Droplets (DROPLETS Trilogy Book 1) (26 page)

     Thunder rumbled in the bubbling clouds, but my eyes focused on Patrick. His lips were purple and his skin pale. He shivered uncontrollably, but the Hyven soldiers beside him seemed not to notice. Nor did they loosen their tight grips on his arms. Unlike the rest of us, Patrick’s hair was plastered to his forehead. The golden locks were dark in the water, making him look all the more deathly pale.

     I tried to inch closer, but Morven’s icy grasp once more laced around my wrists and I gasped. Patrick noticed and shot a glare in Morven’s direction, but the large body beside me didn’t react.

     “Are we waiting, my lord?” one of the Hyven asked as they paused for instructions from their leader. Morven didn’t glance their way, but instead his eyes searched the horizon even though there was nothing to see.

     “Blindfold him.” Morven spoke so quietly that I almost didn’t hear him over the churning water. A large wave lifted us upward in its arch, but we came down with it gracefully. Patrick, however, was dunked under the water and came up sputtering and choking. It pained me to hear his wracking cough. The two Hyven soldiers ignored his coughs and retied the wet black cloth over his eyes. He held still, but couldn’t quite control the violent shiver of cold that surged down his body from the wet rag pressed against his face.

     “Morven,” I said, and the two Hyven stopped in their tracks, staring at me as though I had just committed a crime. The black cloth slipped from Patrick’s eyes.

     Morven turned toward me. “You would do well to call me Lord.”

     “Or what?” I asked, challenging him. My eyes met his, and trying to force him to realize I was not going to be taken easily.

     “Drop him,” Morven said not even turning his head. Before I could react, Patrick disappeared beneath the surface and into the churning waves. I gasped loudly and strained with all my might to go after him. The lavender dress flared around me, brushing against Morven’s grey fins as he held me tight within his grasp.

     “No. Let me go!” I yelled loudly. “Don’t do this to him!”

     A slight nod of Morven’s head was enough of a signal for one of the soldiers and he disappeared into the wet blackness. I held my breath, tears filling my eyes, until two heads reappeared above the surface. Patrick’s chest heaved with exhaustion, his cold shivering body not allowing him to hold his breath as long as he had trained for.

     Brown eyes met my own and I revealed the fear, the wonder, the horror, and the love I felt for him. Somehow, even in the cold his eyes, were able to melt and I felt a warm throbbing in my heart that had nothing to do with the desperate situation we were in.

     “I haven’t got all night,” Morven snapped quickly and the two mermen returned to tying the rag around Patrick’s head. Just before his eyes were covered, Patrick nodded to me, his eyes burning into my own. He mouthed the words,
I love you
.

     One of the soldiers approached us and I shrank back. Morven held me still as my vision was compromised by an identical black rag tied around my own head. The ocean seemed louder and the waves more violent now that I couldn’t see.

     “Let’s move,” Morven said and once more we pressed forward, this time moving a little slower than before and staying on the surface.  

     I lost track of time as we sped along. The wind smashed into my cheeks making them raw, but all I had to do was let the water hit my face and it was once more refreshed. Patrick was not so lucky; I feared for him. The longer we went, the louder the chattering of his teeth became. Thinking of how hard he must be trying to not show weakness only made me fear more for him.

     The crashing of waves upon a shore reached my ears and I rejoiced for Patrick’s sake, but dreaded the sound. Hyvar was up ahead.

     Slowing our speed, Morven pulled me forward and the wind and sound of the rushing water disappeared. The darkness behind the blindfold became even darker and the lapping of rippled water against stone walls pressed upon my ears. Aside from the chattering of Patrick’s teeth, there was no other sound.

     My fins soon nicked the bottom of the cave floor and for a half a second Morven’s hands disappeared, though they quickly reappeared. His footsteps were loud as we moved in water up to our waists. In my mind’s eye I imagined him already transformed and dressed in his black clothing.

     Suddenly my legs reappeared and my feet slipped along the slimy bottom of the cave. The lavender dress dragged behind me and clung tightly to my skin.

     “Stand up,” one of the Hyven guards spoke harshly and I heard a subtle splash. I tried not to think of how stiff Patrick’s body was from the cold and how painful walking would be.

     Morven pulled me forward and I stumbled into his chest, but I pushed back not wanting him to think I needed his assistance. He chuckled. I tried following him, but my feet slipped once more on the rocks as I tripped over the wet fabric of my dress. Morven’s strong hands quickly caught me and swung me into his arms. Surprised, I squealed.

     “Lissie?” Patrick’s voice was full of alarm, his breath shaky but still strong. My heart thundered, heavily feeling more trapped than ever before with Morven’s arms wrapped around my body.

     “Put me down,” I said. I tried to sound confident, but my voice was weak even to my own ears. Morven obliged for some reason, but I had the feeling he was only humoring me for the moment.

    “Take him, and I’ll be down in a moment without her.” Morven’s voice again sent shivers down my spine. I feared him, but then as I processed his words I feared something else even more; he meant to separate us. All this time I had been expecting Patrick and I to be near each other. I had been expecting to go through whatever was facing us together.

     Morven gave me a sharp tug and I dug my heels into the ground. My mind concluded that this might be it, this could be the last time that I would ever hear Patrick’s voice.

     “Lissie?!” Patrick was furious now. He yelled from the other side of the cave, his voice echoing.

     “Patrick,” I said with a sob in my throat, the tears soaking into my already wet blindfold. There was another sharp tug on my arm and I whimpered. “Patrick,” I cried again, desperately wanting him to hold me even though I knew it was impossible.

     There were sounds of a struggle and then the sickening thud of a punch. Patrick groaned, and my senses heightened as I tried to figure out what was happening. I was being dragged at arm’s length by my secured wrists. My feet dug into the ground, using all of my strength to stay as close to Patrick as possible. Sharp rocks cut into the heels of my flesh, but I didn’t care.

     Again Morven reached for my waist and this time he picked me up and threw me over his shoulder like a sack of flour. I cried out through my thick throat, my heart feeling like it was shattering into pieces.

     “Lissie!” Patrick’s desperate voice came from far away. I sobbed, thinking of him all alone with the soldiers. There was another loud grunt. “LISSIE!” The call was louder, but just as far away. Lacking all hope, my heart sank.

     Morven walked on, ignoring what had just transpired. His strut was uncomfortable and my stomach jostled painfully against his shoulder with my pressing weight.

     In the corridor, Morven’s feet thundered on stone and the sound echoed against solid walls. A musty smell of moldy stone filled my nostrils and I tried to keep my bearings, but was soon lost as Morven turned down numerous passages and walked up and down staircases. Forcing myself to concentrate on the matters at hand, I realized he was trying to confuse me so I couldn’t go looking for Patrick. In despair I concluded that it didn’t matter. I was so turned around I would never be able to find my way back. Not to mention that Patrick was being taken somewhere too. Like a beckoning cry, my heart surged. I wanted to ask where he was even though I knew the response would never come.      

     Soft mumbles lifted to my ears every now and again, but each time the voices would come to a halt in our presence. These Hyven would murmur their submission by addressing him as Lord Morven when we passed by. Their lord gave no sign, however, or at least movement, to acknowledge their presence.

     Turning down yet another passage, the sound of heavy feet on stone came toward us.

     “Ah! Lord Morven, you have returned.” The voice was low and scratchy.

     As I hung over Morven’s back, I pictured an old decrepit man in my head, but for some reason the agility of the man left me wondering whether I was incorrect. From the sound of his footsteps, he moved too quickly to be an elderly person. His feet paused for a moment and then began to walk in the same direction Morven was headed.

     “I see that you were successful,” he rasped. I blushed, knowing that he was looking at my backside that was high in the air. I tried to adjust, but Morven lifted his shoulder into my gut and restricted my movement momentarily.

     “Yes.” Morven’s voice never failed to chill me to the bone. I could feel the vibrations of his deep voice next to my body. “We were more successful than we could have ever dreamed.” There was wicked joy in his words, and I feared dearly for Patrick.

     “What do you mean?” The scratchy voice asked.

     “We found
him
.” Morven’s words made the man gasp and stop walking. A moment later he took some quick strides to catch up.

     “How? And where?” The man was so astonished his voice was almost inaudible.

     “He was with them,” Morven explained casually, “at that wench princess’s wedding.”

     Frustration built within me by his degrading term for Nixie. He was so vile it disgusted me, but there was nothing I could do at the moment. My time with him would come, but not tonight.

     “Do you think he’s been there all these years?” the man who walked with us asked, curious. Morven fidgeted his shoulders in what I guessed to be annoyance.

     “No, he’s lived somewhere else. I just don’t know where.” Security filled my mind with the knowledge that the island was still untouched.

     Both men were quiet for a moment. The pounding of their strong booted feet echoed throughout the corridors while I waited for the men to speak once more. I wanted the man to ask more about Patrick, to ask a question that might give me a hint as to where he was and what would happen to him, but he didn’t. 

     “Is it ready?” Morven asked breaking into my thoughts.

     “Wha-what? Oh! Yes, the mermaids finished it this afternoon.”

     “Good,” Morven said, his voice still distant. “Take her there. I have some unfinished business to deal with.” I quivered at his words, wondering what he meant by them.

     The large hands I dreaded lifted me off his shoulder. I huffed loudly, glad that my belly was no longer pressing into my spine. Morven placed me on the ground effortlessly and I marveled at the idea of my weight being next to nothing for him. His overpowering strength made me feel smaller than usual around him.

     With wobbly legs, my bare feet touched the cold hard stones. I winced when my weight pressed against the scratches in my heels, but was sure to keep silent. I swayed as the blood rushed to my head, and Morven steadied me with his hands on my shoulders. He reached for my still-restrained wrists and lifted my arms out in front of me.

     “Here,” he said, offering my bound flesh to the stranger merman.

     “She’s not unconscious?” the scratchy voice asked, surprised and a little angry. I wondered why it bothered him.

     “I grow tired of your questions, Gell. Just take her and go,” Morven snapped. I shuddered as his loud voice sent a shiver down my spine. For the moment I was thankful to be blindfolded so I didn’t have to see the malicious anger in his eyes that I knew was there.

     “Yes, my Lord,” Gell said quietly as he took my wrists obediently. His hand was surprisingly firm and smooth, confirming my original thoughts about him being younger than he sounded.

     Morven’s feet retreated and my fear returned. Even though I hated Morven’s presence, it made it so I was able to predict his actions. Without sight, I was left dependent upon this merman Gell. Maybe he would be gentler than Morven, but a sharp tug issued on my wrists jerked my whole body forward.
Then again, maybe not
.

     After being blindly led and pulled down different halls, Gell stopped me and opened a door that sounded heavy as the hinges squealed loudly in the silent corridor. A strong musty smell reached my nose as I was pulled into the room. My senses heightened taking in the crackling of a fire and the wafting of food. Saliva built within my mouth, but I ignored my hunger.

     Gell dropped my bound wrists and I wobbled stupidly while trying to gather my bearings. To my surprise, I felt a sharp tug on the blindfold behind my head and the tightly secured knot soon fell away. I blinked fiercely and tears tried to lessen the sting of the fire lit chamber. Closing my eyes and squinting slowly, I was able to adjust to the light and I eventually gained a clear picture of my surroundings.

      A large bed stood against the wall with an ancient hand carved headboard. An ugly dark green quilt rested on the top of the thin mattress and matching green drapes hung beside the bed. Huge pieces of wooden furniture stood at attention against the walls throughout the room. Next to the bed was a large wardrobe that looked as though it could fit ten people inside, and on the opposite side of the room was a mirror that stretched from floor to ceiling.