Restless Waves

Chapter 69

Midnight came, and the supernatural beings were ready. Rowan stood in the alleyway with a blank mind. He couldn't afford to doubt himself, not when it could cost him his life. He looked up to the stars twinkling, wondering if Kaerius was near the surface and could see the stars too.

"The moon is very bright tonight," Kaerius thought.

Rowan's eyes moved to the big round glowing ball in the sky. No clouds threatened to cover its shine, and the silver light was bright enough to make the night a little less gloomy.

"Where are you?"

"At shroud island. We're waiting for you to move, so we'll move with you."

"You'll probably see the boat before us," Rowan thought. "It might be a good idea if you do, then you can tell us if it's guarded or not."

"Good idea."

The werewolves piled out the abandoned shop together, all in high spirits after psyching each other up. They patted Rowan's shoulder on the way past until Jenya reached him.

"Are you ready?" she asked, carrying no weapons. Once shifted, the werewolves were terrifying enough with their sharp teeth and huge claws.

"I am," Rowan said to convince himself.

"Well, Jack's not and neither am I. So at least one of us is confident." Jenya smiled and went ahead to guide her pack.

The Vampires shortly arrived with cars because Michael's parents were a few towns away and it would take a few hours to get there if they walked. Having getaway cars meant that those who couldn't jump into the water and swim away could make a quick exit.

Rowan sat with Jack and Jenya in the backseats, while Volher and his soulmate sat in the front. Rowan wasn't in the mood for talking, so he stared out of the window, watching the sea on the dark horizon. Whenever they neared the beach, he would scan the ocean for any sign of Thalassic Mortals. Of course, Rowan didn't see them on the surface.

Ten minutes into the journey, Jack said with annoyance, "I've missed far too many lessons."

Rowan completely forgot about university. He looked at Jack with wide green eyes. "I totally forgot to email the tutors-"

"Don't worry. I emailed them on your behalf. I said we're family and have a family emergency going on, which wasn't exactly a lie."

Rowan sank back into his seat. "I don't want to think about the amount of work we've got to catch up on."

"I'm actually looking forward to these study days. It'll mean that things have gone back to normal."

Rowan agreed, though now was not the time to dive into his studies. The conversation died once again, and he found himself staring at the world from the window. The night was the coldest one yet, and the roads were quiet.

After another twenty minutes, Volher said that they would park up a few minutes away from the docks, so they could sneak up on foot.

Leaving the car and smelling the fresh sea air felt like a punch to Rowan's heart. Kaerius was close. He could feel him. Rowan could even hear the distant crashing of the waves breaking on the shore, which meant that the ocean was just around the corner.

Rowan ignored his longing to be with Kaerius and asked, "Can you see the boat?"

"There's a big one on a private dock. I would say to be careful because it might be the wrong one, but 'Solar' is painted onto the side of it in big gold letters."