by Amber Garr
The Council member who’d always seemed partial to Lucian’s behavior, stood with smirk on his face that made me want to punch him.
“Elizabetta Morganti.” A middle aged female in a gold cloak stood while the rest of the Council members around her made little attempt to hide their disgust. Her dark hair flowed down the back of her cloak like silk and her confident stance let everyone know how honored she was. The look she gave Lucian, like he was the only man in the room, had me wondering about the extent of their relationship, and then immediately trying to scratch it from my mind.
“Dominique Bené, Petra Zukov, and Peder Borja, I welcome you to my side.” Three more Council members from the Caribbean Nations, Eastern Europe, and Scandinavian factions walked to the front of the room, oblivious to the hateful glares they received from their fellow leaders.
That made seven, until I heard Graham shift behind me. “And last, but certainly not least, Graham Forrester,” Lucian bellowed.
All fifty heads turned to the merman still standing beside me with his hand on my shoulder. I saw Graham nod out of the corner of my eye and Lucian actually smiled. It was a real smile too, like a public display of a father’s pride. I feared we’d greatly underestimated the dynamic between the two of them.
“Graham Forrester is not only a very powerful merman and leader of our kind, but he will soon be my son-in-law.” Eviana hung her head and my heart stopped. It was bittersweet. On one hand I knew she hated to be forced into marriage, and on the other, I’d been the one she’d refused in the past.
“My beautiful daughter will be married in two days, securing the future of our beliefs and the abilities that should be celebrated not feared.” Members of the newly formed Council clapped their hands together, as did the entire right side of the room. It reminded me of human political speeches where the supporters stood and clapped at every word uttered by their party leader.
“To honor this occasion, I will be holding our first official meeting in the same evening, and I expect you all to attend.” He glared at the left side of the room. “Your presence is required. As representatives of our kind, you owe it to your people to understand how things will be done from now on.”
I watched in awe as not a single one of them argued with the insanity behind what Lucian was asking them to do. They simply sat there…like zombies. Could he control that many merfolk at once?
“Adele Lyonetta will provide you with the location and details. We will celebrate the birth of a new union and a new way of life.” I swear his teeth glimmered in the light. Half of the room erupted in cheers while the other half sat silent and still. I wondered if they would really follow through with Lucian’s idiotic demands.
“You’ll have a front row seat, mate.” Graham slapped me hard against the back and I gritted my teeth together.
“Get your hand off me,” I growled.
“Now, now,” he continued patting my back. “There are plenty of fish in the sea for someone like you. Don’t be a sore loser.”
I turned to face him and he shook a finger in my face. “Don’t even think about it. I may be more than willing to marry her, but it would give me greater pleasure to see you suffer.”
I couldn’t think. In one breath, Graham threatened to both enjoy Eviana in ways only a husband should and kill her at the same time to spite me. At that moment I knew that I would do anything to stop this. But now wasn’t the time.
Lucian walked down the center pathway between the chairs, pulling Eviana behind. She wasn’t putting up too much of a fight, but it was obvious to me that she also wasn’t a willing participant. The rest of his newfound Council glided behind him like they’d just won a pageant.
“Time for me to go, chump,” Graham said, drawing my attention away from Eviana. “I will see you at the wedding. Be sure to dress nice.”
I hated his stupid accent and his cocky face. I glared at the back of his head while he joined the others and thought of a thousand ways to take him out.
My eyes caught Adele’s and without saying a word, I knew that we were thinking the same thing. We had two days to figure out a way to finish this.
Two days.
Eviana
The return flight to Lucian’s home wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. We never went back to Mexico, instead we landed on a small sandy runway in the outskirts of the Bahamas. Exhaustion overruled my normal fear of airplanes this trip. It was two in the morning, and I hardly felt like dealing with Lucian’s antics. Nor did I want to deal with my annoying British fiancé.
“Wasn’t that so exciting, tart?” Graham asked me for at least the hundredth time. “The look on their faces…they didn’t know what was coming.”
His excitement over Lucian’s new Council and the betrayal of so many merfolk made me sick. Even worse, I had a lot of time to think about Abhainn and Kain. I’d never seen someone force a sprite to disintegrate and I really feared Lucian had killed him. After being trapped in a fountain for so many years, this was not the death Abhainn deserved. He should have been able to grow old and die peacefully next to the love of his life. Thinking about Isabel, I wondered how well she would handle the news. I’d bet that Lucian just acquired a new enemy.
Kain’s face haunted my visions as well. I could see the wheels turning in his brain when we exchanged a look during the meeting. He wouldn’t give up on me, but I certainly didn’t want him to die. A life spent in agony with Graham and Lucian was better than one where I knew Kain had died senselessly.
“When are we going to meet with her?” Graham asked Lucian as we climbed down the airplane stairs and into the blistering humidity of the dark evening.
“Tomorrow,” he said and then looked at me. “We don’t have much time to prepare. She has to be ready tomorrow.”
“I’m standing right here,” I said, annoyed that they were speaking about me as though I was an inanimate object. “Who am I going to meet and why do I have to do that?” Each minute felt like I was biding my time until the wedding. Surely someone would have a plan that involved defeating Lucian, right? There’s no way merfolk would sit back and let him rule. That wasn’t an option.
But even as I thought those words, a deep pit of worry dredged in my stomach and I feared the worst. Lucian had been smart this time. He gave power to others, effectively solidifying his support. Half of the leaders in the meeting had already expressed their beliefs in his strategy, and all they had to do was command their clans to listen. I suddenly realized this might be the end of the battle, and my legs almost collapsed underneath me.
Graham reached out and caught my waist before I hit the ground. “Whoa there, luv. Are you okay?”
I pushed away from him, angry with my body for feeling a wave of excitement from his touch. “Get away. I’m fine.” Graham looked genuinely hurt, but Lucian smirked and shook his head.
“I believe our Eviana has finally accepted her fate.” He stepped closer to me and leaned into my face. “No one is going to save you now.”
Swallowing a lump of fear stuck in my throat, I tried not to react to his threat. “Who am I going to see tomorrow?”
“It’s a surprise,” he hissed and stomped away from me. “Let’s go, I’m tired.” Lucian walked to the awaiting town car and climbed into the back seat. The car seemed a bit too fancy for the island surroundings, but that was by far the least of my concerns right now.
Graham held open the door for me, so I walked around him without saying a word and opened the front passenger door. Sliding in next to the stunned driver, I smiled. “Can I ride up here with you?”
The dimples in his cheeks divulged how young he was. “I would be honored,” he replied.
Graham huffed as he climbed into the back and I purposely avoided looking into the mirror so I didn’t have to see his face. We drove in silence for twenty minutes down a lone road paralleling the sea on both sides.
“Where are we?” I asked the driver. His eyes flickered to the rearview mirror, presumably waiting to see if any o
f my companions would answer. When no one responded, he shrugged his shoulders.
“Long Island, miss.”
Long Island in the Bahamas. I didn’t know much about it, but from what I could tell, there didn’t seem to be a lot of people living here. We hadn’t passed a street light since the airport, and aside from a few piles of concrete blocks, there wasn’t a house in sight.
The car turned right just as the road ended in front of us. We were on the very tip of the island, far away from anyone or anything else. It was another perfect Lucian compound. The house sat atop a small hill with a full view of the ocean. It wasn’t a large home, but the seclusion made up for the lack of space.
“We begin at sunrise tomorrow,” Lucian said. He’d already entered the house, expecting everyone to follow. “There are three bedrooms, but sleep where you like.”
For a second, I was taken aback by Lucian’s casual suggestion that Graham and I could share a bed. Then I realized he probably did that just to get under my skin. He knew I wouldn’t be spending any alone time with Graham. Ever.
As Lucian disappeared upstairs, the driver set our small bags just inside the door and turned to leave. “Wait! What’s your name?” I asked him.
He looked startled at the question, as if no one had ever asked him that before. “My name is Robert, but everyone here calls me Lucky.” He smiled and the dimples grew.
“Thank you, Lucky. I’m Eviana.” I reached out to shake his hand, and he jumped when the screen door slammed shut behind me. It reminded me of the way an abused animal reacts to loud noises. Then again, he was a human working for Lucian. He probably had been abused.
Gently touching my hand, he squeezed it and nodded. “You be careful, Miss Eviana.”
“It’s Mistress to you,” Graham cut in. Lucky’s grip tightened for an instant and then he walked backward toward the car.
“Mistress Eviana,” he bowed his head slightly. “You let me know if there is anything you need. No matter what time it is.”
“We are finished with your services. Good night.” Graham’s condescending tone made me angry. As I turned to say something to him, he interrupted me. “He’s a human, Eviana. You don’t need to be nice to him.”
There were so many things I wanted to say, but I decided that the silent treatment would be much more effective. Pushing past him, I opened the screen door and picked up my bag. There wasn’t much in it. Lucian said there’d be clothes here and I dreaded what he picked out for me.
I found the first bedroom down the hall and decided to claim it. As soon as I put my bag down, I heard Graham shuffling by the door.
“This will do,” he said, eyeing up the bed. “Although I think there’s a queen in the other room.”
“You are not staying in here with me.” He smiled, and a flood of memories from Jeremiah’s house came swarming back into my mind. The way we flirted with each other, the workout sessions, the almost kiss. My heart pounded in my chest, and I hated it.
I hated that our blood was so attracted to each other when his presence alone should have repulsed me. For all of the lies and wickedness inside of him, he didn’t make for a good catch. But his beautiful face and our natural attraction betrayed me.
“What’s the problem? In two nights, you’ll be my wife. We could start the honeymoon early.” He stepped a little too close so I kicked him between the legs right where I was aiming.
Graham yelled and doubled over in pain. His hands covered over the injured area as he fell to his knees. “You bitch! You will pay for this!”
I probably should have been scared, but his voice was high and squeaky and some evil part in me enjoyed his torment. “And you will never have me!” I pushed him backward and out the door, slamming it in his face before he had a chance to protest. There was a lock on the knob which I quickly turned, hoping that it would give me at least some protection. Although by the sound of Graham’s moans, I didn’t think I had anything to worry about.
Eventually I heard him slink away down the hall, mumbling curses the entire time. I probably should be sure to avoid any alone time with him tomorrow. He was definitely upset.
Yet when I woke early the next morning and found Lucian and Graham drinking coffee in the kitchen, he acted like our exchange never happened.
“Morning, luv. Coffee?” He pushed a large mug into my hands and bent forward to kiss my cheek. Unfortunately, I couldn’t pull away fast enough.
“Did you two have a fun evening?” Lucian asked. The question was creepy for so many reasons. First of all, a father should be more protective of his daughter’s virtue. And second, why would I ever discuss my personal sex life with him? And why would he want to know about it? I shivered in disgust but Graham was the one to answer.
“Eviana told me she wants our wedding night to be special, so I decided to honor that.” He sipped his coffee and wiggled his eyebrows at me. I almost tossed the scalding liquid at his face. In fact, I don’t really know why I restrained myself, except that it meant I had one more night alone.
“That is an honorable notion,” Lucian said, and the two men clinked their mugs together in a toast. It was nauseating.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“To see Amathia,” Lucian said as though I should know who that was.
Graham’s face lit up. “You will love her.” I looked at him in confusion. “She’s going to help you find your way.”
“Stop speaking in riddles.” Turning to Lucian, I added, “Who is she?”
“She is a nereid.”
“A what?” I asked.
Lucian sighed. He dumped his coffee into the sink and rinsed his mug before answering me. “I could just kill your mother.”
“You did!” I spat.
“Oh right. Yes, I did.” My gut squeezed with sadness. How could he be so nonchalant about breaking her neck? “She really didn’t teach you very well.”
“She’s a sea nymph,” Graham said. For a moment I thought he was referring to my mother. Trying to get my heartbreak under control, I focused on his annoyingly handsome face.
“Like a naiad?” I asked.
“Yes, only nereid’s live in saltwater.” Graham looked at me with an intensity I didn’t like. “You know about naiad’s?”
“I’ve met one.”
“Where?” Lucian asked. He seemed to be genuinely surprised.
“In Tennessee.” With Brendan. He’d surprised me with a late night swim in a mountain lake that his dad had spoken about. We discovered the naiad, or really she discovered us, and it was the first time I learned that water nymphs weren’t extinct as we had been taught. I felt my throat tighten up at the memories of that night in the lodge. It was the first time Brendan and I slept together. It had been my eighteenth birthday and I thought we were going to spend the rest of our lives together away from all of the drama that came along with being who we were.
I couldn’t have been more wrong.
“Now that is fascinating. I haven’t seen a naiad since I was a boy.” Lucian tapped his chin. “You must take me to meet that one someday.” I stayed silent, not wanting to commit to anything in the future that involved Lucian.
“Let’s go. We don’t want to keep Amathia waiting.” Lucian ushered us to the door and outside toward the car. Lucky was leaning against the side, staring out at the sea. Even though he wore a dark suit, he didn’t appear to be sweating and I wondered how he could stand the heat.
“Good morning, Mistress Eviana,” he said with a smile.
“Good morning, Lucky” I replied being sure to let Graham see me. He rolled his eyes and didn’t say anything when I climbed into the front passenger seat again. Good.
“Take us to Dean’s Blue Hole,” Lucian ordered from the back seat. Lucky looked alarmed.
“Master Sutherland, there will be a crowd there today.” I snapped my head around, surprised that Lucky seemed to know we weren’t human. He didn’t appear to be under Lucian’s influence, yet he chose to work for him. I found myse
lf reassessing my opinion of the man.
“That’s not of my concern,” Lucian said.
The car lurched forward and down the tiny hill to the only road to and from this part of the island. I’d forgotten how much I loved the clear blues and greens of the tropics. Sure, California had a beautiful underwater landscape, but nothing compared to the inviting nature of the shallow, sloping east coast.
We passed through a town where I assumed the majority of the population resided. Colorful plywood stores, interspersed with unfinished concrete homes, decorated the streets. Dogs and children played in the road, waving to us as we drove by. Within a few minutes, we passed through the metropolis and were surrounded by mangroves and limestone again.
“Stop here,” Lucian commanded a few minutes later. Lucky slammed on his brakes and I had to brace myself against the dash board.
“But sir, the hole is still a mile away.” Lucky was speaking to air since Lucian had already opened his door and jumped out of the car. Graham and I followed.
“Come back for us at sunset,” Lucian yelled to Lucky, who nodded and drove away.
“Sunset?” Graham asked, taking the words right out of my mouth.
Lucian looked at me. In my little sundress, I felt exposed under his stare. “She’ll need all day with her.” Suddenly, I wasn’t so excited to meet this nereid.
“We’ll swim there so that I can take care of the tourists.” Lucian started to strip out of his clothes.
“What do you mean ‘take care of’,” I asked.
He smiled and shook his head. “They’re going to think the water is too murky for a swim, Eviana. I’m not going to kill them.”
“Well, that’s a surprise,” I said sarcastically.
“You’ll soon learn that we aren’t really that horrible,” Graham cut in. When I turned my head to face him, I couldn’t stop the heat from rising to my cheeks. He was completely naked and not making any attempt at modesty. His stomach muscles were undeniably perfect where they connected to his lower abdomen. I cursed my body again for its reaction. “Here, let me help you with that.” Graham grabbed the strap of my dress.