Page 72 of Call of the Fathoms

She turned to see Fortis talking with his son, and the flirty young man disappeared underneath the surface of the water as well. Then it was just the two of them. Alone. She watched flickering emotions filter across his features and wondered what he was thinking.

How many people even knew what those micro expressions meant? Alexia had spent her entire life surveying people so she would know what they were feeling and what they might do next. She had to know the inner workings of the mind, and apparently that extended to the undines.

But she had no idea what he was thinking now.

He swallowed, his gaze flicking from hers for a moment before he sighed and said, “Come here.”

“And do what?”

“Damn it, woman, come here. Let me see that you’re all right.”

Alexia crouched next to the water, and he reached for her. She had no idea what he was planning on doing, but she hadn’t expected him to frame her face in his hands and turn her head to the side. He was looking at her neck, she realized. His hands slid down her arms, feeling for the wounds that should have still been there from the squid bites. Then down to her legs.

Heat bloomed as those strong fingers grabbed onto her thighs with impressive strength and slid down the muscles there. Realistically, she knew he was only doing it because he wanted to feel for the wounds, but her mind went elsewhere.

She wanted him to grab her thighs like he had her ankles before. She wanted him to spread her legs wide and... and...

She didn’t know what. But she wanted. And somehow, it felt like Fortis was the only one who could show her.

Still crouched beside the water, she held her breath as his hands slid up her thighs. His fingers lingered there, pausing as though he shared her feelings, before he looked up at her. “You are well?”

“I’m better than I was before. Who knew squid could hurt that bad?”

“I did.”

The joke went right over his head. But she still smiled and nodded. “Of course you did. You know everything.”

“I do.” The two words were so solemn, she knew he wasn’t joking when he said them. He stared up at her like the weight of the world was on his shoulders. “I should never have let you go.”

There was a lot of meaning in that statement. Alexia had to tell herself he meant only with the squid. He didn’t mean it any other way. Fortis wasn’t professing feelings for her or that he should have kept her around for longer. That wasn’t him. He wasn’t like that. He didn’t care that she was here or that she... that she almost died.

Because if he did feel like that, then she was so fucked. She was struggling to keep her own emotions separate, and she had never felt like this before. But then again, she’d so rarely felt anything.

Mirroring his pose, she framed his face in her hands. “No, you shouldn’t have. But I wouldn’t have let you stay, either.” She skated her thumbs over his cheekbones. “I am so lucky that you saved me. For that, I will always be grateful, Fortis. You have done more than you know.”

His eyes widened at that. And then the gills along his jaw started to flutter a little. She still had no idea what that meant, but she hoped it was a good thing.

He had done more for her than most people ever would in her lifetime. She was used to being the expendable one, but he had saved her life. He had known she was likely to die, and he’d done everything he could to ensure that didn’t happen. He had no idea what that did to her. But maybe if she told him enough times, he would understand why it was so important.

A commotion started at the door, and she released her hold on him as he flinched. He didn’t want anyone to know that they were even friends, let alone whatever else they were. She respected that.

So she stood and turned long before anyone else entered the room, giving him her back as she faced the onslaught of approaching people. They’d have a hundred questions, and she would answer them all to the best of her ability, but she also knew very well that they weren’t going to like the answers.

Multiple people walked through the door. The lean blonde, the shorter woman with glasses, Mira, the young man from the infirmary, another tall blonde who looked like the woman with glasses, and a few more people in the back she couldn’t see. A lot of humans for such a small space.

The rippling sound of water had her turning to see other undines had joined Fortis in the tight space. The big blue one pulled himself out of the water to create more room, but a red one, yellow, and Aulax all remained in the water with Fortis.

So many people for such a short conversation. Her lips quirked to the side. “I take it this is everyone?”

“Most,” the blue undine said. “My name is Arges.”

Then he ran through introductions of everyone in the room. She was already feeling a little overwhelmed. There were so many people here who expected her to have answers for them. She would do her best, but Alexia was bound to disappoint most of them.

Taking a deep breath, she stilled any of the nerves still lingering and opened her mouth.

“My name is Alexia. I am the seventh version of myself that has protected Original Harlow for years. I have been genetically modified every generation to address certain flaws in my genetic makeup, personality changes, and to enhance human abilities. There are many aspects of my body that have been improved beyond the normal human structures, but I will save you all the details of that list.”

Mira coughed into her hand. “I think we’d all like to know the extent of those, if you don’t mind. Knowing what we’re dealing with, even if it’s just you, would be appreciated.”

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