Siren

Regret

Jordan remained motionless at the ship's edge, the wind tugging at his clothes as the water below settled back into its endless rhythm. The last vestiges of Lena's presence-her voice, her anger-seemed to echo in his ears, growing fainter with each passing second.
"Captain?" a voice called behind him, breaking his trance.
He didn't turn around. His eyes were still locked on the sea. "What?" he muttered, his voice hoarse.
His first mate, Garrett, approached cautiously. "What do we do now? We can't just let her go, can we?"
Jordan closed his eyes and exhaled, gripping the wooden railing so hard that his knuckles turned white. "She's gone, Garrett. There's nothing we can do."
Garrett shifted uncomfortably, glancing out at the darkening waters. "But she's dangerous, sir. If she comes back with others of her kind-"
"She won't," Jordan cut in, his voice low and firm. "She has more important things to protect now."
Garrett frowned, not quite understanding. "Are you just going to let her slip away like that? After all these years?"
Jordan finally turned, his face set in a mask of bitterness and regret. "What would you have me do, Garrett? Chase her? Drag her back here in chains? She'd kill us all before we got close. No... It's over. We missed our chance."
His first mate hesitated, his eyes flicking between Jordan and the water. "If you say so, Captain."
Jordan stepped back from the railing and brushed past Garrett, his mind swirling with the weight of everything he had just learned. He had a son-their son. The thought of it gnawed at him. How could he have been so blind? So caught up in his own guilt and fear that he hadn't realized what Lena had been fighting for all this time?
As he entered his quarters, Jordan slumped into his chair, staring at the maps spread across his desk. The ink marks and coordinates blurred as his mind wandered to the past, to that fateful night when everything had changed.
He had let her go once before, out of cowardice. The weight of that decision had never left him, and now it felt like it had come crashing down all over again, heavier than before. Only this time, it wasn't just Lena he had failed-it was their child, too. A child he had never known existed.
He buried his face in his hands, the overwhelming sense of loss consuming him. For years, he had lived with the hope that one day he might find redemption. That he might see Lena again and somehow make things right. But fate had given him a cruel twist: Lena was beyond his reach now, and the son he didn't even know he had would never know him.
A soft knock came at the door, but Jordan didn't look up. "Leave me."
There was silence, and then the door clicked shut. Alone again, the weight of his past pressed down harder than ever. He couldn't shake the image of Lena, fierce and unyielding, demanding her freedom-not just for herself but for their son. The child she was willing to protect at all costs.
Jordan rose abruptly, unable to sit still any longer. He paced the small cabin, his thoughts racing. What kind of life was his son living? Born of the sea, she had said. Was he like her, with powers beyond mortal comprehension? Was he safe?
The questions battered at his mind, leaving him restless, unable to breathe. He needed answers, needed to know more about the life Lena had built away from him. He might not have the right to be part of their lives, but he couldn't sit idly by.
With a sudden resolve, Jordan turned to the open window, staring out at the dark, endless ocean. He knew one thing for certain-he wasn't going to give up, not now. He would find a way to protect them, even if it meant staying in the shadows.
Because somewhere, deep down, he still believed he owed them that much. If he couldn't be part of their world, he would at least make sure it remained safe. He had failed Lena once, but he wouldn't fail their son-not again.
The storm in his heart began to settle, his course clear. He wasn't going to chase her, no. But he was going to watch. From afar, perhaps, but he would never stop watching, never stop protecting. And if anyone-man or creature-dared to threaten her or their child, they would face his wrath.
Lena might never forgive him, and their son might never know him, but Jordan had made up his mind.
He would protect them. Even if it was the last thing he ever did.
--