by Bianca D'Arc
“I’m trying to get up and go to the bathroom. I’m sick of needing help to do the simplest things.” She sounded angry as she grabbed onto his forearms. He held her by the shoulders, steadying her.
“Hang on there, honey. I’m not sure—”
“Well, I am!” She cut off his words, showing a bit of temper. “I’m sick of lying in bed. I’m sick of not being able to even go pee without help. I’m sick of being helpless.”
Sirena cringed when her voice broke on that last bit. She was sick of being so weak, both physically and mentally. And now, the bear doc was just looking at her. She had to lower her eyes, ashamed of her outburst and her condition.
The next thing she knew, she was being lifted into the air, Sven’s strong arms supporting her, one at her back and one under the bend of her knees. He carried her to the attached bathroom. It wasn’t a big room, but there was just enough room for him to set her on her feet in front of the toilet.
There were handholds everywhere, designed especially for people who were unsteady or impaired to be able to hang on to something. Sirena made use of the steel bars that ran on either side of the toilet—one on the wall and one on the side of the vanity that held the sink.
“Can you manage from here?” Sven asked in a gentle tone. Sirena nodded. “Yank on this cord when you’re ready to go back, and I’ll come get you. Or if you get into trouble. I’ll be just outside.”
He turned to go, and she felt tears in her eyes. “Doc?” she heard herself say. He turned to look back at her, and she gave him a shaky smile. “Thanks.”
“I know it’s hard to be laid up,” was all he said as he walked out and closed the door. It wasn’t locked, but she knew he wouldn’t come charging in until she signaled—or if she took too long and he became concerned.
With that in mind, she slid the hospital gown out of the way and sat, grateful for the handholds and the easy access of the simple covering. Thinking about the gown, she realized that Sven had probably seen her naked. He’d sewn her up, after all. But since she’d regained consciousness, he’d always shown her the utmost respect and allowed for her modesty.
He didn’t have to. Shifters were used to nakedness, though mer were a bit different than land-based shifters. When she wore her scales, they effectively hid most of her physical attributes. They were like armor, of a sort. A covering that made one mer look very much like another.
It was when they shifted to skin that the differences became more obvious. Mer didn’t shift often. Only when going from land to water and vice versa, which was something they didn’t do all that often, as a general rule. Some mer would live ashore half the year and in the ocean the other half. Many families with children would spend the school year on land and summer in the sea.
Land shifters probably changed form all the time. Not so with mer. That’s why mer were a little more modest and tended to cover up their human skin rather quickly, feeling somewhat naked without the armor of their scales. She wondered what it was like for bears. Did they feel naked in human form, without their fur?
Sirena finished up in the lavatory, pulling herself upright with the aid of the rails, then spent a few minutes washing her hands, then using the new toothbrush and toothpaste she found on the vanity to brush her teeth. She found a comb as well and tried to do something with her hair.
What she really needed was a shower, but her strength was already beginning to ebb. She’d kept herself upright by force of will alone, but even that was deserting her. Quickly, she pulled the cord and noticed a light go on above the door. There was a light on the outside too, she knew.
A few seconds later, Sven opened the door and simply swept her up into his arms as if she weighed nothing at all. He carried her to the bed, which she noticed had been made with fresh sheets while she’d been in the bathroom. Since there was nobody else in the building, Sven must’ve done it.
He laid her down on the clean white sheet and pulled a matching cover over her, up to her waist. She felt so good to have gotten out of bed and cleaned up a bit.
“Thank you, Sven. I’m wiped out now, but it was well worth it. And thanks for making the bed.”
“All part of the service, ma’am. Sorry I ran out of chocolates for your pillow.” He winked at her as he stepped back. “I did refresh your water, though.” He nodded toward the bedside table that held not just one, but three full pitchers of ice water.
He was learning. She smiled back at him. “We mer do need our water. Thanks for that as well, doctor.”
“A minute ago, you called me Sven. Now, I’m back to doctor?” She saw a teasing light in his eyes that dared her to play with him. Were polar bears playful?
Sirena shrugged, trying to keep it light. Using his given name had been a slip. She hadn’t meant to become so familiar with the man so quickly. There was an undercurrent of attraction that made her want to step over all sorts of bounds with the sexy bear shifter, but she was mer. She had to remember where her true loyalties should lie—with her own kind.
“Sorry.”
The silence dragged a bit. She couldn’t meet his gaze but knew he was looking at her. What was he thinking? She had no idea, and, she reminded herself sternly, she really shouldn’t care. He was a landlubber. She’d tried that before—getting involved with a man on land—but it had never worked out, and she was too old to break her own heart again.
“Well…uh…” he began, but was halted from saying anything else by the arrival of Beth, a fellow mer and one of Sirena’s hunting party.
Beth and some of the other girls had been sitting with Sirena off and on while she was laid up. Before today, she had been aware of them but unable to really spend much time talking. She’d been sleeping mostly. Today, however, she felt a bit better—especially since the shaman’s visit—and she wanted to catch up on what was going on outside while she was stuck in here.
Sirena looked up at Sven then, realizing he was still standing near the door. He looked at Beth, then back at Sirena, seeming a little lost. What that might indicate, she had no idea. And she wasn’t interested. Really. Not at all.
“I’ll leave you two alone. I’m going to run out and pick up dinner if that’s all right with you. Want anything special, Sirena?” Sven asked.
“Anything but fish. Maybe roast beef? Or turkey?” she suggested.
“Coming right up. I’ll be back in a bit. If you need me before then, just call the bakery. Number’s in the book by the phone.” He gestured to the bedside table, and she saw the small telephone directory—a single page—lying under the phone. He’d thought of just about everything to make her stay comfortable. Now that she was more awake, she’d be taking better advantage of it.
“Thanks, doc,” she told him, watching after him when he nodded and turned to walk away.
Beth poured a glass of water and handed it to her.
“He’s okay, for a bear, I guess,” was Beth’s somewhat surprising comment. Sirena looked at her friend.
“He saved my life. That makes him okay in my book,” Sirena said quietly, watching Beth closely. Sirena had never really been sure of Beth. She could be very cutting at times and was a bit of a loner—even for a mer, which was saying something.
“Technically, it was Jetty’s mate, Drew, who saved your life. All of our lives, really,” Beth pointed out. “He’s the nicest of the bears I’ve met so far, but all he sees is Jetty, so I don’t really know him that well. He seems devoted to her, which counts in his favor to my mind.”
So clinical. Beth didn’t really show emotion. The term cold fish fit her to a T, unfortunately.
“That’s the way it’s supposed to be with mates. They only see each other and are devoted for life. It’s kind of beautiful, actually.” Sirena sipped her water, thinking about how her parents still looked at each other all these years later. They were true mates.
“If you say so.” Beth shrugged as if it didn’t really matter, and Sirena thought that was really, really sad. Beth didn’t even seem to care if sh
e ever found love like that of a true mate. What was wrong with the woman?
Chapter Four
If Sirena could find a male to love her, who she could love in return, she’d count herself Goddess blessed. She wanted love in her life. She wanted a true mate most of all, even if she presented an austere front to the world. She was a warrior. She had to be tough on the outside, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have a tender female heart on the inside.
A guy like the doctor would be perfect, if he were mer. Or even human. Mer often mated with humans and stayed on land during the lifespan of their human partner. There were few male mer, and most of those could have their pick of the females. Of course, there had to be that spark of mating hunger that struck them both to make the mating stick. A blessing from Poseidon, some called it.
Two of Sirena’s friends and hunting party subordinates had recently mated with bear shifters, and they claimed to be true mates, but Sirena wasn’t completely certain. It looked like both Grace and Jetty had found true mates, but how could Sirena be sure?
Mating with different species of magical folk was frowned upon in the pod. Mate with mer or mortal, was the saying. Any Others would only bring difficulties to the pod that they didn’t want to deal with. Of course, now that the entire pod was sheltering in Grizzly Cove, maybe the increased interaction with land shifters would bring about new understanding.
Jetty and Grace’s choices to mate with bears hadn’t gone down well with the pod, but they were adjusting. Jetty’s mate’s actions in fighting the leviathan and protecting the mer while they raced to safety in the cove had gained the bears new respect. Likewise, the Alpha bear’s mate had started to gain popularity once it was discovered she was the witch—she called herself a strega, which was some kind of hereditary Italian mage designation—who had cast permanent wards around the town and the waters of the cove itself.
That kind of magic was rare, and that she’d used it for such a pure purpose left the pod in little doubt of her innate goodness. Though the mer usually had little to do with magic users of any kind, there seemed to be a general feeling of acceptance of the strega and her sister.
“Are you up to visitors?” a new female voice came from the doorway.
Sirena looked up to see who had come, and as if she had conjured them by thinking of them, there stood Urse and Mellie, the two strega. It must be them. Their magic tingled along Sirena’s senses. Both were smiling and holding small parcels in their hands.
“We thought you might be getting bored sitting in here all day, and since we own the bookstore in town, we brought along some reading material you might like,” the younger one, Mellie, explained, holding up the stack of paperbacks in her hands.
“You read my mind,” Sirena said, motioning for them to come in. Beth sat in the room’s only chair, so the sisters stood at the side of the bed. “I haven’t read a book in at least a year. They don’t do so well underwater.”
The sisters laughed at Sirena’s little joke, as she’d intended. She wanted to know more about these women, and this seemed to be a good opportunity.
“I hope you don’t mind us barging in like this,” the older sister said. “I’m Urse, and this is my sister, Mellie. We ran into Sven in the café, and he asked us to bring some books by for you. He said you might be up to some reading in the next few days as you heal.”
“It was very kind of you to come by,” Sirena answered. “I’m Sirena, as you probably know, and this is Beth. Have you already met?”
The three women shook their heads, and Sirena silently encouraged Beth to be cordial to the two magical sisters. After all, they had come bearing gifts.
They spent a few minutes looking at the selection of books the sisters had brought, and Sirena picked out three paperbacks that looked interesting. The sisters declined payment of any kind, insisting that they were get-well presents and inviting Sirena to come visit their bookshop when she was back on her feet.
It was a good thing they didn’t want payment, Sirena reflected, because she didn’t have access to any of her belongings. She’d come here wearing her scales, and little else. It would take some time and a few phone calls—maybe some computer time too—to procure things like her identification, credit cards and cash. It could be managed, but not easily from a hospital bed.
“I have to say, your people are really moving fast in bringing the town into the twenty-first century,” Mellie said conversationally. “There are already two more ATMs in town, and a branch of a major bank is opening in the next week. I had no idea mer were so industrious. Or that they even existed at all, really. And we finally got a clothing store that sells women’s fashions and not just tourist T-shirts and shorts.”
“Although, they’re actually stocking T-shirts that say Grizzly Cove on them now, which is something the town council didn’t allow before. I think, with the sudden increase in population, they’re realizing they’re going to have to accept that there will be more tourists coming through and more contact with the human world,” Urse added. “I know John always thought a tourist trade would help support the running of the town eventually, but events have happened a bit faster than he expected. The arrival of your people has helped hasten putting our town on the map, so to speak, and increased contacts with the outside world. As soon as the weather brightens and we open a few more businesses on Main Street, I think we’re going to see a big increase in human traffic.”
“You sound as if you’re looking forward to it,” Sirena observed, trying to figure the witch out.
Urse smiled. “You know, I am. I’ve enjoyed the isolation here since we moved in, but I think the town is just about ready for the next step in its evolution. More people will mean that more of the men here might have a chance at finding the happiness John and I have found. These are good men, and they deserve a shot at happy futures.”
Sirena was impressed by the honesty she heard in Urse’s voice.
“That’s what I want for my own people, as well,” Sirena told the other woman. “I know Grace and Jetty don’t want me to worry, but I can’t help but wonder, until I can see things for myself.”
Urse seemed to consider her words, then slowly nodded. “Well, I’m confident that once you’re on your feet again, you’ll find your friends are very happy with their mates. And your folk have been changing the face of Grizzly Cove almost overnight.” Urse cracked a smile. “It’s almost more than my poor John can take. For so long, they struggled to get this sleepy little town off to a good start, and now, suddenly, things are changing faster than the bears ever expected. I think it’ll all work out for the best in the end, but it’s been amusing to watch the mer move in and pretty much take over. You guys are like industrious little gnomes, building things seemingly overnight.”
“Gnomes?” Beth sounded outraged, and Sirena had to laugh.
“The cute ones,” Urse assured Beth in a teasing tone. “Little red hats, can-do attitude, jolly outlook on life.”
“You haven’t met a lot of mer, have you?” Sirena countered, amused by the witch’s description.
“Not until recently,” Urse admitted. “You don’t see it, but when I think about how quiet the town was just last week and how it is today… Your people have had a heck of an influence in a very short time.”
“For the good, I hope,” Sirena said.
“Mostly, I think,” Urse agreed. “But I’ll let you know once I meet a few more mer and see what happens to the town in the end.”
“Generally, we try to leave a place better than we found it,” Sirena tried to reassure the witch. “Part of our duties when we’re in the ocean is to help Mother Nature clean it up. We do the same on land, for the most part, when we spend time ashore.”
Urse nodded. “Good to know. Hopefully, that’ll reassure John. Between you and me, I think he’s a little afraid of your leader, Nansee. He told me he thinks she might have a shark fin when she shifts.”
Sirena burst out laughing. Beth just frowned.
Just t
hen, they all turned when Sven appeared at the open door, a brown shopping bag in his hands. Delicious aromas were wafting from inside the bag. It smelled as if dinner had arrived.
“I guess that’s our cue to leave,” Mellie said, smiling. “Just call the shop if you want any other books, okay? We’re just down the street, and I can run them up to you, no problem.”
“That’s really sweet of you,” Sirena said, meaning it. The two witches were much less scary than she’d imagined they’d be. “Thanks.”
“No problem. Great meeting you. Feel better soon!”
Mellie bounced out of the room, giving Sven a grin on her way out. Her older sister was a little more sedate, but she reiterated the offer to bring by more reading material, then said goodbye. All in all, Sirena had formed a favorable opinion of the two women during their visit, which surprised her. She’d never been overly fond of magic workers. Not that she’d had a lot of exposure to any, though she had crossed paths with a few, here and there, when she’d lived on land.
Mostly, she just gave mages a wide berth, and they did the same. These two sisters though… They were really nice. Much nicer than she’d expected given her previous experience with standoffish mages doing all they could to either intimidate her or go far out of their way to stay clear of her.
Beth looked from Sven to Sirena and apparently decided to leave as well. She said a quiet goodbye to Sirena and slipped out while the doctor set up the rolling table that adjusted to fit over her bed.
When he looked up from his task, he gave her a smile. “Looks like I still know how to clear a room. All the girls run off when I show up.”
“I don’t think it has anything to do with you, Doc. It’s more like they’re letting the invalid eat in peace. I’m just as glad not to have an audience. I’m weak as a kitten right now, and it doesn’t sit well with me.” She shifted position in the bed, trying to find a more comfortable angle for her back.