Merman's Forever

by Dee J. Stone

  “Shh, keep your voice down. Do you see anything about foods or remedies that can cure diseases?”

  Her fingers brush over some more spines. “Nope. But there is something here about ancient legal methods. Hey, that might be cool.” She takes out the book and her eyes widen when she opens the flap. “Holy crap. I’m not paying two hundred bucks for this!”

  Her voice must have been too high, because the owner and elderly couple stare at us.

  Leah laughs lightly as she puts the book back in place.

  We continue browsing and find a lot of cool things, but nothing about healing plants.

  “Hello, my name is Wes. Is there anything I can help you with, ladies?”

  I look up from the book I’ve been leafing through and find the owner standing before us. I carefully shut the book and put it back. “Yeah, do you have any books about healing plants?”

  “Sure. I’ve got a big collection of books on healing herbs from all over the world,” he says, leading us toward a shelf a few feet away. “Hundreds of years ago, there was no modern medicine and people discovered plants that could cure all different ailments. Many people in distant countries still use them today.”

  He removes three books from the shelf and hands one to me.

  I know this isn’t what we’re looking for, but I leaf through it. The stuff inside this are fascinating, but there’s nothing here about the Orja plant.

  Leah and I check the others, but find nothing.

  “No?” Wes asks. “What exactly are you looking for?”

  Leah and I exchange a glance.

  “Um…I heard a myth about a rare plant,” I say, “one that grows in the ocean and on land. Both are needed to heal someone with an incurable disease.”

  Wes’s face fills with surprise. “Where have you heard this?”

  I shrug. I’m definitely not going to tell him I learned this from my merman fiancé.

  “All right. But without details about this plant, its origin, how it looks, I’m afraid it’s like searching for a needle in a haystack.”

  I can’t tell him the name of the plant because I don’t want to put the merpeople at risk. “It’s said to restore a bond of lovers,” I say.

  His eyebrows shoot up. “I don’t think I’ve heard of anything like that.”

  “Are you sure?” Leah asks. “Can’t you look through your database or something?”

  He shakes his head. “I have written down the name of books, not what’s inside them.”

  There goes all the hope. “Thanks, anyway,” I say.

  “Wait,” Leah says. “There has to be something here. Have you ever gotten a book about healing plants?”

  “Of course—”

  “No, I don’t mean your typical healing herbs that’s supposed to get rid of bad spirits. I mean, something mystical and magical. Something so rare that no one knows it actually exists.”

  Wes holds up his hands. “Young lady—”

  “No, I won’t take no for an answer. You’ve got to have something here.”

  “Leah, it’s okay,” I say.

  “No, it’s not! I’m not leaving here until my best friend gets the answer she needs. If she doesn’t, I’ll lose all my faith in love. In happily ever afters. My heart has been smashed to a million bits and I have no idea if I can paste it back together again. I won’t let the same thing happen to my best friend. So go to your computer and find us what we need.”

  I just gape at her, my mouth probably sweeping the floor. Her chest heaves and her eyes have a determination I have never seen before on her.

  Wes takes a step back, his palms upward. “Look, girl, these are just books. Most of them are myths and fibs.”

  I move forward. “What are you saying?”

  “People love to hope in mystical and magical objects, but do you honestly think they exist? Some people are just so gullible, they’d believe anything.”

  Leah folds her arms over her chest. “So you’re taking advantage of your customers.”

  “No. I am a father of four trying to make a living.”

  Leah throws her hands up. “This is just great. Couldn’t you have told us this before we drove two hours to get here?”

  Wes looks guilty. “I apologize, really. But you’re welcome to have any book I have. On the house.”

  “No, thanks,” I say. I just want to get out of here.

  Leah narrows her eyes. “It’s not right what you do. Some people are looking for real answers.”

  “Then I suggest you find more realistic means to get what you need,” he says, his eyes flicking to me. “I don’t know if it’s you or someone else who has this incurable disease, but I suggest you take your head out of whatever fantasy world you’re in and come back to reality. If you or a loved one really is as sick as you claim, cherish the time you have together and stop going on useless quests.”

  I move forward again until I’m only a few inches away from him. “You have no idea what you’re talking about. And I’ll never give up on the man I love.” I grab Leah’s arm. “Let’s get out of here.”

  When the door slams behind me, I say, “Can you believe that? He’s a fake. All those customers who come to him and spend hundreds of dollars on useless books.”

  “They’re not all that useless, though. Some are very informative and historical.”

  I shake my head. “It was our mistake for putting so much faith into this.” I open the passenger door. “We can’t expect anyone to know anything about this. We’ll just have to—”

  “Hey, wait up!” someone calls.

  Leah and I turn around and see a girl about twelve years old sprinting toward us. “I know about the plant you’re looking for.”

  “What?” I ask.

  “I’ve grown up with this stuff. My dad doesn’t believe in any of the mystical things. He just likes collecting books about them so he can sell them and make money. But I know a lot of the stuff really exists.”

  Is this girl toying with us?

  “The plant you’re looking for is called the Orjalion White Heart because it only reveals itself to a person who has a true heart and only wants to use it for good and not take advantage of it. It grows on land and in the ocean. But the one in the ocean is pretty useless because there’s no way we can get to it.”

  I beg to differ.

  “I’m telling you the truth, guys!”

  “Wait, where did you even come from?” Leah asks.

  “I was in the back of the store. Most of my dad’s customers are so boring, always asking about things like ways to make themselves look prettier or get richer. But you’re the only ones who’ve actually asked about something real.” Her eyes soften at me. “Who’s sick? Your boyfriend?”

  I swallow hard. “Fiancé. Well, me, too.”

  “The Orjalion White Heart will work on you.”

  “How are you so sure?” I ask.

  She holds her head up high. “I’m good at researching. They used to grow the plants in the late 1800s. It cured diseases and plagues, and even helped women with difficult births have healthy babies. But the plants eventually died. They couldn’t live that long.”

  “Another bust,” I say, my heart sinking.

  She shakes her head vehemently. “No, there are still some around, but they’re kept hidden. I know where you can find some.” She pulls a crumpled piece of paper and pen out of her pocket and scribbles something down. “That’s the address.”

  I take it from her. “All the way in California?”

  She nods.

  “Are you messing with us?” Leah asks.

  “I swear I’m not.”

  “Why are you helping us?”

  Her gaze lowers to the ground. She kicks her shoe on the floor. “My mom died when I was four. If I would have known about the plant, I could have saved her.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” I say.

  “She had an incurable disease, too. I know the Orjalion White Heart would have worked on her.” She straightens
up. “You guys need to go there and check it out.”

  “Thanks, we will,” I say.

  She waves and runs off.

  Leah looks at me. I look at her. “What do you think?” she asks.

  “I have no idea.”

  “Kid look pretty determined. I bet she’d wager her whole allowance on the plant actually existing.”

  “Yeah, all the way in California,” I say. “We’ll need to take a plane. But I can’t have you miss work.”

  She waves her hand. “Because my job of serving liquefied fruit to people is so important.” She rolls her eyes. “What about you? Your students are counting on you.”

  I look away. “As much as it pains me to say this, Damarian is more important.”

  She nods. “Then let’s buy tickets for the next flight to California.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Leah and I are at the gate waiting to board our plane.

  “I just wish I had time to tell Fiske about our plans so he could relay the message to Damarian,” I say.

  “Maybe it’s better this way.” Leah squeezes her small bag to her chest. We both packed light, since we didn’t really have time. “In case this is another bust, you don’t want him to get too hopeful.”

  “You’re right.” I lean back in my seat and sigh. “Are we pathetic? Following the words of a twelve-year-old girl.”

  “I thought she looked more like thirteen.”

  I give her a look.

  “Maybe we are nuts. But she did have a determined and intense look in her eyes. She really believes that plant exists.”

  “Just because she believes it exists, doesn’t mean it does. I just hope we’re not wasting time. I don’t know how long Damarian and I have until the bond is completely severed.” I blink away tears.

  “Do you feel him at all?” Leah asks.

  I shake my head. “And I’m finding it hard to like…remember what it was like when I was able to hold him in my arms. When I was able to get lost in his beautiful eyes. When I felt his lips against mine.” I touch my lips, feeling how cold and empty they are.

  Leah pats my back. “This trip won’t be a bust. I’m sure of it.”

  I touch my bracelet. I don’t feel him, but it comforts me to know that at this moment, he could be touching his own bracelet and thinking of me. I wonder if he found the Orja plant, if it revealed itself to him. For all I know, it may be too late and the plant refused to help him.

  My phone rings. “My mom,” I tell Leah. “How does she know I’m up to something? It’s like she has a superpower.”

  “You’ll have to answer your phone eventually, or she’ll call the cops.”

  “Maybe.” I slip my phone back in my pocket. “But not right now.”

  A few minutes later, Uncle Jim calls.

  “Great, she’s sending reinforcements.”

  Leah scans the screen. “Maybe now would be a good time to take one of their calls.”

  “But what will I tell my mom? That I’m flying across the country to seek a plant a twelve-year-old girl told me about? She’d call the airline’s security and demand they hold the plane until she got there so she could drag me off herself.”

  “Cassie, give her some credit. She’s been taking this whole mermaid thing very well. I’m sure she’d understand.”

  I don’t know if she’ll understand, but she’ll definitely worry. And I hate making her worry. But it suddenly dawns on me that avoiding her calls is doing just that. I press the answer button. “Hey, Uncle Jim.”

  “She’s alive.”

  I laugh lightly.

  “So what is going on? Your mom called me all frantic. She’s acting as though you were abducted.”

  “Can you tell her not to worry? I can’t speak to her right now, but just tell her that I’m fine. I’m with Leah and we’re um…” I glance at her for help.

  “Taking a small break from life.”

  “Taking a small break from life,” I say, then give her a what-did-you-make-me-say? look.

  Uncle Jim is quiet for a bit. “Taking a break from life? Cassie, your wedding is next week. You have time to take a break from life on your honeymoon.”

  My wedding. Next week? Tears blur my vision. I don’t think there’s going to be a wedding.

  Leah takes the phone from me. “Leah here. Cassie’s been really stressed about getting married. You know how it is, promising yourself to someone forever, all the preparations…it can take a real toll on a girl’s emotions.”

  I don’t know what Uncle Jim says, but Leah smiles.

  “Yes, and we need to make sure Cassie is emotionally healthy for the wedding. So don’t worry, by the time I’m done with her, she’ll be the perfect bride.” She grins widely. “All right. Bye!”

  She hangs up and hands me the phone, the grin still on her face.

  “What on Earth did you just do?” I ask.

  “It works on my dad all the time. Just tell the guy you’re feeling emotional, and they get all bent out of shape. And to be honest, nothing I said was a lie. You are an emotional wreck and when I help you find the plant, you will once again be bonded to Damarian and you will be the perfect bride.”

  I lean back in my seat again and close my eyes, forcing myself to relax. Leah’s right. I’ve been so stressed about the wedding and then about the bond. But I don’t know if I can relax.

  “Cassie, this will be our first time in California. Think of it as a mini vacation.”

  Still with my eyes closed, I shake my head. “We’re not going there to have fun. I can’t lose sight on the mission.”

  “Of course. But it wouldn’t kill you to make the most out of a sucky situation.”

  I open my eyes and nod. Once again, she’s right. Being in a sour mood won’t slow the severing of the bond or restore it. I need to go with a positive mind and hope for the best.

  ***

  “Are you sure this is the place?” Leah asks the cab driver.

  He throws her an annoyed look. “How many times do I have tell you that this is the right place?”

  We’re parked before a huge house in a very wealthy part of LA. I don’t know what Leah and I were expecting, but not this. I suspected the address the girl gave us was a private home, but such a rich one?

  “Don’t lose hope,” Leah whispers to me. She turns to the driver. “Wait here.” She opens the door and gets out, and I follow.

  “I’m trying to be positive,” I say, “but I’m starting to think the girl was just screwing with us.” We’ve wasted money and emotions, but mostly importantly, we’ve wasted time.

  “Well, here goes nothing.” Leah stabs her finger into the bell.

  I hear it echo throughout the house and that makes my heart race. Please, please let us find the answers we need.

  “Hmm, maybe no one’s home,” Leah says.

  I hug my upper arms. Once again, we’re back to square one. I can’t even get a message to Damarian because Fiske is waiting for me in the Atlantic Ocean and not the Pacific. And it’s not like I can communicate with other sea mammals or fish to get him the message.

  “So…how about some California pizza?” Leah asks, pasting on a smile.

  I know she’s trying to lighten the mood and make me feel better, but I feel so helpless and lost.

  Just as we turn to leave, the door to the house opens and a woman in her mid-twenties appears. “Can I help you?”

  “Oh, good you’re home,” Leah says.

  The woman’s eyebrows crinkle. “Do I know you?”

  “Oh, no. I’m just glad we didn’t come all this way for nothing.”

  She looks even more confused.

  “What my friend means,” I say, “is that we’re looking for information.”

  “Yes, about what?”

  I glance at Leah, once again not sure what to say. She gives me a reassuring nod. I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Do you know anything about a special plant that has healing powers?”

  She looks at me like I�
��ve lost my mind. I don’t blame her. Perhaps I should have spent the five-hour flight formulating a plan.

  “I’m not a botanist,” she says. “I think you’re at the wrong address.”

  “No, of course you’re not,” Leah quickly says. “Um, the plant was grown in the late 1800s and most of them died out. But there are some hidden around. Do you, er, know anything about this?”

  This is too humiliating. We seriously should have thought this through. I mean, this woman lives in a beautiful house in a super wealthy neighborhood. I highly doubt she’s harboring a long-lost plant.

  “Honey, what’s going on?” The door widens and a man comes into view. “Is everything okay?”

  The woman shakes her head, giving us a polite but semi-scared look. “These girls are looking for…sorry, I don’t really understand what you’re looking for.”

  I tug on Leah’s arm. “Let’s get out of here. This is stupid.”

  “No, please don’t leave,” the man says. “Are you sure we can’t help you?”

  I shake my head, fighting the wave of helplessness that’s about to crush me.

  “You don’t by any chance know of a plant with healing powers, do you?” Leah asks, ignoring me as I continue tugging on her arm. “We came all this way from Florida. Do you know anything about it?”

  The man shakes his head. “I’m sorry—”

  “Are you sure? Look, if you’re keeping it a secret, I get it. But you’ve got to help us. This is a matter of life and death.”

  Okay, maybe she’s being overdramatic, but if I’m no longer bonded to Damarian, it would certainly feel like death.

  The man raises his hands, giving her an apologetic look. “I’m sorry. I have no idea what you’re talking about. My family is in real estate, not plants.”

  I tug on Leah’s arm once more. “I want to leave.” I face the man and woman. “Sorry for bothering you. Leah, come on.”

  She finally lets me pull her away and down the stairs. “I don’t want to fail you, Cassie,” she says.

  “Just because I may lose love, doesn’t mean you can’t achieve it. Don’t base your life on mine, Leah.”