As I swam toward the fighting sprites, the shell remained safely gripped in my right hand, nestled against my body. My left hand led the way, palms facing out, trying to pinpoint a Tracker to blast. My mind boggled at making sure I didn’t send a current at a Guardian. It was nearly impossible to tell the sides apart. It wasn’t like the Guardians wore blue and red distinguished the Trackers.
The hesitation I felt continued as I stopped at the outskirts of the battle. The clinking of swords, the wrestling of bodies, and the firing of nets muffled my thoughts. One body fell lifeless—then another—the attacker moving on to the next fight.
I recognized a sprite I’d seen from the frontlines of our army before I left for the fountain. I quickly sent a current at the Tracker he challenged.
My focus shifted to another I recognized, then another.
I strained to pull all the faces of the Guardian army from my memory. I spotted one more and launched a current at the Tracker he was warring, immobilizing the Tracker and allowing the Guardian to easily attack.
Then, I saw him. I didn’t know how I was able to pick him out in the chaos before me. Or how at that exact moment he also turned his head toward mine. But my eyes latched onto Adrian’s from across the battlefield.
He gave me a suggestive look, something that sparked another memory inside: of that night we saw the play together. It reminded me how the boy used the shell to save the encantado from the onslaught of Trackers.
Without hesitation, I brushed my fingers over the outside of the shell at my side. I knew what I had to do.
As I raised it to my lips, I kept my eyes trained on the person I’d grown to trust most. Adrian’s focus remained steady on my face, willing me to send a current from the shell.
I took a deep breath, prepared to release it, and was hit in my ribs. My breath ripped from my lungs, knocking the shell from my grasp and twisting my body within the water.
The spear that was meant for my head never reached its destination. Instead, it grazed the underbelly of the selkie who had risked his life for my own.
In a heartbeat, I sucked in a fresh breath of air. More times than I’d like to admit, I froze at the sight of danger. Now, I demanded for myself to lunge for the sinking shell. My hands found it, bringing it back to my mouth without a second of delay. In one fluid motion, I rolled onto my back to bring the panoramic view of the war into sight and blew with all the air I had recovered.
I felt the air as it left my lungs, filling the shell and breaking through the other side. The roaring sound cut through the battle like a runaway train unable to stop. Swords halted in their tracks. Heads snapped toward me. Fists paused in mid water.
But more importantly, the intensity of the current whisked each and every Tracker away from the battlefield. Not a single one was left behind. It was as if a huge net came down from the surface of the water to entrap all the malevolent sprites, allowing the Guardians to slip through the holes. A school of Trackers, tightly bound together, quickly disappeared into the distance until they became a small dot then nothing at all.
As I looked out over the army of Guardians that remained, they slowly broke free from the trance of my current. Each collected himself then turned to help the sprite beside him.
My gaze then fell on the selkie who lay on his back atop the sand. His eyes closed, a slight trail of blood spilling from his gray belly.
He had saved my life. The lives of all these sprites. I reached for him to check if he was also still alive. His eyes blinked open at the tentative touch of my hand near his wound.
The gold flecks within the brown of his round eyes bore into my soul, sending a lump into my throat.
My mind jolted back to the first time he laid those eyes on me, outside of Jillian’s locker.
I dropped my hand to the side of his head, the feel of his whiskers tickling the underside of my hand.
“You saved me…”
I felt the resistance, him pushing deeper into my palm. His eyes closed once more.
It sent a jabbing pain into my stomach. “No, no, no. You’re okay. Blake, please be okay.”
This time he blinked and offered a slight, reassuring nod.
I glanced down again at the tear across his belly from the spear, examining his wound.
Another brush of his head brought my attention back to his face. He pushed again, harder this time. His eyes broke from mine and pointed toward the remnants of our battlefield.
Turning, I followed his gaze. Mine fell upon the sprites sprinkled at varying points throughout the water. Then, at the outskirts of my spectrum of light, I saw that a small circle of sprites had formed.
Blake nudged me again.
It was my turn to be in a trance as I moved away from him and toward the group.
I didn’t allow myself to accept what they hid within their ring of stares. In my heart, I knew it wasn’t what they surrounded, but who. With complete numbness, I inched closer. Muffled voices traveled through the water to assault my ears as I neared.
“He was looking at her.”
“…didn’t see it coming.”
My pace didn’t slow as I brushed past two shoulders into the circle, unable to utter a single word.
A few gasps filled the water at once at their sudden awareness of my presence. The lone Guardian next to his lifeless body slowly backed away to join the perimeter.
Over the past ten days, Adrian changed my life time and time again. He made me laugh. He made me unsure. He made me question my purpose in life. He made me who I was.
The person I was in that very moment:
Someone who was hopeless.
A sword had pierced Adrian’s side in the single fatal spot his armor left unguarded. It now laid aside his pale face—a face that was so full of life and love when I turned my back on him just yesterday.
I internally cursed the emblem on his chest and the protection from sickness and injury it represented. The anger and grief that built inside of me wasn’t like anything I’d felt before. I fell until I rested on my knees in the water darkened by the crimson red of his blood. My forehead sunk to his shoulder, my hair cascading over his face and body. My hands found their way to his chest; the feel of the cool metal radiated into my skin. I didn’t need to see the Guardians to know they were unable to break their gaze from us.
No other words could be heard except for mine.
“Adrian, please. I need you…”
My lips quivered as I breathed in the saltwater, the taste of it leaving a metallic flavor in my mouth.
“Come back to me. I’ll do anything, just come back to me. Adrian… come back.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
The feelings of desperation spread warmth throughout my body. Still, I felt completely empty inside except for the burning sensation that my heart pumped into my veins. The heat flushed my cheeks and scorched my hands, warming Adrian’s armor beneath my skin.
“Adrian… don’t die. Please come back to me.”
Movement shook my body and I tightened my grip on his chest. I wouldn’t let them pull us apart.
I heard the gasps of the surrounding circle as they looked upon us. A hand touched my shoulder, the fingers pressing into my back. Without looking, I rocked my shoulder as a not so subtle hint to get the hell off.
It still remained, this time with a slight squeeze.
In a fit of anger, my head shot up from Adrian’s shoulder to verbally abuse the person trying to tear me away and the hand that was on my shoulder slipped off, landing abruptly across Adrian’s stomach.
Then Adrian lifted his arm again, moving it toward me. This time, he also opened his eyes a sliver.
“Annabelle…”
It was the first word he’d ever spoken to me. Just a few days ago it sounded so strong and now he barely whispered.
Still, the sound of his fragile voice filled me with hope—the hope I thought I’d never regain. The feeling was almost more numbing than when I thought I had lost him.
“My Belles.”
I closed my eyes at the repeat sound of his voice; unable to form a thought that represented the ecstasy of hearing him speak my name. It wasn’t possible.
Instead, I simply said, “You’re alive.”
Soft laugher slipped from his lips then turned into a rough cough.
I jolted from his reaction and moved my hands frantically over his chest, not knowing what to do.
“No, no, no. Annabelle, I’m okay.” This time his lips curled into a smile. “Your words just were just so matter of fact. Caught me off guard.”
I was in awe of his recovery and that he was able to say that with a steady voice. “You’re really okay…”
“I am.” His arm reached to brush my arm. “Thanks to you and Arethusa.”
I cocked my head to the side. “What do you mean?”
“Your affinity from earth is from her. You saved me, brought me back to life, because of your healing powers. I could feel your warmth seep into my body. You spread your life into me, Belles.”
My head dropped once more to his chest as I sobbed, but this time from happiness. I stayed like that for a moment, feeling his heartbeat thumping even through his armor.
When I raised my head, a new question had formed. But first, I turned toward the circle of onlookers. A few were startled, lost in the moment. Then, with arms over shoulders and hands on backs, they coerced each other to give us privacy
We were left alone.
“You knew didn’t you?
His brow rose while he tried to sit up. “Now I’m the one who’s confused.”
I gently pushed him back down against the sand, not yet ready for him to move.
“You knew whoever sent that note was trying to get me as far away from the lake as possible.”
“I had a feeling.”
“But why would you risk the future of your kind for me?”
“I already told you why.”
I stared at him, the answer written all over his face.
“Will you tell me again?”
He paused, not from hesitation, but to make the moment last. “I love you, Belles. Before I even met you, I loved you.”
There wasn’t time for either of our smiles to fully build before I dropped my lips to his. Passion fueled our kiss. I no longer saw him as fragile. My fingers wound into his hair as I memorized the shape of his mouth.
He turned his head, breaking our kiss. “Um, does that mean you love—”
“Faith, hope, and love. The most important being the love for another, my love for you.”
NINE MONTHS LATER
So much happened since that kiss.
One of which was my promise to Adrian that I’d return. I needed to go home, to pretend I was a little girl as I ran into my parent’s arms.
Of course, my parents refused to let me go back to the sea, but I had no choice. My story had to be told. It already had spread from mouth to mouth, from sprite to sprite.
Humans never the wiser.
Sometimes the tale was blown out of proportion, although I wasn’t sure how it was possible. Even after all this time, my mind was still in shock
Of course, the pregnancy rumors were false. Also that I took down Alastor. I was sure the great legend of fulfilling the ABA prophecy would one day become a lofty folklore told as a bedtime story.
Thing was, I hadn’t yet spoken my own version of the tale. The ones I was required to tell—by law. So I returned to the Lake of Elfin for my story to be told in complete detail and one hundred percent the truth.
The King of Elfin Lake insisted I tell him everything, not leaving a single thing out. He instructed me to share even my most personal thoughts. Still, there was a limit to how much I told him. I kept some things solely to myself.
As I spoke, I outlined our strategies, the paths we took, the dangers we faced, the conversations that were held, the details I learned, and even the rationale behind some of our more questionable decisions.
Each word painted a picture in my mind, pulling from my memory. The King listened intently, not stopping me once, but sometimes staring off into space, other times getting lost in the moment, and often raising a hand whenever anyone else threatened to speak.
It was nerve wracking sitting amongst the fae, waiting to hear his ruling of my fate.
In the end, I accomplished what I came for: I fulfilled his wishes. He now knew how I fulfilled the ABA prophecy. I’d apologized to his son and Lady Katherine. I even gave a half-assed apology to that jerk, Robert.
With a steady hand on my back, the King pardoned me and sent me on my way, even offering a place of refuge in their town if I wanted to return.
Adrian felt horrible I had to go through this ordeal.
“Just do it, get it over with. Like ripping off a Band-Aid,” he had said.
I had to laugh each and every time at the use of his “human jargon.”
Well, the Band-Aid had been ripped.
Then the real fun started. Tritonis welcomed me back, the glowing corals showcasing a grand parade.
The Tritons had been celebrating since the battle between the Guardians and Trackers, but YaYa insisted the real celebration wouldn’t begin until I returned.
Both Clemente and Natasha were honored. My hands clenched together over my heart at the sight of them. I felt such pride for my friends, for all they accomplished. I knew fulfilling this prophecy meant a lot to them, each for different reasons.
The lost were honored too. The names of Shamus and the Guardians who didn’t make it past the battlefield ended with a moment of silence amongst the crowd.
Their families graciously accepted the honor, with tears behind their eyes, knowing that their loved ones’ lives weren’t lost in vain.
A tighter leash could now be placed around the Trackers. The Elders of Tritonis even struck up discussions on ways to bring down Alastor once and for all.
He was seen as a coward, not even standing behind his army during the battle, but one of those generals who chose to stand on the sidelines and watch. Still, he was also seen as a dangerous tyrant who wouldn’t accept this defeat.
The Elders sat me down to discuss our next steps and how we were going to disband the Tracker army. I politely declined. I had other things in mind for my future.
And here I was, living those dreams. I closed my eyes and slightly shook my head at my memories from nine months ago. Now each moment replayed in my head from the comfort of my dorm room bed. Actually discomfort of my dorm room bed.
I didn’t care though.
I welcomed the too narrow, lumpy mattress at UCLA. For a while, I wanted to be as normal as possible (at least during the day).
I went to every class of my pre-med schedule, soaking in as much as I could. Adrian joked that I didn’t need to learn how to save people, and that I already knew how, but I was insistent that I needed to go to school.
At night, I welcomed the abnormal. I’d slip into the depths of the LA River. In the marina, Adrian waited for me. As much as I loved the normalcy of being a college student, the time Adrian and I spent together was my favorite part of the day.
With YaYa’s blessing, Adrian convinced her to build a small colony along the west coast. When I wasn’t in the dorms, it became my home away from home.
I was in awe of his sense of humor and bravery. The only thing… he had yet to meet my parents. They were still coming to terms with the fact that I wasn’t quite human. I figured I’d give them a little more time before dropping the merman boyfriend on them. Although just imagining my mom’s reaction to the news brought a little added joy to my day.
As I stared at the ceiling from my bed, I heard a knock at my dorm room door. I figured my roommate had forgotten her key, again. Lady Katherine, or simply Katie to me, was still trying to get the hang of things above water.
At the sound of the repeated knock, I jumped up and laid down my textbook.
Clearly, my daydreams couldn’t be classified as studying.
While
I pranced over to the door, I playfully rolled my eyes. But once I lazily pulled the door open, the person who stood on the other side shocked me. Needless to say, it wasn’t Katie.
In fact, I hadn’t seen him in a long time, nine months to be exact. The last time I did, he had saved my life. Then he alerted me that Adrian needed my help.
Blake.
Just the sight of him brought a rush of feelings to the forefront of my mind.
The last I even uttered his name was when I recounted things for the King of Elfin Lake. Otherwise, I tried not to think of him. It was just easier that way.
Things with Adrian were going great. That was all that mattered.
With one hand on my hip, I asked the obvious question.
“What are you doing here?”
“Um, I go here.”
“What?”
“Yes, Belles. We were both accepted. Remember?”
“But—”
“But you thought I wasn’t going to come after… everything that happened.”
I nodded.
“Didn’t Prince Adrian tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
“I’m one of them now. A Guardian.”
“No. No, he didn’t tell me that.” One thing was for sure, Adrian was going to have some explaining to do later.
After a slight pause and a confident look, Blake continued, “Makes sense, I guess.”
“What does?”
“That he didn’t tell you.”
“And why is that?”
“Looks like Prince Adrian is afraid of a little competition.”
With a shrug, he gave me that oh-so-sexy grin I first fell in love with, turned, and walked away—leaving me speechless.
###
ANNABELLE’S STORY
Sprite
Kin
Fate
Fate (Annabelle’s Story Parting Words) is sold in Annabelle’s Story (The Collection) and also as part of Furthermore: An Anthology—where all proceeds go to further more cancer research.
Kin (Annabelle's Story Part Two) Page 15