Promises (Book One of The Syrenka Series) Read online

  But the merfolk are different. We are incapable of breeding with humans, and therefore, are trapped in arranged marriages and intolerable obligations. This was a burden I had never wanted to bear.

  “Puh-lease. Your mother doesn’t sound anything like that.” Brendan’s attempt at humor brought me back to the present.

  I tried to smile at him, but the grin barely touched the corners of my mouth. “Yes she does.” I pulled away from him to look into his beautiful green eyes. “What are we going to do?” I could hardly control the tears threatening to burst their dam.

  “You will return to your home and family and…” he placed a finger over my lips when I started to protest. “And we will pretend that we’ve accepted our fate. We will continue living our lives as though we are content.” He arched an eyebrow and smirked. “Well, you will continue to act as you normally do, and harass everyone to death.” Before I could take a bite of his finger in response to his jab, he quickly moved it away from my lips.

  “And then what?” I asked indignantly.

  “And then in one month, we leave.” He was so sure. So secure in this declaration that it took me a few seconds to believe what I was hearing.

  “Really?” I pleaded, this time allowing more excitement to filter into my question. “Please tell me you mean this.”

  “I will not live without you Eviana. I cannot.”

  I launched myself into his arms and wrapped my legs around his waist kissing him at the same time. “I love you Brendan, but please promise me that you will go.”

  He hugged me close and whispered into my ear, “I promise.”

  Two

  My swim home was too quick. I was lost in the elation of Brendan’s promise and thinking about what I could take with me when I left my home. Maybe one suitcase and my iPod; we could always replace what we couldn’t carry. Would we fly or drive? Where would we go? Brendan had promised to make all of the necessary arrangements soon, but I didn’t know if I could wait to hear his plan.

  Night was nearly here and the silhouette of my house looked bleak and menacing. When I reached our backyard stretch of beach, someone was waiting for me. I sighed and picked up my scattered clothing without acknowledging my guest.

  “You are in so much trouble this time,” a whiney, nasally voice taunted.

  “Shut up, Marisol and mind your own business.” I began walking briskly back to the stairs, trying to ignore my sister, but she followed closely at my heels.

  “I don’t understand what’s wrong with you. This is what we were born to do and Kain is super rich and totally gorgeous.” She tripped on one of the steps and stumbled into me. I turned with a glare so evil that she stepped away. “He doesn’t deserve you.”

  The words were sharp but I knew that they rang true. Kain didn’t deserve someone who couldn’t love him. He was too good and too nice. My sister was right, but that didn’t mean I had to let her know it.

  “You don’t even know what you’re talking about Mars,” I snapped at her, using the childhood nickname she loathed. “Just mind your own business for once and leave me alone!”

  Stomping up the stairs was probably a mistake. Although I managed to lose one nagging voice, two more were waiting for me at the top. I looked into my parents eyes and could see their growing disappointment. The dark wood deck wrapped entirely around the raised first floor of our house, and was large enough to hold a hundred people. But there were only two of them standing there now. They were leaning against the railing on the far side with my father holding my mother in front of him in a show of support and unity. I rolled my eyes.

  “Told you,” chirped Marisol as she dodged out of the way of my swinging hand.

  “Eviana Anne Dumahl. Do not strike your sister.” My father’s harsh command sent chills through my body. I really hated it when he was this mad at me. “And put some clothes on.”

  I was standing before them completely naked and soaking wet. Succumbing to the grueling glares, I reluctantly pulled on my blouse using my arms to secure it to my body rather than button it up.

  “Where did you go?” my father asked in a lighter tone.

  Before I could answer, my mother cut in, “You were with him weren’t you?” She pulled away from father’s arms and walked towards me with determination. Her long dark hair flowed around her perfectly smooth face. The grace and confidence with which she moved still astounded me. Without looking into her eyes, I threw back my shoulders and stood my ground. Anything to defy her.

  She literally sniffed me. Her nose moved around my neck, my hair, and even my hands. There was no way that I could deny who I’d spent the last few hours with, and I wouldn’t try to anyway.

  “I want to be with him. Not Kain.”

  My mother tsked at me in disgust and grabbed my face with her hands. She was slightly shorter than me, but her domineering personality was still intimidating. Plus she was squeezing my cheeks pretty hard.

  “You will not see that boy again, do you understand? The Matthews have finally agreed to conduct this marriage and you will respect your duties and your family. This is very important to our survival. Can you even begin to comprehend what type of message your behavior is sending them?”

  I could see the frustration building in her eyes, and before I even realized what was happening, my tears were spilling over. I pushed her hands away and turned to my father.

  “Please, dad. Please! Don’t make me do this!” I waved my arm back towards the house. “Marisol would kill to have the chance to marry Kain and provide him children. Why can’t she just do it?” I was hysterical now.

  “Oh Eviana, please don’t upset yourself like this.” He glided over to me and wrapped me in an embrace. His warm body and soothing voice kept offering me false hope.

  “Stop babying her, Charles,” my mother snapped. “She is almost eighteen now. It’s about time she started acting like it.”

  Marguerite, my mother and the Dumahl Clan leader, didn’t stop there. “You and I had to endure our arranged marriage when we were much younger than this.” Turning towards me, she continued, “I became a leader when I was your age. I survived. Charles and I survived. And so will you. Stop acting like a spoiled brat and accept your responsibility!”

  My mother walked away towards the deck’s edge to regain her composure and my father sighed. I knew what was coming next.

  “Eviana, you must do as you are told. Kain is a nice young man with a good family. And from what I can see, he is already quite taken with you.”

  The sobs were out of control at this point. I really did hate to disappoint my father and even my mother sometimes. But this is not the life I wanted. I suddenly realized that I wasn’t crying because I’d have to marry Kain, I was crying because I knew that I had to run away. There was no other choice at this point. Feigning total defeat, I pulled away and looked up at him. His middle-aged face could pass for someone ten years younger, but the wrinkles around his eyes did little to hide his distress. I’d probably been the cause of most of those lines.

  “When is it?” I asked.

  Both of my parents looked at me in shock. They shared a glance between them, no doubt trying to figure out if this was a trick. My mother replied hesitantly, “The first of the month.”

  “What? But that’s in less than two weeks! I won’t even be eighteen yet.” And Brendan and I won’t have a chance to leave.

  “You don’t have to be eighteen. We are giving our permission,” my father said with a questioning tone.

  “But…can’t we postpone it until after my birthday? That’s only another couple of days. I’m sure that Kain wouldn’t mind.”

  “It’s already been arranged, Eviana. Stop being so difficult,” my mother said while wrapping her arms around my father’s waist.

  He looked down at her. “Marguerite, I’m sure we could wait a few more days. The Matthews would be amenable.”

  “You spoil her, Charles. This is why she acts the way she does.” She sighed dramatically and thought about his request. Her lips pursed together and she stared intensely at me for a full minute. “Fine. I’ll talk to them. But you will be married the weekend after your birthday. That gives you plenty of time to say goodbye to that selkie boy.”

  My gut twitched with a mixture of relief, anger, and anticipation. I’d just bought myself a few extra days, and although I hated my mother’s attitude towards him, I knew that Brendan and I would be gone by that time.

  “Thank you,” I said somberly. “I won’t disappoint you.” My mother huffed and my dad smiled. I turned to walk into the house when they called my attention back to them.

  “There’s something else.” Her voice was clipped with the business tone and I knew that I wasn’t going to like whatever it was that she planned to say. “We are sending you to The Cotillion this year. You leave tomorrow.”

  “What? Why?” The Cotillion was an annual gathering of the merfolk syrenka, or the apprentice adults. Once we reached marriage age, which was anywhere from sixteen to twenty, the guardians would prep and train us for our future in clan politics. Likewise, if someone wasn’t already promised in marriage, The Cotillion served as a sort of matchmaking ball.

  My mother continued, “Since you will be marrying Kain, you both will be attending this year. His father is not aging well, and Kain is the next in line for leadership. You will present yourself as a couple and Harlan will serve as your guardian.”

  Harlan Matthew was Kain’s father and leader of their clan. I’d only met him a couple of times, so I didn’t know how horrible the next few days would be. Kain and I got along well enough, but it was never a completely comfortable situation.

  “But what about school?”

  “The arrangements have been made.” I think that was my mother’s favorite phrase.

  “Well, when do I leave?”

  “Tomorrow evening,” my father said calmly and then smiled. “I think you’ll like the location.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yes. You are going to Florida. Well, the Florida Keys to be more specific. The Donnellys are hosting this year.”

  Florida didn’t sound like that bad of an idea, although I really wished Brendan could go with me instead. I’d never been there and apparently the Donnellys were one of the wealthiest clans next to the Matthews and the Dumahls. Rumor had it that they owned their own island.

  “Enough for now,” my mother cut in. “Go inside, shower, and pack for tomorrow. I’ll get your travel documents ready.” She stepped closer to me, put her hands on my shoulders, and stared into my eyes. “I expect you to be on your best behavior Eviana Dumahl. If I so much as hear one negative comment from anyone, and I mean anyone, you will be locked in this house until I can marry you off to the Matthews. Do you understand me?”

  I swallowed hard, fighting my urge to respond. My father caught my glance and pleaded with his eyes until I reluctantly nodded to my mother.

  “Good,” she breathed. “Now get inside.”

  I turned to cross the rest of the deck, but not before stripping off my blouse and sashaying away in all of my naked glory. There is always a way to get the last word.

  Once inside, I immediately went up the stairs towards my third floor bedroom. Our house was ridiculously large with eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms plus a guest cottage over the garage. The beach location was prime and many years ago, our ancestors purchased multiple tracks of land to allow for the privacy our kind desires. We all went to elite private schools, all had new cars as soon as we could drive, and wanted for nothing. I guess that was part of the tradeoff for being forced to marry and mate once you became an adult. They stole your freedom later in life therefore they spoiled you rotten early on.

  “So, did they rip you a new one?” Marisol’s high-pitched annoying voice ripped me from my thoughts. “Are you permanently grounded for the next two weeks?” She was standing in the hall, blocking the path to my door.

  “Get out of my way,” I threatened.

  Ignoring me, she stepped closer and stood on her tip toes to get right in my face. “You are a disgrace to this family. I can’t wait until you leave with the Matthews.”

  I envisioned how good it would feel to punch her and watch as her bloody nose clogged her piercing voice, but I just took a deep breath instead. The best way to handle Marisol was to not take the bait. So I stood and waited for her to give up.

  “Not going to fight me, huh? My, my…they must have really punished you this time.” She swayed from side to side, trying to encourage a reaction. Believe me; it was hard to restrain myself. Finally, she sighed and blew a cloud of hot air in my face. “Whatever,” she huffed and walked away.

  I stood there for another moment wondering if I would miss her when Brendan and I left. My father, yes. My mother…probably. But Marisol, I don’t think so. She had a mean streak in her ten times worse than my mother’s. In all honestly, she would make for a much better leader than me. Her cold, detached personality would serve her well in that capacity. And when I left, she would be next in line. Although she was only fourteen, perhaps they would send her to Cotillion next year and marry her off to Kain. It would be her dream come true.

  For the next hour, I packed all of the cute sundresses, wedges, and jewelry I could fit into my suitcase. I did manage to squeeze in my one ball gown that we purchased last year at my mother’s insistence. It had never been worn, and I was secretly excited to finally try it out, although I would never let my mother know.

  After my shower, I tried to call Brendan. He didn’t answer, but when I realized what time it was, I knew the reason. He had just turned twenty-one and was now a full bartender at one of the beach bars in the next town over. It was a little dive, but during the peak season, it was packed with tourists and an eclectic group of locals. At least that’s what he had told me; I’ve never been there.

  I envied Brendan for his work ethic and drive. He was forced to leave home at sixteen and managed to graduate from college last year with a biology degree while working every night at one job or another. His maturity far topped mine, and I often wondered why he would even want to put up with me. I was spoiled and pampered and never really had a goal other than to not marry Kain and not have his children.

  Opening my journal, I jotted down three words: Find a purpose. Since I had a long flight and even longer weekend ahead of me, I vowed to make Brendan proud of me by maturing. As I smiled to myself in pride, my phone beeped with a text message.

  Sorry. Busy tonight. Everything OK? It was Brendan.

  I replied instantly. Yes. No. They are sending me to Cotillion tomorrow night. In Florida! Meet after school?

  It was another minute before he responded. Absolutely. See you at the point. That was our second favorite private spot, and it wasn’t as far away as our island.

  OK. Be there by 4. Miss you. Love you.

  Love you too Evs. Sweet dreams.

  I wanted to run to the bar and wrap my arms around him now. The only thing keeping me in my bed was my visions of what our life was going to be like together. No one telling us that we can’t date. No one telling us what to eat or drink. No one making plans about our future. It was going to be wonderful.

  I fell asleep with a smile on my face dreaming about our first apartment together and counting down the days until my escape.

  Three

  The school day was one of the longest ones ever. It was a Thursday, which meant extra long classes but fewer of them. I managed to talk with a couple of my girlfriends at lunch which only made things worse. Apparently Justin Bernard was having a major party this weekend and that was all anyone could talk about. Justin was a senior and the coolest guy in school. Cute, athletic, rich, human…enough said. He’d actually invited a few of my friends personally and it had made their entire week.

  Unfortunately, I was not going to be able to go and when I thought about the reason why, it just depressed me more. When the final bell rang, I checked my watch to see that I had thirty minutes to get to our meeting spot. Brendan usually slept during the day due to his night schedule, but I would imagine that he’d still beat me there.

  I was fumbling with my bag that kept slipping off my shoulder so I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings. When I got to the end of the pathway and raised my head, my heart dropped. Sitting in front of me, waiting for the end of the school day, was a sleek white limousine with tinted windows and a distinctive blue wave emblem on the side door. I sighed and let out an oath.

  The driver’s side door opened, and a tall man in a black chauffeur suit stepped out. He nodded his head at me and waved towards the back door. “Miss Dumahl.”

  “Hi Jeffery.” I moved a little closer and bent down to try and see inside. “Why are you here?” Maybe my suspicions were wrong.

  “I am taking you and Mr. Matthew to the airport. Didn’t your mother tell you?”

  I knew it. This had probably been her plan all along. “No, she didn’t. I wasn’t supposed to leave until later tonight.”

  Jeffery looked perplexed and said, “Well, there must have been some kind of miscommunication. But your flights are in just over an hour, so we need to go to the airport now. Mistress Dumahl gave me your belongings and I’ve already collected Mr. Matthew.”

  “Kain’s in there?” I squinted my eyes in an attempt to see through the tint. My heart fluttered slightly knowing that our weekend was already beginning. But more importantly, I felt nervous because I was going to have to talk to Brendan in front of him.

  “Miss Dumahl. Please.” Jeffery ushered me to the back door which he promptly opened and encouraged me inside. A blast of chilled air hit me like a wall and I instantly tightened the sweater around me. The leather seat squeaked when I sat down and the smell of the sea mixed with a hint of cologne overpowered my senses.

  “Hey Eviana,” a warm, smooth voice greeted me. I turned to see Kain’s beautiful smiling face. The baby blue eyes paired nicely with his light blonde hair. It was longer now, and hung around his face and ears. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a black sweater with a white collared shirt peeking out from underneath. In simple terms, he looked good as always.