by Lora Edwards
Chapter 10
The rest of the three-day voyage went by peacefully. Esme was the darling of the crew, and a young sailor named Henry presented her with a doll he had made from bits of soft cotton and rope. Esme had accepted the gift with a wide smile, cradling it in a hug. Pete, a grizzled old salt, catered to the little girl, walking around the ship with Esme, the two of them stopping to speak with each crewman. On the second day of their voyage, the captain slipped into the ocean, allowing his merman form to emerge. Esme sat on the deck, jabbering to her doll, close to where the captain had entered the water. She crawled over to the railing and with a joyous cry, she slipped between the rails, dropping into the ocean.
Her little tail popped out beneath her long cotton dress. In preparation, Delphine had brought along some baby clothes appropriate for the time. The captain quickly swam to the little girl, his heart in his throat. Esme held out her little arms gleefully, crying, “Daddy!”
“Oh, no, little sweetheart.” Captain Zachary gathered her up as she realized he was not her father. Fat tears rolled down chubby cheeks as her face crumpled in despair. “Let’s swim for a bit. My mum used to hold me while she glided through the water. I loved those times, just me and her,” he said around the huge lump in his throat.
Delphine turned just as Esme made her swan dive from the ship’s railing, and she ran over just in time to see the captain gather up the baby. Flynn came rushing up behind her, almost falling over the railing in his haste.
“Why is she crying,” Flynn asked.
“She thought Captain Zachary was her father,” Delphine whispered with tears in her voice. “She wakes in the night, crying out for her mother.”
Flynn stepped closer, gathering her near. “It breaks your heart,” he said softly, resting his cheek on the top of her silky head. “Captain Zachary has calmed her down. Since she has had her swim for today, how about we have an early dinner in your cabin? We dock tomorrow, and it will be a long day for our little girl.”
“Sounds perfect.” She turned and smiled at him. Flynn and Delphine stood at the railing watching as the captain and the child played in the water, Delphine using her singing to dissuade any of the crew from coming to that side of the boat.
“I think this little tyke is getting tired. Are you ready to haul us up?” Captain Zachary asked sometime later. Delphine and Flynn looked down to see that Esme had cuddled up to the captain and was yawning every other minute.
Flynn reached over and untied the little dinghy that was hanging from the side of the boat, releasing it into the water. Captain Zachary placed the sleepy baby in it and Flynn hauled her up.
The captain grabbed a rope hanging off the side of the ship and started the climb out of the ocean, stopping for a moment as the change overcame him.
Delphine reached down and wrapped the baby in a soft blanket. “Let’s get you into some dry clothes. Flynn is going to join us for a nice dinner in our cabin. I bet he has a special story planned for you tonight,” Delphine murmured to Esme as they made their way to their cabin.
“We do enjoy Flynn’s stories, don’t we sweet pea.” Flynn had carried Esme into Delphine’s cabin the night they had found her. He’d sat down and began telling the blanket-wrapped baby a bedtime story in his musical Irish voice. He had sat with Esme cradled in his lap as he entertained both ladies with his stories. Delphine had watched him with Esme, and imagined Flynn with a child of his own in his lap, one that had his eyes and smile, but with hair the color of the sea.
The downtime sailing the ocean had helped Delphine process her feeling for Flynn. She decided she would let nature take its course; if she fell the rest of the way in love with him, that was fine, but if not, that would be fine too. She was done agonizing over her feelings for him. Having made a decision, she felt lighter of heart and mind, and she was now able to enjoy the rest of the journey as something of a vacation.
By the time they reached Calais, Delphine was sad their little mini vacation was over. When the ship docked, Delphine and Flynn prepared to depart. They slowly made their way off the ship, allowing each of the sailors to say goodbye to Esme.
The captain was the last in line to say goodbye. “We are going to miss this little one. Good luck finding her family, and make sure you get in a good punch or two for me, and the crew when you find whoever took them.” He tipped his hat in their direction then turned, swaggering down the dock after his crew.
“Allow me to escort you ladies to the nearest institute outpost,” Flynn said with a thickening of his accent and a bow that made Esme giggle.
“Lead the way, handsome sir,” Delphine said, smiling at him. She was glad she had gotten to know him better during the past few days. He had helped her take care of Esme, and they had lingered over meals, sharing the stories of their lives. She entertained him with stories about her life on the Siren isle, and he filled her in on his life before he assumed the mantle of the famous pirate. He had made a dashing Blackbeard, but she much preferred his own face to the one he had shifted into. She would always hold a special place in her heart for Flynn, as he had been an integral part in her rescue from the society. She hoped she could repay the favor someday.
They rode in a carriage pulled by horses and pulled up to a nondescript brick building. Flynn paid the driver before returning to hold Esme while Delphine climbed down from the cab.
“You are sure this is it,” she asked Flynn as she looked at the plain structure.
“I am sure. This was one of the outposts I visited in my Blackbeard persona. It was a long haul but it was nice to be able to take that face off and be myself, even if only for a few days at a time. When the crew thought ol’ Blackbeard was holed up with his lady somewhere, he was really here or at other outposts, resting and getting to be his true self,” Flynn said, smiling at her.
He opened the plain black door, ushering Delphine inside. As it swung shut, she looked around at the plain dusty room they had entered. She frowned at Flynn, who only shifted the baby to the other hip and grinned, crossing the room to another plain black door. This one he opened with a muttered incantation.
Delphine followed him, allowing the door to close as she looked at the room before her and felt her jaw hit the floor. He was right—looks could be deceiving. No one who looked at the plain brick building or entered the dusty antechamber would guess at the splendor hidden behind the unremarkable facade.
It was her idea of paradise. Delphine had always been an avid reader, and this was a place of worship to books. The smell of old manuscripts and crisp paper permeated the space, causing her to take a deep, appreciative breath. If they could bottle that smell, she would bathe in it. As she looked around the gilt room, noting the glittering chandeliers dripping with fat teardrop crystals hung over long polished mahogany tables, she felt as if she had entered her own personal heaven. There were millions of books. Huge shining bookcases lined the walls, stuffed full. Delphine wandered closer to see an eclectic mix of titles. Old illuminated manuscripts gave way to popular novels she had seen others reading in the cafe at the institute. This was a place she could live in forever.
“Teagan has to see this place—she would just die,” Delphine whispered, afraid to raise her voice and shatter the splendor.
“I told Bran the next time he does something and she is not speaking to him, they need to come here. It is the ultimate get out of trouble with the wife card for the dragon,” Flynn said, looking at her awestruck face with an amused smile. “I think he is holding it in his back pocket for the time he does something really bad.” Flynn began to walk through the room, nodding at the various scholars who sat at the tables scattered about.
“I could spend a lifetime in here,” Delphine said as she tried to open her eyes wider to take it all in.
“One day we can come back and you can spend as much time as you like, but for now we need to get the baby back to the institute. We need to check to see if our colleagues have made any progress in finding the society. Maybe we will ge
t lucky and find they have identified their whereabouts.” Flynn took Delphine’s hand and gently tugged her through the library. “This library actually holds many of the manuscripts that were rescued from the Library of Alexandria. The humans believe the great knowledge stored there was lost, but in reality, when it was apparent that things were going south, it was moved here. There is a lot of our history mixed in with human history.”
“Seriously? You can’t tell me that and then not let me explore, Flynn—that is just cruel,” Delphine complained, coming dangerously close to a whine.
“As I said before, after we get the society case all wrapped up, I promise to escort you back here and you can explore to your heart’s content.”
“You better,” she grumbled as they reached the other side of the room and passed through an ornately carved gilt door.
She would let him guide her through for now because he was right—there was more at stake here than her insatiable curiosity—but as soon as she could, she was coming back and delving into the great amount of knowledge stored there. She wasn’t waiting for Bran to screw up, though; she was telling Teagan about the place as soon as they got back to the institute.
Delphine felt the warmth rush over her as she stepped through the window into the library at the institute in the present time. She couldn’t wait to see Teagan to tell her about the library she had found back in 1718. Once the society was found and taken care of, they were taking a trip back to visit it as soon as possible.
“Teagan and Hugh must be out on one of their research trips,” Flynn said as he looked around the empty library.
“I am going to text Teagan and see if she and Ovidia want to do dinner and drinks. I can’t wait to tell them about my first mission, and that library,” Delphine said, taking Esme from Flynn and cuddling her close.
“What will you do with the baby,” he asked, gesturing toward the little girl in her arms.
“There is a water sprite here that I talked with before we went on the mission, and she agreed to split babysitting duty with me until we can find out what happened to her parents.”
Flynn looked again at the baby in Delphine’s arms. “What if I help watch the girl,” he asked, not looking directly at her.
“You want to volunteer to help with the child,” Delphine asked, trying to keep the shock out of her voice.
“I like babies, she is already familiar with me, and she must have her bedtime story. She’s already had quite the trauma, so if we can prevent her from having to be frightened by being left with another stranger, shouldn’t we do that?” Flynn lifted his head and looked her in the eye.
Delphine felt her heart melt. What single man would want to take care of a child who wasn’t his?
“All right, if you are up for it. Esme has taken to you, and it would be better if she was with people who are familiar to her for now.”
“I will take the first shift tonight, let you go hang out with Teagan and Ovidia, tell them about the mission. You can gush about the library and ruin Bran’s get-out-of-jail-free card,” he said with a wry grin.
“Are you sure? I can wait to talk with them or have them come to my apartment. We could catch up and I can stay with Esme,” Delphine said.
“Nope. I have no plans, and I am up for it.”
“Okay, I’ll text the girls and let you know. Do you mind coming to my place? I have the room with the ocean and she may feel more comfortable being near the water. She is going to need some extra time in salt water to recover her strength from healing the dolphins.”
“Sure. Text me when you make plans with the girls and I will head over.” He leaned over and kissed Esme softly on the head before turning to leave the library.
Delphine stood rooted to the spot, just staring. The more time she spent with Flynn, the more her feelings for him grew. She could see them together far into the future, raising a family. She knew it was too soon to feel that way, knew sane people didn’t plan a future with someone they were just getting to know, but she felt such a connection to Flynn. He was kind, intelligent, and generous. She wasn’t blind to his faults—everyone had them—but he was a good man and seemed to have feelings for her as well.
She had a choice to make. Flynn would not be content to live on a small island in the ocean dealing with the petty affairs of the Siren clan. To be honest, she wasn’t sure that was what she wanted anymore either. She had been batting around the idea of staying at the institute in her head, wanting to show Armand how well she could do on a mission. She wanted to stay, to be part of the institute permanently, not just a visiting Siren there to exact her revenge.
She had things to think about, but for the moment she needed to get her young charge settled in at her apartment.
Chapter 11
Delphine had always loved the children of the Siren island, often smiling at them and their tired-looking mothers then going on her merry way. Those women should get an award, she thought. Delphine was exhausted. Keeping up with Esme was a full-time job. She had brought the baby to her apartment and laid her on the bed to take a nap. She showered, slipped into Teagan’s gift of the soft pair of leggings and roomy sweatshirt, and curled up in her chair to enjoy a new book by one of her new favorite authors. It was a tale of witches and Norse lore that she was thoroughly enjoying. She had begun to think the tales of how hard children were were just a myth parents made up to garner sympathy, and then Esme woke up from her nap.
They played in the water until Delphine’s arms ached and she was exhausted from swimming around and watching the energetic baby. They finally ended their water play, dressed, and walked back into the apartment. Delphine made a quick snack for the two of them then pulled out some pots and pans as play things for Esme. Other than the doll Tom had made for her, those were her only toys. She told herself she would have to pick up some more while she was out with the girls. The baby soon became bored and Delphine had to constantly follow her around to keep her out of things.
At the sound of a knock on her door, Delphine closed her eyes and thanked all the gods she knew—her reinforcements had arrived. Scooping up the baby, she took the shell Esme had been about to put in her mouth and opened the door to Flynn.
He immediately frowned. “Delphine, are you not feeling well?” His tone was concerned.
“I’m fine, I’ve just been hit by hurricane Esme.” She ran her hand through her messy hair.
At the sound of Flynn’s voice, Esme looked up from the shell she was trying to grab out of Delphine’s hand. Her eyes immediately brightened as she babbled and giggled, holding her arms out toward Flynn, who took her from Delphine.
Esme planted a slobbery kiss on his cheek, smiling up at him.
“This little angel causing trouble,” he asked, as if he didn’t believe it.
“You say angel now—let’s see how you fare for the next couple of hours.” Delphine moved out of the doorway to let Flynn into the apartment.
He chuckled as he made his way inside. How hard could it be to watch one small baby?
Delphine left him with the giggling little girl. “I need to go make myself presentable, so your shift has officially started.”
Flynn watched as Delphine walked away, a look of longing on his face. He felt a whisper of a touch on his cheek and looked down to see Esme’s blue eyes staring into his, a very serious look on her face. A picture of him and Delphine formed in his mind. They were embracing. The child giggled and the moment passed. Flynn would have to ask Delphine about the ability to communicate with other supernaturals telepathically. It disturbed him to think that Delphine may be able look into his mind and see his feelings laid bare before he was ready—not that she would. Delphine would never invade someone’s privacy that way, but fate had a way of nudging you along on your path, and he just wanted to be reassured.
“All right small fry, now that we can communicate, what do you want to do?”
A picture formed in his mind: waves lapping the shore and mermaids jumping out of the water.
“You want to swim, huh? Well boy do I have a surprise for you.” Flynn looked around the apartment. He hadn’t asked Delphine which door it was that led to her ocean room.
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Esme pointed to a door on the other side of the room.
“Let’s go check it out,” he said, snuggling the baby closer. She laid her head on his shoulder and Flynn felt a surge of happiness and longing. He had always wanted a family, and being with Esme intensified that desire.
He carried her across the room and opened the door, stepping from the elegant apartment onto a sandy beach. “Those mages really know what they’re doing.” He stared at the scene before him, eyes wide. Sugary white sand crunched underneath his shoes, the sun warm on his skin but not stifling. The water rushed in and out, making a soft swishing sound, and stretched as far as the eye could see. The waves were the clear crystal blue of the Caribbean.
Flynn set Esme down on the sand so he could shuck off his shoes. “You need to sit right here and behave. This will only take a minute.” Esme sat with a serious look on her face again, making her look much older than her two years.
Flynn took off his shirt. He had come prepared, wearing board shorts, as he’d assumed the baby would want to play in the water.
Picking her up once more, he moved to the shore. He waded into the warm water, stopping when he heard a whimper from Esme. Her little face was scrunched, and he snuggled her tight against the pain he knew she was feeling as her chubby little legs turned into the scales of her tail.
“All right little one, my turn.” He had never shifted while holding a baby before, and he had never attempted a mermaid. Esme beamed a picture of him with a tail into his brain. “I know, just gimme a minute. This mermaid thing is new to me.”