Chapter 12 #2
Oberon and Sylvian pop out of the water, putting their cleaned clothes out beside ours. When had they dragged them in to wash them? I have no idea. They both look toward her, and then back at us. I can tell they heard us talking about Alette.
Oberon replies grumpily, “She knows we’ve seen women naked before, right?”
Cassius sighs, like we’re all stupid children. “It’s obviously because she’s a virgin,” he says, like this is a perfectly normal observation to make about the girl who just survived a worm honeymoon with me.
Oberon snorts, flicking water out of his ears. “She is not.”
“She absolutely is,” Cassius says. “You can tell. The way she looks at us like we’re about to set her on fire. She has no idea what to do with men.”
There’s a long, uncomfortable silence while we all process this. None of us could be sure, but it was certainly a possibility. Virgin or not, she was without a doubt inexperienced.
Sylvian shrugs, but there’s a blush on his cheekbones. “I don’t know if I’ve ever met a virgin, but it makes sense, after my… uh, experience, with her.”
Oberon grunts, and for a second I think he’s going to drop it, but then he says, “It’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s just rare. You ever meet a fae woman who hasn’t at least—” He makes a vague gesture, then goes quiet.
I want to say something. Anything. But all I can think about is Alette, alone down the shore, her hair probably wet and tangled, her bare feet leaving little prints in the mud. I wonder what it feels like to be so unique. So smart and wonderful.
Does she even know how incredible she is?
I remember her hands in mine. The taste of her mouth. The ring on her finger, that matches mine. I think about Cassius’s words, saying she has no idea what to do with men. I think about the way she reacted when we kissed, but also the caution she showed.
Would she be more comfortable with pursuing things between us if we talked about all these unspoken things?
I want to find her, to tell her it’s okay, that she can be whatever she wants. That I won’t rush her, or pressure her. I’m a man, but I could wait forever for a woman like her, I think.
But before I can stand, Sylvian says, “You know, for a bunch of immortals, we’re pretty bad at talking about feelings.”
Oberon opens his mouth, then shuts it, which is funny in its own way.
Cassius glances around at all of us. “Maybe talking like this is what the fae really needs to do if we ever want to change from tolerating each other to respecting each other.”
He’s not wrong.
“I wouldn’t mind a little more talking,” Sylvian says, followed by a shrug.
Right now, there’s one person I want to talk to more than anyone else. One person who needs to know she can walk beside me, laugh with me, and talk. Things don’t need to be awkward between us. We can let our relationship grow as slowly as she wants.
I stand and say, “I’m going to check on her.”
“She might not appreciate you interrupting her when she’s bathing,” Oberon says, giving me a dark look.
“I’ll make my presence known and get permission before I get closer,” I reassure him, even though it’s a little insulting that he thought I’d do otherwise.
I walk down the shore. The rocks are wet, slick, but I’m carefully picking my way through them, head down.
Before I know it, I’ve reached the plants.
I open my mouth to call out, when I spot her.
She’s thigh-deep in the water, just her bra and underwear on, hair loose and wild.
She’s scrubbing at her arms like she’s trying to get rid of the last week, or the last lifetime. Her back is to me.
I almost turn back, upset with myself for seeing her when I shouldn’t have, knowing I’ll embarrass her if she sees me watching her. But then, there’s a sound, a ripple that isn't hers, something big is in the water.
She freezes.
I freeze.
The water goes still, too still.
Then, in a blur, something erupts out of the lake, all fins and claws and a mouth too wide for its face. It grabs her around the waist and pulls her under.
She screams, but only once. The water closes over her, and then she’s gone.
“Cassius!” I scream as I run, tearing across the rocks, and throw myself in without thinking.
The water is cold and thick, full of silt and weeds. I open my eyes and see nothing but green and black. I kick, hard, down, and reach out, but there’s nothing. No Alette, no monster, just bubbles and the distant shimmer of the surface.
I surface, gasping, reminding myself that even immortals can die if they’re stupid. On shore, Sylvian and Oberon are already running, Cassius behind them, eyes wide.
Oberon shouts, “Alette! Alette!”
“She’s gone. Something took her.” I dive down again, searching for her, then come back to the surface feeling desperate.
Cassius reaches the shore. “Get out of the water! It’s a merman.” He says it like a curse. “He’ll just drag you under and drown you.”
I freeze. That means… I can’t save her.
But Cassius can. He’s a water fae. He can breathe in the water. He can save her. He’s got to save her!
Sylvian asks, “Can you get her back?”
Cassius’s eyes go flat, cold. “I won’t come back without her, but you have to know there’s a chance I may not come back at all.”
I climb out of the lake as Cassius climbs in, staring at him, desperation swallowing my heart. “Please.”
He doesn’t even hesitate. “I’ll bring her back.” Then, he dives in, silent as a ghost.
The rest of us just stand there, staring at the place where Alette vanished.
Minutes pass.
Oberon paces. Sylvian sits on a rock, head in his hands. I stare at the water, willing it to give her back.
It doesn’t.
Not yet.
But I’m not leaving until it does.
None of us are.