Chapter Nineteen

We convened in the waters by my house as the sun set. Cee jumped into the water as soon as we arrived, wasting no time swimming to us, folding me in a hug that made my ribs creak.

"You stupid bitch!" she sobbed into my shoulder. I grinned, hugging her back just as tightly. Being insulted had never felt so good.

The three of them, plus Marcus and Jenny, had ushered us away just as the coast guards arrived. We didn't have any choice but to hide. They'd want to investigate, and I knew Cee would have a better excuse than me about how she"d stumbled upon a sinking boat in the first place.

Though no one was particularly happy about my intervention, least of all Kai, Dennis had survived the wreckage. Kai was even less thrilled at my request to heal him, but he didn't argue.

Still, after Jenny's testimony regarding her kidnapping, backed up by Marcus, Dennis had been taken into custody. He hadn't tried to apologize, I knew he was surprised that I hadn't let him drown, and I didn't explain myself, though Kai had leveled me with a look that I knew all too well.

It was pure poetic justice to see Reinhardt and the ‘men in black' being cuffed and led away, though Alma was nowhere to be found, and one of the jet skis was missing. The coast guard assured the others that they would continue their search, but as frustrating as her escape was, there wasn't anyone left on Project siren for her to fund, meaning Kai and his people were safe.

Cee explained everything I had missed- how she came looking for us when we hadn't returned to pack the rest of her things, Allie and Sean at her heels. They'd found Kai in the pool, just starting to pull himself out after I'd told him to leave me alone. I wish I could've seen the looks on their faces when they realized who Cee's cousin really was. He'd even dropped his glamour, all pretenses stripped away under the weight of his imploring blue eyes. I'm sure it had painted his view of humans in an even more favorable light when they didn't run screaming for the hills.

Cee told Sean and Allie what had really been going on, while Kai filled them in on my transformation and our fight. He'd been worried about me, his gut telling him to find me, but Cee said it was best to give me some time to cool down. That promise only lasted as long as the sun did, when they'd walked to my house and found my discarded pants on the beach.

Then they'd found Becca and my dad, the former trying desperately to hold onto the latter as he struggled to get to the water.

Juno and Becca had been finishing their date when he relayed the discovery of Hughes' body at the aquarium, and the mention of Reinhardt's research sent Dad into a spiral. Kai managed to calm him down, though Cee had to talk him out of doing the same when he realized I was missing.

My heart ached, wondering what they must be thinking right now, not knowing where I was or what had happened to me.

They couldn't find where I'd put the keys to Juno's boat. So Cee, despite her dad's warnings, marched back to her house and onto Mr. Morrison's yacht without a second thought. They'd been wandering blind, Kai desperately scanning the waters, trying to pick up on my location with his telepathy, until Daisy found them.

"She sensed you," Kai explained, rubbing delicate circles into my fingers. He hadn't stopped touching me since we'd reunited, not that I was complaining. I couldn't stop touching him either, worried he was just another figment of my nightmarish delusions. "She felt your pain and led us right to you."

I looked at him more closely, thinking about the scars we now shared, memories that, while suppressed for now, would eventually creep into my nightmares. It was the first time Kai had been in the ocean since his capture, and there was no mistaking him for a human now. His hair was shining, wet droplets of water gleaming on his lashes like the spikes of a crown, sparkling in the evening sun. He was absolutely breathtaking. I wasn't sure if I'd relayed that thought through the bond, or if he just read the expression on my face. But he whispered, "You are a goddess."

I told as much of my side of the story as I could bear, glad to turn my attention to Sean and Allie's adventure of helping Marcus free Jenny from the boat before it sank.

"I've never thrown someone overboard before," Allie admitted quietly. "I felt like I was in Pirates of the Caribbean or something."

"Technically that was Kai who threw them overboard," Sean pointed out with a smirk.

Allie slugged him, "I didn't see you taking on those jokers."

"I was freeing a damsel!"

"That damsel freed herself." Allie said, referring to Jenny who had whacked her guard over the head with the chair she'd been tied to, "It was awesome."

I laughed, throwing my arms around her and Sean awkwardly from the water. Kai held out his hand, and the waves lifted me higher into their embrace. "Thank you for coming to my rescue. This may go without saying, but could you please not tell anyone about—"

Allie held up her hands. "Say no more. You're the marine biologist. I trust you've got things covered." Sean nodded a silent agreement.

Cee scrambled back on board, then leaned over for another hug that I thought was going to haul her back in, "I can't believe you stole the yacht." I said. "Think your dad will be mad?"

"Wouldn't be the first time. We're going to sit down for a nice chat when they get home, and he's not leaving until we've made some serious progress." I had no doubt she'd tie him to a chair if necessary. "I'm also going to find that bitch and make sure she never lays another finger on my friends."

Cee, along with her dad's extensive network of resources, would find Alma in no time. And if anyone could come up with the perfect punishment to fit the con-woman's crimes, it would be my best friend.

I was surprised to find tears in her eyes when she pulled back. She sniffed, "Don't you ever scare me like that again. I've got half a mind to superglue you to my side."

"You'll have to get in line," Kai grumbled.

I laughed, wiping away tears of my own. "I promise."

We broke our embrace, but Cee gripped my forearms. The scales didn't even phase her. "I've gotta get back before my dad puts out an APB. You'll come by later?"

I nodded. Kai stayed at my back as we watched them drive away, and the events of the last days caught up to me as I sagged. He was at my back, one hand gently supporting me, his chin resting on the crook of my neck. "They are truly amazing humans," he whispered against my temple.

"They are," I agreed.

"I have much to inform my people of."

"I'm sure they've missed their king." I agreed.

He jerked back, and for the first time I could remember, he looked positively shocked. "What?"

I smiled, glad that I was the one to catch him off guard this time. "Did you intend to hide it from me?"

"No, I just…" he sighed. "How did you know?"

I shrugged. "I'm a scientist. Deduction is one of my many talents. That's why it sounded so final when you spoke of returning home, isn't it? They didn't like their king venturing to the surface?" he nodded in wordless surprise at how well I seemed to be handling what he thought was a big revelation. And I supposed if I hadn't already worked it out myself, it would have been. "Thought so. And besides, if all merfolk had the kind of power you do, I don't think humans would exist anymore." They would've dragged every ship to the bottom of the ocean the moment we started causing problems. I wouldn't have blamed them.

He grimaced his agreement. "You're not angry?"

I grasped his hand in both of mine, tracing the light webbing between his fingers. So warm, even in the cold grasp of the Pacific. "You were protecting your people, and it's not like humans gave you a reason to trust them."

"You're different," he said.

"Because I'm not human," I said wryly, gesturing to my tail.

"No," Kai wrapped an arm around my waist, tugging me close to place a kiss on my forehead, then tilt my chin up, "Because you have an intelligent mind, and a kind heart. You see the world for what it can be, and you constantly fight to make it that way, and inspire others to do the same. You give me hope that this world is not yet lost to us. And I want to be here to see that change, to make it happen, with you."

He leaned in and pressed my mouth to his, long and slow, and I reciprocated with equal reverence, our tails moving together to the rhythm of the waves, our hearts beating as one.

It could've been only a minute, but it felt like a lifetime had passed when I turned in his arms, looking towards the distant shore. "The sun is setting," I pointed out. We had to move soon, I had to reassure Dad and Becca that I was okay. I had a lot to fill them in on, and I couldn't begin to imagine how they would react to the tail. But…

He nodded. "I swore I would see you home safe."

I raised an eyebrow, "You didn't give them a time-frame window on that promise, did you?"

He looked confused.

"Well you see, the reef looks absolutely stunning this time of day. And I was hoping to explore it for a while. Perhaps with a certain, handsome merman…"

He grinned, "Have you now? Would that merman happen to be me?"

I leaned into him, wove my hands through his hair and gave him a long, lingering kiss. "Look at that. You've read my mind, fish boy."

"I seem to do that quite a lot." he said, smiling against my lips. "Must be magic."

I kissed him again.