“I am.”
“Mmm,” Lyra made a satisfied sound. She looked pointedly down at Theo’s crotch, and her smile widened, her eyes going black.
“Oh, Theo,” she winked, “I think we’re going to have a little bit of fun on this journey, you and I.”
Theo opened his mouth to respond, but Lyra jumped back into the water, transforming again to her natural form and swimming westward as if nothing had happened.
CHAPTER EIGHT
When they finally stopped for the night, Theo didn’t know what to expect. He had a few camping supplies in his pack, but didn’t have enough to accommodate Lyra. She quickly informed him that she wouldn’t spend a night on shore and she’d stay in the water.
“We’re traveling down the river Shiel now,” Lyra informed him. “It’s selkie territory. It’s safer if I’m in the water and close by. If any of them approach you at night, I’ll sense them coming.”
Theo paled. “I didn’t think selkies preyed on men like that?”
Lyra rolled her eyes as if this were something she was forced to explain repeatedly.
“Everything in the water would try to take a bite out of a fae male like you.”
“A fae male like me?” Theo started to set up his bedroll, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Lyra.
“Simple and easy pickings,” Lyra clarified with a smirk.
Theo clutched his hand to his chest and pretended to be gravely wounded. It earned him another small giggle from Lyra, which was quickly becoming one of his favorite sounds—on therare occasions he could coax it out of her. If he didn’t know what else to do, he still seemed to know how to flirt.
“At least you didn’t say unattractive.”
“It was implied. I was attempting to be polite.”
“I didn’t know you knew how to be polite.”
Lyra leveled his gaze at him, sharp and penetrating, and Theo only preened under the attention.
“It's a required skill now, apparently, since I’m escorting a prince.” Lyra turned her back on Theo, effectively indicating the end of the conversation.
Theo waited a few more minutes, desperately hoping there was still banter to be had before going to bed, but it became apparent Lyra had ended the conversation.
Theo set up his bedroll and spent an inordinate amount of time staring at the water’s surface while pretending to be asleep. His chest stirred when, fifteen minutes later, Lyra quietly broke the water’s surface, made sure Theo was asleep, and disappeared again. Content that his siren was watching over him, Theo allowed the exhaustion of the past few weeks to catch up to him and fell asleep on the shore.
Theo wokeup to the sound of screaming. He sat straight up, his brain coming online before his vision could focus. His first inclination was to start scanning the water for Lyra, but the surface of the water was covered in tumultuous waves and ripples. Theo had better eyesight in the dark than most humans, but it wasn't anything compared to some of Scotland’s other magical creatures, and he cursed his inabilities. From where he was standing on the shore, he couldn’t see anything breaking the surface, but the churning water betrayed a greater commotionhappening out of sight. There was no indication where the screaming had come from, and Theo prayed it hadn’t come from Lyra.
You’ve seen her. He tried to sound encouraging. Don’t you think a woman like that could defend herself?
Not a mermaid, his brain supplied,a maighdann-mhara.
The splashing continued for another few minutes without any other sounds or even brief glimpses of what was happening in the dark water. It seemed to drag on forever, and Theo started to debate walking into the river himself to try and help.
Lyra would kill you herself if you tried that, he reasoned with himself.Besides, anything in the water with her right now is a better swimmer than you.
“Gods damn it!” Theo finally shouted in frustration, his hands running through his long hair.
He felt an undeniable urge to try to keep Lyra safe, even though he knew it was irrational. She was the one who was supposed to be keeping an eye out for him after all. Still, Theo had known plenty of people and creatures alike, and everyone needed someone to look out for them.
“Lyra!” Theo called out into the night, cupping his hands and hoping she could hear him underwater. The splashing only intensified, the freezing water now dousing Theo from head to toe. He barely even registered his own body beginning to shiver. His focus was so intensely fixed on the fight in the water.
Finally, after what felt like eons, Lyra shot up from the depths. Her teeth were bared, fangs extended, and she looked as wild as the sea. She sucked in a breath and let out a wild, angry screech that echoed off the trees surrounding them. Theo recognized a victory shout when he heard one and relaxed, but only partially.
Lyra’s right hand broke the surface, holding onto a stringy mess of bright green hair. She started walking towards theshore, her eyes completely blown out and black, dragging a body behind her. Theo took a few steps back to make way for Lyra as she approached him, trying to determine whether or not whoever Lyra was dragging was dead. The body twitched ever so slightly as it hit the sand, hissing in a language Theo didn’t understand.
