Page 61 of Whispers of the Starlit Sea
Something like...worry.
A whirlpool churned in Sorcha’s gut, and something clicked in her mind. All the times her aunt had been on the surface during storms. Her constant warnings about humans. Her understanding of human magic.
Fury filled Sorcha. How dare Maeve protest them freeing the merfolk?
Her heart broke a little bit. She hadn’t wanted to believe it was her aunt. Maeve, who had spent her life protecting and helping others. Who had taught Sorcha how to be a Healer and use her magic for good. Who had been the first to find her on the beach, broken and human.
But it explained so much. “Why?“ she cried. “Why would you do this?”
Maeve’s eyes widened. “Sorcha, I…”
“No!” She couldn’t bear to listen to excuses. “They’re all free now. You can stop the storms.”
Maeve’s mouth opened as if to speak, but before she could answer, lightning ripped apart the sky, and a cry rang out behind them.
“Sorcha!” Arick’s voice, hoarse with panic.
She spun.
Arick stood just outside the tunnel entrance, her father slung over his shoulders like before. She leapt toward them, feet sliding on the wet rocks, pain shooting through her soles.
The ground trembled beneath her feet. A crack sounded like the splitting of the sky.
Boulders tumbled down from the cliffs above, crashing into the beach in a cascade of stone.
Sorcha’s knees hit the ground, salt and rainwater blinding her. Her back and shoulders were pelted with stones. She rolled into the tunnel opening as more rocks fell amid the cries of human and merfolk alike.
The rumbling ceased, and for a moment, even the storm stilled. Dust choked the air. The crash of waves felt distant now, muffled by stone. Her ears rang with silence. She tried to move — but the tunnel pressed close, narrow and dark.
A shriek pierced the stillness — one not of fear but of anguish.
Arickheldtighttothe powerful arms wrapped around his neck. Sorcha’s father was much larger than the other mer he had helped, and the few minutes submerged in the water had helped restore his strength. But the retreating waves meant he still needed Arick’s help to get past the rocks.
Arick stepped from one rock to the next, ensuring his footing was sound before continuing. Rain poured all around him, pooling on every surface until he no longer knew whether he was walking in freshwater or salt. He shook the water from his eyes, glimpsing Sorcha speaking to a mermaid he didn’t recognize from the cavern. As soon as he knew her father was safe in the sea, he would encourage Sorcha to retreat to the tunnel. They could speak to the merfolk in the morning, when the storm had passed.
Lightning cracked overhead, shooting through the lighthouse and sending shards of light in all directions.
And Arick became aware of three things all at once.
Firstly, the cliff face above him was collapsing.
Secondly, he was about to lose his footing on the rocks.
Thirdly, he loved Sorcha with his whole being and would do anything for her.
And that truth hit him harder than the rocks cascading around him did.
The next moment, he was in the water. His hand slipped from Sorcha’s father, and his feet scrambled for purchase on the slick creekbed.
He grabbed for anything he could hold onto, his fingers scraping against stone. But the waves kept crashing over his head, making it impossible for him to break free. With his lungs screaming for air, he let go.
The undertow jerked him below the surf. His shoulder slammed against a rock, then he was twisted around and flung farther from shore. He stole a breath in the instant between waves. The sea was as angry as it had been on the night of Thomas’s birthday party.
Furious. Unrelenting. Vengeful.
And Arick was in its thrall.
He knew better than to fight against the current, but the darkness made it impossible to know which way was up, where he was being taken. He could only hope it wasn’t out to sea. A face appeared, a flicker of a magenta fin. Both were gone before he could follow.
