He reached CC's ledge and placed his hands on the edge of it. With a quick flex of his powerful arms, he raised himself partially out of the water, and CC gasped again.
His muscular torso tapered down to meet the glistening skin of a mer-creature. CC's eyes grew round with shock. Merman, she amended as she watched the hard pulsing flesh surge from a slit in his tail where a human man's groin would be. This creature was quite obviously male.
"Now," his voice was low and ominous. "I am finished with chasing you. I have tried wooing you. I have tried reasoning with you. I have even tried begging you. Nothing works. You continue to spurn me. Your stubborn tricks have left me no choice. You force me to take what I desire."
His malevolent presence filled the cave. CC could feel her heart beating erratically. Her reaction was intense and immediate. He repulsed her.
"Stay away from me." CC was surprised by the power in her new voice.
"No, my darling. Not any more. I am finished with waiting." He reached forward and stroked a thick strand of hair that had fallen over her breast. "So lovely." His breathing deepened.
CC flinched from his touch, which enraged him.
"You will be mine!" he screamed in her face. Then, with an effort, he regained control of himself, shifting his tone to a more reasonable one. "Why do you pretend you do not understand? Our father is busy elsewhere, and he has grown weary of your little escapes. He is not listening for your cries." The merman grimaced. "And your landlocked goddess mother cannot hear you within my wonderful little cave; I made quite certain of that. Do you like the gift I created for you?" One powerful arm gestured to take in the grotto. "Be reasonable and this will be pleasant for us both. You must realize that Father will actually be pleased when we have mated. I believe he even plans on granting us a realm of our own."
CC's mind whirred. No wonder the beautiful mermaid had been so eager to exchange places with her! CC would much rather be a plain, ordinary human girl than a magical mermaid raped by her perverted brother.
The creature pulled himself all the way up on the ledge. His body was almost twice the size of CC's mermaid body. His chest and shoulders bulged, and his powerful tail was banded with thick stripes of crimson and dark green.
"Do you appreciate that I attempted to duplicate the color of your eyes in these crystals?" Again his voice was ingratiating and deceptively gentle. He leaned closer to her. "But nothing could match the beauty of your eyes."
He brushed the fall of hair off her chest, leaving her completely exposed. Then he reached forward and cupped her breasts in his huge hands, worrying her nipples painfully between his thumb and forefingers. Before CC could even attempt to push his hands away, his attention wavered.
"What is that thing?" he spat. "It reeks of human design." The merman freed her breasts to grasp the amber teardrop, which glowed softly where it dangled between them.
The instant his skin met amber, he shrieked in pain and dropped the pendant. Stunned, CC watched him curl over his hand, his entire body shaking violently. He was moaning and she could see spittle frothing around his lips.
The jewelry lady's words echoed through her mind. Know that it has the power to absorb negative energy and turn it to positive. You may have need of it…
She had to do something. The cave was a prison; she had to escape. CC heaved herself forward, squeezing around the merman's convulsed body and hurled herself headfirst into the water. As soon as she was immersed, she felt her panic subside. With an instinct of its own, her body took control and she dove swiftly down and away from the crystal prison.
Expecting to be caught in the swirling current of black water, she was surprised to see that tranquil blue surrounded her. There was no sign of the tunnel through which she had traveled. Still swimming with incredible swiftness, she glanced up and saw the lighter blue of daylight against the surface not far above her head. CC angled her body up, and with one powerful stroke of her tail propelled herself to the surface and broke through the liquid barrier.
She looked frantically around. On the horizon behind her she could see the dark outline of the grotto. She was amazed at how far she had traveled so quickly. In front of her, the ocean appeared to come to a halt. Confused, she rubbed her eyes clear and let herself drift forward. No, it wasn't that the ocean stopped. It was a huge coral shelf. On her side of it the water was the deep sapphire of the bottomless ocean. White-capped waves crashed against the barrier. CC flipped her tail and raised herself up farther out of the water. On the other side of the barrier she could see calm, turquoise water, which led to—her heart beat faster—a sandy shoreline.
That mer-creature had said that he was hiding from her "landlocked goddess mother." If he had felt the need to hide, then that must mean he was afraid. Could the mermaid's mother help her? If so, since she was "landlocked," perhaps she could be found near the shore.
A prickly feeling along her spine interrupted her thoughts. Her skin twitched somewhere on the back of her neck where it seemed eyes touched her.
She turned quickly, searching the ocean for signs of her pursuer. Nothing. As far as she could see the surface was disturbed by nothing except waves. Almost as if it was as natural a movement as stepping backwards, she waved her finned tail and submerged herself under the water. The blue depths were clear and visibility was good, but CC could see nothing more villainous than a drifting jellyfish. She resurfaced.
Maybe she had escaped and was safe for that moment, but one thing CC knew for sure, she couldn't just float there and wait for that creature to recapture her. Doing anything was better than that. With a powerful flick of her tail she leapt up and over the thick coral reef, splashing headfirst into the clear waters of the cove and straight into a school of huge, brightly-colored fish.
CC's first reaction was fear—they were really big fish—and she made shooing motions at them. But they refused to shoo. Instead they quivered and milled around her, a little like puppies. Curious, CC reached a hesitant hand out to touch one florescent-scaled side. The ecstatic fish went into very doglike spasms of glee. CC laughed, which caused the entire school to explode into joyous leaps of playful abandon.
She was just thinking that she didn't know how the day could get much weirder when she came face-to-face with a full-grown dolphin.
"Ah!" She jerked back, bubbles of surprise bursting from her mouth. The dolphin didn't look at all shocked by the appearance of a mermaid who was surrounded by a school of jubilant, silly-acting fish.
They have so little dignity.
The thought was placed gently within her mind. She stared at the dolphin. She had never seen a real one this close. Well, she had visited Sea World at San Antonio once, and there had been dolphins there that people could pay to swim with, but the price had been beyond her budget. And this creature was no tamed hothouse flower; it was stunning. Its sleek skin glowed with vitality and its expressive eyes telegraphed intelligence.
I ask you to forgive me, Princess Undine. I did not mean to startle you.
I, uh, just didn't expect you, CC thought automatically.
The dolphin dipped its head in graceful acknowledgment. May I offer you my assistance, Princess?
She could send her thoughts to this wonderful creature? What an incredible gift!
I need to find my mother. CC quickly decided it was worth a try to enlist all the help she could get. And the creatures seemed to know her—maybe they would know how to help her, too.
Of course, Princess Undine. CC was almost sure the dolphin grinned at her. Gaea comes to these shores often, as you well know. It would be my honor. The dolphin glanced at the school of waiting fish with what CC thought was an endearingly long-suffering look before adding, And the honor of these small ones, to escort you to shore.