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She can’t be serious. The woman I was going to take as my chosen mate could not be threatening my entire world.
Without glancing backward, she raises her hand into a fist and cuts off the air going into my father’s lungs. He clutches at his throat.
“Stop! Stop,” I beg as I step forward. She raises a brow at me. “I will go with you.”
“Good,” she says, releasing my father. “As long as you stay, your village will be safe. But if you try to leave me again…”
She doesn’t let the threat hang in the air long. Her hands raise a gust of wind around my father. It swirls and buffets him before snapping his neck in one quick movement.
“No!” I rush toward him, catching his limp body before it touches the ground. Agony, unlike anything I’ve ever known, overtakes me as I sob over him.
“Please, Dad. Wake up,” I whisper, rocking his lifeless body back and forth. I will him to start breathing again. Even if it’s only to yell at me one more time.
“Are you ready to come along, pet? Or should I go find one of your sisters?” Antonia threatens.
“I’m coming,” I say, pulling her gaze away from the crowd gathered nearby.
I rest my father down gently on the ground and close his eyes.
“I love you, Dad,” I whisper, as I place a soft kiss on his forehead.
Robed figures pull me to my feet and drag me behind Antonia as she leads the way through the village, back through the once-secret opening, and onto the beach.
I glance back in time to see my mother and sisters hugging each other around the body of my father. I stop myself from calling out to them, hesitant to draw any attention to my grieving family.
They don’t call out for me.
Chapter Two
Pearl
Even though we have had five years of relative peace on the island, the rest of the world hasn’t been so lucky. Droughts, floods, and hurricanes have ravaged every corner except ours. The natural disasters become more severe and frequent every year. It’s causing widespread panic among the humans. Friends turning on friends, families betraying one another. One thing that humans are not is level-headed when faced with a crisis.
There are also the disasters that are more difficult to predict or prepare for. They’re less natural and more magical. The world was shocked and traumatized by the attack that caused widespread miscarriages and infertility. Now, it seems the vengeful goddess is ramping up again.
Just yesterday, every piece of man-made material was expelled from bodies of water all around the world. As if the waves and tides had agreed upon it, they rejected each foreign object at once, forcing them to the surface and vomiting them onto every shore.
When I say everything, I truly mean everything.
Ships that sank so long ago that no one remembered they were there now sit on the sand, drying in the harsh sun. Mostboats are no longer welcome on the water, and submarines are not even safe to dock. The only exception seems to be simpler boats. If it is made from wood and without a motor, the goddess may allow the boat to pass and collect fish for a while. Once they take what they need, they are quickly ushered onto the shore.
Though human scientists have been trying to come up with reasonable explanations, it’s becoming clear that supernaturals will not be able to remain in the shadows for long. One scientist claimed that climate change could have caused infertility. High levels of pollution in bodies of water were evaporated, stored in clouds, and eventually returned as rain. Rainwater, no longer clean, contaminated everything on the planet. Another group of scientists claimed it was a hormone issue caused by additives in the meat supply. There are some naïve enough to take these explanations as facts, but most are not so easily convinced.
For now, at least, I am still welcome in the seas.
These days, I spend most of my time swimming around the world. I can travel faster than most, but it means that I am often away and alone. I check in with the Westwood pack often, bringing them news of the outside. After all, their island is my home now too.
The seas, newly emptied of the landmarks I have come to know, are now unfamiliar. I marvel at how clear the waters are and how quickly the aquatic animals are reproducing and developing. Even though the creatures of the seas seem to be thriving, I can foresee them suffering the opposite fate of the humans on land soon. Overpopulation can be just as devastating as infertility.
Cities that were once crowded are falling quiet. Humans continue to die at an average rate, but there hasn’t been a single birth to replace them.
No matter where I travel or how long I am away, I always end up back in the same spot.
Once again, I find myself in the Mediterranean Sea, watching the sun rise across the coast of Greece, floating on a patch of thick seaweed, and waiting to catch a glimpse ofhim.
I never consciously decide to end up here, but something pulls me toward the shore—toward him. Somehow, I always return to this place and wait to make sure he’s still there and safe. When I do spot him, it’s a relief to see his olive skin shimmering in the dawn light. He dives in, his bright pink swim trunks catching my eye and making me smile. He disappears beneath the water for a moment and resurfaces. His dark brown hair is slicked down and beads of water drip down his neck.
I dive under when he does to continue observing him. It feels wrong to watch him like this, but I do not fear being discovered. Because the sea is my natural home, I can see and hear underwater much better than he ever could.
