Mermaids and Mysteries | H2O

Chapter XV

*Bella's POV*
After exploring Denman's boat with Rikki, we'd found nothing that could lead us to finding Emma and it was getting dark. Rikki insisted that I walk back to the café without her, while she checks over the boat one more time.

A tune comes to my head and I begin to hum as I walk back. It wasn't long before my peaceful walk was interrupted, a man runs up behind me shouting my name. I smile, it was Will, I'd completely forgotten to check up on how his meeting went with Denman last night.

"Bella, hey," he grins.
"Will. Oh my gosh, how was the meeting?" I ask.
"Ah," his smile fades, "that's what I wanted to talk to you about."

Great. He was so cheerful, I was hopeful that Sophie got the job as Dr Denman's assistant and Will wouldn't be forced to move across the country with her. Or maybe it was worse than that, perhaps Denman was more flat-out about her mermaid hunting.

"Weird things happened last night," he started. "Sophie and I went to meet the doctor, she seemed friendly, too friendly. She started asking questions, typical job interview and then her technology started glitching out. Her computer completely froze like, there were icicles hanging off it."
"Will, I-"
"Wait, let me finish. The aerial burst into flames, but they didn't spread, they just stayed and then the flames went out and everything went back to normal. Except the doctor was completely out of it, she was plotting, I could see it in her eyes."
"Will, I know about last night already," I finished my sentence.
"What, but, I just told you now," he says, confused.
"No, I was there. It was Tammy, she was moonstruck and wanted to have fun and Denman's boat just so happened to be the one she wanted to mess with. Rikki and I got her under control, that's why the boat set on fire, it was Rikki. She's really mastered her powers."
"Oh, right, I should've known."
"And, Dr Denman didn't see anything right?"
"As far as I know," he says.

I smile, everything was okay after all. Well, as far as we knew. There was still the fact that Emma was missing and that Tammy and Nala practically hated us and would probably get themselves into more trouble next full moon, but we could work with that.

"Did Sophie get the job in the end?" I ask.
"She's still waiting for Denman to call her back."
"So, are you headed to the café?"
"Yeah, we can walk together."

*Emma's POV*
The room had been quiet for a while now, I felt like it was safe to come out of my coffin-like hiding spot. I push the lid that was trapping me in the small box and I'm surprised that it moves so easily.

I slowly look around my surroundings, where on earth was I? What even happened last night? I've got a terrible headache. Oh no, did I get drunk? Where are Cleo and Rikki? So many questions.

I can now see that I was trapped in a box, luckily it was not an actual coffin and I'm not six feet underground. What a nightmare it would be to be buried alive. The room was big with white tiles and a bench lining the walls, covered in machinery. I was in a lab.

How did I get here? Then things start to add up, the blonde vixen was in town and I was alone when Cleo and Rikki had gone chasing after what's-her-face and what's-her-face. Have I been kidnapped by Denman? Why couldn't I remember?

Dr Denman is a mermaid hunting witch and if I was in her lab, that was probably the reason why. She's a smart woman, she knows she only needs one mermaid and the others will come looking for me. I need to stop them from coming or we'll all be circus acts.

*Cleo's POV*
"Any luck?" I ask as Rikki walks back in.
"Nope, where could she be?" she sighs.
"I still think she's fine, she's probably gone home to rest. Her bed is probably ten times comfier than your office lounges," Lewis states.
"They are very comfortable, thank you very much," Rikki retorts.
"She would've answered her phone," I say, again.
"Don't you have security footage to tell us where Emma went?" Lewis asks.
"Never could afford it," Rikki says.

The beads on the café door rattle and Bella and Will walk in. They were holding hands and smiling cheerfully at each other, when they realized everyone was watching and just stood awkwardly.

"Good news, Sophie got the job, I don't have to leave," Will cheers.
"That's great, Will," I say, gratefully.
"Yeah, knew you could do it, man," Lewis shouts.

We celebrate Will being able to stay at the Gold Coast over a round of smoothies, it took my mind off Emma for a while at least. I mean she's not even technically a missing person for another 16 hours.

After a while, I feel my phone vibrate in my pants. It's probably just Sam asking if I'll come home to have lunch with the family. But it's not from Sam, it from Emma.

"Look who decided to finally call me," I smile, relieved that she's okay. But all that disappears when I hear her voice. Emma's panting and out of breath on the other end of the line. I turn the phone onto speaker.

"Emma, where are you?" I ask.
"You alright, Em?" Lewis says.
"Emma! What happened?" Bella asks.
"Em?" Rikki calls.
"Emma! Answer us!" I shout through the phone.

"Ah, listen guys," she pants. "I was in a lab, Dr Denman's maybe, I was in some box but I got out through the window. I don't know where I am. But, it was too easy for me to escape the lab, Dr Denman's smarter than that. She'd only leave the window open if she wanted me to get out. It's just a warning that she still knows we're mermaids and she's planning bigger things."
"What do you mean, Emma?"
"I mean, Dr Denman has everything planned out, don't come looking for me, it's what she wants, all of us together."
"So you're saying you think Denman put you in a big box and let you escape?" Rikki asks.
"It's a warning to us," she says but the phone line starts to go crackly.
"Denman came in this morning and set the smoke alarms off on us, she had to have known something more before doing that." I say.
"Exactly," she creaks through the phone, "I gotta run, I need to find a way home before mum and dad figure out I'm missing, see you guys soon," the phone line goes dead.

We all stare at the phone blankly, hoping it'll ring again but it doesn't. What did Emma mean, what could Denman possibly plan that's bigger than locking us in the moon pool, a place we felt safe. A home we couldn't trust for months after what she'd done. I don't think I wanted to know.

The woman had completely lost it, she was so hooked on finding mermaids that she'd do anything to get to us. She made me sick. How did she know Emma, Rikki and I still had powers? Did she know about Bella?

Once again, Dr Denman was causing wide-spread panic.

*Nala's POV*
After Tammy had moored the boat in the wharf, she'd walked home, still tired and confused from last night. I didn't really feel like heading home so I came to watch the sunset on the beach, it always made me feel peaceful.

I watch the couples wondering along the waves, until I spot a guy. His familiar blue eyes meet mine before he stares sadly into the sad and continues walking. I stand up to chase after him down the beach.

"Ezra! Ezra, wait!" I call.
He turns to me, but he's not his smiley self, "Yes?"
"I'm sorry, I really am."
"For what exactly?"
"Walking out on you at the party, I just had some things I needed to take care of."
He looks down at me, "Why do I feel like Im not getting the whole story?"
"Ezra," I whine.
"It's fine, it's fine," he smiles his famous smile. "I'm sorry too. I left you alone to go hang out with my mates at the party, you had every right to walk out on me."
"Don't apologize for having friends."

He turns to me and hesitantly pulls me into a awkward hug but I don't complain, I just hug back. He was a lot taller than me so he just had to put his arms around me while I shoved my face into his chest. I pull away and smile up at him, I'm glad we were still friends.

Hey guys,
Last night, I went over this whole story and edited everything because my grammar was pretty terrifying, I also added a few bits, nothing really important and included a word count at the start of the chapter. I changed the chapter names so they have an actual name now, instead of just a number. Hope you guys are enjoying the story, leave a vote and tell me what you think!
- Myah xoxo