Answers

Today was the first I'd spent on the Island without a single cloud passing across the blue expanse. Not even a wisp of white or gray threatened on the horizon, and the sun blazed with uncommon warmth, painting the rock and heather in golden beams. Shipwreck Cove glistened from afar, and the water that lapped at the shore was of the clearest cerulean hue. Almost unnatural in its brilliance.

My eyes narrowed as I stared at the ocean from my bedroom window, my fingers warming against the coffee mug declaring my father to be the World's Greatest Dad. I took a sip of the hot liquid, relishing the soothing effect it had on my aching throat as I contemplated what I knew to be true:

World's Greatest Dads didn't lie to their children, and there was nothing natural about what swam in the waters around the Island.

Exhaling, I watched as the glass fogged beneath my breath, obscuring the picturesque view and mirroring how I felt right now. It didn't matter how beautiful everything around me was because it was just a mask for dark, ugly things, and somehow, I was embroiled in the middle of it.

I walked back to my bed and eased myself into its plush center. Humid air pooled down from the floor above, filling my room with the scent of salt, citrus, and just a hint of vanilla. Before, the smell was relaxing, turning my thoughts to tropical beaches on days when the air was cold and rain lashed at the windows.

Now, I wished the room above had a door I could close- a barrier to put between me and the bewitching space. She had once been in that room. The scales littering the pool were a testament to that face, and I cringed just thinking about how easily I'd been lured into their deceitful web.

"Isla?"

Kieran's call came from downstairs, and I checked the time on my alarm clock. He'd taken Tara home after dropping me off at the house, and he promised to return once he'd spoken with her mother. As eager as I was for the promised answers, I understood why he needed to be there.

It was about the only thing I understood right now.

A hesitant knock sounded on my door. "Isla? Are you awake?"

"Come in," I responded, drawing the blankets over my body. The warmth was welcome, but it wasn't enough. Ever since my near drowning, I'd been cold.

"Hey," he said, shuffling in and closing the door behind him. His hand found his curls, and he tugged on them as he peered about my bedroom. Awe softened his features, but when his eyes landed on me, his face tightened again with uncertainty. "Did you sleep?"

"I tried, but I couldn't."

"Yeah."

I waited for him to speak again, but he just shifted from foot to foot. Kieran was nervous. Whether it was because he was in my bedroom or because of the secrets he had to reveal, I wasn't sure. Probably a bit of both. Either way, there was something endearing about it.

"Sit down." I patted the space beside me.

"Um, you sure?"

"Do I usually say things I don't mean?"

The tension faded from his body, and he resumed the serene posture I was so accustomed to seeing. He folded his long legs beneath him as he took the spot I'd pointed to, and he cocked his head to the side as he smirked at me.

"No, I can't say that you do. That's something I've always liked about you. Straight to the point and honest."

"Then you'll understand that I'm tired of being kept in the dark. Answers. Now." I put the coffee cup on my nightstand and folded my arms beneath my breasts as I waited. I didn't fail to notice Kieran's eyes dart to my chest, but he jerked them away as if stung, staring at the wall as he composed himself. It was good to know no matter what crazy world I found myself in, teenage boys were teenage boys.

"Promise you won't laugh?"

I hadn't expected him to lead with that. "I don't know that there's anything remotely funny about anything that's happened recently. I promise."

Kieran picked at a piece of lint on his jeans. His perfect lips pursed. "You say that now, but even I can't say it with a straight face. Damn movies makes it so unmanly."

"Kieran!"

"I'm a Merrow. You probably prefer the term merman."

Last week I would've fallen over my pillow, shaking with laughter. Today, I only nodded. "Continue."

"So is Tara, Niko, Ewan, and just about every other person you've met on the Island. The only humans on the Island are tourists."

"But," I faltered as I tried to gather my thoughts. "My family is from the Island."

"Yes," Kieran said, arching a brow and piercing me with his hazel eyes. "Yer family founded this Island."

"None of this makes sense."

"What did yer dad tell you? About how the Island was settled?"

The history lesson Dad provided the first day on the Island was fuzzy, but bits and pieces bobbed to the surface as I dug. "Something about it being gifted by a king to Fiona Halloran, and then her husband declaring it as an independent nation. You know, I thought that was strange."

"It would be, if that was the truth of it. You see, there are three classes of merfolk: The Merrow- people who can shift into their sea and human forms at will. The Finfolk- they live in the deepest parts of the oceans, only coming to the surface to find mates once a year. It's only during that time that they can assume human form. The Merrow and the Finfolk have never truly gotten along, despite interbreeding through the years. Most resent our ability to live freely in both worlds."

"Fiona and Ian were Merrow?"

Kieran fell onto his back and stared at the canopy above my bed. I was entranced by the story he was telling, and even though I knew he was working towards something that would hurt me, I ran my fingers through his silky hair, rubbing it between my fingers as he searched for a way to continue.

"They were our leaders. Not a king and queen because we don't govern ourselves that way. We had enough of that when we lived with the Finfolk, but after years of being treated as second class citizens, they convinced most of the Merrow to leave. Fiona used her lovely voice to convince King William that he didn't want this Island, and we settled here. It was perfect. Remote enough that no one would catch us coming and going in our Merrow forms."

"You said there were three classes. What's the third?" I stopped moving my hand, and he rolled to his side.

When he spoke, his raspy voice was grave. "Sirens. They're unnatural creatures. Consumed by hatred when they drown in the sea. They cannot return to their human form, and they're driven by a need to consume souls."

"Lorelei?"

"Yes. She was a passenger on a ship, bound to marry some foreign prince when her ship was caught in a storm. Jamie was out swimming when he saw her sinking into the waves, and he couldn't let her die. He dragged her ashore, and I suppose you know the rest of that story. Most of what yer father told you is likely true. He thought he loved her. He wanted to marry her."

"But Ian wouldn't allow it." He flinched, making me realize I was shouting, and I softened my next words, "he wanted Niamh's money."

"Sort of. Niamh was the daughter of the Finfolk King, and she offered to give up her tail forever to marry Jamie. In return, their first born son, who would inherit Jamie's ability to shift, would become the next king. She was a peace offering between our people. Jamie had to marry her or risk war."

I threw back the covers, crawled out of bed, and started to pace. Kieran stared at me, watching every move I made, waiting for me to speak.

"It's still not right. Lorelei was pregnant. They took her child from her. Why? Because it was going to be some bastard mix of human and Merrow?"

"No, not at all! Merrow would breed with humans all the time. Some say it's why we do so well on land."

"They took her daughter from her! The people on this Island helped Ian do that."

"Yes," Kieran was on his feet now. He put his hands on my shoulder, forcing me to stop walking and look into his face. "They did, and we have all been punished for it. Lorelei killed Jamie for hurting her, and covered in his blood, she threw herself into the ocean."

"Becoming a Siren?"

"Yes, but not just a Siren...something about being covered in the blood of a Merrow made her different. Gave her power. She cursed every man on the Island that day. Cursed us to our human forms unless we offered our souls to her in exchange."

"And how does that have anything to do with me?"

Kieran turned his back to me and walked to the window. He shook. Shook so hard I thought he might be crying, and when he finally spoke, there were indeed tears in his voice. "She gave us a way to end the curse. She thought it only fair that the Hallorans lose what she had lost."

My legs grew heavy, and it became hard to breathe. "A daughter?"

He drew in a deep breath and looked at me. "In exchange for a daughter."