“Of—of course.Well, the claims await.”She gestured toward the water, where rough waves were breaking on the shore and against the rocks.
“Did you find any new information?”he asked, coming to stand beside her.His body heat radiated to her and Amellia swallowed hard, trying to keep her wits about her.On the beach at night with the hottest man she’d ever seen and she had to concentrate on muddy old clams.
“No, just more old legends and fairy tales about the power of the pearls.They seem to be quite useful in the hands of a sorcerer or mage.”
“Which your aunt appears to be, luckily for us.”He gazed at her with concern.“Are you sure you won’t take refuge in the groundcar while I’m gone?It’s freezing out here.”
“I’ll be fine and I’m going to stay here on watch while you’re gone.It’s the only thing I can do, the least I can do.”
“The water will be warmer so don’t worry about me.I’m not a reptile, to be stunned into immobility by cold.We of Zackmarune have an entirely different metabolism.”He handed her his blaster, which she hadn’t even noticed him carrying, being so distracted by his physique.“Do you know how to shoot?”
“I had a basic class when I came to work for the interagency authority.”She checked the power level and flicked the safety off and back on.“The one I had at the class was a toy compared to this.”Already her hand was tired from holding the heavy-duty weapon.“Are we expecting trouble?Did you see someone following us?”
“A precaution in case—I can’t leave you defenseless here on the beach.”Hagan leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.“But no, quiet your fears, I don’t think we’ll run into trouble of the humanoid kind.I finished a big case before returning to the office and I’m not assigned to anything else yet.I’ll be back as fast as I can.”
He sprinted away from her, into the water, diving under an incoming wave and Amellia held her breath until she saw his head break the surface as he stroked hard toward the area where the clams were to be found.
Hagan’s head was full of thoughts about Amellia, starting with profound regret he’d taken off all his clothes and had to go swimming in the ocean instead of taking her into a cozy bed and whiling away the night with passion.If only I’d taken the risk and courted her sooner.But no, I wanted to have all the proper details of etiquette carried out first and end the egg match.I was an idiot.He swam smoothly, his tail providing extra propulsion.This far below the surface there was no turbulence and with his excellent Zackmarune vision he could see the details of the seabed below him.He anticipated arriving at the clam location in short order and indeed was soon circling above them, studying the large bivalves.The shells were pretty, with a pattern reminiscent of whorls, although they didn’t represent true spiral growth.He sampled the water, hoping for a scent or a taste or other subtle clue as to which of the creatures might contain a pearl.The largest ones?The smallest ones?
He was reaching for one whose sparkly pink and green iridescence drew his eye when slimy ropes wrapped around both of his ankles and dragged him abruptly in the direction of the open sea.His captor was moving at immense speed and Hagan struggled to contort his body to see what had captured him.Although he could hold his breath for a long time, air was going to become a problem.Exerting all his strength, he managed to bend against the current created by their passing and slash through the coils on his ankles and legs.It took several tries and once the bonds released, he shot toward the surface.
Sucking in a massive volume of precious air as he emerged from the water, he had only a few seconds before he was recaptured, new tentacles weaving around his feet and lower legs to pull him into the dark depths.
This time he was ready for the attack and lunged forward toward the enemy, to be met with more, thicker arms, which attempted to enfold him and pull him close to a vicious black beak in the center of the thicket of tentacles.The water around him suddenly clouded with a black substance which made him nauseous and dizzy as it surrounded him.He slashed and cut, using the claws on his hands and feet, and even his fangs, twisting and turning to keep the creature from gaining a secure hold.He cracked his tail like a whip, trying to strike one of the eight beady eyes glaring at him.The water around them churned.He was bleeding from a variety of wounds, as was the creature.He prayed the gore wasn’t going to attract any more predators.
Air was becoming a problem again but he knew his opponent was weakening.He hoped the animal was smart enough to know he wasn’t a good bet for an easy meal.Breaking free, Hagan rose to the surface, sucking in air and waiting for the combat to resume.
Nothing happened.
He dove and scanned in all directions but other than a lingering faint cloud of the black ink, there was no sign of the beast.
Wasting no time, Hagan swam to the clam bed, all his senses on alert since he was bleeding and would look like prey.He was sure he wasn’t seriously injured although he was in pain but there was no point to any of this if he didn’t find the damn pearl.He scooped up a clam, cut the shell open and wasn’t too surprised there wasn’t a pearl.He made careful note of the shell pattern and the scent of the one he’d selected and tried to pick the most opposite specimen he could for his next attempt.
Please, he prayed to his own sea gods,I don’t want to waste these creatures’ lives.Point me to the pearl I seek.
Realizing he was becoming a bit delirious and lightheaded, Hagan opened the second shell and again found nothing.Casting it aside with regret, he surfaced for more air and glanced toward the shore.Amellia was waiting right where he’d left her and he waved vigorously, hoping to reassure her.She’s such a calm, capable, beautiful woman—I’m lucky to have found a prospective mate of her caliber.If only I hadn’t brought this curse to her.
She waved and as he slid under the water again, he said another prayer.Descending to the clam bed, he identified the one which had caught his eye before he was taken by the sea monster and swam to it.The colors reminded him of the bracelet he’d selected for Amellia, which had to be a good omen.Slicing the shell open, he was gratified to find a large, marble-sized pearl sitting cushioned in the center.Carefully he closed the shell around the gem again and headed for shore, clutching the shell with its precious cargo inside.
It was hard to wait,not knowing how things were going with Hagan out in the water.She supposed it had been the same for him when she was way up in the tree.Playing with the bracelet he’d picked out for her at Cheline’s shop, she admired the sparkly bits in the moonlight.He’d certainly selected one she would have chosen for herself, even if he hadn’t known he was choosing for her.Anxiously she scanned the waves again.Except for the brief moment when he’d surfaced and waved, she could only worry.I certainly couldn’t rescue him if he got into trouble.She could swim a little bit but she’d never be able to tow him to shore, even if she could locate him.
With a gasp, she ran forward as Hagan emerged from the ocean, a shell in one fist.Even from a distance she could see he was bleeding and moving judiciously.“What happened?”
“A sizable and unfriendly denizen of your ocean decided I was its dinner,” he said with a lopsided grin and visible effort.“Took me a while to dissuade the beast.”
“Lords of Space, you’re bleeding in more than one place—we should get you to the hospital.”She ducked under his arm and took some of his weight, helping him plod toward the groundcar.
He shook his head emphatically.“No hospital.I’m not badly injured and we have no time.I’ve had worse, in combat.We have to keep moving.”He raised his fist and showed her the shell.“I got our pearl.”
“I hope it was worth the sacrifice.Do you have a first aid kit in the car?”She’d have to rip up her t shirt if he didn’t because the wounds needed bandaging.
“Even better,” he said.“I keep a fully stocked go bag in the cargo compartment and I have a regulation medic’s field kit.Let me get there and sit and we can do a quick assessment and apply dressings.I can do it by myself.”
“You most certainly will not be doing it by yourself,” she said indignantly.“We’re a team.I’ve had basic first aid, maybe not for wounds like this but we’ll manage.I have a lot of cousins who were always getting into scrapes when we were kids so the sight of blood or even broken bones doesn’t faze me.”
When they reached the car, he handed her the shell and allowed himself to slump to the ground beside the rear, leaning against the vehicle.Amellia rushed to open the car, deposited the shell next to the eggs after gawking at the pearl briefly and then searched his huge go bag in the cargo compartment for the promised first aid kit.
“Wow, this is like a mini hospital,” she said, kneeling beside him and unfastening the satchel.“We could do surgery.”
