The Mermaid's Pearl (Tears of the Deep Book 1) (2 page)

“Can’t you just imagine it sitting in your little treasure trunk with the rest of your trinkets? It would outshine any of those other gems you have,” Tristen asked.

“Yes,” I breathed and began to drift toward it. I felt drawn to such treasures, yearned to add them to my collection. It was important to me to have things that were precious and mine alone. These things weren’t alive. They couldn’t die and leave me behind. The king would be angry if he found them, but he wouldn’t ever understand. My hands dug into the coral to keep me in place. It wasn’t time to race toward it yet.

“I bet I can get to the treasure first,” I teased with a sly smile. I continued to slowly move forward toward the prize.

“Raewyn,” Tristan chastised as he pulled me back with him.

“I just can’t believe it.”

“I know.”

“Doesn’t it seem too easy? We can’t just swim over there and get it can we?” I asked and furrowed my brow. This seemed a lot easier than some the other excursions we’d went on.

“I’m not worried about it.”

“It’s…so magnificent…”

“It’s not the only thing that’s magnificent in the water tonight,” Tristen whispered.

I wasn’t sure what could be better than the pearl at the moment. 

I tore my eyes away from the pink beauty to see him staring at me with adoration. I’d seen that look before; he wanted to kiss me. Each time he did, I became less sure of what our relationship was. Whatever this was between us was always comfortable and safe, but over the past year things
changed. We grew up and each held different ideas about how life should be. 

“Tristen, not right now.”

His hand cupped my face as he looked down at me. “We don’t get to be alone much anymore.”

“I know, and I wish it was different. I miss you, but nothing will change until we figure out a way to stop this madness our people have come up with.”

“So you
do
miss me?” He bit his lip as his eyes lowered to linger on my lips. “I miss you too, Rae, I love you.”

Before I could respond, he closed the distance between us and placed his warm, familiar lips on mine. Like all the times before, it was nice. Definitely better than any kiss I’d shared with my suitors. But I was disappointed to find that he still didn’t arouse any feelings that were similar to what my mother claimed love would. My heart didn’t rush, and all the excitement I felt was because of the pearl. I was sad to think that I was starting to give up on love and rule my mother’s story out as just that—merely tall tales made up to make a young child happy.

I pulled back from him and dropped my eyes. I’d wanted to be in love with Tristen, badly. He’d always been there for me, never left my side. His kiss was just another reminder things were missing in my life. At eighteen, I hoped to be married to someone that I truly loved. I was taught a mermaid’s true love would find her, against all odds. Somehow she would call to him, and he would answer. So far it hadn’t happened to me. It seemed my glittery vision just didn’t exist in reality.

His warm hand settled on mine. “I’m sorry if I did something to upset you.”

“No, I’m fine. Things are just confusing these days. The older I get, the more unsure I feel.”

“Then we will concentrate on something that’s sure! Like that beautiful treasure!” Suddenly, his face fell and his eyes opened wide. “Look out, Raewyn!”

Fear trickled down my spine at his words, and I spun around to see what was coming for us. Just as it registered there was nothing there, I heard Tristen’s laughter ring out behind me, followed by a swish of his tale.

“Got cha!”

“You jerk!” I screamed and turned around to see him flying through the water.

He’d tricked me.

I cursed under my breath and took off after him, my hair flying back from my head as I shot through the water. The king would be furious if he found out I was running around in the open with Tristen again. Open waters were dangerous, a place to be found out by humans, he said. He never missed a chance to tell me how quickly humans would snatch you out of the water, and you would be a prisoner of the land forever.

Being in cold, unfamiliar water scared me, especially with all the dead creatures littering the ground below. But the opalescent beauty was not far away. I had to make it a part of my collection. Thankfully, it was dark, making it easier for us to slip into the waters undiscovered. The moonlight shone right onto the pearl, beckoning us to come closer.

I pushed myself harder, giggling as I neared Tristen. “You don’t play fair!”

“Do I ever?” he asked as he moved to swim backwards and look toward me. “It’s not like you ever play fair!”

“No, but you’re supposed to be the responsible one!”

“Responsible?” he said with a laugh. “I don’t think that has anything to do with this. Look around you. Does any of this look like something a responsible merfolk would—”

He stopped swimming and motioned for me to come back. His mouth fell open in shock as he shook his head. For a moment, I thought there was something after me, but I wasn’t about to fall for another trick, especially the same one. I swam forward and glanced back at him to point and laugh. I would win; I just knew it.

Suddenly, I slammed into something large and knocked the breath out of me. Black dots took over my vision as I sunk down into the water. I rubbed my eyes to try and clear them so I could see what it was. Panic hit me at the thoughts swarming around my brain. It could be anything.

Oh please let it be a whale.

“Get out of here!” Tristen screamed.

The creature hit me again, pushing me out of the way and swimming past me at an incredible speed. As I looked up, my fears were confirmed. A twenty-foot giant squid was staring at Tristen with his black eyes and a frown on his face, showing he was definitely not happy to find intruders in his territory.

The pearl itched at the back of my mind, tempting me to go for it, but this was my best friend,
and I couldn’t let him get hurt over treasure. We could always come back and get it. It wasn’t worth either of our lives; we had to escape. My gaze flickered back to the pearl momentarily.

“Leave the pearl alone, Raewyn!” He knew me too well. He knew the prize was still in the back of my mind.

“I am!” I insisted and gathered my courage to help.

“You need to swim and get away!”

“No!” I exclaimed. “I’m not leaving you!” 

I took off in the direction of the squid, right as it wrapped one of its tentacles around Tristen’s tail. I wouldn’t leave him there alone. We would fight back. Without thinking, I reached out to grab the squid by one of its other tentacles, wrapping my arms around it and trying in vain to pull it back. The monster tossed me aside with no problem, sending me flipping through the water straight toward a tower of rocks. With a shriek, I propelled my body upwards and away from it.

When I regained my composure, I looked toward Tristen to see the squid’s large, deadly eyes locked on me. My breath caught in my throat, and I froze. He was not happy with me.

Hands gripped me out of nowhere and pushed me out of the way.

“I said
go
,” Tristen exclaimed, and that was all I needed to come out of the sudden rush of fear.

I threw my arms up in the air and shot off towards the surface. It might be the only place to escape the monster. When I neared the surface, I took one last look down into the darkness below. The squid darted toward me with anger in his eyes. 
I couldn’t see Tristen anywhere, and I hoped he’d gotten away safely. I needed to make a decision on which way to go. Humans were my only concern above, but this squid would squeeze the life from me without a second thought and eat me.

As I closed my eyes and broke through the surface of the water, my body twisted into something rough littering the surface. I ducked back under the water, but the tangled web pulled me back. Thick ropes twisted around me and trapped me in their midst. I screamed and thrashed about, but it only made them grasp me tighter. I was stuck and unable to free myself from the rope’s clutches with the squid after me. 

Fishermen.

I’d heard the tales. The king had warned me many times. Humans were evil, the reason our race was few in numbers. Our history included death and entrapment. It wasn’t all parties and happiness because of humans. I didn’t want to be trapped with them, but the more I moved and tried to escape, the tighter the ropes became. They scratched at me, uncomfortable and making small cuts along my body. My scales rubbed against them and pain shot through my tail as it lashed back and forth.

I closed my eyes and took several deep breaths underneath the surface, trying to calm down, before the ropes tensed and rose from the water. As I grasped desperately for the rope, I felt the natural air leave my lungs, replaced by human oxygen. It burned my throat as it forced its way inside. I wasn’t sure how I would escape the confines of the rope, or how I would get away from the humans once they threw me on their ship.

I could barely see the full moon from where I was, but I remembered seeing her peering down at me as I neared the surface. It was a night for wishes and prayers, so I did the only thing I could think of. I lifted my eyes to the sky and prayed to the moon to work her magic. I wasn’t sure if it would work now, but it had years ago when I was a child.

Goddess of the Moon, give me legs

Chapter Two

A painful gasp of air woke me, and I threw my hand over my mouth to dampen the panicked screams erupting from my mouth. I breathed deeply to calm myself, but the human air seared my throat as it traveled down. In a desperate attempt to fight off the pain, I closed my eyes, but it was no use. I bit my lip as powerlessness flowed over me and settled into my stomach. I had no idea where I was or how long I had been asleep.

Groaning, I sat up and rubbed my head. It ached, but it was nothing compared to the pounding in my veins as I looked around. I was alone, which was good, and I was in a large room instead of the cell I expected. The room was silent except for the sound of waves crashing against something. I wasn’t sure where I was, but the room itself intrigued me. It wasn’t what I expected a fisherman’s room to look like.

The bed I was on was soft and comfortable, the quilt made of the finest black and gold velvet—something I would only expect to find in a castle. I pushed them off me, not wanting any sort of human comforts on me. My eyes flickered through the room, taking in the floor and walls made of wood. A large globe stood nearby, old and full of brown colors. A desk sat in the corner with a chair beside it and papers scattered across the surface. The room was extravagant and lavish.

Did the moon grant my wish?

My gaze dropped to my body, and I gasped. Two long, thin legs lay on the bed in place of my fins. They looked so out of place...and I missed the dark blue shimmery scales immediately. I reached out to rub my hand up them, sending chills up the pale flesh. I snatched my hand back and shook my head.
How did I end up in this mess?

“No time to worry about that, you have to get out of here…wherever here is,” I mumbled to myself.

I pushed the straps of the flimsy blue dress back up onto my shoulders and concentrated on swinging my legs off the side of the bed. The moon did as I asked and hid my identity as a mermaid, but I wasn’t sure how or if I could walk on legs. I was five years old the last time I had them, and I couldn’t remember anything about how to use them.

Carefully, I scooted to the edge of the bed and put my feet on the cold floor. If I didn’t figure out how to walk, it might make the humans suspicious. I held on to the bedpost and tried to stand on my feet. My legs were shaky and my body sore, but I managed to stumble over to the large window across from me. I grabbed ahold of the window seat and growled in irritation.

Something was wrong; the room seemed to be moving. I crawled onto the seat and pressed my hands to the glass. There was nothing to see except for miles except ocean, but if I could figure out how to get the window open, I could still escape. My eyes searched desperately for an opening, latch, or lock holding the window closed, but found nothing.

I crawled over to the edge of the seat and reached for the chair nearby. When I had it grasped tightly in my hands, I held it over my head and
slammed it into the window. My body shook from the impact.

Nothing happened.

“Stupid window!” I screamed and hit it again with the chair. Leaning over, I inspected the glass. Only a small crack shown on the surface.

As I held it up for another hit, I heard the creaking of the door. I froze.

“Did my window do something to upset you, lass?” A deep voice with an accent I didn’t recognize flowed over my skin like silk.

I dropped the chair to the ground and looked up to see a handsome, dark-haired man across the room. He was leaning against the doorframe and eyeing me curiously. His hand came up to run his thumb over his mouth in consideration as he waited for an answer. The way his black-rimmed green eyes watched me were as if I could be a pawn in his game. He was clad in black leather pants and a cream-colored shirt—which was open haphazardly, as if he buttoned it in the dark. The blue vest he wore was the only thing holding his shirt together. His ears and fingers were adorned with rings; one single bronze chain trailed down his chest with a charm on the end.

He chuckled as I took him in, clearly getting the wrong idea by my stare. Sure, he was handsome, but there were plenty of handsome mermen back home. Tristen’s face popped into my head at the thought, the way his muscles moved as he swam. I hoped he was safe. There was no way this
human
could compare to him.

“Who are you?” I snapped. 

“I believe I asked you a question.” He smirked as he pushed himself off the door and began to saunter towards the window seat where I sat.

“And I don’t believe I wanted to answer it. I asked you who you are,” I replied with venom in my words as I glared at him.

“Such harsh words from the lips of such a fine thing, darling. I simply wanted to speak with you.”

“There is no speaking to a kidnapper.”

He snickered. “You think I captured you? You’re the one who got yourself tangled up in my fishing net.”

“I, uh, I’m not afraid of you,” I clarified and sat up straight to show him. Not the most convincing, but I wasn’t sure I could pull off being human.

The man paused and cocked an eyebrow. “So brave, my lady. But perhaps you should be scared.”

“I’m not yours, and I want out of here. I don’t want anything to do with you.”

“I hate to hear that, dear, because there is a lot I want to do with you.”

I frowned at his innuendo and crossed my arms. There was no way I would let this cocky human belittle me so. I wouldn’t show him any fear or doubt as long as I had the fight in me. If he tried to touch me, I would fight back.

“Apparently you don’t know where you are just yet. Let me let you in on that information. You are now a prisoner aboard my ship—
The Devil’s Pearl
. This is the captain’s quarters, and you’re speaking to the one and only Captain Aiden Flynn,” he responded with a devilish twinkle in his eye. He placed one arm behind his back and took a small bow, his eyes never leaving mine. He was so arrogant and cocky that he made even the silly bow seem natural.

I stop my sudden intake of breath. Even below the surface, we knew his name. I heard all the stories. It was worse than I feared. One of the most dangerous pirates on the seas kidnapped me. Captain Aiden Flynn, notorious womanizer, drunkard, and selfish man, who ruled his boat with a rather sharp sword. He walked into taverns as if they were his own, out drinking anyone he came upon. From what I heard, he always finished a fight, never afraid to severely wound or kill his opponent.

If he found out what I was, he would hunt down the last of the merfolk and take them hostage just as humans had done before.

I jumped from my seat and stumbled for the porthole next to me. A yelp flew from my mouth as I fell forward, but my hands managed to grab the wood before I hit the ground.

“What the bloody hell are you doing?” Aiden cried out.

His rough hands grabbed ahold of me as I reached out to open the porthole. I yanked on it with all my strength, but it wouldn’t open. My elbow flew toward Aiden’s face, but he ducked out of the way.

“I’m trying to get out of here!” I growled. “Are you that dense?”

He chuckled and danced his fingers up my sides, causing me to laugh loudly and fall backwards.

“So the lady is ticklish.”

“I don’t know what that is, but you better let me go,” I screamed and brought my foot up with the intention of slamming it between his knees.

Aiden sighed and pushed me against the wall before my heel could connect. He brushed my hair out of the way so he could nuzzle his nose along my ear and whisper, his breath hot on my neck.

“Such in a rush to leave…I do believe you’ve heard of me.”

Before I could respond, he spun me around and pressed my back against the wall. He placed his hands on either side of my head.  His eyes sparkled, as if he knew everyone was familiar with him.

The sudden rush of blood through my system made the world zero in on him. It was shocking and almost deafening as I replied. “Yes.”

Up close I could see he was certainly more confident, daring, and striking than the suitors the king offered me, but I shook those thoughts from my head. They would do me no good.

“And what exactly have you heard?” he pressed on.

“You’re selfish, full of yourself, drink too much…and I suppose the ladies find you charming.” Each word was littered with spite to show him how much I loathed him, loathed pirate-kind as a whole. They were ruthless and evil, pillagers and plunderers of other’s fortunes with absolutely no manners. I had heard only despicable horror stories of pirates and what went on in their lives, and on their ships. I wanted no part of it.

Aiden smirked. “I would say drinking
too
much may be a stretch… but charming, well, you will just have to find out.”

I wasn’t naive; I had played these tricks among the rougher mermen, the ones who wanted to show
me they would rule over me. I was too independent to be told what to do by any man.

“You carry rum on you, I assume. Care to share?” Perhaps it would help me clear my head and calm me down, and I was curious as to what it tasted like.

“Of course.” He cocked his eyebrow. He wasn’t expecting me to ask that, but he wouldn’t show the surprise. Stepping back from me, he reached into his jacket and retrieved a flask. He took a large drink of it before handing it to me. “You are not what I expected.”

I took a gulp of the liquid inside and gagged in response. My throat felt as if it was on fire, and I had to shake my head in response. The stuff was fowl and cheap. As I met his gaze again, he was studying me as if to figure me out.

“My men caught you out in the ocean in their net, but there is no land for miles. How did you end up way out here?” He took the flask from me and hid it away again.

I had no good answer for him. Anything I came up with in my head sounded ludicrous so I didn’t say anything. Crossing my arms, I leaned back against the wall. He moved closer to me and placed his palms on each side of my body once again to trap me.

“Listen lass, you don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to, but you should know that me mates are putting bets on it. They aren’t too happy with finding you, and you should be thankful I’m letting you stay here with me. You’re safe with me.”

Whatever.
I wasn’t stupid enough to believe that. Being on a ship full of humans was more dangerous than being chased by the giant squid.

“I don’t owe you any information, you dirty pirate.”

“Dirty?” he asked. His mouth fell open with an amused smile as he leaned in to whisper in my ear. “You have
no
idea.”

I slipped underneath his arm to get away, but my feet took on a mind of their own as I tumbled backward toward the bed. The post caught my fall, and I grabbed at it to hold me up.

“What’s the matter with you? I didn’t take you for a clumsy one.”

What
was
wrong with me? I was handling all this the wrong way. Had I forgotten everything I learned about charming other races? Mermaids had the ability to charm the opposite sex of other races of creatures. Had the fear of being trapped with humans taken away my bravery? I needed to correct my mistake. With lowered lids I looked back up at him and smiled.

“My name is Raewyn.”

That should be enough information for him, at least I hoped. I wanted to inquire about what his suspicions were exactly, but he wasn’t under my spell yet.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Raewyn.” He took my hand and planted a soft kiss on it with his rough lips.

That was my cue to lay it on thick and use those mermaid gifts to my advantage, but the sudden feel of his lips on my skin sent a jolt of electricity through my body. I jerked my hand away from him and frowned. “You’re a scoundrel Aiden.”

“
Captain
Aiden,” he clarified.

“I’m not calling you that. You’re lucky I haven’t—”

“You haven’t
what
?” He called my bluff and reached out to run a finger down my cheek.

His touch was soft but perilous. Aiden Flynn was cleaner than the pirates who frequented the bars I spied on from the safety of the ocean. This pirate was rather tidy, except for the unshaven scruff across his face. It was almost easy to forget he was a pirate.

Without an answer for him, and all these confusing thoughts swirling in my head, my instinct was to show him he didn’t have the best of me.

I slapped him across the face. The sound echoed throughout the cabin as his head jerked to the side. A sly smile came over his face as he laughed.

“That’s what I thought,” he said and took a step back from me. He motioned over to a door towards the right. “You won’t be going anywhere anytime soon, but I want you to feel at home. You really are safe on my ship. There are clothes over there that should fit you, and there are books for you to read. If you even know how to read. And I’m hoping that my men haven’t hurt you in any way. They don’t know how to treat beautiful things.”

“You can’t keep me here,” I insisted and put my finger in his chest.

“Oh to the contrary, my dear, I can do whatever it is I want. This is
my ship.
I make the rules and whether or not you want to, you will follow them.”