Always Remembered (8 page)

Ignoring the tingle that spread through my
body from that simple touch, I said, “Of course they are. Look at
them. Can you believe how much progress they’ve made?”

Kieran turned me to him, lifting my chin.
“We’re a good team.”

His eyes burned into mine, making me wish we
were alone while simultaneously glad that we were not.

I took a step back and faced the room. “We
should get started.”

Behind me, he sighed. “As you wish.”

“Your attention, please,” I called down to
the crowd. They stopped sparring and looked up with expectant
expressions. “You’ve been working so hard. Your progress is
admirable.” I paused and smiled, proud of them. “While I want you
to continue to practice hand combat and weaponry, today we’ll
introduce a new skill. Magic.”

A murmur of excitement traveled through the
room. Kieran spoke, “We will attempt to teach you what we know.
This has never been done before. Magic is passed through the ruling
family.” He moved behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders.
Their warmth relaxed my muscles and calmed my nerves. I appreciated
his support more than he knew. “It was Meara’s idea to try to teach
you. Listen well and maybe you’ll learn something new.”

“Thanks,” I murmured, the sarcasm clear in my
voice.

“Too much?” he asked lightly and grinned.

Rolling my eyes, I addressed our people
again. “Magic is part of who we are. You use magic whenever you
change forms. You probably don’t even think about it. As someone
who lived eighteen years as a human and only a few months as a
Selkie, I have a unique perspective to distinguish what magic feels
like. I want to share that knowledge with you.”

The crowd grew restless. I could hear them
talking to each other, wondering what I meant. Kieran watched me
with interest. I hadn’t revealed the specific details of how I was
going to teach them. After a moment, the room quieted.

“I want you to change into your seal form
now. When you do, pay attention to the magic inside of you. Feel
it. You must know your own magic before you can call on it for
other purposes.”

I stopped and waited. No one moved. The faces
I saw were unsure and scared. I glanced at Kieran for help.

“We’re not asking you to do anything out of
the usual,” Kieran said. “This is not a test. All you need to do is
change forms and be aware as you do it. You can change right back
to your human form, too.”

Comforted by Kieran’s words, the Selkies
started to transform. Within minutes, they had all taken their seal
form, and then reverted to human.

“Did you feel it?” Kieran asked. The response
from most of the crowd was affirmative. “Good.”

He motioned for me to continue. I held out my
hand, closed in a fist. When I had their attention, I opened it,
palm facing upwards. “If you are aware of your magic, you can call
on it. Watch.”

A small ball of orange light blinked into
existence and hovered over my palm. A few Selkies gasped. I covered
the ball of energy with my other hand and snuffed it out. “Now you
try. Kieran and I will come around to see how you’re doing.”

At first, I was disappointed. I could see
they were trying, but nothing was happening. Maybe it was true that
our family had special magic. Then, someone shouted across the
room.

Your pal, Arren, just did it, one glowing,
yellow ball for the teenager.
Kieran’s voice rang in my head.
He was trying to sound nonchalant, but I heard the pride. He cared
about my people as much as I did.

The rest of the Selkies kept trying. By the
end of the lesson, Arren was the only one who conjured any magic,
outside of Kieran and my family.

The disappointment in the room was palatable.
I needed to reassure them. “It’s okay. It takes practice. Just
because you couldn’t call on your magic tonight does not mean that
you’ll never be able to.”

“We’ll try again tomorrow.” Kieran met my
eyes briefly. My heart skipped when I saw the look he gave
me—pride, desire, love. His face was an open book. Could he see my
emotions as easily as I could see his?

Selkies slowly made their way out of the
room. Their mood was slightly better, but they were still
disappointed. Their determined expressions told me they’d try even
harder tomorrow. I had no doubt the next training session would
bring more successes.

When only Kieran and I remained, he asked,
“What are your plans for the rest of the day?” His voice was
casual, although his gaze was intense.

“I don’t know. Nothing planned.” I sighed and
looked away, blinking back tears. I was worried about my dad and
aunt. What was taking them so long? Were they lost or hurt or
worse—imprisoned like Evan? Thinking of Evan brought more worry.
Was he okay? Why did Ken take him in the first place? Why was Evan
so important to him when Professor Nolan clearly had been
disposable? I guess I should be thankful that Ken did find Evan
valuable. At least that gave him a better chance of still being
alive.

“Where are you right now, Meara?” Kieran
tucked stray strands of my hair behind my ear, his fingers
lingering there, warm against my skin. “You look a million miles
away.”

I wanted to lean into him, but I stood my
ground. “I was hoping today was the day that Dad and Aunt Brigid
came back with news. It’s been too long. Something happened to
them.”

“You don’t know that. Maybe they found
something.” He wrapped me in his arms, resting his chin on my head.
His strength was my undoing. I let myself relax and be held.

“I’m worried,” I mumbled against his chest.
His hand stroked my back in a comforting way. The steadiness of his
heartbeat soothed my nerves.

“You need to have some fun.” When I made a
noise of protest, he laughed. “I know you’re enjoying training the
others, but that’s all you’ve been doing. Training and
research.”

“Fun won’t find Evan. Fun won’t keep us
safe.” I met his gaze with my chin set. “We need to be prepared in
case we’re attacked.”

“You’re right.” He gripped my chin lightly
and lowered his face close to mine. “We do need to be prepared, but
you need to relax and de-stress, too.”

“How do you recommend I do that? We can’t
swim.”

I didn’t mean to sound so bitter, but like
everyone else on this island, I was itching to change form. I knew
as soon as the threat was over, this island would be deserted for
days as we all sought refuge in the cool ocean waters. Just
thinking about it brought an ache of longing to my heart.

The tightening of his fingers on my jaw had
me snapping back to attention and staring into his eyes—two pools
of dark brown framed by thick lashes. It was easy to forget
everything as I looked at him. My heart sped up, and my blood
heated. Kieran’s eyes crinkled with amusement. “What did you do for
fun when you were human?”

Human. It seemed so long ago that I was
human. Many things had changed in my life. It was less than one
year ago that I followed my father and became a Selkie. A lot
happened in a short amount of time. I was no longer the same
girl.

“Hung out at the mall, ate at restaurants,
and went to the movies mostly.” I shrugged. It didn’t sound very
exciting or fun now.

Kieran nodded, looking thoughtful. He kissed
the tip of my nose and smiled. “Give me a couple of hours. I’ll
pick you up at your room around dinnertime.”

I couldn’t help it. I grinned. “Are you
taking me on a date?”

His eyes danced with mischief. “I believe I
am.”

Exhaustion pulled
at every muscle in Evan’s body. Ken half carried, half dragged Evan
back to his room. He vaguely remembered the journey home. He was so
tired. Shuffling over to the bed, he collapsed on it and fell
asleep.

The smell of coffee, rich and strong, woke
him. Coffee? Here? No, he must be dreaming. How sad was that? He
used to dream about beautiful women, and now it was caffeinated
beverages.

The tinkle of feminine laughter startled him.
Deanna knelt on the floor near his head, her hands cupped under his
nose. Empty hands, he noticed. He tried not to be disappointed that
she didn’t have a cup of coffee for him.

“I thought that might work,” she teased.
“Isn’t coffee the human cure for sleepiness?”

“Pretty much.” He sat up and stretched. It
pleased him to see her watching him intently, a slight blush on her
cheeks and her eyes on his abdomen where his shirt rode up. He
straightened his shirt and ran his fingers through his unkempt
hair. “Although the smell is nice, it’s really the caffeine that
gets you going. Did you bring me some?”

“No.” She moved from the floor to sit next to
him on the bed. “I created the scent to wake you.” She sounded a
bit sheepish and wasn’t meeting his eyes.

“You can do that? Brilliant!” He rubbed his
temples, hoping to relieve the dull ache behind his eyes. “Too bad
I can’t really have some. I’m craving it right now.”

Deanna’s face brightened. “But you can! They
sell coffee in The Chamber, along with other human foods and
drinks.”

Pizza? Burgers? Evan’s mouth watered in
anticipation. “I don’t remember seeing that when we were there the
other day.”

“We didn’t go to that floor,” Deanna
explained. “There are three levels. The first is for growing food
and has the bowling alley and library, and the middle floor is
shops and restaurants.”

“What’s on the lowest level?” Evan couldn’t
believe it was three levels deep. He was impressed. The place was
absolutely enormous. No wonder he couldn’t see or smell the food
during his first visit.

“Storage, and…” She faltered, frowning. “It’s
restricted. Anyone caught on that floor without clearance is
imprisoned.”

“Wow. Strict.” Evan wondered what could
possibly require that much protection. Weapons or military, maybe?
His country certainly had similar facilities. He just didn’t think
he would find one here.

“Will Ken be back? Do you have to work again
today?” Deanna swam off the bed and faced him, waiting for his
answer.

“What time is it?” Since he crashed as soon
as Ken brought him back to his room, he felt disoriented. Without
the sun, gauging time of day was difficult.

“It’s late afternoon.”

He slept through lunch, no wonder he was so
hungry. His stomach growled in agreement. “I’m done for the day,”
he finally answered her original question. “Ken will be back in the
morning for me. Do you have to go to work?”

“I have off tonight.” She blew out an
irritated breath and placed her hands on her hips. “And I
double-checked the schedule before I came here, so I’m safe.”

“Ken takes some getting used to, doesn’t he?”
Evan felt sorry for Deanna. She didn’t deserve to be treated so
poorly. Ken had no respect for the Sirens. To him, they were a
means to an end. He had said as much to Evan while they worked.
That was probably all Evan was to Ken as well.

Deanna tilted her head and studied him. “You
may be Ken’s son, but you’re nothing like him.” She reached out and
tentatively placed her hand against Evan’s cheek. Her palm was warm
and soft.

Evan didn’t remember mentioning that Ken was
his father. “How did you know that I am Ken’s son?”

“Everyone knows,” Deanna said. “Ken told
us.”

“Not sure why he’s so proud. He may have
given me his genes, but he didn’t raise me. Darren did. Darren
Mitchell is my real father.”

She swam closer, her green eyes wide and
trusting. “I’d like to meet your human parents. I’m sure they’re
wonderful.”

His heart raced. This close, he felt the
warmth from her body. She smelled spicy and floral, perhaps the
remnants of the perfume she wore at the club. His eyes were locked
on her soft, full lips. “What makes you say that?” he asked.

“They raised you,” she whispered, her arms
winding around his neck and pulling his head closer to hers. When
her lips touched his, he groaned. Memories from that night in the
club flooded his mind as her spicy scent enveloped his senses. He’d
kissed her before. A lot. Something, or someone, had made him
forget it all. Deanna melted into his arms, moving as close to him
as she could. He ran his fingers through her long hair, angling his
head to deepen the kiss. It was her turn to sigh. A deep rumble
sounded in his gut, and she pulled back, laughing. “We better get
you fed. I think your stomach wants to eat me.”

Embarrassed, he chuckled and stood, offering
his hand. “Let’s check out this middle floor you told me
about.”

They swam to the domed building. This time,
she went first. When he came out of the drying room—still blue, of
course—she was waiting. He didn’t think much of his pale skin and
brown hair before, but he was really getting sick of the color
blue. He felt so alien. Then again, he wasn’t human anymore, was
he? He couldn’t help smile appreciatively at Deanna. He may not
like blue, but he was growing quite fond of the soft minty hue to
Deanna’s skin and the crisp green of her eyes. The light pink tank
top and tan skirt she wore showed off her lithe build and legs,
which were long and toned from dancing. He liked her in either
form, but her human figure made his blood flow hot.