Hurricane - Book 2

Chapter 14

TW in the description
Thank you to rare.candykale.arts for this image!

Luca POV

Luca could feel astonishment running through both of them. He looked over to see Alberto's face had gone completely still, processing. Giulia put her hands to her mouth in a gasp and stared at them silently.

"My... sister?" Alberto parroted.

"Yes. I am your biological sister Alberto." Eshe said. She looked nervous like she feared he might reject her.

"How?" He stammered.

"It's a very long story." She said, looking sadly at him. "But I have been searching for you for almost fifteen years."

"That's almost as long as we've been alive," Luca said, feeling her pain through her words.

"I can confirm the lab results. When I tested Eshe's blood, I noticed it right away." Mattias said.

"And, of course, you kept it to yourself," Alberto said, glaring.

"No. I confronted Eshe immediately. She asked me not to reveal anything until it was necessary."

"Why?" Alberto asked, turning to Eshe. "Why not just tell me?"

"Because... I feared you wouldn't accept me. You have built yourself a new life. With new family."

Luca could feel the turmoil inside Alberto.

"Alberto... try to be calm." He said, rubbing his back in soothing motions. He felt Alberto relax right away, his shoulders falling.

"Thank you, Luca," Alberto said, but...

He also didn't say it. His mouth didn't move. Luca's eyes widened.

"Alberto... you spoke to my mind." Luca thought hard, and he knew his words connected when Alberto blinked hard.

"You can hear me?" He said.

"Yes, I can," Luca said, surprised. He nearly broke into a smile before he refocused. "But we can talk about this later. Right now, you need to focus on your sister."

Alberto nodded in response.

"I have time." He said to Eshe. "Tell me your story."

~.~.~.~.~.~

Eshe POV

Everything was darker in the Rusalki village. They lived in deeper water where the sun didn't penetrate as far. The blue scales of the people blended in, making them appear more like whirs of motion rather than living creatures. Only a trained eye could make out their shape in the gloom.

Eshe offered small strips of swordfish meat to her mother. A Rusal that lived nearby offered them a portion of his catch. Ever since Eshe's mother became sick, they had lived on whatever she and Alberto could scavenge. Because their father....

Eshe's nose wrinkled at the thought of him.

He was weak.

Their mother, Oksana, was sick with White Fever. A disease that had spread to their village, killing off all the coral and crustaceans that lived on the seafloor.  It was rare for a Rusalki to contract the disease yet....

Oksana lay on her bed of soft seaweed, her breath coming out in great rasps. The fever had carved its way into her body, making it look like she had white veins all over the surface of her skin. Her eyes were milky - the fever had blinded her piercing eyes. Her once beautiful sapphire scales were now white-tipped and shedding from her body. They littered the floor of their home.