Page 52 of Echoes of the Tide

The sparkling lights were so pretty, it made her heart twist and her throat tighten up. He looked at her and he thought she was pretty. He told her that he was interested in her, far more than any human man ever had been. And even then, she was still searching for a key that both of them knew could change… everything.

“My sister,” she whispered, trying to get the feelings out in a way that made sense.

“Your sister needs to be saved. I know. They are going to kill her, and that is not something I will just stand by and watch happen. Trust me in this, Ace. I will keep her safe.”

Of course he would, because that was who he was. Maketes would protect anyone who needed it. She knew that much about him. She’d also seen how far he was willing to go to protect her.

A chill ran down her spine. An idea forming that was so wrong and yet so right at the same time. She didn’t want to ask him to kill for her, but if that was what it took...

Another rumble of thunder preceded him lifting his head, and a bolt of lightning illuminated the look of determination. As though he’d already come to the same conclusion she had just thought of. As though he knew he would tear the world down for her.

The first drops of rain hit them. Heavy, thick balls that splattered on her shoulders and down into her hair. They were drenched in moments, staring at each other as an icy wind blew up as well.

“Ask me,” he said, his voice low and quiet. “Ask me and it will be done.”

“I’m not a murderer. I’m a thief.”

“I am a murderer. You have seen me kill for less than keeping those you love safe. The burden will not be yours to bear. It will be mine.”

Rain dripped down her cheeks, or maybe those were tears, because they burned hot enough to brand her cheeks. “I can’t ask you to kill someone.”

“You won’t be asking me to do that. You’re asking me to save someone’s life, and how I do it is up to me.” He reached up and smoothed his thumbs along her cheeks. “You have to know by now that I would do anything for you, kefi.”

She did. And that terrified her because there were so many things she could ask him to do. So many paths down this road that would end in blood and violence.

Maketes drew their faces together, pressing his forehead against hers and breathing her in as the rain grew ever colder. They stayed there in the storm, letting the thunder and the lightning spark around them, until it was almost too late.

“We have to go,” he murmured. “The rain turns into hail quickly. Those shards of ice are sharp enough to cut through your skin.”

She nodded.

Ace slipped into the water, holding onto him as they sank beneath the waves. In the meager light, she could see him reach for something at the back of his head, and then she remembered. He was going to breathe for her. How strange that experience was going to be and yet, she didn’t flinch when he drew the end of it toward her neck. The tiniest prick and then she felt her lungs inflate.

Like she was breathing. She could feel him inhale for her, drawing air through his gills and then breathing it into her lungs. Her chest rose on its own, the sensation odd but not repulsive.

Maketes sank them a little lower in the water, hail raining down from above and scattering into the water. But they slowed as soon as they were underneath the waves, and it looked like it was snowing around them. She’d only seen such things in pictures, and now, because of him, she had seen them in real life.

She reached out, her fingers just barely touching the gills on his ribs and he breathed for her and feeling the air then travel into her own body. Maketes placed his hand on her chest. Together, for a few moments, they breathed together. The silence of the dark water was filled only with the softest sound of rain above their head and the sinking hail that filled her vision with white.

Finally she looked up at him, her gaze traveling over that muscular chest and up his strong throat. The moment her eyes met his, the gills on the sides of his head flicked open, fluttering. And then... Oh, and then every single light on him glowed. She’d known he could illuminate himself, but she hadn’t realized it would be like this.

Tiny freckles of light speared out into the darkness of the sea. She had seen them before, but he was so much more brilliant in this moment. Staring at her with a grin on his face. Like he knew something she didn’t. Like he wanted her to see how happy he was that they were connected.

“You can talk,” he said. “The others could, at least.”

“I’m underwater.” Bubbles floated out of her mouth, but the impossible was really happening. She was talking. Muted words, yes. Quieter than most could pick up, but he had better hearing than her.

That grin grew even wider. “Do you want to see my world? For a few moments?”

They didn’t have time. She should be telling him to bring her back to the city so she could search for that key, so they could figure out what to do and how to do it. And yet... She found herself nodding.

“Hold on tight,” he said, wrapping an arm around her waist.

She already knew he could swim quickly. But she hadn’t realized how fast he could go. Maketes flashed her another grin, and they were speeding through the water. Racing through it so fast she could hardly keep her eyes open and her hair blew back from her face. His ribs expanded, his gills working over time to breathe for both her and him.

It was like his breathing had pumped her body full of adrenaline. She could feel every muscle twitch in his body, every flicker of his tail and the fins that carried them through the currents. He moved like a dream. Like a torpedo through the water until they slowed, and she realized where he had brought her.

There was a group of massive creatures here. Blue and speckled, they were nearly as long as the towers in Gamma. With straight up and down tails like a shark, they moved far slower. Just gliding through the ocean, a trio of them, all slicing through the waters that were now far out from the storm. As Maketes moved around them, she realized their mouths were long and flat, not at all like a shark’s.

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