Ripples (DROPLETS Trilogy Book 2) (25 page)

      His head lifted and our lips met again, this time gently caressing one another, until I pulled back. We hovered in the water halfway toward the surface, and I lowered my head to his shoulder and noticed something interesting. Our matching scars, the cruel marks which labeled us as transformed merfolk, pressed tightly against one another. It was as though they were trying to become one, the light which reflected off of them mingling into a dark gray.

     Gradually, we sank to the bottom of the natural pool until my back touched the soft sand and smooth pebbles. Zale gently let go of me, our tails separating, but laid on his side so he could look at me. Our fins lifted and swayed in the water, every now and then floating and then returning to the pool’s floor as though breathing on their own. More than once, my fins drifted toward his and the thrill of feeling them touch sent a jolt through my body. Each time it happened, the side of his mouth lifted, and when he turned his eyes to mine, I felt my heart skip a beat.

    
You know what I was just thinking?
He asked, and I cocked my head to the side.

    
No, what?
I asked, curious.

     I was thinking about the night you were attacked on the beach by Bolrock’s men.

     I scrunched my face in disgust,
Why were you thinking of that?

    
You had no way of defending yourself, did you? Other than the dagger of course.

     My mind spun, what was he talking about? Of course I had no other way of protecting myself. What other way was he referring to?

     Then it all came together when he grasped my fingers in his hands and kissed the tips of each one. He was talking about the blades I would get when I turned eighteen. It was terrifying to think I would actually have the ability to retract the blades into my fingers.

    
It’s amazing you haven’t been more afraid. You’re very brave.
He said as I tried to pay attention to his words. His fingers were sending shivers up my arms as he caressed my wrists and palms.

    
That’s because you’re always there to save me
, I said in jest and his mouth hooked at the corner.

    
But what if I’m not?
A grim shadow passed over his face and he held onto my fingers.
I don’t like the idea of you in danger with nothing but this to keep you safe.
His hand brushed over the holster where my dagger was sheathed against my forearm. Slowly his eyes moved up to my face.
I don’t want to lose you
.

     My heart pounded heavily within my chest,
I don’t want to lose you either
.

     He nodded in acknowledgement, and yet sighed.

   
What’s the matter?
I asked.

    For a moment he stared up at the shimmers of moonlight glittering on the surface above us. His expression was hard, contemplating, as though something was troubling him. I wondered if I had said the wrong thing.

   
It’s nothing
, he explained, but his expression said otherwise. He turned to me and one side of his mouth pulled upward.
Nothing to worry about.

    
If it was nothing to worry about, why did my stomach tighten as though unsure of what was to come? I moved to touch his cheek but he gently grasped my hand and took us to the surface with one kick.

    “We should head back.” He said, his deep voice as serious as ever. “You’re probably tired.”

   
Always so factual, and to the point,
I thought. He never failed to amaze me with how little intonation he could put into his words. It was as though he didn’t know how to clearly communicate.

    “I already slept,” I said in protest, not sure of how this moment had gone from peaceful to uncomfortable so quickly.

    “Alright then,” he said, simply “I’m tired.”

    I bit my lip and nodded my head. “Okay then.”  I performed a little dolphin-like dive over to the edge of the waterfall pool, hoping the water hit him in the face. I was just about to pull myself out when I realized I would transform back into a human and would be naked. Stuck on what I should do, I turned around, but Zale wasn’t in the water.

    “Here,” once more I whipped around, my hair settling a moment after. He stood on the grass beside the pool, his shorts already on, and in his hand he held his black shirt out to me.

     Knowing this was going to be a lot less graceful than usual, I grabbed my black shirt I normally wore and threw it to a clump of bushes. I then pulled his shirt over my head. It was long enough to cover my nakedness until I reached the cover of the shrubbery. Zale averted his eyes as I transformed and stepped onto the cool grass. Tugging the shirt as low as possible, I darted into the shadows of the greenery. Whipping his shirt off and throwing my own over my head, I tied his now wet shirt around my waist making a mini skirt. It would have to do. 

    Without another word, I marched off into the trees knowing he would hear me leaving. Sure enough, he was right beside me before I was ten steps away from the waterfall. The sound of the rushing water faded as we slipped through the moonlit night. Up ahead, the path bent to the right leading to the cave, but the warrior beside made no move to take it.

    “The cave is that way,” I said and pointed so he would take the hint.

    “I’m not going back there,” again his words were direct. “I’ll make sure you’re safe, and then go back to the waterfall.”

    I was about to question him when I realized it didn’t matter. He could do whatever he wanted and it wasn’t as if I could do anything to stop him.

    Rather than speak my mind, I turned on my heel and led the way to the cabin. True to his word, he didn’t enter; he simply watched me as I climbed the steps and went inside. When I looked out the window to see if he was still there, he was already gone. It wasn’t until much later as I tried to fall asleep once more, I realized what was bothering me. And the familiar pain in my chest opened again.

     Seeing the cabin hadn’t had any effect on him; it was as though he had never seen it before. 

Morning light slipped through the open windows in the kitchen and grazed the floor. My mind was elsewhere as I sat at the table; my fingers rolling the smooth pearl bracelet along my wrist. The water on the stove roared loudly, but every time I checked there were only small bubbles along the bottom. Disgruntled, I sat down, refusing to get up until I was absolutely sure the water would be boiling.

    A sudden knock shattered my thoughts and I sat up unexpectedly. Biting my lip, I made my way to the door. I smoothed down the black V-neck shirt and simple shorts I’d found in the guest cabin, for the time being they would suffice after my black pants had ripped at the waterfall. Whipping the door open, my eyes met a female face and startled me for a moment. The normally confident princess stood on the landing, her face solemn and shoulders slightly hunched. 

    “Hi,” Kryssa said and I hated how there was a mutual distance between us. As though she was a stranger to me.

    “Hi,” I replied, feeling awkward. I braced my body against the door, not sure of what to say next.

    “Can I come in?” She asked.

    “Yeah,” I said quickly, feeling inadequate. She moved past me gracefully into the cabin and walked toward the table. For a moment she looked as though she was going to sit, but then she stopped and turned toward me. The silence between us was heavy, but the loud whistling from the teapot on the wood-fire stove sent me to the kitchen. Pulling the teapot away from the heat calmed the bubbles inside. I set it down and turned to find Kryssa watching me. Her gaze was soft, nothing like the stares of accusation I had grown accustomed to seeing.

     “How have you been?” She asked, and I noticed how she shifted her from one foot to the other.

     “Fine,” I said. “You?”

     She nodded and looked away, her eyes roving over the wooden chairs, the table and the remnants of left over breakfast. The salted meat hadn’t set well in my stomach, even if it did last a long time without refrigeration.

     “Everyone else is,” she paused, searching for the right word, “recovering.”

     I nodded this time and waited for her to speak. But she didn’t say anything.

     “Is there something you needed?” I asked.

     “Well, I,” her eyes finely met mine, “I, felt badly about how we left the other day.”

     “I still won’t tell you anything.” I said; making sure she understood where I was on the matter.

     “I know,” she nodded. “I just wanted to make sure you were all right.”

     I relaxed slightly, “I am, thanks.”

     “Well, good,” she said and smiled back, unsure.

     In an instant I felt the wall between us fall down. She wasn’t here to badger me for information; this wasn’t what I’d thought it would be. Somewhere in my time away from Lathmor and my times spent with Zale, I had begun to resent them. Maybe it was because I saw them in a different light, through his eyes. Maybe it was because I knew I would never be like them, I would never be fully accepted or completely trusted. But most of all, it was the need for them to understand what had happened to Patrick and not being able to tell them. It wasn’t their fault, but it was easier to pin it on them than to deal with the problem myself.

     “I’m sorry,” I blurted out all of the sudden. She looked up, her eyes like saucers. “I just wanted you to know that.”

     She nodded, “I’m sorry, too.”

     “And I wish we could go back to the way things were before…” I trailed off and waved my hand as if to recall the past.

     “Me too,” she said, and a real smile spread over her lips. “It was a little easier then.”

     “A lot easier,” I corrected. “Umm, do you want some tea?”

     “Couldn’t hurt,” she said and I turned to pour the hot water over two tea bags. I handed her one of the mugs, the steam rising in little swirls in the chilly air of the morning. “Thanks,” she said and went to sit at the table. After fixing my own, I followed suit.

     Somehow the distance between us had lessened. Maybe it was the admission of guilt on both sides, or maybe it was the need for something other than the hostility that seemed to surround us completely.

     “How’s Elik?” I asked, taking her off guard. I had my suspicions after seeing them together the other day. Every time she had moved, he’d shifted too.

     A slight blush crept over her cheeks and she smiled, “He’s good, well, I guess, we’re good.” She sighed.

     “I’m happy to hear it,” I said and realized I actually was. In a way, I could feel myself coming back to life. That part of me, I’d hidden away as soon as I left Lathmor for home, was coming back to me. Those times on Lathmor, those times here on the island, all of it was a part of my past I had tried to bury the moment we got back from our failed rescue. Much like the memories of the good times with Patrick, I had thrown it all away and tried to forget. But there was nothing that could keep the memories from returning. Not here in this cabin.

     “He’s different and yet wonderful,” she said and a smile spread across her lips. “I never would have thought I could be with him, or ever see him as I do now.”

     I nodded, not really sure what to say, but knowing she was stepping out on a limb to tell me about him. There was only one other time she had truly opened up to me, and that was to tell me about her lost love. I remembered the way she had looked when she spoke about Wyeth. Somehow I understood her story exactly.

    
“He is different and yet wonderful,”
I thought. How true those words were.

     “Does it ever get easier?” I asked, not really sure if I should venture into her past. She turned her head to the side, curious. “The memories of what had been?”

     She looked away for a moment and then spoke, “Sometimes. Most days I can remember the good stuff, all the memories before he was injured and that’s when it’s easy. Even his death isn’t so hard to remember anymore. It’s what could have been, that’s hardest.” She sighed, “When Wyeth died, the future I’d dreamed of died with him. It’s those hopes and dreams and idealized moments that are the hardest to give up, but eventually you do.”

     Pressure built behind my eyes, but I did my best to conceal it. She had so perfectly defined what it was I felt. Even though I could remember the good with Patrick, there was always the deep sense of longing. The desire for something more, that I could never reach. And a sense of death even though I had accepted what had happened to him. It was the knowledge that even though I had fallen for the warrior, the future I had once expected, dreamed of, would never be.

     “Thanks,” I said, sniffing but keeping the tears at bay.

     For a long time we sat in companionable silence until I could slowly feel the weight of the atmosphere change around us. Every now and then she would look at me from the corner of her eye and I knew what she wanted, what she had been sent here to do.

     I sighed, “I won’t tell you.”

     Her eyes snapped to mine, “Why not?”

     “Because I can’t.” I knew my explanation was too short, and our return to kinship made me want her to understand. “Look, if I could tell you, I would. But my hands are tied in this. It’s just as I told Tunder. The person who helped me can’t anymore, so there’s no reason to endanger them.”

    “You really think we wouldn’t be able to keep them safe?” She rebutted. “They could have more information.” Her voice was beginning to rise in frustration.

    “No,” I said defiantly, my tone matching hers.

    “Lissie! We are in a war!” Kryssa yelled.

    “And you don’t think I know that?” My face was heating in anger, “If it wasn’t for me, you’d either be dead or a Hyven prisoner!”

    Kryssa closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She pressed her fingers to the bridge of her nose and when she spoke again her voice was much calmer. “Believe me, I’ll never forget what you did for us. All I’m saying is this source could have more information to help us end this war with Hyvar. They might be able to give us a loop in the system.”

    “I already told you there won’t be information coming from this source again.”

    “But they could help us catch Zale, and if we—”

    “That won’t happen,” my temper was rising higher and higher.

    “If Patrick was here and knew what you were doing, do you think he would be pleased? Tell us who—”

“No!” I said loudly, cutting her off once more. My voice rang throughout the cabin. “The information I received was a mistake, okay? It was an accident. I wasn’t supposed to find out.”

     Kryssa’s mouth hung open for a moment, but she closed it quickly and her eyes grew soft again. A deep silence filled the room and I sighed heavily, looking at my mug of half-drunk tea.

    “Why didn’t you say that before?” she asked.

    I shrugged, not knowing how to explain myself. It was true what had happened.

    She reached across the table and took my hand.  The contact made it all the harder not to tell her about the other inhabitant on the island.

     “I truly am sorry,” she said and squeezed my fingers. “I should never have used his name like that. It was wrong of me.”

    Again, I shrugged, “That’s alright. We’re both running on high emotions nowadays. It happens.”

    She nodded in agreement. “Now, where were we?” Her face screwed up in thought for a moment and then recognition passed. “Oh that’s right, let me see if I can think of some embarrassing things that Elik would never want you to know.”

     Maybe it was the final release of the earlier tension, but I suddenly laughed and she did too. What followed was a cavalcade of stories of sweet nothings that took my mind away from everything important. For just one moment, I was able to relax and not worry, to laugh and not be afraid to cry, to feel happiness and not be fearful of the next time I would feel pain. And the remaining hours of her visit passed by quickly while we chatted and I felt the reconnection of our friendship. Somewhere through the desperation of lies and fears, we had been able to remember our old selves. And when I hugged her goodbye and watched her run into the waves, I felt a lost part of myself reconnect as her fins disappeared beneath the surface of the ocean.

_______________

     As I walked back to the cabin, a loud crack resounded through the trees. The sound was all too familiar from his practice earlier, and I walked toward it to the clearing near the cave opening.

     The snap of the whip grew louder and standing on the outskirts of the clearing, I remained hidden in the trees to watch him wield the weapon. He was shirtless, the sun gleaming off his broad shoulders, but it was his eyes which drew my attention. Before each snap, his eyes would focus on a target and with a quick movement he would whip his arm forward, the brown leather doing its best to keep up. Every target he set his eye upon, he hit. The surrounding shrubs, sticks, and leaves were taking a beating from his demonstrations.

     “How long are you going to stand there watching me?” He asked, his deep baritone ran over my ears like velvet. I hadn’t thought he’d seen me.

     Cautiously, I stepped out of the shadows and into the sunshine. He faced away and the muscles in his back flexed beneath the scar as he wrapped the whip back into a coil. As always, the dark shimmer of his scar from Nerissa surprised me with its vibrancy.

     “How did you know?” I said, my voice fading in wonder.

     “I have my ways,” he said and the scar rippled in the sunlight when he adjusted his shoulders. He turned to look at me, his face serious but not as dark and foreboding as it had been the night before. The bandages on his chest were gone and in their wake they left trails which were fading quickly. Only the black shimmer on his hip remained unchanged.

    I nodded my head and squinted in the sunlight to look at him more directly. I tried to think of something to say and opened my mouth, but he beat me to it.

    “She took forever to leave,” his voice was factual and I shook my head, realizing he had been completely aware of Kryssa’s presence. At least I wouldn’t have to worry about him being found out by anyone from Lathmor.

     “We had a lot of catching up to do,” I said and wrapped my arms around my body. He nodded and I tried not to look at the large expanse of his chest.

     “I’m actually glad you’re here,” he said and my heart skipped a small beat. “I want to teach you some more defense tactics.”

     I quirked an eyebrow, “What in the world made you think of that?”

     “Yesterday,” he confirmed, “when you told me your age.”

     “Oh,” I said and bit my lip to try and stop the blush flooding over my cheeks. Simply hinting at what had passed between us at the waterfall was enough to make my blood heat.

     He took a few steps toward me and the look in his eye told me we were thinking the same thing. The heat in my face rose even higher.

     “So,” I said, clearing my throat and trying to ignore his gaze, “what do you want to teach me?” All traces of humor disappeared from his face, in place was the stony gaze of the warrior.

   “Do you have your knife with you?” he asked.