Everblue (11 page)

Mom walked over and put her arm around my other side. “Honey. I was only trying to tell you that you’re naturally beautiful, inside and out. You don’t need to put on a lot of make-up to impress anyone or get a boy’s attention. I’m sorry if that hurt your feelings.”

I leaned into her shoulder and hugged her back.

She pushed a wayward curl behind my ear. “It’s hard for me to see you looking so grown up. You’ll be lovely tomorrow night.”

“Thanks.” I looked away. She could retract what she said in the car, but I knew her first impression—lovely wasn’t a word she used.

I scratched my eyelid and loosened a lash. Embarrassed, I darted from my room toward the bathroom, praying Lucy wasn’t hogging it. “I’m going to wash my face.”

“Well, my work here is done,” I heard Dad say behind me.

I closed the door and leaned up against it. In the mirror, conflict etched its worrisome talons down my smeared skin. First with Mom’s hurtful comments, and second from the turmoil of my continued drive-by thoughts about Fin. What did I expect to happen tomorrow? Did I want things to go further with Callahan? Or was I holding back because I still harbored feelings for Fin?

With an angry tug, I pulled off my other eyelash. The skin underneath stung, making it painfully obvious I’d done something wrong. I stood with two black rows of fake hair stuck on my fingertips. I didn’t do the girly thing well.

But still I floundered, with more than what to do with the eyelashes. Life felt so unsure, especially knowing Callahan would be expecting a kiss from me tomorrow. Why was I so willing to kiss Fin, or even Colin, but scared to death with Callahan?

The warm wash cloth felt good over my face and a little moisturizer brought back the natural glow to my skin. But Mom’s comment still rang loud and clear. Was I really trying to grow up too soon? Maybe she was right. The excessive make-up was a little over the top.

With a flick of the lashes into the trash, I went back to my room to wait for Callahan’s call. I hoped my sheep flannel jammies would infuse my psyche somehow and help put me to sleep later. From the window, Tatchi’s house caught my attention. All the lights were on inside.

Without hesitation, I picked up the phone and dialed. Someone had to pick-up and when they did, I would make them give me answers. I’d had enough.

18

FIN

The day couldn’t have ended better. I rushed home to find Mom in the kitchen cooking dinner.

“Mom!” I briskly walked toward her and held out a golden cup filled with rubies. “Here.”

“What is this?” she asked with knitted brows, dusting her hands on her apron.

I smiled proudly. Only after a few weeks of training, I’d managed to defeat Badger in the first round and then took out the subsequent fighters with ease. “I won the tournament today.”

She blinked back at me, confusion crossing her face.

“This was the prize,” I said, lifting my eyebrows to convince her. “And I want you to buy back your diamonds with it.”

Mom gulped as she looked at me, then back at the cup. A tear spilt down her cheek—not the reaction I’d expected. I could count on one hand the times I’d seen her cry.

Needing a distraction, I tipped the cup to the side, ready to spill out the contents. “You better hold out your hands.”

She dropped her dish towel as the blood red stones piled into her trembling hands. Once the last gem fell, her hands formed a ball over them like they were a life saving rope.

“Fin, I can’t take these—”

I put my free hand on top of hers. “This isn’t an April Fools joke. And if you don’t use them to buy your diamonds back, I’ll be upset. Just think of it as my gift to the family—that I paid for the stove and air bubble. And that’s what we’ll tell Dad when he comes home.”

Her voice hiccupped. “This is too generous.”

“What else am I going to do with them? Save for college?” I laughed under my breath and thought of the solitary ruby I’d put aside for the future in my sling pack. “It’s what I want to do.”

She put the stones in her apron pocket and enfolded me in a hug. “Thank you, Fin,” she whispered in my ear. I puffed out my chest. Dad would be proud.

: : :

Still on a high from the tournament win and Mom’s surprise, I rushed off to collect Tatch at the palace.

“You’re late,” she said, punching me in the arm and swimming ahead, this time decorated from head to fin in blue.

“Sorry. I had things to do.” I raced to catch up with her.

“Nothing can be more important than saving me from the palace and Azor’s claws, so it better be good,” she said with a sneer.

I smiled evilly and watched her smirk vanish as I filled her in on what really happened with the win and the rubies.

She rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine. I guess that’s kinda important, but next time, please come get me first. I can’t stand being there any longer than I have to.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Today was exceptionally grueling.” She slowed her pace, lengthened her neck and stuck her nose in the air, wiggling her tail in small precise movements. “We learned how to swim proper, like a mer-lady,” she said, complete with an English accent.

I laughed. “What?”

“It seems the only thing mermatrons care about is beauty—not education or any type of
real
accomplishment. Their only goal is to teach us how to be a pretty thing for the merman to enjoy—oh—and to make merlings with. That’s it. And amazingly enough, the maids all seem cool with it, anxious to be paired to the one their parents have picked out for them.”

“Really.” At the mention of mer babies, I checked out. I wondered instead how Lily felt about beauty school and who her parents had planned to match her up with. “Are all the mermaids there?”

“I think so. But are you even listening to me? It’s primitive and wrong!”

“Yeah,” I said nonchalantly. All I wanted to do was deliver her safely home and get to Badger’s. I hoped Lily might stop by again.

“Oooh!” Tatch spun around and put her blue tinted face inches from mine. “The girls are slaves for you boys! To keep as trinkets and baby makers!”

I backed away. “I know. But what can we do about it? No one seems to care the customs are ancient. I mean, once someone promises, they end up living happily ever after—pretty or not.”

Tatch groaned and threw her hands upwards. “Boys! You all think the same!”

She took off and disappeared over the ridge. I let her go since our house was just on the other side. Finally free, I darted the other way toward Badger’s house.

a

Badger walked to the porthole and motioned for me to come inside.

“Aye, look who be washin’ himself up on me shore. Welcome, lad.” He clapped me on the back once I phased into legs and directed me toward the living room. “Have a seat.”

My stomach pinched when I spotted Lily sitting on the couch, wearing a pink dress that accentuated the curves God gave her. I tried not to gawk.

“Hi, Fin,” she said.

“Hey.” My heart rate increased as I walked over to join her. “How’s it going?”

She smiled, flashing her white teeth. “Great.”

Badger relaxed back in his usual lounge chair and kicked up his feet. “We’s just be talkin’ about the weather on land. Lily here’s never seen snow before.”

“You haven’t?” I raised my eyebrows. It didn’t take long to get over the wonder of the messy stuff; being buried in drifts six months out of the year tended to make it more of a hassle than a phenomenon.

“No.” She looked down and played with the beads on her skirt. “There aren’t too many gates in snowy places, and yours is a little unique and unfortunately not open to the public.”

“Oh, right.” I paused. “Well, sometimes we get as much as fifteen feet in one dump. I’m sure you could visit next winter, when we’re back there. We could go ice skating.”

Her face lightened. “Ice skating? I would love to try that. Is it hard to do?”

“Blarney!” Badger interrupted. “In my country, we don’t entertain such silly sports. Now Gaelic football, that’s the—”

“Badger,” Sandy called from the kitchen. “Would you come here for a moment?”

He pressed his furry eyebrows together. “Ya need me, doll?” It appeared helping Sandy with chores didn’t rank high on his list when he had a captive audience listening to him
yammer about the good ole days
.

“Yes, please,” she replied.

“Hold that there thought, you two,” Badger said, hoisting himself from his chair. “Coming, love.”

Once alone, Lily looked up at me through her eyelashes and my heart roared in my chest. The desire to grab her cheeks and bring her lips crashing to mine rocketed through my shaking limbs.

To leave two single mers of the opposite sex alone was against Natatorian law. I used to think the temptation to kiss a mermaid was a total myth, never having the opportunity until this moment. But as if someone had just said, “don’t think of elephants” all I could think about was kissing her. I stood up and began to pace, suddenly interested in the trophies on the mantel piece.

“So, do you go to the school at the palace too?” I asked.

“Yes. All mermaids are required to attend school until they are promised.”

I ran my hand along the rough-hewn wood and closed my eyes, trying to focus. “My sister comes home every day colored from head to fin. Is that all they do there?”

“No.” Lily giggled, a light tinkling melody that warmed me. “The matrons have taken a liking to her ever since she’s arrived. They’ve swarmed on her like a shark in a feeding frenzy. It’s because she doesn’t have a prospect of a merman yet. They’re all trying to get her to pick one of their sons. It’s all about promising up.”

I turned around, careful to avoid staring at her lips. “Really? How’s that? We aren’t royalty or anything.”

“Well, your family is one of the few allowed to live on land.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her tilt her head down and watch me from behind her red hair. “Most families arrange promisings for their mer children, but you and your sister get to choose.”

I gulped. Her presence stirred something in me I’d never felt with another mermaid, beyond simple hormones. Most were content to stay underwater and be pretty playthings, unaware a world lived above them. Her adventurous side made her far more attractive than anything else, connecting us somehow, like the whispers of our souls wanting to be united. “Do you get to choose?”

Her face remained downward. “They’ll choose, but I get to have the final say.”

She looked up at me and my breathing increased. At that moment, everything about her called to me to seal the deal. My feet moved on their own accord toward her wonting gaze.

“I didn’t know Fin was here,” Sandy said suddenly, slicing through my intentions. I froze mid step.

“Aye,” Badger said, eyeing me curiously and giving a wink. “I gave them a moment to be talkin’, right?”

“Yes,” I choked out while Lily remained silent.

“You shouldn’t leave them alone, Badge,” she whispered, then turned and gave us both a chastising once over. “You know the rules. The temptation is—” She stopped and raised her eyebrows.

He gave his own eyebrow waggle in return. “They be good kids.” He wrapped his beefy hands around her slender waist. “Nothing of the sort would’ve happened.”

She stared at us, knowing she stopped us from doing what we wanted. Badger, having set the whole thing up, looked away like he knew nothing.

“It’s actually getting late. You ready to go, Lily?”

She sighed and threw me a sad smile. “Yes, Aunt Sandy.”

Within minutes they were gone and I caught myself staring senselessly at the empty porthole.

“She’s a pretty, wee thing,” Badger said, cutting the silence.

“Yeah,” I mumbled, confused at my lack of self-control.

“Proud of you, lad. You did right fine today.”

I snapped around to look at him, questioning. He couldn’t have meant my near accidental promising.

Badger bobbed his eyebrows. “With the tourney.”

“Oh . . . thanks.” I watched him stuff his pipe with tobacco. “Hey, where’d you learn to fight like that anyway?”

“Funny you’d ask. I learned from Jack, of course. Surprised me when you showed up to the practice field, green as a June bug.”

My jaw went slack as my brain bounced out of its infatuated state. My dad was an expert fighter? I assumed back in the day when he’d come home roughed up, he was just messing around, not actually training someone. “My dad taught you everything you know?”

“Well, the mer way to fight. The army was much different back in the day when I arrived as a new merman—back when he led things.”

“He was part of Azor’s army?”

“No, lad,” he guffawed. “He be runnin’ the joint.”

My jaw fell the rest of the way open, but no words came out. Dad never mentioned he was captain of the army either. Why didn’t he ever offer to train me? Was I that inadequate? Was that why he didn’t take me on the mission? My head reeled.

“He didn’t tell ya,” Badge replied, noting my shock. He scrubbed at his beard. “Son, don’t take it too hard. Yer da’ is a humble and peaceful man. I’m sure he wanted you to make your own path in life. I rightly would have done the same for me son, if I had one.”

The punch to my gut didn’t decrease with his words, though what he said made sense. But the disappointment of finding out secondhand about the truth behind our gate, the mer expectations, and my father’s past didn’t hurt any less.