Kissed by Fire A Zodiac Shifters Paranormal Romance (Maidens Book 2)

by Michelle Fox

  “No, but I donna want to be here with you.” His brogue had crept into my voice, I couldn’t help it. Mermaids soaked up language like a sea sponge. “I need to be out there.” I gestured toward the water.

  A woman shouted, and we all turned to see who it was. She ran toward us, long dark hair bouncing along her back, feet thumping on the wooden dock and then up the plank to the boat. The copper-haired one they called Alec, rushed to her side.

  “What are you doing here, Sara?” His voice came out in a deep rumble, one filled with concern. I knew that note well. It was one my father’s voice often carried when I’d been out too long seeking treasure. Alec took her arm and supported her as she came down the stairs that led to the deck.

  “I’m not made of glass, you know,” she said, glaring at him.

  “I only want to keep you safe,” he replied, but he let her go and gave her the lead, trailing after her like a love-sick octopus. There was something between those two. A relationship or some kind of past fraught with emotion. I could see it in their eyes.

  “This is no place for a lady,” Alec said. The other men nodded, with varying levels of conviction. Malcolm and Niall gave a vigorous bob of their heads, supporting Alec, but I noticed Gavin merely lifted his chin and quickly rolled his eyes. When he caught me watching, he winked, and a playful smile split his lips. He reminded me of a dolphin setting up a prank.

  “You were gone so long, I had to look.” Sara reached up and cupped Alec’s cheek in her palm. He leaned into her, eyes closing for a quick moment. She pulled away and pointed at me. “And she’s going to need some clothes.”

  Sara drew closer to me and for the first time I saw the bag slung over her shoulder. She smiled at me, her face kind with wide-set brown eyes. “Hello. I’m Sara. These, guys,” she swept an arm to indicate all the men, “are my family. And if I’ve got everything right, you’re about to become one of us.”

  I drew my eyebrows together and just stared at the woman. Then with a sniff, I said, “I’m not related to the two legs.” Flicking my tail, I added, “You may have noticed, I’m a bit different from you.”

  Sara chuckled. “You’ll soon learn we’re different in our own right. Come, let’s get you dressed and we can go back to the castle and discuss it all over tea.”

  “I can’t,” I said, unable to keep a note of desperation from my voice. These humans were slowing me down.

  Sara came and laid a hand on my arm, the pressure gentle but firm. “You can and you will because I know how to save your sister.”

  Chapter Five

  I blinked at her. “What do you know of my sister?”

  Her gaze held mine. “You can’t save her without us. We are strangers to you now, but we are bound together by forces stronger than blood. You felt it in his kiss, didn’t you?” Her gaze flickered to Niall and then back again.

  My mouth opened and shut. For once, I was speechless. These four men had saved me and this woman seemed to know more about me than any two-leg should. She hadn’t said it, but I knew what it was: Fate. Something had been set in motion when I decided to seek my sister. Whether this was a good thing or a disaster, only time would tell, but I knew better than to fight the whirlpool of fate. Better to float on its tide and make my escape when its pull weakened.

  Sara tugged at her ear. “You might want to change now.

  I put my hand to the shell earring the witch had stabbed through my flesh. “H-h-ow did you know?”

  Sara shrugged. “It’s a thing I do and a very long story.” She took the bag off her shoulder and held it up to me. “I brought you some clothes.” To Niall she said, “Put her down and give us some privacy so she can get dressed.”

  “But—” he started.

  She cut him off. “I know you don’t want to let her go, but we can’t have her parading naked around Inverness either. And I don’t think she feels quite the same way about you as you do about her, at least not yet. Give her some privacy or you’ll do more harm than good.”

  Niall reluctantly set me down on the deck, his strength impressive and easily matching the males of my tribe. I hadn’t thought two-legs could be so strong, but then Sara had said they were different.

  He didn't wince at the movement either. I looked closer wondering how his shoulder was doing. The bleeding from his arm had stopped and fresh, pink skin filled the gap in his flesh. He'd spoken true when he brushed off his bullet wound.

  I reached out and touched the scar as it formed in front of my eyes. "You're already healing."

  He smiled. "I told you, lass. It takes more than a cut to take down a dragon."

  “We’ll stand guard at the dock,” said Malcolm, pulling his brother away at the elbow. “There are a few of them that went into town and they may return.” He motioned for the other men to follow him and they strode off, their black kilts—my brain said this was the correct word— appearing to swish in unison as they went.

  “Who are they?” I asked. “Who are you?”

  Sara smiled at me, her eyes crinkling at the corners. “I’m the same as you. Find your legs and get dressed. We’ll explain everything back at the castle. I don’t think it’s a good idea to stay on this boat, do you?”

  I shook my head, wondering how she knew I could change my form. Twisting the earring, I gritted my teeth as it scraped over my newly punctured flesh. Then I held my breath, waiting for something to happen. If the witch had cheated me or if the magic failed—things hadn't worked out so well for Ariel— I didn't know what I would do.

  Sea bless me, after several long seconds, the magic I'd bargained for came over me. The shift started in the tip of my split tail and rippled, in ever increasing waves, up to my hips. It was uncomfortable, but not nearly as painful as I’d imagined, to grow a pair of legs.

  The second the shift was done, Sara started shoving clothing at me, not allowing me time to take in the changes in my body. I fought my way into the undergarments she’d brought, marveling that two-legs would confine themselves so severely. Then I pulled a soft shirt over my head. It was pink, like the inside of a conch shell. The pants were tight as a second skin, but made of thick, durable cloth.

  “They’re jeans,” Sara said as I fingered the fabric. “Here, I have some shoes.” She offered me a pair similar to hers. They were white with cloth roping through the top.

  I sat down and jammed my feet into the dark recesses of the shoes. They crushed my toes horribly, and I barely got them over my heel. When I stood, I struggled to keep my balance. The shoes cramped my feet, giving me a new appreciation for hermit crabs who’d outgrown their shells. Shoes were a savage misery. One I would have preferred to avoid.

  “They look a little small,” Sara said with an apologetic smile. “I had to guess at your size. If you don’t mind going barefoot, you can take them off. We’ll get a pair that fits later.”

  I kicked them off with a sigh of relief. It was bad enough that the jeans were pinching me at the waist. I couldn't tolerate the shoes, too. “Thank you for bringing them,” I said, not wanting to appear ungrateful. “I’m sorry my feet are so big.”

  I flexed my toes and compared my new form to hers, finding that, indeed, my new appendages were quite a bit longer than hers.

  She scooped up the shoes, tucking them into her bag. “No worries." She paused and looked at me. “What was your name?”

  “Mila,” I said with a shallow bow to be polite.

  “Oh that’s a lovely name.” Sara turned and headed for the ramp leading off the boat. “Come on, Mila. Let’s get out of here and go save your sister.”

  With those words, I would follow Sara anywhere. I shuffled after her, too unstable on my new legs to walk properly. I wanted to run, to jump, to stride with confidence, but instead, I had the humble gait of a seal, heavy and uneven with a lot of lurching.

  My brain gave me words as Sara led me to a green thing made of metal that my ear for language informed me was called a car. Large machines called motorcycles flanked the car on either
side. Dragons and flames in bright reds and oranges had been painted on them, standing out on the black background. The brothers each stood next to a bike, waiting for us. Niall looked particularly anxious and rushed toward me.

  “Are you all right, lass?” His hands fluttered around me as if he wanted to touch me, but was afraid to do so.

  “I’m fine,” I said swatting his hands away. The intensity of his attention caused fear to rear up from my belly and clutch at my throat. These people seemed to know about my sister, but I did not know them. No matter what they said, what they appeared to know, they were strangers. They could be anyone or anything...even slavers. I needed to remember that and keep my guard up, not be lulled into trusting them because they said all the right things.

  Sara opened the car door. “Let’s get out of here. We won’t be alone for long.”

  Niall took my elbow, ignoring my obvious displeasure at the contact, and guided me toward the other side of the car. “You ride with Sara. We’ll follow you.”

  I resisted his attempt to herd me like a shark working to cull a school of fish. Whirling away from his hand, I intended to turn on him and demand to know his intentions, but my new feet tripped over themselves, and I fell, landing with a hard thud on the cobblestones covering the earth. Niall instantly caught my hand and helped me up.

  My hip and elbow throbbing, I glowered at all of them in turn. “Do you mean me harm?”

  Niall’s eyes widened, their color that of a lazy southern sea when the heat of the sun is so intense it fades the water from a deep sapphire to a light aqua. “Och, nay, lass. We donna want to hurt you.”

  Malcolm stepped forward, his mouth a serious line. “Tis true, lass. We only want to help.”

  “Our apologies if it seemed otherwise,” said Alec, placing a hand over his heart and dipping his head in a small bow.

  Gavin turned his back on me and just before he started the engine, he looked at me, “You could run from us, lass, but we would chase you. You’ve found yourself a dragon.” He pointed to Niall with his chin. “There’s no losing him now.”

  ***

  “They’re dragons?” I asked Sara as she guided the car down the road. I’d never met a dragon. Never been in a car before. It was a lot to absorb. So many details crowded my senses, it made me feel like the world was collapsing in on me. There was a handle on my door and I held on tight, anchoring myself.

  She nodded and took a sharp turn down a small road. The men paced us on their motorcycles, their engines purring like idling speed boats. “Yep, dragons. They’re just as real as you.”

  “We sing songs of dragons,” I said, my voice wistful. Away from the water, with solid earth under me, I felt adrift and lost. I missed my tribe, the security of knowing who I was and the claim of a place.

  “Oh?” Sara’s voice went high with interest.

  “We were allies once. A long time ago.” I closed my eyes and let the words of the ballad play through my mind. “They fought with us in the Great War.”

  “The Great War? I’m afraid I don’t know what that is.”

  I opened my eyes and looked at Sara whose brow was furrowed. “In ancient times, there were many wars as those with stronger magic wanted to conquer those without. A great warlock rose up and captured many of the magic peoples, but we fought him. We combined our efforts and even though we couldn’t match the warlock spell for spell, we could outmaneuver him. We won back our freedom by working together.”

  “Where were humans in this history?” Sara slowed as the car thudded over a hole in the road.

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. We don’t really pay much attention to two leg history, but I think it was so long ago there were no written records of our battles among your people.”

  “Sounds like it’s ancient history,” she said. “Well, the castle is very modern compared to that era.”

  “You live in a castle?” I had the barest notion of what a castle was. I primarily knew it as a place in our myths. One where the two leg princes lived. Ariel had been to a castle long ago and found it nice enough to sacrifice her voice and leave her tail behind. I fingered the be-spelled shell in my ear, wondering if I was following in her footsteps. While I had no desire to leave the sea or my people, I would do it if it meant saving them.

  “Yep. Here it is.” She stopped the car and pointed at the building in front of us. Because of the trees and the rolling hills, I hadn’t caught sight of it before that moment. I just gawked at it at first, finding such a construction difficult to comprehend.

  The castle was a big square made of gray stone blackened with age. Someone had hung baskets of flowers on either side of the massive wooden door that made up the entrance. The pink flowers did their best to look cheerful, but couldn’t beat back the hulking darkness of the stone behind them.

  “It’s so big,” I said, fumbling to open the car door.

  Sara reached across me. “Here. You pull it toward you. Like this.” She demonstrated, and the door popped open.

  I stepped out of the vehicle slowly, shivering as the air hit my skin. In the ocean, I could hear the world around me. Sound travels far underwater and it’s difficult to hide. On land, I heard things, but didn’t understand what they meant, and I couldn’t figure out where they were coming from. Somewhere a bird trilled, a sharp but sweet sound. The wind rustled overhead and flitted over my clothes, mussing my hair. The motorcycles, of course, made a lot of noise but quieted quickly as the men parked and turned them off.

  Sara came to stand beside me. “It’s big, but not scary. I promise. Try not to worry,” she said as the men hung their helmets on their handlebars and moved toward the castle. “It’s all a little strange, I know, but this is a good place, and they’re good guys.”

  “How can you be so sure?” I asked, crossing my arms. The two-leg world was large and went by in a blur thanks to the car. It made my stomach queasy. I missed the weight of the water and hated the emptiness of the air.

  “Because they saved me.” She gave a little laugh. “Trust me, I’ve been in your position, and it all seemed just as crazy to me. Try to keep an open mind.”

  With that, she headed for the castle. I followed her, but slowly, still wary. It was easy to make promises, another thing to keep them.

  The interior of the large stone building proved to be more pleasant than its exterior, but it took a moment for the vocabulary to come to me and name everything. As I scanned the room just off the entrance, the words came to me, slow at first and then faster.

  Ornate rugs covered the floor and hung on the wall in a living area that held two couches and several chairs covered in floral fabric. Sara led me through there and down a narrow stone corridor to another room that had counters running along the one wall and a table that sat under a large window at the far end.

  "What is this?" I asked, not recognizing the things I saw. They stumped even my ability for language.

  “The kitchen," said Sara.

  I gave a slow nod as my mind processed the word and told me it had something to do with food.

  "What do you eat?” asked Niall.

  “Seaweed and fish, why?”

  His lips turned down in a disappointed frown. “I made cupcakes earlier.”

  “Cupcakes?” I gave him a blank look. My ear for language suggested it was a kind of dessert, but I didn't even know what that was.

  Sara settled at the table set under the window. “They’re good if you like sweet things.”

  I grimaced. I’d stolen a piece of two-leg candy in my youth, snatching it from a private beach. It had made my teeth ache and my head throb.

  “Or not,” she said, catching my expression.

  “What about tea?” asked Niall, his voice hopeful.

  I had only the vaguest notion of what tea was. Some kind of two-leg drink. Not wanting to be rude, I just nodded my head.

  “I’ll put the tea on and fix up some plates. You eat whatever looks good to you, all right?” Niall bustled into the business end of
the kitchen, opening and closing appliances as well as pulling down plates. I watched it all with wonder. My language ability supplied me with a general understanding of what things did. For instance, I knew the stove cooked food like fire, but had no idea how to operate it.

  I’d never been this deep into the two-legs’ world. The car had been unpleasant, shoving me around like hurricane seas and the waistband of my jeans felt tight enough to cut me in two. At least I found the kitchen relatively pleasant. It smelled good, although I couldn’t name any of the aromas hitting my nose.

  Perhaps I should try this cupcake thing. It might be interesting.

  Malcolm sat across from me while Niall worked and cleared his throat to get my attention. “Welcome to the MacTeine Castle, Miss...” He trailed off, giving me a pointed look.

  “Mila,” I said, dutifully supplying my name.

  “Och, that’s a lovely name,” said Niall, beaming at me.

  I gave him a shy smile, a bit concerned over how much I enjoyed the fact that he liked my name. Beneath my distrust, I felt a pull to him as if he stirred a current drawing me in, but I didn't find it reassuring. We were strangers, and just because he'd saved me from the slavers, didn't mean I was safe.

  “Mila,” Malcolm repeated, my name sounding thick in his brogue.

  “Aye,” I said with a nod, my voice matching the burr in his. “Thank you for saving me.”

  “Truth be told, we were drawn to you,” Malcolm said.

  “Aye, 'tis true,” Gavin said, sitting next to Malcolm. There was food in his hand, and even across the table, I could smell its sweetness. It fit in his palm and was topped with swirls of brown stuff I didn’t recognize.

  “Is that the cupcake?” I asked, curious.

  “Aye,” Gavin said, and then he shoved the whole thing in his mouth in one big bite.

  Niall set a plate in front of me with a cupcake on it and cast a sour look at his brother. “You donna have to eat it like that, Gavin." To me, he said, "Just try a little, lass, and see what you think.”

  I sniffed, inhaling the sweetness and finding it cloying. If cupcakes tasted anything close to what they smelled like, I was going to be sick. Wanting to be polite, I lifted the cupcake to my lips and gingerly ate some of the brown goo off the top. “Hmm,” I said more to myself than anyone else.