Page 6 of Entangled

Three

Sebastian couldn’t take his eyes off the mermaid as they sailed back to Macada Castle and docked the ship. The rain had let up slightly, but still it was coming down at a good pace.

“King Ravenwolf, my net is ruined.” The captain looked down at the mermaid who was still sitting there, unable to move. The torn net was all around her. Trying to get untangled, she had ripped the thing to shreds.

“Owaine, stop complaining.” Sebastian stomped over, his booted feet stopping so close to the girl’s hand that she pulled it away and held it against her chest. “I’ll buy you a new net.”

“Well, what about that—thing?” Owaine pointed a finger at her. “What am I supposed to do with her? Filet the girl and bring her to your cook to prepare for supper?”

“What?” The undine, as the girl had referred to herself, gasped at the notion. She almost seemed to choke on her own spit. “I’m not a fish!” she finally managed to spit out. “You can’t eat me.”

“She sure looks like a fish to me with that long, plump tail.” Two of the crewmen sidled up to her.

“I’m so hungry, I could eat her raw right now,” said the other. “Forget the cooking.”

“Before or after we have fun with her top half?” asked the first, and they both burst out laughing.

That angered Sebastian. His fist plowed into the first crewman’s face, followed by his second punch, plundering the other disrespectful man as well. They both fell to the deck rubbing their jaws.

“If I ever hear anyone say something like that again, you’ll be meeting with my blade instead of my fist next time. Do you all understand me?”

“Aye, my king.” The men answered one by one, getting back to their duties.

“King Ravenwolf, you still didn’t tell me what to do with her.” Owaine waited for his answer.

“Nothing,” he answered.

“Nothing?” Owaine shook his head and narrowed his eyes.

“I’ll take her,” said Sebastian, not wanting to leave the sea nymph with this crew. If he did, as soon as he turned his back they’d be spreading butter over her body and licking it off of her, no doubt. Damn, he cursed himself, now not able to get that thought from his head. As alluring as she was, he couldn’t say he wasn’t having the same fantasy of doing just that. Her perky breasts and taut nipples were showing right through her wet clothes, and he’d found it hard to look the other way. He reached down and scooped her up in his arms. Her hands clung to his shoulders and he felt her necklace made of shells and coral pushing up against him. Her long, beautiful and iridescent tail hung over one side while her long, unbound tri-colored hair spilled over his other arm.

He hurried across the pier, making his way past the small village huts and to the drawbridge of his castle. As he crossed, he spoke to her.

“Do you—do you have a name?” he asked, not knowing how to have conversation with a sea nymph since he’d never met one before.

“Of course, I do, you simpkin! I’m a person, too, you know.”

“Are you?” He supposed that sounded dumb, even though he really wasn’t sure if she was a person. Or just half a person. “Well, what’s your name?” he quickly asked before she could call him a simpkin again for that last comment. He glanced down at the beautiful half-woman in his arms and waited for her to answer.

“It’s Merrow. Merrow Havfine.”

“Hello, Merrow. My name is⁠—”

“King Sebastian Ravenwolf. I know,” she answered, surprising him yet again.

“How did you know that? Oh. You heard my men. That’s right.” For some reason, he felt flustered around her and as if he couldn’t even think straight.

“Of course,” she answered snidely. “How else would I know?”

“Well, some of the beings of Mura are magical and can read minds. I wasn’t sure if you could or not.”

She jerked a little and her body stiffened. Something about that comment seemed to alarm her. “Mura?” she questioned as he crossed the drawbridge. People came running from all directions to see her. She shyly hid her face against his shoulder. It almost seemed as if she felt vulnerable right now. He supposed he couldn’t blame her. “What is this land called Mura?” She peeked up at him with those translucent blue-green eyes that reminded him of the sea.

“Don’t you know where you live?” he asked her. “Mura is the land that the Masked Sea surrounds.”

“I have never heard of either of them before.”

“You haven’t?” He started wondering if the girl had bumped her head and lost some memory. How could she never have heard of Mura or the Masked Sea? After all, that is where he’d caught her.