Chapter Thirteen

Our table was roped off with colored kelp, and a placard with Cee's name in the center. A string of glowing sea creatures- red octopi, blue dolphins, yellow starfish, and orange crabs- wrapped around the booth's driftwood frame. We wound through arms and limbs, being bumped and shoved as we passed. Allie, dressed in a satin cocktail dress that dripped over her frame like rubies, linked arms with Cee, who bee-lined to the bar to get us our first round. Kai slipped his hand into mine, and I un-roped our table, slipping onto the cool cushions. He slid in beside me, inching closer until our thighs pressed together. My breath hitched, and the smirk on his face said that he'd heard it.

"You don't play fair." I muttered.

"I didn't realize we were playing a game," he said. He dipped his head, breath brushing my hair back from the shell of my ear. "What do I get if I win?"

My heart.

Before I could embarrass myself by saying that out loud, Cee and Allie returned with our drinks. Since she'd taken her own car, Allie was sticking to water and had offered to give us a ride home if needed. After the emotional catastrophes of the day, I'd rescinded my earlier promise to stay sober, sensitive stomach be damned.

"Do you recognize anyone?" Cee said, stirring her multi-hued martini with the tip of her straw, making the colors swirl like a pet tornado.

"From Stanford?" I checked, scanning the crowd for a familiar face. I shook my head.

"Me either. I just hope the crowd thins soon. I want to get on the dance floor." She lifted her arms over her head and shook her hips in her seat, rocking the booth. Allie giggled, nudging her girlfriend. "A crowd has never stopped you."

"Drinks first." Cee lifted her sugary cocktail, "A toast," I lifted my glass, jerking my chin towards Kai who did the same. "To the end of the education system and its money draining schemes."

"May we find sufficient financial compensation to fill the void in the future!" I added. Our glasses clinked, liquid sluicing over the rims, and we took our first sips. The concoction Johnny had brewed was sweet and tangy, with a hint of lemon from the sugar crystals around the lip of the glass. Kai's nose scrunched as the syrup hit his tongue. "Too sweet?"

"It's… unique," His tongue darted out to catch the drop sliding down his lips, and I tracked the movement with hungry eyes.

"Most of Johnny's drinks are," Cee said. "I don't think this one's on the menu yet. I'll have to ask him what it's called."

"Still hoping he'll name one after you?" I teased.

"Why wouldn't he?"

"Perhaps the name you suggested?"

"I don't care what you say, "Cee World" is the perfect drink name!"

"What would you put in it?" asked Allie.

"I don't care as long as it's pink, and has those little edible sparkles," she said, swishing her glass. "Cute but deadly. Like most liquor, and me."

Kai's shoulder bumped mine, and he pointed to the deck outside. I nodded gulping down the rest of my drink before I followed him through the throng. He moved like one of those long extinct sea serpents, and I didn't bump into a single person this time as we made our way outside. The gentle pressure of his hand felt good against my flushed skin. I didn't know what Johnny had put in that drink, but like usual, it was strong as hell.

The swashbuckling bartender spotted me as we made our way across the room, waving from behind the bar. I waved back and he pointed to Kai and fanned himself, feigning a swoon.

The tangy salt air swirled beneath my nose as we walked to the railing, looking across the street, to the beach and waves beyond.

"That's where we took photos, right? It looks so different at night." Kai commented.

"Is California different compared to where you were last time?"

"The last time I wasn't on this coast," he agreed. "Though my people tend to prefer these waters. I only surfaced to get accustomed to transforming more than anything else."

"And that's when you learned to dance?"

He smirked, getting lost in the memory. "I went with a friend. He had been to that area previously and suggested I know some steps for the next time to impress the human women on the island."

I snorted. "Seriously?"

"He was quite adept at it, and at distracting me. It was thoughtful, even if he knew I would never be allowed to indulge as he could."

"On who"s rules? Your people."

He nodded, "That was a long time ago."

Still keeping secrets, I thought, but I knew he wasn"t going to elaborate. "You dance pretty well after shaking off years of rust." I paused, picking my next words carefully, "You've been glancing at the ocean more than usual lately." That was an understatement. If his eyes weren't on me, they were fixed westward.

"I've been feeling the pull," he admitted, and my heart stopped, dropping to the pit of my stomach. The pleasant haze from the alcohol vanished. "She has been building these past days, it's like my powers are tugging against me."

She. The ocean was both mother and goddess to him and his people. Beautiful, ethereal and deadly when denied. I shuddered. "Are you in pain?"

He rubbed at his chest, right over his heart. "No. In some ways, it is comforting to know I am missed." He turned to me then, taking in the solemn look that darkened my face, and changed the subject. "Do you wish to dance again?"

"There's no music." I pointed out.

He smirked, "We didn't need music last time." I let him lead me to a corner of the railing, where the glare of the porch lights didn't touch us. He wrapped his arms around my waist, swaying with the breeze. I wound mine around his neck, burying my face in his shoulder as I clung to him, holding him to me like I could keep him with me forever. As if my pull would somehow be stronger than that of the seas. Those unspoken words flashed through my mind, and just like last time, I wanted to say them, but fear bound my tongue inside my mouth and mind.

Lifting my head, I stretched up onto my toes, and Kai leaned the rest of the way down, his mouth fitting over mine as I tried to convey what I felt without words. The gentle press of his lips was slow and unhurried, as if we had all the time in the world, instead of it drying up like a riverbed in a drought.

Kai leaned back, smoothing the strands of hair that had blown between us in the breeze, tucking them behind my ears. He cupped my cheeks, and I was surrounded by his warmth and the fresh smell of sea water.

"You are so beautiful,"he whispered in my mind.

My lower lip quivered. "You shouldn't say things like that."

"Why not?"

"Because…" Because you're a merman and I'm human. Because you're leaving. Because I want to tell you…

"I have to pee." I blurted out loud, breaking his hold and rushing off like a complete coward. I circled around to the second set of restrooms outside the bar, not wanting to deal with the crowds, or run into Cee and her ever-growing sixth sense. I needed to be alone, to think.

Relieved to find no one else inside, I locked the door, walking the length of the small room as I tried to calm my racing pulse.

I shouldn't have danced with him. I shouldn't have gotten close to begin with. The misery that suffused me when he spoke of returning home was only a glimpse of what I knew was coming. Maybe he'd felt it too, and tonight was his way of saying goodbye. All of the platitudes I had told myself these last few weeks came rushing back in to taunt me. My head and my heart were at war, and the cognitive dissonance was tearing me to shreds.

I splashed cold water on my neck, over the pulse points on my wrists. I was taking steadying breaths trying to keep the anxiety from my lungs when a knock sounded at the door.

"Be right out!" I called, nudging the air dryer on with my shoulder. I unlocked the latch and stepped outside. No one was there. Maybe they hadn"t heard me or didn't want to wait. I started to close the door again, not ready to leave my temporary solitude, but something moved in the shadows.

Dennis was leaning against the wall, a bottle raised to his lips. His stance tried to suggest a casual air, but the tightness around his eyes hinted at barely restrained agitation. He wore the same clothes that had been under his cap and gown today, only far more disheveled, his tie barely hanging around his neck.

I startled, "What the hell, Dennis? You scared the shit out of me!"

"Did I? I'm just standing here," He took a long gulp, clear liquid from the half-empty bottle dribbling from the corners of his mouth. Johnny wouldn't have given that to him. He must've brought it himself. "You look good tonight."

I wished I had something to cover up with as his gaze roamed over my windswept hair and long legs that I"d shoved into a pair of woven wedges, drifting to rest on my chest.

"It's weird being here again," he continued when I just stared at him.

"I didn't know you were coming."

"No, but I knew that you would be."

I bristled, a cold knife of fear sliding down my spine, "So you're stalking me?"

He laughed, covering his mouth with his hand to keep his last swig of liquor from coming back up. I was surprised he was still standing. "It's called an inference, Maree. You've been coming here almost every weekend since freshman year. It wasn't hard to guess this is where you'd have your last hurrah."

I crossed my arms over my chest, forcing him to actually meet my eyes. "Why are you here, Dennis?"

"You're different," he said, ignoring my question. "It"s funny, seeing you like this, how you act around him. It's different."

Where was Kai? Had he'd seen us dancing together?The thought of him watching such an intimate moment made my skin crawl.

He waved at the nautical décor with the hand holding the bottle, before taking another gulp. "It was like this the last time. When we were here together. That was a fun night- there was something different about you then, too."

"I don't know what you're—"

"I really wanted to fix things, y'know. I thought you'd given me another chance."

"Dennis, you're drunk. Go home and sleep it off."

He stumbled over to me, still towering above me even with the extra height of the wedges. His proximity was cloying, his pores sweating out the liquor running through his veins. "Come home with me."

I shook my head. "Not going to happen."

"Why? Cause of golden boy? I know he's not your type. He's nothing like me."

That's exactly why he is my type, I wanted to say. Instead, I tried to step around him, but he followed. I spun on my heel to lock myself in the bathroom, but his other arm came up, caging me in.

"Dennis, what are you doing?" I demanded, praying my voice didn't quiver.

"One more night, Maree. That's all I need to prove that we're meant to be together."

He grabbed my chin, and I felt the moist breath on my face a moment too late. He kissed me hard, pushing my head back until it knocked into the wall behind me. I shoved at his chest, beating on him with small, ineffective fists, shouting around his mouth. Bad idea. His tongue slipped inside, and I could taste the potent liquor he'd been drinking. Like an animal that had stumbled upon a fresh, unguarded kill, he fell upon me with ravenous hunger.

The grip on my waist was bruising, and I couldn't choke down the air to cry out. Time for plan B. Gripping his shoulders, I shoved my knee with deadly accuracy into his groin. He howled, the bottle falling from his hand where it shattered on the floor. He clutched himself, doubling over in pain.

I tried to scramble past him, but his arm shot out, clotheslining me. I crashed to the floor, and he was on me again, sliding the weight of his leg between my thighs. I cried for help, for anyone, but his large, sweaty palm covered my mouth.

"Shhh," he whispered. He smoothed my hair away from my wide eyes. "We don"t want anyone interrupting our special moment."

I didn't recognize the face that stared down at me. Dennis' eyes were filled with malice and lust. It didn't take a genius to know what he was planning.

"Kai!" I screamed in my mind as I muffled profanities to Dennis around his sweaty palm. He just smiled, at least until I landed a punch to his jaw. His head snapped back, but his weight stayed firmly in place. He growled, grabbing my wrists in his other hand, pushing them up so my forearms gagged my mouth. "That wasn't very nice."

His body crushed into mine, the elbow digging into my ribs as broken glass from the bottle cut into my exposed back, stinging as alcohol mixed with the wounds. With his other hand free, he slid it down my leg, before reversing direction, trailing up my inner thigh, taking the hem of my dress with it. I struggled, but I refused to give him the satisfaction of begging.

Dennis was many things, but he'd never been violent. I once saw him get teary-eyed over a half-dead animal someone had hit on the side of the road. He had been more persistent with his advances, but even if he was pissed that I'd moved on with someone else, I never thought he would do something like this.

My vision swam, the edges turning black. My limbs began to sag as the encroaching darkness sapped my strength. I could feel a tugging on my dress, a tear somewhere in the fabric, but I couldn't move. A roaring filled my ears, the sound of a wave cresting over my head, before it swallowed me whole.

Then, my body felt lighter, and some vague part of me floating in the ether was aware that I could breathe again. Clarity, sharp and sudden, swept in, and I gasped, my eyes popping open. I struggled to my elbows, the limbs wobbly and unstable.

There was a dull thud, the crack of something hitting the ground. It was Dennis, landing flat on his back, the air whooshing out of him. There were dents around his body where the wood had caved in from the force of the impact.

And standing over him like an avenging angel from the deep, was Kai. Tears welled in my eyes, stinging when they rolled down to my split lip.

"Kai," My vocal chords had taken a beating from how fiercely I'd been using them.

His gaze shot to me, eyes narrowing on my bruised throat, and the torn shoulder of my dress. Then he looked up into my tear-streaked face, and they softened ever so slightly.

"It's okay, Maren. You're safe now."he spoke so gently into my mind, and another relieved sob bubbled out of me.

"What the fuck?" Dennis groaned, getting his bearings. How hard had Kai thrown him for his impact to break the floor?

"Weak bait," Kai snarled, voice like thunder and the roiling sea. It promised vengeance, cold and deadly. "I should've drowned you when I had the chance."

Dennis surged to his feet. "Who the fuck do you think you are? That's my girlfriend and I'll do whatever the hell I want with her!"

The words barely left his mouth before Kai was on him, slamming his fist into the side of Dennis' face. His teeth clacked together, and the punch sent him flying into the wall. Kai advanced, throwing his other hand out, but Dennis caught his shit and twisted, flipping him to the floor.

"Maren!" Cee cried. Then she was at my side, helping me up and away from the fight. I leaned against her, my side sore where Dennis's elbow had dug in. Allie joined us, and they helped me limp to a table.

"Omigod are you okay? We couldn't find you, and then Kai just took off like a bullet." She took in my face, and the shredded fabric of her dress. "I hope he kills him for this." she seethed.

"I've never seen someone move that fast. And the music was so loud it's a miracle he heard you." Allie said.

I winced as Cee put too much pressure on my side. "Sorry, girl. We've gotta get some ice. Can you help her out babe?"

The music in the bar was cut off abruptly, and a crowd of onlookers was starting to form. Not good. Even out of the water, Kai was stronger and faster, and with so many gathered around him, they were bound to notice.

"Cee," I wheezed. "He'll kill Dennis."

"Then good riddance it wasn't nice knowing him."

"We have to stop him." I urged, trying to rise despite the bark of pain in my ribs.

"No way. You can't move until we get someone to-"

"There's no time!" I cut her off. "Help me!"

She observed me closely, and whatever she saw must have been enough to convince her, "You're going to be the death of me. Johnny!"

The bartender was coming around the edge of the crowd when he heard Cee call his name. He'd removed his fake hook and hat, but a colorful faux bird still clung to his shoulder, and a plastic cutlass dangling from the belt on his waist. It was the first time I'd seen him look truly angry, which only intensified when he took in my injuries. "Maren! Holy shit what happened? What the hell is going on here?"

"No time to explain, Captain. Help me break up this fight before someone calls the cops."

"I already did," he assured us. "They're on their way."

Cee and I froze, our panic vibrating at the same frequency. She recovered first. "Then let's make sure it doesn't turn into a murder scene. C'mon!"

They pushed their way into the crowd, Cee shouting threats to part the sea of bodies. It would've been amusing seeing people cower from my sequin-covered best friend, if my nerves hadn't been shot to hell. Allie looked me over, gently prodding at the various bruises, and I tried not to wince. She was in training to be a nurse, but she didn't have the gentlest hands.

"Sorry, I'm a bit rusty." She helped me pick out the shards of glass poking out of me, then tied the torn straps of my dress together as best she could and sat me in a position that didn't put pressure on my right side. "Stay here, I'll find an ice pack." She hurried around the thick crowd back into the bar.

But I couldn't just sit there. Johnny could handle Dennis, drunk and sloppy as he was, but Kai... I didn't want anyone else to get hurt.

Clutching my side, I stumbled through the mob of people. Several had pulled out their phones to record, and I purposely nudged my hip into them harder than necessary, their cameras falling to the ground as profanities were hurled my way. I was panting and dizzy by the time I got to the front. Johnny and a bartender dressed in a similar, less elaborate costume, were holding Dennis against the wall. He snapped at them, thrashing as he tried to break their hold and lunge for Kai. Cee was standing between them, placating Kai with her hands out, matching his steps when he tried to move around her.

"Get out of my way, Cee." he growled.

"You'll only make it worse! Maren is fine, let's just get out of here."

"He hurt her," His fists clenched and unclenched at his sides, the veins on the back of his hand were starkly pronounced. "He put his filthy hands on her!"

"And she broke his nose, she got even!"

I had?I looked down at my own hands, noticing a violet bruise forming on my knuckles.

"That whore is going to pay for luring me in!" Dennis cried out, eyes wild. "I'll make her pay!"

"This ends now." Kai snarled darkly. He advanced, and I knew not even Cee could hold him back this time.

I rushed forward, throwing both my arms around his waist, pulling him back to me even as my ribs creaked in protest. "Stop!"

He did, and I was under no illusions that it was because I was strong enough to hold him back. At this point, I barely had the strength to stand.

"Please," I said, low enough so only he heard me. "Come back to me."

I couldn't hear the crowd anymore, nor Dennis' raving. At the center of my world, it was only Kai. By the slowest increments, I felt his tense muscles relax under my palms, the breath leaving his body and he released a careful sigh. He turned, mindful of my injuries, his body hunched over mine like he could shield me from the world. "I'm okay," I sent to him, echoing his words. I needed to hear them as badly as he did. "It's okay."

"It will be,"he promised. We broke apart, letting the rest of the world creep back in.

Dennis was officially off his rocker, shouting at Johnny, trying to claw his way back to Kai, or to me, to finish what he'd started. I straightened my spine, my eyes narrowing on his. My jaw worked as I straightened my aching shoulders. Enough was enough.

A sereneness spread through my veins like cool water, and I felt strangely light as I approached. In contrast his face turned redder than a stop sign, spittle flying from his lips.

"I'm sorry you were put in this awkward situation," I said first to Johnny, then turned to his co-worker, a pudgy man with light stubble and concerned brown eyes. "As you can see, he's quite drunk."

"You think you can put them under the same spell you—"

I slapped him clean across his reddened cheeks. "Listen up you bastard cause I'm only going to say this once," Confident that the others had a tight hold on him, I leaned in close, enough so I was all that swam in his field of vision. "If you ever even think about putting your slimy hands on me again you won't have to worry about Kai, because I will personally ensure that you wake up with one very important appendage missing from your body, if you wake up at all." My voice had gone soft again, like the night I swiped his ID. Like a power dragged up from the reservoirs of my soul, aimed at point-blank range. I had to make it count, it was the last of what I had in me. "Now I suggest you shut your mouth and leave before I have to make good on that promise. Are we clear?"

I watched all of the fire drain out of his eyes, like someone had flushed it from his system. His jaw went slack, then the rest of his body, and he nodded. Sensing he'd given up the fight, Johnny nodded at his friend, and the two hauled an unresisting Dennis towards the front, presumably to wait for the police. I was surprisingly relieved, sure he would have put up more of a fight. Maybe the alcohol was settling, and he realized what a monumental mistake he'd made in coming here in the first place.

No. He'd been looking for me, he knew what he was doing.

The last of my strength finally gave out, and Kai caught me before I sagged to the floor. He scanned my body, meeting my gaze, and I could see the worry shining behind that glittering mask of stone.

"You pushed yourself too far, little star."

It wouldn't have been the first time, but I didn't tell him that. Instead, I leaned my body against his. I knew I shouldn't let him hold me, but the inevitability of his leaving was a thought too far away to reach for right now. Cee came over to us. "That was beyond crazy. Like top ten moments I never want to relive again."

"Join the club." I muttered.

She winced, taking in my various cuts and bruises again, "What did you say to him?"

I shrugged, or at least, attempted to. My extremities weren't listening to me at the moment, "I think the alcohol was clouding his judgment."

"Alcohol is no fucking excuse for what he did," she seethed, shooting daggers in the direction he'd gone. "Are you okay? Did he—" She paused, swallowing the words like they left a bitter taste in her mouth, "Did he…?"

"No. Kai got there before—"

There was the telltale sound of sirens in the distance.