Page 52 of Bewitched By the Siren
My heart pounds up into my throat as Hali spots the man, whips around to face me, and starts running in my direction. But it’s too late. He’s nearly on her, and I’m not going to reach her in time to stop whatever it is he has planned.
I hear her scream as the man wraps his arms around her, picking her up off the ground. Her feet kick violently as she fights for her freedom, but the guy is just too strong. I grunt as I try to run faster, angling my body toward the ocean. As soon as my feet hit the wet, more compacted sand, I pick up the pace, sprinting toward Hali and her attacker just as the man starts to wade into the shallow water.
Fuck. Is he trying to drown her?
I reach them when he’s knee-deep, but before I can snatch Hali away from him, he drops her. Grabbing his shoulder, I spin him toward me as my other hand swings forward, fingers curled into a fist that clips him right on the cheekbone. He howls and jerks out of my grasp, crab-walking backward through the water toward the sand where he’ll be out of my reach.
I turn to help Hali stand, but she’s already on her feet. Her expression morphs from horrified to regretful to resigned, then she groans and collapses.
“Hali!” I shout, lunging forward to help her up.
Before I can touch her, a giant fin arcs up out of the water, making me jerk backward. I lose my balance and fall over, splashing beneath the surface. I scramble to my knees before brushing the hair and water out of my eyes so I can see. The fin flaps up again, revealing the large green tail it’s attached to.
I can’t move. I can’t even breathe.
Looking past it with my mouth hanging open, I meet Hali’s eyes. The color of her irises is a near-perfect match to the tail swaying in the water between us. Her eyes flood with tears before she looks away, flips over onto her stomach, and uses that large tailfin to propel herself away from shore.
Away from me.
“What the fuck?” I mouth, no sound escaping my lips.
“Yes! I knew I was right! And now I haveproof.”
I turn to see Hali’s attacker on the beach, his phone out and pointed toward the spot from which Hali just disappeared. I push myself to my feet and charge him, not giving him time to run away and escape. I’m running on instinct. And my instincts are screaming at me to protect Hali.
He flinches like he’s expecting another punch to the face as I bear down on him, but I don’t take the swing. Instead, I snatch the phone from his hand. He shouts at me to give it back, but I simply rear back and chuck it toward the ocean with all the strength I possess. It hits the water with a small splash, then sinks beneath the surface, hopefully to never be found again.
“You fucking asshole,” the man growls. “That was my only proof.”
He continues to berate me, but I can’t hear the words over the sounds of the ocean and my own heart pounding in my ears. He must wander off eventually, because the next thing I know, I’m alone. I’ve been staring at the water for who knows how long, looking for any sign of Hali. Hoping she’d wade out of the water, laughing at how she got me good with that incredible practical joke.
But I know it wasn’t a prank. I saw her legs disappear and form into that tail. I saw the horror in her eyes as she watched me watching her. The resignation when she turned and swam away.
I start to walk, and the next thing I know, I’m standing in my rental with no idea of how I came to be there. Making a decision, I walk straight into the bedroom, pull my suitcase from under the bed, and start to pack.
I have to get out of here.
I can’t stay.
I just…can’t.
CHAPTER THIRTY
Hali
I swimfor my life around the perimeter of the island, careful to stay deep enough that no human would see me. There’s little chance of anyone swimming this late in the year, not with the water being so cold, but I can’t take any chances.
As soon as I see the telltale underwater signs that I’m nearing Mermaid Beach, I swim toward the surface to take a look around and get my bearings. I see the cliff wall that houses the mouth of the small cave I’m looking for, so I dip down and swim toward it, my heart trying to pound out of my chest.
This is bad.Really bad.
The water is deep and dark inside the cave, but I keep my tail pointing downward as I surface, looking around frantically to make sure the cave is empty. The only widely known way to get in here is to swim or take a small boat, but people rarely make the effort. It’s just a cave, small and cramped with nothing of note to see. But years ago, I found another way out. One well-hidden that doesn’t require getting wet.
Making it the perfect place to hide my emergency stash.
Finding it as empty as I’d hoped, I grip the rocks and hoist myself out of the water, using my tail to propel me upward. I use a little too much strength, however, and end up shooting out of the water and landing on the cave floor with a grunt. I writhe and flop forward until I reach the rock wall, then shove my hand into the crevice where I hid a waterproof bag a few years ago.
Pulling it out, I unzip it and jerk out a towel. Rubbing my tail with it in brisk, choppy motions, I breathe a sigh of relief as the tingling starts. Gritting my teeth against the sting of pain, I close my eyes until the transformation is complete.
