he listened to the gossip in the small inn he had stopped in for supplies, glad to put off getting back on his horse for a few more minutes. It was a small village, but they were used to strangers passing through and no one troubled him. Most of the talk was about the coming harvest and there was no mention of a mermaid or of any French soldiers passing through the village. Getting stiffly to his feet, he thanked the innkeeper’s wife for the food and went to collect his horse. He struggled up into the saddle and rode off in a different direction, before doubling back to where he had left Christian and Adrianna.

Before he could see them, he could hear the sound of Adrianna
’s laughter. The girl they had rescued had been subdued and afraid, the bruises on her body telling a far darker story about her time with the French than she had let on, and he was glad to hear her laughing now. Christian and Adrianna were sat together under a copse of trees. Christian was smiling. He leaned back, braced on his hands, his shirt sleeves rolled up. Adrianna was lying on the bank on her stomach, propped up with her elbows, a cloak covering her tail. They hadn’t seen him yet. He watched them, glad to see them both relaxed and happy. But there was something there between them that made him pause. He nudged his horse forward and they moved apart. Christian was immediately back to being guarded. As a prince, it usually took him a long time to break down his defences. Yet, he was at ease with Adrianna and he barely knew her.

“We didn’
t expect you back so soon,” Christian said as he got to his feet. He sounded almost as if he hadn’t wanted him to come back yet.

“I’
ve been gone for more than an hour,” Gaspard replied.

Adrianna was using her arms to pull herself back to the water
’s edge, but before she could reach it, Christian strode over and scooped her up and carried her the rest of the way. He set her down gently.

“Thank you,” she said. She slipped out of the cloak that had been wrapped around her and slid into the water.

Gaspard made no comment as Christian came back and untied his horse. He continued to watch his friend as they rode and the way he kept glancing at the river.

“You and Adrianna seem to have grown close,” Gaspard said carefully.

“She’s easy to talk to,” Christian replied.

In the evening, Christian carried Adrianna up the bank and wrapped her back up in his cloak. Gaspard had seen Christian with other girls. He had always been courteous and polite, but the way he was with Adrianna suggested something more. He kept glancing over at her while she combed out her hair with her golden comb. He tried to tell himself that Christian
’s concern for her was natural. He was concerned for Adrianna himself. But he hoped for both their sakes he was mistaken.

Chapter Thirty

The next morning, Adrianna woke first. The sun was only just starting to rise, streaking the sky pink and blue. Gaspard lay facing away from her, but Christian lay on his side facing toward her. She couldn
’t help but watch him as he slept and the way his hair fell over his eyes and the steady rise and fall of his chest. She was still a girl underneath and he was a boy; it was understandable that she would be attracted to him. He was the first person to show her some kindness since she had become a mermaid. She wouldn’t become like Lorelei and lose herself over a boy. He stirred in his sleep and Adrianna quickly turned away.

They ate breakfast then carried on, the others riding
while Adrianna swam. Boats were out on the river and she was careful to stay out of sight. Christian and Gaspard rode side by side. Sometimes, when she came up she could hear the sound of Christian’s laughter at something Gaspard had said. He seemed to laugh more now than when she had first met him. Back, when she had been in St Goarshausen, she remembered thinking him cold and distant. When she came up to the surface again, she could only see Christian. She swam over to the bank.

“
Gaspard has gone to change the horses,” Christian said as she swam up. He was tying a snare. She pulled herself up onto the bank, scooting backwards with her hands. She watched as he deftly knotted the rope and then placed it beneath a tree a short distance away. He settled down to wait. She pulled herself across to him and he took off his jacket and laid it over her tail.

“
Did Gaspard show you how to do that?” she asked, speaking softly so as not to scare their dinner away.

“No, a soldier called Kehler did.”

She remembered him calling out that name in his sleep when they had been at Elise’s, but he hadn’t done it since.

“How did you end up in the army?”

“I joined after Lorelei…after she jumped. I was looking for something and I thought I would find it in the army. I didn’t tell them who I was. I joined as a common soldier and worked my way up through the ranks. It didn’t take me long. My education gave me an advantage over the other men.”

“What happened to Kehler?”

Christian was silent and she wished she hadn’t asked. “He died,” he eventually said. “He was shot. I couldn’t get to him in time. I saw the soldier aim his rifle. I shouted at Kehler to get down, but it was too late. There was nothing I could do. He died in my arms.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I haven’t even spoken to Gaspard about it. It’s too easy to talk to you.”

A rabbit appeared. They both froze and watched, breath held, as it scampered along, its ears up and alert. Christian pulled the snare tight, trapping the small creature.

“A prince who can catch rabbits,” Adrianna said. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of such a thing.”

He reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear. “
It’s no more remarkable than a girl who became a mermaid.”

His hand lingered against her face, his thumb brushing her cheek. Hesitantly, she turned into his touch and his thumb grazed her lips.

There was a shout from behind them and Gaspard rode into sight.

“He always seems to do that,” Christian muttered as he got to his feet and went to get the rabbit. Adrianna smiled at Gaspard, hoping her cheeks weren’t as flushed as they felt.

Christian tied the rabbit to his saddle. Adrianna slipped back down the bank into the water, and they carried on. They had been travelling together for nearly two weeks now. She came up to the surface to check on them. Christian and Gaspard were just ahead of her. She knew she was staying up too long and she should duck back down, but she was distracted, staring at Christian. She didn’t see the boat approaching behind her. There was a shout and voices called out in French. She dove down, but it was too late; they had seen her. She swam further up the river before she came up again. She waited for Christian and Gaspard to catch up to her.

“
They saw me,” she said as they rode up. “I’m sorry.”

“
It was going to happen eventually,” Christian said, pulling his horse to a stop.

Gaspard nodded. Worry creased his brow.
“There’s nothing we can do. We must keep going and hope word doesn’t get back to the French.”

~~~~~

Fournier pinched the bridge of his nose as he listened to yet another report. Two weeks had passed and his men had still yet to find the creature. He had soldiers out searching every inch of the city, but if she was still hiding in the river, there might be no way to find her. He just had to wait until she revealed herself.

There was a tap on the door and his lieutenant, Bellard, entered.
“Captain, we’ve had reports of a sighting of the mermaid in the river Seine.”

Fournier looked up.
“How did she get out of the city?”

Bellard shrugged.
“Perhaps she managed to escape before the nets were put down.”

He had gambled everything on her still being in the city. There was no way she could have left. He had every exit in the river blocked and every carriage leaving the city was being searched.

He had to find the creature before the Emperor returned. The tenuous peace after the Treaty of Pressbury hadn’t lasted for long. Napoleon was now off fighting the Prussians and Fournier didn’t want to be the one to face him when he returned.

“Take a group of men and
get ready to leave.”

Bellard nodded and left. Fournier had to find her quickly. The newspapers were claiming it had all been a hoax and that she had never existed. They were full of cartoons mocking the Emperor. The people of Paris were laughing at the rich for being fooled. They had been willing to believe when they had been able to see the mermaid for themselves, but now they were questioning what they saw, and if she was even real. Most believed she wasn
’t.

  Wine sloshed over the desk as he poured himself a drink. He scratched at his beard. He hadn
’t shaved in weeks, but there was little need now. The invitations had stopped arriving and he had been turned away from the last ball he had tried to attend.

There was a loud rap on the door.

“What is it now?” he shouted in annoyance.

Ducasse marched in flanked by two soldiers. The General was dressed in full uniform with a navy greatcoat around his shoulders and bicorn hat.

“Ducasse?” Fournier jumped to his feet, trying to conceal his surprise at seeing his old friend. “What are you doing here?”

Ducasse
’s face was grim. “The Emperor has relieved you of command. He has put me in charge of your men and tasked me with locating this supposed mermaid of yours.”

Fournier sank down into his chair, too stunned to think. Ducasse had never even seen the mermaid. He could tell by the contempt in his voice that Ducasse didn’t believe she was real. He licked his dry lips as he considered his next course of action. He had to be the one to find the creature. He couldn
’t let Ducasse take the credit for it.

“I know the identity of the man who took her,” Fournier said carefully. “He’
s a German prince. In fact, I believe you know him.” Ducasse waited, his face unreadable. “His name is Prince Christian of Hesse.”

Ducasse gave a short laugh.
“You must be mistaken.”

“I found the creature near a town called St Goarshausen. I believe the prince lived there with his mother. You can’
t tell me that’s just a coincidence.”

He had the satisfaction of seeing the colour drain from Ducasse
’s face. “He wouldn’t be so foolish.”

“Which of us will tell the Emperor that the man who took the mermaid is a personal friend of yours?” 

Ducasse didn’t reply. He had gone pale. At least that was one consolation. If he was going to lose everything at least he could bring Ducasse down with him.