Heart of Shell (The Mercrutian Chronicles Book 1) (15 page)

I was leaving for
Cap Pele. Everything was packed and ready to go. My parents had loaded up the car, and we were just checking over the last few rooms in the house when the telephone rang. I prayed it was Merrick, my last visit with Coral and Pearl before I left he was noticeably absent and they had not commented much on where he was.

“
I’ll get it!” I shouted, excited to be going away for a few months, maybe it would clear my head, get me away from my dreams of him, and Gina’s incessant dirty looks. I needed some time for myself. I wanted to figure out more of what I wanted.

“
Hello, may I please speak with Anya?”

“
Speaking,” I answered. “Merrick?” I asked, even though it did not sound like him.

“
Uhhh, it’s Seth. I got your number from Leah and Evie. Were you expecting a call from someone else? I can let you go.”

“
Oh, hey Seth, no no, it’s fine” I said, “sorry about that. What’s up?”

“
I well, Evie and Leah told me you were going away for the summer so I just wanted to say bye.”
“Oh, thanks, that’s nice of you. I’ll be back,” I said in a
Terminator
voice.

He laughed. “Yeah, I can’t wait. I just, I wanted to wish you a good summer vacation was all.”

“
You too, Seth, make sure that Leah and Evie don’t miss me too much,” I joked.

“
Yeah, I’ll try,” he started, “But you’re pretty hard to replace.” My stomach did a back flip, I missed Merrick sneaking in nice things like that. It made me me feel stronger than I thought and for a moment I felt that had I been normal, had things been different, I might have forgotten all about Merrick and paid more attention to Seth.

“
Anya!” My mom called to me from the front door.

“
Be right there!” I said shifting the phone to the side so as not to pop Seth’s eardrum.

“
Well you gotta go,” he said.

“
Yeah, sorry!”

“
Listen, uh don’t forget me Anya.”

I smiled, suddenly realizing that I was the one Seth liked in our group. How I missed that I wasn't so sure.

“Of course I won’t. Bye Seth!”

I hung up the phone and ran down the stairs to meet my parents at the car.

“
Who was that my mom asked?”

“
Merrick?” My father guessed hopefully.

“
Oh, no it was Seth,” a friend from school.

“
A boy?” My mother asked with disapproval.

“
A friend. Don't worry so much. Mom, can we get this show on the road?” I slid on her extra pair of sunglasses, and she smiled.

“
Those look nice on you, sweetheart.”

With the car pulling out of the driveway, I wondered if this summer would be as full of change as the past ten months. Deep down, I almost wished for some quiet, but I knew that wouldn’t happen, I had only begun my transcendence.

“
Oh this letter came for you,” my mom said handing me the envelope with a smiley scribbled on the front of it.

I held my breath opening the manila envelope and hoped that it was from Merrick. It was from Zale.

Anya,

I know you're disappointed, you were probably hoping that idiot brother of mine had taken the time to write you a little note before you left. You won't understand now, but it's probably for the better that he didn't write to you. He and I are in Peggy's Cove today so we won't be able to see you off, as much as I might like to give you another peck.

A winking smiley face was scribbled in the margin with a slightly crooked smile and I wanted to laugh at it, but then I remembered how upset Merrick had been when he'd heard about the dream. That had to mean something, he had even said “he knows you're my mate.” That meant I was part of his life, even if  lately he had made it habit to ignore me. For a moment, I thought that perhaps I should discount Zale's confession, but I returned to my reading.

Merrick would have a fit though, and I'm not one to take enjoyment from my brother's pain. All the same, when you get back, you and I will have much to discuss. Enjoy your summer, and don't forget about us. Be patient with him Anya, he means well.

I'll miss your lovely smile.

I smiled, and folded the letter placing it back in the envelope. Again, Zale had surprised me, and I wondered what we would need to discuss when I returned, clearly it would have to do with Merrick.

I let my feelings melt off of me. There was no point in letting all of these mystery emotions take over the enjoyment of my trip with my parents. In this moment something exciting was happening in my life. I rolled down the window to let the rays of sun shine stroke my face and let the song on the radio invade my senses.

No matter what happened over the summer there was one thing I finally knew, regardless of how Merrick felt, or how much I realized that I cared about him, we would have time on our side to make things work. Our hearts couldn't be broken so easily, they weren't made of shell.              

About the Author

Zara Steen has a penchant for paranormal and fantasy romance. She lives in Atlantic Canada with her partner and is always thinking of new book ideas and characters. Her second installment of The Mercrutian Chronicles: Blue Moon Rising is anticipated to be released in 2016.

Check out her forthcoming books Young Adult Books at:
www.zarasteen.com
.