Always Remembered (21 page)

“If they like you,” Vesh explained. “They are
an asset to have on your side. They bring news from far away,
especially the humpbacks who travel great distances. They are the
eyes and ears of the ocean, and most will talk to us.”

“We sound almost invincible.” It was both
thrilling and scary to Evan. What chance would the Selkies have
against them?

“In the water, we more or less are,” Vesh
agreed. “Land is a different story. Without contact with the ocean,
our powers are considerably less.” Vesh placed his hand on Evan’s
shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. “I don’t want to see
the Selkies destroyed any more than you do, my friend. Ken is bent
on revenge and hatred. Our mother would not agree with that.”

“Your mother was killed by a Selkie?” This
was the story that Ken told Evan during the summer. How their
queen, their mother, was left heartbroken by a Selkie and committed
suicide.

“She died at her own hand.” Vesh sounded
bitter, but not angry. “I cannot say whether the Selkie was to
blame or not. Ken is convinced, of course.”

“Azuria,” Evan said. It was the name Evan
remembered Ken thinking when he told Evan the story. It was the
clue he left for Meara on the napkin. Hopefully, Ted was able to
give it to her, and she learned by now what it meant.

“Azuria,” Vesh repeated quietly. “Our mother
and our home.”

“Your home?”

Vesh nodded. “Our fortress is also called
Azuria. It was named after her. She was everything to us. When she
died, a part of us died with her.”

“You don’t seem evil,” Evan said without
thinking. He winced when he realized what he said. “Um, sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. Some of us have turned to
evil. Like Ken. He’s the oldest. Azuria’s death impacted him the
most. He is full of hatred. As you progressed down the line, well,
the impact lessened.” Evan raised an eyebrow questioningly, and
Vesh continued, “Right. I’m sure you’ve guessed then, that Dex,
Slate, and I are the youngest. Well…” He paused and gave Evan a
crooked smile. “Before you, of course. You’re the baby of the
group.”

If Ken was his father, then all the other
Blue Men were uncles to him. He could barely fathom. There were so
many of them. It would make for interesting family reunions back in
Nova Scotia.

“How old are you?” Evan asked. “If you don’t
mind me asking.”

“I don’t mind.” Vesh shrugged. “I’m over
eight hundred years old. As I said, we don’t really track to an
exact year.”

“You don’t look a day over twenty-two,” Evan
said dryly.

Vesh laughed, a deep, throaty gargle that
startled the small silver fish around them. “We don’t age, Evan.
That’s what immortal means.”

“So, I’ll stop aging, too?” Evan didn’t know
how he felt about that. He’d never considered it before. Who
would’ve thought that he would find himself immortal?

“Probably. Hard to tell since your mother was
human.” Vesh slapped Evan’s back in a friendly gesture. “I guess
we’ll have to wait and see. Now, how about we get back to training,
shall we? None of us will be immortal if Ken succeeds in his
plans.”

“You think he’d wipe us all out?”

The smile disappeared from Vesh’s face. “I
don’t think. I know. If Ken succeeds, we’re all dead.”

That left Evan with one option. He had to
succeed.

“Where the hell did you go this time?” Kieran was waiting at the
entrance to the cave, his hair mussed and eyes alert. “You’re
seriously going to give me a heart attack, Meara. I might need to
strap you to my side.”

“I’m fine. Azuria contacted me again.”

A frown line formed between Kieran’s eyes. He
was not happy with that news. “What did she want this time? Did she
come to finish making you a Selkie popsicle?”

“She kept her distance,” I said. “And
apologized for freezing me earlier. She didn’t realize that her
touch would have that effect on me. No, she told me that she
contacted me because of Evan. Evan—” I lost my words and swallowed.
Evan was one of the Blue Men of the Minch. Azuria explained how it
happened, that Ken tricked Lydia, but I struggled to accept it. It
didn’t matter what I thought anyway, Azuria was adamant that he was
one of them.

“Evan…?” Kieran prompted, raising his
eyebrow.

“Evan is one of the Blue Men, Kieran.” I
started pacing and rubbing my arms. The early morning air was
chilly. “Azuria said so. He’s the key to stopping Ken, and she
showed me where they are.”

“Where?” Kieran took the news about Evan
better than I did. Maybe he saw the signs over the summer. I
didn’t, although now it made sense. The headaches, the mood swings…
I knew he was struggling with something. I just didn’t know
what.

“Off the coast of France.” The map came back
to me, clear in my mind. I could see the dwelling and even
determine the approximate location from the coast. Azuria would
guide us there; I was confident that she was sharing the vision
with me now. Somehow, we’d made a connection.

His mouth fell. “France? Are you sure? That
seems far away considering they’re trying to destroy our home in
Scotland.”

“I’m positive. I can get us there. Azuria is
helping me.”

“Helping you how?” He moved closer and looked
into my eyes. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I feel fine. She connected to me psychically
somehow.”

He rested his forehead on mine and sighed.
“As long as she keeps her distance. I prefer you warm and not
frostbit.”

“Ha, ha.” Stomach rumbling, I moved into the
cave. “Do we have anything to eat?”

“The fish is gone. Do you want me to catch
another?”

“Can’t we conjure something? I’m starving.” I
also really, really did not want fish for breakfast. A bagel and
cream cheese sounded heavenly.

“I was trying not to use too much magic, but
there is a village not too far from here.” Kieran closed his eyes
and held out his hands. “This shouldn’t take too much effort.”

The cave filled with the yeasty smell of
fresh bread. I almost drooled over the delicious aroma. He split
the loaf in half and gave me the bigger piece, fragrant steam was
rising from the middle.

I tore off a chunk, closing my eyes as I
chewed. “Thank you,” I said after I swallowed. “This is
delicious.”

He laughed. “You look like you’re having an
experience over there.”

“I am,” I said with a wink and sat by the
low-burning fire. It chased the damp and chill from my skin. As I
ate, I thought about our options.

“What are you thinking?” Kieran asked,
sitting across from me. In the firelight, his eyes glowed like the
brandy my dad sometimes drank.

“Who do we rescue first?” I didn’t share what
I was thinking. I let the question hang between us. Kieran chewed
silently, his face deep in thought as he stared at the crackling
embers.

“Evan.” His voice was resigned, but firm. “We
know where he is, and that’s what Azuria more or less told you to
do, right?”

“Yes.” I hugged my knees, grateful that he
confirmed what I already decided. “Who knows, maybe he knows where
Dad is being kept.”

“Maybe.” Kieran didn’t sound very confident.
“Maybe he’s made some friends in his new world. He was a popular
kid, right? Good-natured, except when he was being an ass to
you.”

“Kieran.” My voice held a warning. I wasn’t
sure how I felt about Evan anymore, but I didn’t want to hash it
out with Kieran.

“At any rate,” Kieran continued as if I
hadn’t spoken. “At least we know why he was being an ass to you. He
was becoming one of them.”

He said the last word with contempt. I
agreed. Becoming one of the Blue Men of the Minch was the last
thing I would want. The last thing I imagined Evan, human Evan,
would want. Was he a monster now? Was he working with Ken? Trying
to destroy us? I hoped not
…
or Azuria was
sending us to our deaths.

“When do you want to leave?” Kieran asked.
Once again, he left the planning to me. He would support whatever I
decided and back me up as needed.

“As soon as we put out this fire and pack up
the camp.”

I knew it was hard for him not to be in
charge, especially after I listened to Cole talk about how Kieran
headed his father’s guard. He successfully led dangerous missions,
and now he was taking orders from me—the girl who was not even a
full Selkie. Did he regret the last few months that he spent
training me? Did he miss his family?

He stood and walked around the circle of the
fire, offering his hand to me. I took it and stood. “You might want
to shield some of those thoughts, Meara.” His voice was rough with
emotion, and my face grew hot. He tilted up my chin and stared into
my eyes. “I don’t regret one minute of time spent with you, and I
have no problem following your lead.”

The intense emotions behind his words left me
stunned. I pressed a soft kiss on his lips. “Thank you.”

****

We swam fast and didn’t take any breaks, but
it was late by the time we arrived in the waters near France.
Azuria was showing me images more frequently the closer we got. I
couldn’t hear her voice, but I sensed her intent. We were almost
there, and she wanted us to proceed with caution.

We’re getting close,
I told Kieran.
Ken will have scouts, so we need to be alert.

I’m watching,
he said.
The waters
are quiet now. Did Azuria say how much further?

No, only that we’re almost there.
He
knew that she had been communicating with me most of the way. Now
she was showing me an underwater cavern, several meters to our
right.
She’s showing me shelter where we can rest for the
night.

Kieran stopped and let me pass him
. Sounds
good to me. I’m exhausted.

The idea of remaining underwater did not
appeal to me. While at Ronac, I hated that we were forbidden to
swim in the sea. But, I didn’t want to live in it either because we
had to stay in seal form. In our human bodies, we couldn’t breathe
underwater for more than an hour or two. I didn’t understand it,
but I wasn’t about to argue with Selkie magic.

This isn’t my favorite form,
I
complained.

It’s not my favorite form of yours
either,
Kieran said. I heard the laughter in his words, and he
sent me a few steamy thoughts. If I could blush as a seal, I
would.

The rock formation that Azuria assured me was
the cave came into view. I was thrilled that we found it. If we
didn’t get settled in the cavern soon, I was going to sleep
float
—
possibly right to Ken’s door.

We found the entrance easy enough. Though it
was hardly more than a hole carved into the rocks, it would sleep
the two of us with a little room to spare. Kieran swam up to me
with a large fish in his mouth, offering it. I closed my eyes and
bit off half, trying to ignore the crunch of bone and the metallic
aftertaste. I was not a fan of scaly, raw fish. He ate the other
half with gusto. Unlike me, he enjoyed fresh food.

Thanks for dinner,
I managed when I
swallowed the last of it. I felt his chuckle through my mind.

I know it’s no pizza, but it will give you
energy.
He went into the small space first, inspected it to
make sure no other creatures were claiming stakes, and then settled
down. He lowered his head and growled softly at me.

I’m coming,
I grumbled. When I settled
against him, his body relaxed and he sighed. I had a moment to
realize how safe I felt beside him before my mind and body shut
down from sheer exhaustion.

****

I woke to a faint light glowing at the cavern
entrance. Kieran slept beside me. Without looking, I knew that
Azuria waited outside. I moved away from Kieran, careful not to
disturb him, and swam out. Azuria floated in the water, her form
pearly and translucent like a jellyfish.
Or an underwater
ghost
, I thought.

The energy required to take my true form
would freeze the water,
she explained.
I hope you do not
mind. As you can see, I am able to communicate with you.

Could you talk to me this way all
along?
I asked.

Yes,
she answered.
It takes more
energy, though, so I sent you my impulses instead. You did
well.
The look she gave me bordered on maternal.
Come, I
want to show you something.

We swam for a ways in silence. I watched for
markers and tried to gauge distance. I assumed that what she was
showing me, I would need to show Kieran tomorrow.

The water warmed slightly, and the darkness
gave way to cool shades of lavender, cerulean, and emerald. Shadows
of structures emerged in their glow, although there was no movement
of living things save for the seaweed rocking back and forth in the
gentle current.