Chapter Eleven.
Willow
D amn, that was a lot to assimilate. It had been heart-wrenching listening to him talk about his family and how they had been hunted. Several times, Willow had forced herself to swallow a lump in her throat and fight back tears. Jase was correct in what he said. The God’s Warriors had been innocent of any crime.
Jase had broken off and sat beside her, waiting for her reaction. Willow could sense him watching her intently but refused to be pushed into giving an answer or saying anything. Jase owed her this time to collect her thoughts.
It was no wonder he despised her race. The Sins that had invaded their bodies had been human in their making. Humans then freed the Sins, which attacked them. Then, humankind hunted them down and tortured them. And amongst all that mess, it appeared her kind had subdued other races who’d already existed on this planet before humans were created. What a shit show, Willow acknowledged.
She could and did feel shame for her race’s actions. She’d always despaired at the general laziness and lack of consideration people showed towards their environment. But hearing this slayed her. Willow had never considered humankind bad, but looking at things from Jase’s point of view, they were evil incarnate.
How did she balance the hope in her heart against the knowledge that Jase had just given her? She’d always believed that the human race might realise the damage they were doing and come down harder on those who committed the pollution crimes. But now, seeing it from Jase’s perspective, Willow understood Jase had forsaken hope long ago.
Willow felt some of her natural positivity and buoyancy fading as she gazed out at the calm waves. She was at one with the ocean, which was strange, but she accepted it was partly because of the bond she’d found with Jase. Willow now thought it was her place to defend the sea, the oceans, and its denizens.
The ability she gained from the mate bond that had formed with Jase had given her a deeper understanding of the water. With that came the experience of what the creatures felt and thought who lived in here. No respect for humankind resided in the inhabitants of the seas and oceans.
Humans freely polluted their water. How could Willow stop that? They were now her responsibility as much as they ever were Poseidon’s.
“Willow?” Jase asked, questioning her silence.
“I am thinking. Jase, there is so much to absorb and understand, and I’m not sure where to start,” Willow replied.
“Can I help?” Jase offered.
“No. This is something only I can reconcile. But I apologise, Jace. On behalf of my race, I am truly sorry for the crimes they have committed against you and your family.”
“Willow, I may hate humans. Not you. I don’t see a love match forming between us like Vladimir and his soulmate. But we can tolerate each other and work together to make the world a better place.”
Willow nodded her head.
She continued to stare at the calm ocean.
Somewhere out there was her court, innocent creatures who swam and played and loved in the sea, only for humans to come along and dump toxic waste and rubbish. And whatever else they wanted into the waters. Yet, they had welcomed her with love in their hearts and open fins.
Willow knew that humankind wouldn’t be so forgiving. A sigh left her lips. She wished to know so much more, and she wasn’t sure where to begin.
“I am sorry, Jase. There is just so much information. I don’t know how to start to even assimilate it,” Willow finally announced.
“What now?” Jase asked.
“I need time to think.” “Trust me?” Jase said, getting to his feet and reaching down with a hand.
Willow swallowed hard. Jase really was a beautiful guy, and she’d love to lick him all over. From his broad shoulders to his lightly haired chest, thank God he wasn’t hairy. And his six-pack looked more like an eight-pack. Jase was perfect. Even his thighs were heavily muscled, and his legs were nicely shaped. A prime specimen of a man.
“Do you live in my world?” Willow asked as the thought crossed her mind.
“Yes, I have businesses. Half of their profits go towards cleaning up pollution in the water,” he said.
Willow snorted. “There is only one business that does that, and… oh my God, Monroe Enterprises is you?”
Willow reeled as Jase nodded. Monroe was well known for calling out companies and people who polluted the seas and oceans. And then, if they didn’t clean up their mess, Monroe Enterprises went after them and bought them out. They completely restructured the company that had been failing and then moved on to the next. Willow knew Monroe had taken down several worldwide names in the endeavours.
Other companies moved quickly once they knew they were in Monroe’s sights. Not much was known about the person behind Monroe Enterprises, except he was a dedicated environmentalist. He rarely interacted with the public and was called aloof and arrogant. There were hardly any pictures of him. Willow wracked her brain to match the few she’d seen of a man in an expensive suit against the guy with her in cutoff jean shorts.
“That’s shut you up.” Jase laughed, hauling Willow to her feet.
“You’re Jase Monroe?” Willow asked again, still stunned. She would never admit it to Jase, but he was a hero to her.
“Yes. Now come with me,” he said, pulling her towards the water.
Before Willow realised what was happening, Jase had shifted into Poseidon, and they were swimming downwards.
“Where are we going?” she questioned as Poseidon clasped her hand.
“A surprise,” he replied and continued their descent.
Willow allowed him his way as she gazed at the beautiful landscape before them. Coral reefs were abundant, and sea life teamed around them. The water remained warm, which tickled Willow.
She wasn’t a fan of cold water, even though she’d swum in the Atlantic and Pacific. As she reached out with her senses, she could sense them heading towards her and their peevishness towards Poseidon.
“My court is coming,” she called to him.
“They’re going to be a long time; I’ll open a portal for them later,” he replied.
Willow’s mind caught on the word ‘portal’.
“That’s how you move about? You have magic that opens portals?” she gasped, drawing back from him.
Poseidon snorted and gently pulled her along again. “No, I don’t.”
“But you said—”
“Willow, understand there are some things I can’t tell you until we’re bonded.”
“But…!” Willow exclaimed.
She was frustrated when Poseidon shook his head and continued their journey. The seabed neared, and Willow’s eyes widened as she took in a structure. It rose from the bottom with grace and elegance. It was a single building but a small palace made of coral and glass.
“What is that?” Willow demanded. “It’s so beautiful.”
“It is our home. Or one of them, anyway. When you’re in the Indian Ocean, you can reside here while dealing with whatever issues the sea life brings you,” Poseidon said. “Your court is the flat space on that tower there, and the rest of the palace is your haven.”
“Mine?” Willow asked, choked up.
“Yeah. This was a test; if you don’t like the design, we can restructure the next one,” he answered.
“Next palace?” Willow repeated.
“Yes, Willow. As my mate, you’ll visit every sea and ocean, so you’ll need somewhere to reside,” Poseidon replied.
“I think we have got to discuss what you expect of me,” Willow said, suddenly alarmed.
“To rule at my side,” he responded, looking confused.
“Where you go home to that castle, and I stay here, in the seas?”
“Yes,” Poseidon answered.
Willow’s jaw jutted out. “That won’t work for me.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t wish to be the wife of a guy who picks me up and puts me down when he wants. If I have a relationship, Ja… Poseidon, then it needs to be real. And right now, you say there is a mate bond; I don’t feel it. Which means you can bugger off as you’ve really insulted me!” Willow spat, her anger rising.
Viciously yanking her hand free, she swam towards the palace and, once inside, kicked the door shut. How rude of him! She wasn’t somebody to be ashamed of and hidden away. If the Vampire’s mate could stay at the castle and have a real relationship, why couldn’t she? This past week, Willow had seen a different side of Poseidon and Jase. And today, with his tale, Jase had really touched her deeply.
Willow may not love him, but she was attracted to him, and if she was brutally honest, even his merman form was handsome, with his strong regal features.
Nobody dared to put Willow in the corner, and Poseidon had to learn that!
Jase/Poseidon
He stormed through the castle, his mood darker than ever. His brothers and sisters went out of their way to avoid him. Well, all except one.
Archere waited for him in his quarters.
“Not now!” Jase snapped as he strode across the floor and poured himself a strong shot.
“It has been two weeks since you returned, and you’re still in a foul mood. What happened?” Archere pushed.
Jase narrowed his eyes at the man sitting serenely in an armchair with his own glass of whiskey already filled.
“You keep drinking that, brother, and you’ll buy me a new bottle,” he hissed as he sat down.
“Gladly, now stop avoiding the issue,” Archere replied.
Jase grumbled under his breath before glowering at his friend. “The damned woman wants a relationship!”
“And?” Archere asked, bemused.
“I don’t want one,” Jase spat.
“And you told her that?” Archere mused.
“Yeah. I was honest,” Jase retorted.
“How did you reach old age while remaining a fool?”
“I beg your pardon?” Jase exclaimed, insulted.
“You’re a complete idiot. You told her our story, explained your hate, I guess?”
“Yes, and she was moved by it,” Jase replied.
“And then you took her to a palace you created for her?”
“How do you know?” Jase asked suspiciously.
Archere ignored him. “So after laying out everything, baring your soul, and showing her the beautiful home you built, what did you do next?”
“Told her I’d build her one in every sea and ocean, so she always had a home,” Jase snapped and swallowed a large mouthful of drink. It burned his throat, but he welcomed it.
“She would always be alone. Never with her soul mate. And she’d be expected to rule in your absence, once again, by herself.”
“And? Surely Willow can see that we aren’t compatible,” Jase replied pointedly.
“I’d kick you out, too,” Liadun said from the doorway. “You need a woman’s point of view, Archere, and I’m tired of grumpy pants here. He’s making Banshee twitchy, and we don’t want her rattling off her death scream here.”
“By all means, Liadun, keep Banshee under control,” Archere urged.
Liadun nodded and took a seat. She pointedly looked at the wine cabinet, and growling, Jase got to his feet and poured her a red wine.
“Better. Brother, this is a woman’s perspective. One day, you wake up under attack and are hunted, shot, and nearly killed. On awakening, you’re in a strange place with weird strangers. They’ve healed you, but you’re dumped back on a boat with no further contact before you can get answers.
“And creatures start talking to you. Either you’ve gone stark-raving mad, or this is happening. Then you’re told that you have a mate and growing abilities. Next, you are kidnapped and discover all this fantasy stuff exists for real. There are shifters, mermen, and sea dragons, for example. So you’re struggling to understand a world you know nothing about. But you decide to take it in stride. You dig deep and find an inner strength you didn’t know you had.
“And finally, you're told this outlandish story before being dumped in a palace, unwanted by the one person who should love and protect you against everything dangerous. Instead, he tells you he hates your race, but it’s okay; he can tolerate you. In his absence, you are expected to do his job, with no input from him while he gallivants around the world, and you’re left alone.
“Your dreams, wishes, and hopes mean nothing because, as far as he’s concerned, he has everything he wants. He has a mate he can speak to whenever he wants and can carry on with his normal day. Meanwhile, your entire life has turned upside down, and he doesn’t care. Not a single tiny bit. You’re insignificant to him, just a blip on his radar. How do you think Willow feels, Jase?” Liadun snapped.
Jase reared back. He’d not seen it like that. Willow had dealt with a lot and hadn’t even complained once. She had been attacked by assassins, hurt, and left alone. In her shoes, Jase would have thought himself insane. Not Willow. She’d dug deep and made the best of it. She had continued taking each crazy event in her stride and had not faltered. And there he was, whining about how she kicked him out.
“You want a relationship with her, Jase. I know you care about Willow. That’s why you keep sabotaging everything. Because you’re scared she won’t want a monster. But tell me, did Willow flinch from your Uber merman or stand up to him?” Liadun asked.
“She tried to kick my ass,” Jase replied with a proud smile.
“Exactly. Some part of Willow knows and accepts you’d never harm her. And you’ve had plenty of chances, Jase. But Willow is trying to push you into a reaction, and you are running away like a coward,” Liadun said bluntly.
“I prefer Banshee to you,” Jase said sulkily.
“Yeah, not when she announces your death,” Liadun replied, and Jase tilted his head in acknowledgement. “Man up.”
“Liadun is right. You’re hiding feelings behind past grudges and your history with the human race. If Willow wasn’t your equal and soul mate in every way, you wouldn’t have bonded. You want to hate humans, go ahead, but recognise, like Emmaline, Willow is no longer a pure human,” Archere said, and Jase flinched.
“If I finish the mating, I’d have to be inside her, possibly as Poseidon and Uber merman. Do you think Willow wants that trauma?”
“Did you ask her? Explain properly what the mating would bring. Or did you mumble something and disappear?” Liadun challenged.
Jase wracked his brains. “I don’t remember.”
“Oh, hell, bells. I swear none of you have a brain cell between you. Go inform Willow of what a mating looks like and consists of. See what she has to say. Willow must care for you, or she’d have harpooned your ass by now. And did you even open the portal for her court? Give her clothing or toiletries?” Liadun demanded.
Jase flushed. He’d forgotten.
“Seriously?” Liadun exclaimed in disgust. “You better start practising your grovelling!”
Jase concluded his sister wasn’t wrong. Damn, he’d really messed things up.
Willow
She lay on the beach, sunning herself with two new turtle friends she had made. Keeping an eye on her was a pod of humpback dolphins who were just as much a chatterbox as their bottle-nosed dolphins.
Willow had been alone for weeks. Luckily, the little island held plenty of fresh fruit and drinking water, or she might have been in trouble. Willow hadn’t wanted to fish for protein, but the turtles killed and brought her red snapper, sea bass, and grouper. She’d soon learned to clean and cook them. When she asked one of the dolphins if she was wrong in eating them, the dolphin thought she was crazy.
He said it was the circle of the sea; everything ate something. Willow supposed that was true. Everything did eat something. As long as she wasn’t committing a crime against anything, Willow ate the fish. At least the turtles brought them to her already dead. She hated the idea of having to kill them herself.
The weeks she’d been alone had given her time to search her thoughts and feelings. Willow remained angry at Poseidon for leaving her, even though she could have used the whales and dolphins to escape, but it was peaceful here. The sun shone, everything looked pretty, the coral reefs were healthy, and if Willow was right, her presence was giving them a growth spurt. Her coral palace was cosy and also large enough to roam about. Her idea of small and Poseidon’s own clearly came from different places.
Willow was certainly mad at Poseidon. For one thing, he’d stranded her here without any other clothes, and she’d ended up shredding the clothing from Atlantis to make crude bikinis. She wanted to rip him a new one; she had no toiletries and was very careful about sunstroke. She had taken to staying in the palace when the sun was at its hottest and only surfacing at night or early morning. However, today, she wanted to wallow for an hour. Willow knew she looked a mess and hated it.
“Swim,” called Ern, one of the humpback dolphins.
“Soon,” she shouted back.
“Now!” he demanded, and Willow laughed and rolled over. “Danger!”
Willow sat up and saw a yacht fast approaching.
“Water, dive, dive,” Ern ordered.
Willow didn’t hesitate as she saw a dinghy detach from the yacht and head towards her. She cursed because the tide was out, and it was a race. Would she beat the dinghy, or would it catch her?
Willow was thigh-deep when something knocked her off her feet. She scrabbled for purchase, and a flipper appeared under her hand. She moved to grab hold of a shell.
Nester, one of the turtles, had already been in the water, and he was able to come closer than Ern could.
“Dive, dive!” Ern’s voice squealed frantically. Something entered the water and just missed her head. Willow’s eyes widened as Nester dived deeper, and they were near enough face-to-face with the seabed. Nester was swimming full out with Willow kicking her feet to help out.
Bullets hit the ocean, and Willow screamed as a harpoon narrowly avoided Nester. She could see the shadow of the boat above them. She cursed the clear water as she and Nester were easy targets for those chasing them. Intense minutes ticked past as more bullets hit the water.
Suddenly, a nose hit her leg and Willow looked back and saw they were deep enough for Ern to take over. She patted Nester and grabbed Ern’s fin. He instantly shot off. Finally, the seabed dived deeply, and Willow heaved a sigh of relief as they got out of reach of the seeking bullets.
“What was that?” Willow complained as they swam towards the palace.
“Danger, danger,” Ern squeed and changed directions.
Willow frowned and looked around. She saw a dark shape heading straight for them, and her eyes opened. What the hell? Was that a submarine?
“Go to the palace. We can protect ourselves better there,” Willow cried.
Ern clicked a no, but Willow insisted.
Finally, keeping up a punishing pace, Ern dived in and out of the reefs, trying to lose the tracking submarine, and headed for the palace.
Willow had no idea who was after her or why they chased her, but she knew they meant harm. As they neared the palace, she could feel the currents becoming rife with chatter. Ern and his pod called for assistance, stating she was under attack and needed defending. The door opened as they approached the tower where she held court, and Ern headed straight for it. Moments later, she was inside, and the doors slammed shut.
Willow knew that didn’t mean she was safe. The submarine might have missiles, or the boat above may be able to track them. Unlike the yacht or dinghy, the submarine could see them despite their depth. She raced through the palace to the viewing room, which was a small tower in the middle of the building with windows all around.
Once there, she looked for the submarine and hoped they’d lost it in their frantic dash through the coral reefs. Willow prayed they had because she couldn’t fight a submarine off, and she had no idea who was attacking her this time.