Guarding the Mermaid

by Eve Langlais

  Why did Chimera turn off the light?

  Had he gone to get help? If that were the case, then why not leave the illumination?

  She sank to the bottom and pondered the possible reasons. None made any sense. When the lights returned suddenly, she perked up. Especially since she saw Chimera back at the window.

  And he wasn’t alone.

  She saw another shape with him.

  Jett!

  She swam toward him, a bright smile on her lips. She pressed her hands against the glass.

  He stared in shock.

  She blew him a kiss and then giggled, which had the effect of making bubbles. Hopefully he realized she didn’t fart.

  When the water cleared, he was yelling at Chimera. Waving his arms, pointing at her.

  She couldn’t hear what he said but could imagine it involved a lot of F bombs. But if anyone could save her, it was Jett.

  When he was done yelling at Chimera, he returned to the glass and palmed it. She placed her hand so that it fit against his. So close and yet so far apart.

  Jett mouthed something at her.

  She cocked her head and shrugged.

  He spoke again, his lips moving more slowly. When that didn’t work, he pointed.

  She shook her head and lifted her hands.

  He scowled for a moment, and then he left.

  The lights were still on, but it felt dark. She bobbed sadly, wondering if he’d finally given up on her.

  Only Jett returned, holding a sheet of paper and a pen. He spent a second scribbling and then flipped it over to show her.

  “Meet me. Lake’s edge.”

  Easy enough if she knew where it was. She frowned then traced letters on the glass.

  Lost.

  He frowned and turned to the doctor, gestured a few times, probably swore a few more before using the pen and paper again.

  Hold on.

  Uh, okay. Because she totally had other places to go.

  Jett left again, this time with Chimera. They were gone awhile. Only Chimera returned. He wrote a message.

  Go to ceiling. Fish food.

  She frowned at first then beamed. Of course, there must be access to the cavern via the food slots.

  Duh. Why hadn’t she thought of that! She clapped her hands underwater, which didn’t make a sound and, given the resistance of water, barely made an impression. She waggled her butt as she swam upward, not at all graceful like a mermaid, more like a wiggling worm pulling herself awkwardly through molasses, but at least she had buoyance to help her, and she made it to the trap door.

  Which was closed.

  So she knocked. Tap. Tap.

  There was no sound when the hinge released, and she almost got bonked. She darted to the side as it swung open. Then stared up the hole, the light in the cavern not illuminating it.

  It seemed big enough, if you didn’t mind coffin-sized spaces.

  Indecision had her hovering. Then a light shone down.

  Someone was at the top of the feeding chute.

  Taking in a deep mouthful of water, she arrowed into the tunnel, needing her hands to pull her up since it proved too narrow to swim.

  She floated to the surface, aiming for the beam of light, and emerged into the air, only to gasp.

  Choke. Her lungs spasmed.

  She fell back under the water, scared and frustrated.

  It didn’t help that she saw Jett overhead, leaning over the chute’s opening.

  She tried again, popping her head above the surface, the air hitting her skin. She opened her mouth and gargled.

  She fell back under, utterly dejected. Jett remained overheard, his usually grim expression creased in concern.

  The only good news was, without the glass separating them, she could hear him, but given it filtered through water, it was a little garbled.

  “Gonna find a way to fix this.”

  How could he fix this? Other than filleting, breading, and frying her in lard, what could he do to make her better?

  He held out his hand to her, the one thing she could stick out of the water without discomfort. She clasped his fingers tight.

  “Chimera says he can help.”

  Help the same way he’d helped Larry and the minotaur guy?

  She shook her head, trying to speak, but the sound emerged odd and discordant. A series of whistles and high-pitched noises.

  I sound like a dolphin.

  But Jett didn’t run away in horror from his aquatic girlfriend.

  Nope. He pulled a gun and shot her!

  Chapter Twenty

  As soon as Jett shot Becky, he had to move fast. The sedative worked immediately, and she slumped. Good thing he’d grabbed her hand ahead of time. He yanked her free of the chute, hating this part of the plan, yet what choice did he have? Her slick and slim body emerged easily, but she immediately began to choke.

  With her soaking body secured in his arms, Jett ran past the machinery. Past the metal wheels and pipes, all part of Chimera’s elaborate natural aquarium. Hearing her gasping for breath, the adrenaline coursed, moving him faster.

  No one stupidly got in his way. Good thing. He would have bowled them over and trampled them in his race to get her to the tank in Chimera’s second hidden lab.

  The plan had been hastily hatched with his boss. He just wished he could have explained to Red what he would do. He’d seen the wide-eyed look of betrayal in her eyes when he shot her, but he had no choice. He’d seen her despair when she couldn’t breathe outside of the water. Worse, he feared she’d flee. Then how would he find her?

  Chimera said he could fix her, and while Jett didn’t always trust the bastard, he wanted to believe he told the truth. If he didn’t, Jett wouldn’t hesitate to put a bullet between his eyes.

  When and how this woman became so important was beyond him. A killer shouldn’t care. Yet somehow, he’d begun to care too fucking much, which meant he wasn’t about to let her go without a fight.

  The maintenance door opened at his approach, Chimera obviously watching, and he put on a burst of speed as her breathing stuttered. Halted. Her skin was clammy cold.

  He ran through a hall inset with porthole windows to Chimera’s other lab. The door to it open wide, the doctor standing in it, beckoning.

  “Hurry. She won’t last much longer outside of water. The tank is ready for her.” The doctor swept an arm to show him.

  Jett sprinted past and saw the big vat, the liquid clear, bubbles rising from the bottom.

  He leaned over the edge and slipped her in. She sank, and for a moment, he wanted to reach in and grab her. Pull her to him and hold her tight. Wanted to apologize and yet he couldn’t have said for what. Somehow, he’d failed her. Made her think she had to take that serum.

  How desperate she must have been to inject herself. But so long as she lived, they could do something about her situation. He could learn to scuba dive. Maybe get her a water tank for breathing.

  Something…

  Chimera stood beside him, staring at her lifeless body. “Good job.”

  “Don’t patronize me. This is my fault. I should have realized something was wrong.” Not left when she clung to him tightly and whispered goodbye.

  “My fault, too. I should have told her I was treating her.”

  At least the sudden injections of the serum hadn’t killed her. Which seemed kind of odd. Usually the more drastic changes happened over the course of time. Never all at once. “When do we start reversing the mermaid effect?”

  “Why would we do that? She’s perfect,” Chimera said, sounding pleased with himself.

  Jett shot him a look. “Perfect? Are you fucking kidding me? She’s in a tank of water because she can’t breathe.”

  “On the contrary, she’s breathing perfectly fine.”

  “Underwater,” he said through gritted teeth.

  “Do you know she’s the first successful mermaid we’ve created? The others…” Chimera trailed off. “Let’s just say they didn’t succeed.” />
  “You didn’t create her. She did this by accident.”

  “Not entirely.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Jett growled.

  “You asked me to treat her cancer. I’m sure tests will show her completely free of tumors.”

  “So this is a side effect?”

  “No, it’s quite intentional.” Chimera turned from the tank, hands tucked behind him. “As a matter of fact, she is exactly what the client wants. It just took us longer than expected. Who knew the sudden addition of serum would initiate the change and so rapidly. This is fabulous news. It could be we’ve been going about the treatment all wrong.”

  “Rewind to the part where you said she’s what a client wants.”

  “Did you know there’s a market demand for a mermaid? Mind you, we had to lower the price given the fact she has two legs instead of a tail, but she will still fetch a fine figure.”

  “You’re planning to sell her!” he blurted out. The shock had him gaping.

  “Yes. Not our usual thing, I will admit. Most people want the treatment, not the test subject result. But in this case, the client has a particular fetish. He’s quite the scuba diver and snorkeler enthusiast. Don’t worry. He’s got a private lake that he’s had equipped with an underwater palace fit for a mermaid princess.”

  “You can’t be fucking serious. She’s not a whore for you to sell.”

  “Then what do you suggest I do?” Chimera turned a cold stare on him. “I can’t set her free. She knows too much. Not to mention she took something she shouldn’t have. Should we kill her?”

  “No.” The word burst out of him. “Give her to me.”

  “Give her to you?” Chimera chuckled. “Now you’re just being foolish. I know you’ve had some fun with her, but she’s a woman, like any other.”

  Actually, she wasn’t. “I’ll buy her.”

  “You don’t have enough money. And besides, where would you keep her? How?”

  “You can’t do this.”

  “Can’t? Actually, I can do whatever I like.” Chimera’s tone turned cold. “Or have you forgotten who you’re talking to?”

  “Being able to do something doesn’t mean you should. Selling her, it’s wrong.” Never mind the fact he wouldn’t have said a word if it were anyone else but Red.

  “Don’t tell me you’ve grown a conscience and feelings at this point of the game.”

  Yes. But admitting it aloud wouldn’t serve him well. “Of course not.”

  “Good. Because I’d hate to have to change our working arrangement.” And by change, he knew Chimera meant a sedative and a trip to the basement to become part of the project group.

  There was no quitting Chimaeram Clinic. He should know since he often was the one who dealt with those who had a change of heart. So what did that leave?

  He could kill Chimera right now. Bare hands around his throat. Take him to the ground and stomp on his chest until he crushed his heart.

  But killing Chimera wouldn’t fix Becky. It wouldn’t give Jett a chance to make other plans. To figure out a way to save her.

  He needed more time.

  “You’re the boss. You want to sell her, then that’s your business.”

  “Glad to hear it because, for the next little while, your only task is to guard the mermaid until we can make arrangements to have her moved into the client’s possession.”

  “How long until that happens?”

  “Given the buyer’s eagerness? A few days at the most.”

  Which didn’t buy Jett much time. Doubtful a cure could be found that quickly. But he’d toss her back in the lake before he let Chimera sell her.

  Don’t worry, Red. I won’t let anyone take you.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  What a strange dream. Becky imagined she’d turned into a mermaid and was stuck in a lake. Then Jett came along, but instead of saving her, he shot her!

  So silly. She rolled over and hit something hard. Come to think of it, under her was hard too.

  What happened to my bed?

  Her eyes fluttered open underwater, and she stared. Mostly because she didn’t dare blink.

  In that moment, she realized it wasn’t a dream. Her nightmare had come true. I’m a fish.

  And Jett had tranquilized her. But perhaps not for nefarious reason.

  The lake was gone, and she appeared to be in some kind of tank. A large one, but it didn’t take long for her to realize it was a prison. Glass surrounded her on three sides, the fourth appeared to be a solid wall—that could have used a landscape image. Didn’t all aquariums have one?

  From the bottom of the tank, in two of the corners, bubbles rose to the surface and popped. She shoved herself away from the bottom and discovered she could surface.

  Like a fish out of water, she gasped and choked when she popped her head into the air that acted as an impenetrable buffer between her and the ladder out of this tank.

  Returning to the water, she glared at the freedom that mocked her. There was no point in putting a lid on the tank since she couldn’t leave the water.

  Pressing her hands on the glass front, she focused outward. Computers with monitors displaying stats on a long counter. Stats about her she’d wager. An island with beakers and vials. More medical equipment. She found herself in a lab. A research lab with her as the rat in a cage.

  She’d exchanged one sentence for another.

  I only wanted to live.

  A red blink caught her attention, and she glanced upward to find a camera watching. Spying on her.

  Rage filled her at yet another sign that she had lost her freedom. But this at least she could do something about.

  She dipped down then shot up, flinging water at the camera again and again until she heard a sizzle and the light went out with a pop. The faint line of smoke made her smile.

  Not for long. Depressed and unable to find a happy spin on things, she sank to the bottom.

  Motion from the corner of her eye brought her attention to the man entering the lab.

  Jett. Looking as fierce as ever.

  He approached the glass and pressed his hand against it. For a moment, she was tempted to greet him as well. Almost accepted the apology in his face.

  But he’d shot her.

  Shot. Me.

  She turned her back on him.

  “Don’t do that.” She could hear him despite the glass. “I thought I was helping you.”

  The snort emerged as a series of bubbles.

  “I had to get you out of there. There’re things in that lake. Bad things…”

  She whirled in the water, her hair swirling around her in a cloud. The fabric of her shirt clung and billowed at the same time, but she might as well have been naked since it did nothing to hide her form.

  Since she couldn’t reply, she scowled and shook her head before crossing her arms.

  “I get it you’re pissed. And not just because I tranqed you. I should have been there for you.”

  His being around wouldn’t have changed the outcome. She would have taken the serum no matter what.

  “I know the situation doesn’t seem good. And you’re right. It’s not. Fucking Chimera lied to me.”

  She arched a brow.

  “Yeah, I shouldn’t be surprised. But…” He looked so downcast, his shoulders slumped. “I had to do something to help you. I couldn’t let you live like this.”

  Being a mermaid wasn’t ideal by any means. But so long as she lived, she had a chance.

  “I should have left you in that lake until I had a better plan. Fuck, I still might put you back there rather than let Chimera go through with his plan to sell you.”

  Her mouth opened into a round O. The word “What?” emerged as bubbles and noise.

  “He thinks I’m okay with his plan.” His expression darkened. “Like fuck am I letting him sell you off. I’ll shoot him first.”

  For some reason that made her smile. Becky approached the glass and touched it. His hand met hers. G
lass might separate them, but she still felt the same about him, and it seemed he cared, too.

  “I don’t know what to do.” He scrubbed a hand over his bristled jaw. “I don’t know where to go. But I promise, I won’t let anyone take you, Red.”

  She tapped the glass and rose to the surface. Grabbed hold of the lip and hoisted herself out of the water. The air in the lab hit her wet skin, and she gasped. But she didn’t sink back immediately. She held her breath.

  Jett climbed the stairs on the side of the tank and faced her.

  “Jeezus, Red. What a mess we’re in.”

  She liked the use of we. She beckoned him closer. He drew near, near enough that she could press her mouth to his. Cold lips meeting hot ones. A kiss to remind them both she was alive. And so long as she lived, there was a chance. A chance to get out of this mess.

  He broke the kiss first. “Get back under there before you pass out from lack of air,” he admonished.

  She popped down, a quick inhale, and then up again, demanding another kiss. And he was weak. Weak when it came to her, which made her strong.

  There had to be a way they could still be together.

  Up and down she went, a quick breath of water, then up for another kiss.

  Again. And again. Until he finally groaned.

  “Enough.”

  She popped under water and cocked her head, mouthing, “Why?”

  “Because I want you.”

  She spread her arms in invitation.

  Frustration marred his expression. “If only we could. But it’s impossible.”

  A lifted brow was her reply.

  “Fuck it.”

  He stripped, his clothes hitting the floor, until he was naked, but he didn’t join her right away. First, he grabbed a stool. He slid it in the tank before getting in with her.

  She wondered at it until he stood on it, the height enough to keep his head above water without having to swim.

  But a fascinating prospect for her since that made his body so accessible.

  He grabbed hold of her and brought her close for a skin-to-skin kiss. Sinking under water partway through it, his mouth meshed with hers, his skin scorching against her chillier flesh.