Droplets (DROPLETS Trilogy Book 1) (14 page)

     For a moment I wanted to tell her, but then the vivid memory of Morven’s flashing blades and incredible speed returned. He was an unimaginable threat.

     “I don’t mean to be rude,” I said, turning my gaze back to the sharp green eyes. “But you would not be able to defend yourself in this situation. I won’t tell you.”

     “Then we have no choice but to take you with us,” Shaylee said sighing heavily. “I hoped it would not come to this.”

    “Do you have anything to do with the war?” Kryssa blurted out from beside Patrick. Confusion ran through my mind while my eyes widened.

     “War? What war?” I asked quickly unsure of what I was being accused of.

     “Kryssa!” Nixie hissed under her breath, admonishing her older sister.

     “What?” Kryssa shrugged, “Shaylee wanted the truth, and by the look on Lissie’s face she is innocent just like I said.”

     Shaylee glanced at me, her eyes registering relief. Somehow I had passed some test without even knowing it.
Who were these people?

     “I still want her to come with us,” Shaylee spoke, this time more calmly.

     “No,” Patrick said causing all of us to look at him. “She will not be leaving here.”

     “As difficult as it may be for you,” she said sarcastically, “she has to go. Others will find out soon enough and come here anyway. Its best we keep the situation under control and handle this now.” Shaylee was standing in front of him while she spoke. I felt as though she was trying to communicate something deeper to Patrick. In return his eyes flashed and his nostrils flared in anger.

     “I will go,” I said quietly. Four pairs of eyes turned to me. “Kryssa, mentioned your father the other day. I will meet him if that is what you want. But, I have no idea what you’re talking about and I have never heard of a war.”

     In the silence that followed my words, I knew I had settled the matter. There would be no further questions; my acquiescence was all they needed (though their reason for needing it still evaded me).

     Shaylee was the first to regain her composure. “I will hold you to that,” she said. “We will return tomorrow to take you with us. Thank you for being so cooperative.”

     In her last statement, a touch of a smile appeared on her lips revealing a lighter side to her personality. Without another word she walked toward the door. Nixie rose off the bench and followed her.

     “Sorry,” she said, smiling slightly when she passed me. She paused awkwardly. “It really was nice to meet you.” Then she scurried out the door as though afraid of what she had said.

     Kryssa still lingered in the room, the strange silence weighing and pressing upon us. “Well, I guess I had better go.” Patrick made no move in response, so I rose from the bench instead.

     “Thank you for coming.” It was all I could think to say. As if the conversation had been too hostile and I needed to make it seem friendlier.

     A short laugh escaped Kryssa. “That was far from being a nice visit. But don’t worry, Shaylee is only harsh when she has to be.” She passed by me toward the door and paused before stepping outside. “I’ll see you both tomorrow.”

     I nodded, but Patrick once again made no response. With a sigh and apologetic look, Kryssa turned once more to leave.

     “Kryssa.” Patrick’s voice made me jump. “Let your father know I’ll be coming with her.”

     For a fraction of a second Kryssa’s eyes widened in surprise, but she covered it well. “I’ll do that. Goodbye.”

     The door closed behind her quietly, but the soft thud rang with finality.

     The silence which had been in the room before was nothing compared to what hung thickly between Patrick and I now. I felt as though I were drowning in a cloak of dark secrets, unsure of how to escape.

     “Don’t worry about their father,” Patrick said, his voice strained. “He’ll treat you with respect, there are just… others that I’m worried about.”

     Again the reference to more than the sisters’ father fell upon my ears, this time making me curious and uncertain of what I had done.

     I nodded at his words, uncertain of how to respond and not wanting him to notice the fear beginning to build within me.

     “Really, Lissie.” my name rolled off his tongue. “You have nothing to fear.”

     “Should I be worried about the others?” I placed emphasis on the last word while biting my lip.

     He stepped slowly toward me until his hands reached my shoulders. Again the distance between us was closed. I felt that we had formed some type of bond. Somehow I knew he was on my side and as much an outsider as I was.

     “Won’t you look at me?” His tone was lighter than before and a soft grin spread on my face as I shook my head. “Oh, come on,” he said and poked me in the rib. I jumped back from him, a small squeal escaping my lips.

     “Ticklish, are we?” he cocked an eyebrow as a new kind of foreboding filled me.

     “Don’t do it,” I warned, holding up a finger.

     He took a quick step toward me and I staggered backward, laughing. It seemed so long since I had felt so happy; to feel the lightness fill my heart. For just one moment I felt like myself again.

    I looked back at Patrick, his smile reaching his eyes. Slowly his lips slipped at the corners, fading into the serious expression I was used to seeing. I swallowed heavily and waited, wondering what had changed.

     A crease formed over his brow and he looked away from where I stood. It was as though he put up a stone wall between us. I knew it was a barrier that I could not cross.

     “To answer your question, you don’t have to worry about the others.” His voice was deep and solemn. “Their father will keep you safe.” He half smiled, but still avoided looking at me.

     “Okay,” I said awkwardly. “Well, goodnight then.”

     He nodded, but kept his gaze averted. I opened the side door and strode across the wooden walkway to my room. The night air was chilly, contrasting how warm I had felt just a moment ago.

     Walking into my room, I lay down on the bed and let the loneliness reclaim me. In the darkness the shadows seemed larger and they called out to me. Speaking the dreaded name that I tried to run away from but could never leave behind.

    
Marina

       Shivering, I slipped into sleep and images flashed within my mind.
He
was there. His dark hair floating on the wind. His blades flashing in the moonlight. The silver fins twitching back and forth beneath the pounding waves. I struggled to get away, but he snatched me into his arms. Forcing my head back, he let the rain pound on my face while the waves tossed us back and forth. And with his lips at my ear he told me to look at the shore. Through the haze I made out the form of a body, bleeding and lifeless. The familiar brown eyes stared blankly. I opened my mouth to yell Patrick’s name, but Morven tightened his grip and pulled me under the oncoming waves and into the depths of the ocean.

     With a choking cry I woke up and shuddered in the darkness. 

14. Lathmor

The next day arrived slowly—the sisters’ arrival could not have come quick enough. I had not seen Patrick all morning; I guessed he was off somewhere on the island probably trying to avoid me. Yet, his declaration that he would go with me was encouraging and helped ease the nervousness in my stomach.

     I had no way of knowing when the girls would show up. In preparation I put on some clean clothes, pulled back my hair, and read a book in the main cabin. My hope was that Patrick would walk through at some point; I wanted to patch up the distance from the night before. But as the day wore on it became obvious that he would not come back to the house.

     Reaching a lull in the novel, I looked up from its worn pages and sighed heavily in boredom. I avoided thinking about what lay ahead of me, since I was unsure of what the day would hold exactly. All I knew was that the sisters would take me somewhere.

     Twisting my hair around my finger, I counted off the seconds, and then the minutes, until I finally heard footsteps on the stairs. Excited and not thinking, I dashed to the door and threw it open just as Kryssa was reaching the top. She froze, startled for a moment, and then relaxed.

     “I guess you are ready to go,” she said. The words were more of a statement than a question.

     I nodded. “Yes,” I replied. My voice sounded breathless even to my own ears.

     “Let’s go,” Nixie, who I had not seen behind Kryssa, spoke up. She turned around on the stairs to walk back down. Kryssa followed, but I held back.

     “Shouldn’t we wait for Patrick?” I questioned.

     Kryssa turned, her eyes glancing around quickly. “If we are lucky we might be able to leave without him. Come along.” Her smooth hand grasped my wrist and I could do nothing but follow her. She looked different today and it took me a moment to figure out why. Both she and Nixie had their hair pulled back tightly in a bun, making them look older than they were. 

     The sky was just beginning to change, the blues turning to lighter shades of orange as the sun began its slow decent. Through the branches above, little stars were becoming visible.

     We passed through the meadow and the wall of greenery, walking on a path that led us directly to the ocean. The closer we got, the easier it was to hear the washing of the waves upon the shore. A tight coil wound in my belly, refusing to let me relax.

     Breaking through the last of the trees, the sand pushed up against my feet and I saw a small boat ahead of us. It was nothing like the large boats I was used to seeing in Coveside; instead, it looked more like a lifeboat with a small motor protruding off the back.

     “Come,” Nixie said in her high voice. “We must hurry.” There was urgency in her voice and seriousness that I had not detected the night before.

     She beckoned me forward with well-manicured fingers, a black piece of fabric wrapped around her palm.

     “We have to blindfold you for security reasons,” Kryssa explained as Nixie handed her the soft strip of darkness which soon settled over my eyes, leaving me to rely on my other senses.

     “I hope you have two of those.” Patrick’s voice was like a warm blanket of security around my shoulders. The knot in my stomach uncoiled. Until that moment I had not realized how nervous and frightened I was.

     “We don’t,” Kryssa said, her voice sounding disappointed that she hadn’t managed to fool Patrick. “But you don’t really need one. So get in.”

     My ears heightened as I listened to his feet pad past me and step into the old boat. Kryssa urged me forward, guiding me carefully across the sand toward the tiny vessel while I waited to feel a thud against my shins.

     Instead, I felt my hand being lifted by the calloused grasp of the man in the boat. I let Patrick guide me into the unstable vessel, grateful that he directed me gently on where to place my feet and finally on where to sit.

     All too soon he let go of my hand and I suddenly felt very lost and alone. It was as though his touch had kept me grounded.

     “We’re ready,” Nixie spoke from behind me, near where I assumed the motor was.

     “Give me a chance to push her in,” Kryssa said. A moment later I felt the gentle rock of the boat as the waves rushed against it. Disoriented, I had no idea which direction we were facing.

     “All right, let’s go,” Kryssa spoke, and Nixie cranked the motor in response. The sound of the whirring machine filled my ears with a pathetic rumble and I couldn’t help but think we were never going to make it. Surprisingly, the little boat lurched forward and moved faster than I would have thought possible.

     The wind whipped all around us and I was thankful my hair was pulled back tightly against my head. If it had been free, its unnatural movement would’ve been all too evident and would’ve been my undoing.

     After what seemed like an eternity of no speaking, the sound of water breaking on rock told me we had arrived. The crashing of waves got closer, and I felt a change in the air as if we had entered a cave. The air was damp and the waves echoed in what I assumed was a waterway entrance to an island. Disoriented, I waited patiently until the boat scraped along the bottom and Nixie’s fingers began to tug on the small knot resting on the back of my head.

     The fabric fell away and a dim, dark room met my eyes. The boat had been pulled up to a small shore of rocks and pebbles where Kryssa and Patrick now stood waiting for me. Still nervous, I stepped out of the boat and onto the shore, acutely aware of Patrick’s gaze upon me.

     Without a word Kryssa led the way into another cave lit by torches along the walls. She picked something up off a battered, wooden bench in the corner.

     “Sorry,” she said. At first I thought she was speaking to me, but instead she was looking at Patrick.

     He sighed. “I expected as much,” he said as he extended his hands toward her. I noticed that his dagger was missing.

     Kryssa hesitated, but then began to wrap the thick rope around his wrists, securing them tightly together. Alarm shot through me. “What are you doing that for?” I blurted out.

     Kryssa paused in her movements and glanced up at me. “Another safety precaution,” she replied. Something about her appearance was different than before, but I couldn’t figure out what it was.

     “But he wouldn’t hurt anyone,” I objected.

     “Yes, I know that, but there are others who think he would.” Again with the others. Who were these people?

     “But I don’t understand,” I said, not really sure how to voice my fear of what was taking place. How could they consider Patrick a threat, and if they found out what I truly was, what would they do to me?

     “It’s just better for everyone if they see him secured,” Nixie tried to calmly explain, but her words did nothing to ease my confusion.

     Kryssa returned her attention to the tight knot around Patrick’s wrists and finished it quickly, leaving his hands securely pressed together. As she peered over the knot in the dim light to check her work, a strand of hair fell from behind her shoulder. Its movement caught my attention.

     “Is
he
here?” Patrick asked softly, putting emphasis on the middle word.

     She straightened and shook her head from side to side. And in that moment everything clicked in my mind, a shock of surprise and trepidation ran through my veins like a bullet.

     Her hair, moving like mine, flowed slowly as though it had a mind of its own. There was only one explanation I had
for why her hair would move like that. I figured she
must
be a mermaid.  My heart pounded rapidly as I realized what I was walking into. Had I left my home only to fall right into Morven’s lap?

     Then the words Patrick had just spoken ran clearly through my mind. Was the
he
Morven? Unbidden, the image from my nightmares returned to my mind and my blood pumped furiously through my veins.

     Oblivious to my revelation, Nixie called for us to follow her. On legs that felt like shaky gelatin I followed her out into the night air and onto a well-worn path leading into the trees.

     Kryssa and Patrick followed behind, but I was too concentrated on what I was about to face to give it any thought. The more steps I took, the more I realized I could be nearing him. As I walked I felt his presence. I could see that evil smile he used whenever he knew I was frightened. But most of all I saw his gleaming blades, dripping with blood.

     With a pang, I remembered the sharp slice of the cut on my hip. I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate on my feet. I had to keep following Nixie’s, picking one foot up after the other. Right, left, right, left, right…