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"I'm fine, but I need to get there quickly. Just point me in the direction and I'm sure I'll find it."
He frowned. "Trying to get rid of me?"
"Not at all, but don't you have better things to do?"
Rónán chuckled. "Now that I saved you, I'd quite like to know you're continuing to be safe. Do you have friends here on the island?"
Macey nodded. "Yes, several of them. We're only here to do... a task. Something I tried to do and almost drowned. We'll leave as soon as we're done with that."
"Pity, it's rare that we get visitors here who aren't humans. There's been too many tourists recently that we have to hide from. And divers, exploring the sea caves. There were none today though, so I took the chance to go for a dive in my favourite cave - that's where I found you. Were you exploring them as well?"
"Something like that," Macey muttered, but then had an idea. "Have you ever noticed the crystal in that cave? On the pedestal?"
"Of course. It's been there as long as I can remember. Generations of selkies have tried to lift if off its stand, but none have succeeded. It's become a bit of a tradition for young selkies to try, like King Arthur's sword. Why are you asking?"
"Just wondering, it looked so pretty," Macey evaded the question. "But shall we walk back to the village? I may be getting a little cold after all."
Her men spotted her before Macey could see them. They ran up the hill the kelpie and the selkie were descending from and before she knew it, Macey was wrapped in Flint's warm arms.
"You're freezing. Here, let me warm you."
Hot air enveloped Macey and her goosebumps slowly disappeared. She hugged Flint back, reveling in his touch and warmth. Right now, the Fire Warden was exactly what she needed.
"Who are you?" Cam asked Rónán with barely hidden hostility. The selkie was standing behind Macey, looking a little uncomfortable. Not because of his nakedness, but because the three men were glaring at him.
"I'm the selkie who saved your girlfriend's life."
That shut up Cam and Macey was glad about it. She didn't need them start a testosterone-induced fight.
"What happened?" Flint asked Macey, still holding her tight in his arms.
"I underestimated the thing inside the Staran. But I know now why they're dying, and I know more about the Voice too. How about we return to the house and talk about it there? I'd love to put on some clothes too."
"Don't worry, I brought them with me," Jared said cheerily and produced the clothes Macey had shed before she'd shifted earlier. She quickly put them on, but handed her jacket to Rónán.
"You can bind it around your waist," she suggested. "You don't want to give Amber and Izban a heart attack."
Rónán laughed but did as she'd suggested. "Who are those two? Prudes?"
"No, but Amber is the youngest of us," Macey said. "It seems that I'm a bit protective of her virtue."
Jared laughed. "You don't want to know what they were doing when we came to look for you. I don't think there's much left of her virtue."
Macey cringed. "Stop it, I don't want to imagine them snogging."
"Didn't you encourage them to work out their sexual tension not long ago?"
"Yes, but..." Macey shook her head. She didn't know why she was suddenly thinking of Amber in that protective way. Like a big sister, even though there were only a few years between them.
"Let's go back," Cam suggested. "I can't wait to hear what's been going on in the cave and why you suddenly brought a selkie along. I thought your two kinds didn't get on."
Rónán and Macey sighed in unison.
"That animosity is based on a lot of nasty rumours on both sides," Rónán explained. "But the two of us seem to be mostly unaffected by those."
Macey cringed a little, remembering how anti-selkie she'd been in the past. She'd certainly become more tolerant in recent weeks, mainly because she'd not had any exposure to other kinds of supernaturals before. Now she was surrounded by them and she loved the variety.
It turned out they were only a few minutes away from Luch's house, but despite the short distance, Macey wished she was wearing shoes. The ground was full of pointy stones that hurt her bare feet. She almost debated a partial shift so she could have her webbed hooves, but that seemed too much of an effort. With all the adrenaline caused by almost drowning, she'd forgotten how tired she was, but now that she was safe with her men, the exhaustion returned.
