The Gift of the Sea

Chapter 2

Silence follows after my father said the word help. I keep my hand loose and ready in case this goes wrong. A language that I thought only my family knew comes from the older man's lips. The older man talks to the younger one and tells him to send the others away. This is clearly to keep the information from Dustin since my father replies that is would be a good idea in our second language. They switch back to English, "How can we help?"

"My daughter is in danger.  A nomad of our kind has claimed my daughter is his mate," he starts, "However, after testing for the bond, they don't have it. The nomad has said he will try and take her by force."

"How do you know this," the younger one asks.

"He tried it at another pod. He claimed a female as his, and when she said she wasn't, he tried to take her by force but was stopped."

"And how do you know that he won't follow her here to our Reservation?"

"Show him, Rex," the older one states, "He is the leader of the tribe from the pack standpoint."

"Ethne," my father calls me.

I slowly come out of my hiding spot. The younger male's eyes almost pop out of his head, "Hello, I am Ethne of the Lunar Pod. Daughter of Alpha pair Rex and Celeste. May the see remember her."

"Ethne, this is Billy Black the face of the council to the Quileute tribe. This is..."

"This is Sam Uley, the alpha of our shifters," Billy states, motioning to the male behind him, "The real tribal chief."

"Hello, Alpha Sam Uley and council member Billy Black," I greet them.

 "I hope to have the nomad taken care of by her 18 birthmoon," Dad continues, "That will be in 8 moons."

"Months," Billy states, "You mean eight months. It is one of our tracking times."

"Yes. Months. Our days and weeks are the same, though," I continue, "My Father taught me some things before we got here."

Sam and Billy look at each other briefly before Sam nods, "She can stay with us. She can live with me and my imprint Emily." 

"I will wait outside the cave," Dustin dives into the water, changing mid-air and leaving us.

"She will need clothes to change into. We don't have clothes when we shift," Dad states. 

"Emily is just outside. I will get her," Sam leaves to collect his imprint.

Joining me in the water in his natural state, "My daughter," Dad pulls me into a hug. He kisses my head, "Send word if you can every other month so that I know you are alright. I have sent word to most of the pods to get help. This will all be over soon."

A female returns with Sam, "This is my imprint or mate, Emily."

Emily is surprised by my father and me. She, however, also surprises us with the scars on her face, "You're a mermaid," she whispers, handing the clothes to Billy to hold. Moving closer to the water, she kneels down by the edge. I hold out my hand to her. Sam moves closer to her, "I don't think I can help you get it of the water," she giggles.

Dad chuckles, "My daughter wishes to greet the alpha's mate."

Emily takes my hand in hers. I move my right hand to touch her face and guide her head closer to me. I then touch our foreheads together, taking in a few breaths before pulling back, "May I enter your territory?"

"Yes," Sam answers from behind her.

"Your mate must give her approval for Ethna to stay with you both since she is unmated," Dad again explains,  "It shows that she respects your mate's position."

"Yes, you may," Emily answers.

"Thank you," I look at the two men, "I need to shift now."

"Come on, Sam, let's go tell the others of the pack," Billy orders handing the clothes back to Emily. 

Once it was only myself, Emily, and Dad, I pull myself out of the water before shifting. Emily hands me the clothes, "We will have to go shopping for shoes later and for a few other things," she states, "I will give you a moment with your dad."

I kneel at the side of the pool as she leaves, "Keep the pod safe and yourself," I whisper to my dad, "and don't worry about me. I will be safe here with them."

"Here," he pulls off one of the two moon bracelets that he wears, "Your mother had her own views on moon rings over the bracelets. I was planning on giving you this when you turn 18, but I think now is the right time," he opens my hand before placing it in the middle and wrapping my fingers around it, "Remember that we are both with you even apart. Stay safe, my child."

I hold back my tears as I watch him submerge and leave. Taking a moment to myself, I take a deep breath before standing up and heading where I saw the others leave. The sun is hidden behind grey clouds giving an overcast day for me to walk out into. Three other males are with Billy and Sam. Along with an older female, "This is Ethne. Her people have a treaty with us and they have asked us to take her in till the threat against her is dealt with," Sam tells them.

"She's not a bloodsucker, so what is she," the tallest of the new males asked gruffly.

"She is a mermaid," Billy states, "Her pack, coven-"

"Pod," I correct.

"Pod has had a treaty with us since before the Cullens," Billy continues, "The only people to know about the is council members and tribal/pack leaders."

"She will be staying with Emily and I," Sam continues, "but if anyone asks, she is Billy's niece."

"Where are you from," another male asks.

"My parents are the alpha pair of the Lunar Pod. This sea coast is on the South Eastern part of our territory.  We live north of here mostly."

"How is your skin like ours then? Shouldn't you be pale," the youngest states. The older female grabs his ear in displeasure, "What?"

"I am sorry for my son's rude question," she states, "Seth ap-"

"It is alright," I chuckle, "My father is from the Lunar Pod, and my mother was from the Pacific Pod. It is to the west and mostly islands for land. For a long time, it only held natives like yourselves. Now many different people live there." 

"Your mom is from Hawaii," Seth looks awed by this fact.

"This is my Aunt Sue," Emily states, "she took over her husband's spot on the council when he passed."

I approach and greet her by giving her a hug, "Thank you for giving me shelter."

"Your welcome, dear. But right now, we need to get you settled, and it looks like it will rain soon," Sue states, "We can continue our conversation back at Sam's."