by S. E. Smith
“This is Gabe,” he said after he connected the call.
“How is Magna this morning?” Kane demanded, not bothering with a welcome greeting either.
“She’s fine,” Gabe absently replied.
He grinned when he saw another ‘sea dragon’ made of water jump out in front of the trawler. Shaking his head, he couldn’t stop the chuckle that escaped when the water creature did a graceful flip before dissolving. He winced when Kane snapped in his ear again.
“What the hell is so funny? Damn it! Why did Victor have to go on vacation now? What’s going on?” Kane grumbled while Gabe enjoyed the show Magna had created to let him know that she was still near him.
“Calm down, man. She’s fine. Hell, I’d say she is more than fine! You should see what she’s doing! I’m going almost thirteen knots and she is keeping up with me as if I was dead in the water. And the things she can do with the water… Man, this is unbelievable,” he said, watching as another sea dragon jumped over the bow of his boat.
“What are you talking about? Are you saying she is in the water?! I can’t believe you let her go in! I said to take her with you, not let her go for a swim. Damn it, what part of ‘we need to take care of her’ did you not understand? She’s injured, for crying out loud. What if she doesn’t come back? Gabe, I trusted you to keep her safe,” Kane muttered in a lower volume.
“Kane, she’ll come back,” he promised.
“How do you know? What if… Damn it, Gabe, what if she doesn’t?” Kane replied with a loud sigh.
“Because she asked me to kiss her,” Gabe bragged with a grin as he remembered Magna’s body pressed up against his. “A woman doesn’t kiss a man like she kissed me if she plans on leaving.”
“A kiss!” Kane exclaimed in a loud voice.
Gabe grinned when he heard the muted sounds in the background. Kane must be at the local hospital. He was so glad he didn’t have a regular job working around people.
“Are you in a closet? That sounded muffled,” Gabe joked.
“Supply room,” he said in a softer voice. “What else did you do? I knew I should have called out today. Sometimes being a doctor sucks,” Kane groaned.
Gabe chuckled at the dejected sound in Kane’s voice. “It was just a kiss, but it was….” He released a breath as he thought about it.
“Was what? God, Gabe, sometimes you make me want to beat the shit out of you,” Kane retorted.
“Isn’t that against your oath or something?” Gabe teased.
“Was what?” Kane repeated through gritted teeth.
Gabe slowed down as he neared another sensor. “Right,” he replied. “The kiss was just right.”
Kane’s loud breath resonated in his ear. He knew that before Magna’s arrival, his friend had just about given up hope of ever finding someone they could both love. It had taken a long time for Gabe to realize that they were like two halves of a whole. He was the strong, rough oaf to Kane’s compassionate, fun-loving personality. The biggest thing they had in common was neither one really liked to be around other people unless they had to be. Kane had gone into the medical field out of a desire to follow in his father’s footsteps. The death of both of his parents in an airplane crash had had a major impact on Kane.
His own story wasn’t as nice, but he had accepted his shortcomings a long time ago. He couldn’t change the past, so there was no use in dwelling on it. Instead, he moved forward and simply ignored everyone else… everyone, that is, until Kane, and now Magna. He respected and trusted Kane.
His feelings for Magna were more complicated. He hadn’t fully come to terms yet with how he felt about her, but deep down, he knew that Magna was special. It was more than the fact that she was a mermaid or a witch. They were connected in a way he’d never felt with a woman before, and it both fascinated him and scared the shit out of him.
Switching the ignition to off, he grabbed the hook, only to find the sensor rising up over the side of the boat, cupped in a slender funnel of water. He reached out and grabbed it. The moment he touched it, the water swirled back around and disappeared over the side again. He quickly unscrewed the top and opened it up. Downloading the information onto the laptop, he replaced it back into the plastic marker and turned, only to stop when he saw Magna sitting on the side of the boat.
“This is the last one, isn’t it?” she asked, leaning forward as she pulled her knees up so she could rest her chin on them. “I do not sense them anymore.”
“Sense? You knew they were there?” Gabe asked, walking over to where she sat.
Magna straightened and scowled at him. “Of course! Anything that touches the water gives out a signal. Once I knew what they felt like, I could locate them,” she explained, stopping when he ran his fingers along her arm.
“They are soft and smooth,” he murmured, touching the thin scales covering her body.
“I like this form better when I swim,” she replied, brushing her cheek against his hand. “Most of my people do not know magic like I do, so over the centuries, they have taken to wearing clothing made from the ocean’s plants. It does not absorb water and helps protect us. I prefer creating my own.”
“You’re beautiful, Magna.” He stroked the scales on her side, inching upward. She flushed and trembled.
“...You know,” she said, ”my parents are two different species – she from the land, he from the sea…” She met his gaze as she stroked his torso in return, inching downward.
He took in a breath and rumbled “They must have made it work…”
She smiled and bit her lip. “She is a witch,” Magna murmured. “Of course, there was a way.” Her hand slid over the front of his pants and they both surged forward to share a deep kiss that made him forget that they were on a boat off the coast. He lifted her by the waist just enough so that she could wrap her legs around him, then slid one arm under her ass while the other wrapped tightly across her back. Her own arms held him close.
He groaned when she tangled her fingers in his hair, and started to turn them when he felt Magna suddenly stiffen in his arms. Pulling back, he looked down into her distressed face, and carefully lowered her back to the deck.
“Did I hurt you?” he demanded, cautiously touching her shoulder.
“No, don’t you feel it?” she asked, turning to look out at the ocean.
Gabe frowned and shook his head. “No. What do you feel?” he asked, coming to stand behind her.
“It is calling for help,” she whispered. “I have to go.”
Gabe’s hands tightened on Magna’s hips when she tried to take a step toward the side of the boat. His eyes scanned the horizon. He didn’t see anything, but he had no doubt that she could sense more than he could. Her body was taut with tension and her skin rippled with color.
“Be careful,” he finally said, releasing her and stepping back. “I’ll follow you.”
He watched as Magna climbed up onto the side of the boat and gracefully dove into the water. Grabbing the sensor, he tossed it overboard again before hurrying to the bridge. Starting the engine, he pressed the throttle forward and made a wide turn back the way they had come. Even with the engines at the max, he could see that Magna was outdistancing him as the jumping sea dragons grew smaller and smaller in the distance.
A hoarse curse escaped him when they disappeared altogether from his sight. He pulled the throttle back until the boat slowed enough that he could scan the rippling waves. Running his hands through his hair, he stared ahead of him. Except for the one dive boat they had passed earlier, he saw nothing out of the ordinary.
“Kane is going to kill me,” he muttered, pushing the throttle forward again.
Magna slowed until she hung in the ebb and flow of the current just below the surface of the water. She felt it again. It wasn’t far away now. She twisted and kicked out, pulling on the current in the water to propel herself forward. The water shifted around her, pushing her forward at a greater speed than she would have normally been able to swim. It was a
trick that Orion had taught her when they were younger. She had just added a touch of her own magic.
She twisted to a stop, startled when a creature suddenly rose up in front of her. Cursing herself for being foolish and inattentive, she barely avoided hitting it. It was solid black except for the thin shield of clear glass covering its dark eyes. Strange hoses protruded from each side of the shield covering its face and a series of tiny bubbles escaped from one corner of its mouth. Magna stared back at it in fascination for a moment before she heard the distressed cry again. Turning, she swam away toward it.
Her heart thundered several minutes later when she finally found the source of the distress cries. She studied the massive creatures surrounding it. They reminded her a little of the huge mammals that lived in the oceans of her world, only they were a smaller version. There were ten of them nearby, though there were only three that held her attention. Two of the large creatures were holding up a smaller one. The small one had a net tangled around its fins, back, and tail. The female and her calf were the ones making the distress calls while the others hovered nearby for support.
“It is alright,” Magna said soothingly as she swam closer. “I will help free your little one.”
Magna slowly circled the three creatures. They were a mixture of dark gray on top and light gray, almost white along their stomachs. Frowning, she saw that the net was beginning to cut into the tail section of the infant and without the support of the other two, it would be unable to stay afloat. She tried tugging on the thick cord to loosen it, but it was too tight. She needed something sharp to cut the thick, rope-like material. She cursed herself that she had been using all of her restored energy to play with Gabe. She was stronger, and manipulating water didn’t drain her as much as actually using her magic, but it still used the precious energy she had regained.
She turned in the water, her arms floating outward, and closed her eyes. Her fingers spread wide, searching for the familiar signature of Gabe’s boat. A sigh of relief filled her when she felt the familiar vibration in the water. He wasn’t far.
With a wave of her hand, she propelled a large funnel of water toward the boat. Relief flooded her when the vibrations increased – he had seen her signal. She stretched her hands out in front of her and surfaced so that he could see her. Treading water, her gaze locked with his as he drew closer and shifted the boat into neutral. She swam over to him.
“I need a knife to cut the netting,” she said, glancing up at him when he leaned over the side of the boat. “The infant is trapped in it. We will need to remove the net so that it does not happen to another creature.”
“Here,” Gabe said, pulling the long knife he carried when out on the boat from the sheath at his waist and unfolding it so that it was open. “Damn careless fisherman. I should be able to tell whose it is, if it still has the ID tag on it. They are supposed to notify the Fish and Wildlife if they lose a net.”
“It shouldn’t take long,” Magna replied, wrapping her fingers around the handle.
Gabe nodded, but held onto the knife for a fraction of a second longer. “Just be careful,” he said in a quiet voice. “That water is pretty damn cold, but I’ll come in there after you.”
Magna chuckled and rose up in on a surge of water to press a quick kiss to his lips. Her eyes twinkled with mischief as she let a trickle of the cold water run down the back of his shirt. His softly muttered curse against her lips drew a giggle from her before she sank back down.
“I find it very refreshing,” she teased, before turning to disappear beneath the waves.
“I just bet you do,” Gabe said softly as he watched her swim just below the surface to where the pod of whales hovered protectively around the younger one.
Chapter Twelve
Ross threw his mask and fins up to Nathan before he clumsily climbed up the ladder attached to the side of the boat. The moment he was on the deck, he turned and scanned the area around him. He undid the clasps on his buoyancy compensator, better known as a BC, when he felt Nathan lift the tank behind him.
“You weren’t down very long this last time,” Nathan said in surprise. “Did you find what you were looking for?”
Ross cast an impatient look at Nathan as he shrugged out of the vest. Ripping the hood of his dry suit off, he tossed it onto the pile of other equipment he had handed to Nathan. Refusing to answer, he climbed along the side of the trawler and up to the bow. Standing on the higher platform allowed him to see further.
“Where are the binoculars?” Ross called out over his shoulder.
Nathan disappeared into the bridge before reappearing with a battered black case in his hands. He climbed up and handed the case to Ross before standing beside him in confused silence. Ross yanked the binoculars out of the case and raised them to his eyes.
He saw the familiar shape of Gabe Lightcloud’s boat as he turned in a circle with the binoculars, and was on his second full turn when he caught the spray of a group of whales near Gabe. He muttered a curse under his breath when he realized that they were too far away for him to see what was happening.
Lowering the binoculars, he stood still for a moment before making up his mind. He looked grimly at Nathan, who was staring out at the water trying to figure out what was going on. He grabbed the case that had fallen to the deck and began climbing back down to the lower level.
“Secure the gear,” Ross ordered, unzipping the dry suit and stepping out of it.
“Where are we going? You never did say if you found what you were looking for,” Nathan complained. “Hannibal said I could only use the metal detector for one day. He’s got a job up in Poulsbo so he needs it for tomorrow.”
Ross threw another impatient look at Nathan. “I won’t need it anymore,” he replied in a curt tone. “Now pack up the gear. I don’t want it rolling all over the place.”
“It’s a good thing you’re paying me,” Nathan grumbled under his breath. “I should have asked for more money, though, if you’re going to be bossing me around so much. ‘Nathan, do this. Nathan, do that.’ Man, didn’t your mother ever teach you to ask or say please?”
Ross ignored Nathan’s grumbling and started the engines. He pushed down on the throttle as he made a wide turn. He needed to get closer. Something told him that whatever in the hell he’d seen down there had something to do with Lightcloud. He could feel it in his bones.
The image of the tantalizing female flashed through his memory. There was no doubt in his mind that she wasn’t human. She had appeared out of nowhere. He couldn’t wait to check the underwater camera that had been mounted to the side of his mask. He hoped that it had still been working. Whoever, or whatever, that girl had been, she was real and the key to him getting out of Yachats.
“Get the camera off my mask,” Ross yelled over the sound of the engine.
Nathan sighed and turned back to the locker where he had just stored everything. “You told me to put everything away,” he snapped.
Ross threw Nathan a heated look, then returned his attention to the boat ahead of him. He pulled back on the throttle as they drew closer. He nodded to Nathan when he held out the tiny camera sealed in the clear plastic case. Opening the outer casing, Ross plucked the camera out of it and slid it into his pocket.
This was one thing he didn’t want anyone else to know about, especially Nathan. He knew Nathan would tell his older brother if he even had an inkling of what might be on the camera, and not just his brother. Nathan was one of the town’s loudmouths, especially after a few beers.
“Grab the dock line and put out a couple of bumpers,” Ross ordered. Then as he turned away, he grabbed Nathan’s arm. “Don’t say a word about what I was doing. Now, keep your mouth shut and let me do the talking.”
“Sure, Ross,” Nathan mumbled. “I don’t like Gabe that much. He’s the only guy I know that’s meaner than Hannibal.”
Ross nodded. “Good,” he said before turning his attention to where Gabe Lightcloud stood near the stern of his boat scowling
at them. “Hey, Gabe. Everything okay?”
Gabe watched as Ross Galloway idled toward him. His gaze flickered to the pod of whales before returning to the boat. A wave of impatience, irritation, and fear washed through him. He hoped that Magna realized that they had company and was smart enough to remain hidden from view.
“Ross, what’s up?” Gabe responded, catching the line that Nathan threw at him. “I’m working.”
“Are you counting whales now, Gabe?” Nathan joked before clamping his lips together when Ross cast him a nasty warning look.
“What were you diving for?” Gabe asked, ignoring Nathan.
Ross shrugged and leaned against the side of the boat. “I thought something had caught in the prop,” he replied before looking beyond Gabe to where the whales were hovering. “Unusual for them to just hang out like this,” he observed. “Are they sick?”
Gabe glanced over his shoulder. His mouth tightened at the searching look in Ross’s eyes. The man had a reputation for being hard. He really couldn’t blame him, though. Ross’s father hadn’t been much better than his own. The only thing Ross had in his favor was that his mom had stuck around, something that Gabe’s hadn’t bothered to do.
“I’m waiting for some help,” Gabe lied. “Some asswipe cut his net and left it. The calf is tangled in it.”
Ross’s lips tightened, and he looked away. Gabe narrowed his eyes, and casually turned his head to look at Ross’s empty net.
“Looks like you’re missing one,” Gabe commented as he met Ross’s gaze.
Ross looked back at the winch and shrugged. “It’s at the house. I tore it and needed to repair it before I used it again. I thought I’d check out some new areas while the weather was good,” he said. “So, who’s coming to help you?”
“Ross could do it,” Nathan suddenly said. “He’s got the equipment.”