wrath of the Sea Queen (211 page)

On top of all that, Vin
continued to
consider
more personal thoughts about h
is wife
.  He
repeatedly pushed
those
notions
to the back of his mind, something he found himself doing more frequently over the
l
ast two days.  Until earlier, he had been successful in suppressing those feelings. 
I
f not for C
a
eli's pain, her response to his kiss
would
have caused Vin to
forego his
self-
i
mposed
restraint
.  She
had
certainly been receptive. 
Nonetheless,
Vin knew
that
C
a
eli was fragile, despite how strong and healthy she now looked.  Vin
suddenly realized that he was, once again,
letting his mind wander.  With difficulty,
Vin
re
turned his focus to the conversation in front of him.

Ben express
ed
his sympathy to Apela for the loss of his wife and unborn daughter.  He was just getting to the real reason that he asked to speak with Apela.

"
Apela, I know this is going to be a touchy subject, but I
woul
d like to ask you about your wife,
"
Ben started.

"
What do you want to know?
"

"
I was wondering about the time before Max was born.  Did
you and
your wife happen to go to a fertility clinic or seek assistance along those lines?
"
  Ben's question took Vin
completely by
surprise, and he noted a similar reaction on Apela's face.  Only, Apela's reaction was because Ben
had
guessed correctly.

"
Yes, as a matter of fact, we did.  How could you know that?
"

"
Something Max said, but that's not important.  Did your wife ever happen to tell Max stories that
might have
made him
believe
he was part of this fairy tale he
's
been sharing with C
a
eli?
"

"
What do you mean
exactly
?
"
  Apela asked uncomfortably, becoming nervous unde
r Ben's unrelenting gaze.

Vin watched and listened carefully
,
as Ben
had
requested
. 
Vin
learned
a great deal
from his friendship with Ben, whose years of police experience
combined with
exceptional natural instincts were b
eyond comparison.

"
I'm sorry, Apela.  There is no delicate way to ask this next question, so I'm going to come right out with it.  Would there be any reason for Max to think that he was conceived in that cave down on the beach
, p
erhaps during a full moon?
"

"
Oh!  Um, well, I think Max has been sharing a bit more than he should.  But
,
yes, it's possible that he might.  You see,
my wife and I
tried everything to have a child. 
I would have been happy either way, but she desperately wanted children.  So w
e even tried the suggestion in Max's story.  We figured it would be fun, if not fruitful.  I'll admit it.  That night in the cave was one of the best times
my wife and I ever
shared together. 
I loved my wife deeply, but I never felt
a
s strongly
attracted
to her as I did that night. 
It was almost as if I needed her more than anything else at the time
," Apela explained. 

Apela's
words struck a familiar chord with Vin.  Need.  That word perfectly described what he had been feeling for C
a
eli ever since that episode
with Rika
in the cave.  Vin was more than curious about the similarity.

"
Of course, we knew i
t was
a
coincidence
when
we found out that she
was pregnant soon afterward.  But,
my wife
was
ever
the romantic and fond of the sea; much like your own wife, Vin. 
She
repeated
folk
tales to Max many times.  She used stories to explain things
in a way that he could
understand. 
Max's
mother always told him that he was special.  Although, I did
n
o
t realize she told Max that he was actually a child
such
as his fairy tale describes
.  No wonder he like
s
that particular story so well.
"

"
I imagine that is also why he hates it.  Max
also
believes the ending is true,
"
Ben added.

"
Why do you say that?
"
  Apela asked with a nervousness that
revealed more to
Ben
than the man's words
would ever tell
.

"
I think Max believes that the sea took your second child as payment for something your wife did. 
He thinks
the sea
then
took your wife, too.
"
 

Apela was now very nervous, unconsciously wringing his hands and fidgeting in his seat.

"
That's ridiculous.  My wife
had a miscarriage
.  She overexerted herself helping people during the storm a few days before, and it was too much
of a
strain in her condition
," Apela replied
.

Vin was on the edge of his seat.  The parallel was not exact, but unnervingly close.  Vin hung on every word as Apela continued.

"
The doctors worked on her in a tub right here in the hotel, but could
n
o
t save
our
child.
"

Vin
stared
at Apela intently, but
could
n
o
t
say anything
due to the lump in his throat
.
  That wound was
still
too fresh to discuss
with Apela,
but
also
too similar to ignore.

"
I'm sure that's how it
might have
appeared, but there was something more, wasn't there?
"
  Ben persisted.

"
A few days after our child died, my wife was in the shower and started bleeding.  She lost too much blood, and then I lost her.
"

"
I
a
m very sorry, Apela,
"
Ben said, giving him time to work through the pain of the recalled memory.

"
Apela
?
"
  I
t was Vin's turn to ask a question
.

"H
ow exactly did your wife help people during th
at
storm?
"

Vin thought he could guess the answer, especially given Max's gift, but he needed to hear it.  It was too
much
of a coincidence for all of this to happen and not be related.  Vin
had
finally caught up with Ben's trail of logic and
now
clearly understood
the connection.

"
My wife
was talented.  She
had a unique skill.  I have no idea how she learned to do it, but
for the last few years of her life,
she could lessen
certain
damage
caused by the storm
s
.
"
  Apela
reluctant
ly
share
d
details about his wife's
talent
; a reluctance with which Vin could
sym
pathize
.  That was
all right
with Vin.  Those few words were all the confirmation
he
needed to be certain of his conclusion.

"
Your wife could manipulate water, couldn't she?
"
  It seemed obvious
to Vin
now that it had been voiced.

"
Yes
,
"
Apela confirmed.

"
That is how Max inherited his ability, isn't it?
"
  Vin inquired further.

Apela finally gave in to their curiosity and told them the truth they were
both
eager
to hear.

"
Partially.  Max believes that his mother was the
S
ea
G
oddess in his story.  He believes that his baby sister was taken away as payment for my wife's use of her
talent
to aid the people during the storm.  Max thinks that my wife got mad at the
S
ea
Q
ueen
for taking her baby and no longer wanted to be a
S
ea
G
oddess.  Therefore, he
insists
that
the
S
ea
Q
ueen
took away his mother, too. 
He blames the Sea Queen for the deaths of his
mother and
sister. 
I ha
ve tried to make him understand differently, but his own
gift
makes it difficult to dissuade him,
"
Apela finally admitted.