Never After

At that moment, I heard a high-pitched warning cry and looked up to see Delilah, Camille, and Smoky hurtling down the hall. Smoky passed right by me and grabbed Terrance around the waist, squeezing with a mighty grunt. Terrance turned blue and fainted.

Lon wheeled around, intending to run, but I was feeling my oats now, and I stuck out my foot and tripped him. He went sprawling at Delilah’s feet, and she promptly gave him a kick so hard I could hear bones breaking. I shuddered as Camille took me by the hand and moved me to the side.

Smoky looked around. Still no one in sight. He frowned, then turned back to me. “What do you want me to do with him?”

I stared at the dragon. He was offering me what I wanted. What I needed. But could I ask someone else to kill for me?>

If I let Terrance live, there was a chance the Pod would vote to let him go. There were still plenty of members there—mainly female—who resented the fact that my infertility problem had been cured and that Mitch was off the market now. Some selkies mated with whomever they wanted, but Mitch and I… he was my one and only. And I was his. I sucked in a deep breath, not knowing what to say.

As I knelt beside his prone form, trying to build up my nerve to do the job myself, he suddenly went into convulsions. I jumped back, not sure what was going on, and we watched as Terrance spasmed again, then fell silent.

Camille felt for a pulse. “He’s dead,” she said, standing up. She picked up the needle that I’d stabbed him with. “What’s this?”

“I don’t know—I was using it to try to buy time so I could get away. What does it say on the cart? It was in that tray right there.” I pointed to the tray.

She glanced at the label on the tray, then looked at me. “Insulin—meant for a Juanita Chalker. And a hefty dose, at that. Must have thrown him into a hypoglycemic shock and killed him.”

I stared at Terrance’s body. He was dead. I’d killed him. I glanced at Lon, who was staring at me, pale and wan.

“Call Chase,” I said. “I guess there’s no harm in telling him what happened now. Turn Lon over to him. Meanwhile, where are the nurses that work this floor?”

Lon groaned from the floor. “They’re locked up in the cleaning closet. Terrance and I forced them in there. He didn’t want any interference and figured we’d be long gone by the time they broke out.”

Smoky reached down and lifted Lon by his collar, letting the man dangle with his feet a good ten inches above the ground.

“You not only endangered the two selkies, but also the lives of every patient on this floor. I should just crisp you and eat you right here, but I think I’ll let the humans have their way with you. But mind you this—if you’re ever set free, and you ever come near this selkie and her mate again, I’ll find you and use your bones as toothpicks. Understand, little man?”

Lon nodded, his eyes wide, and I felt a rush of warmth in my heart for Camille’s big lug of a husband.

The sun was setting over the water as Mitch, in his wheelchair, and I stood at the edge of a grassy area just beyond the Daybreak Star Indian Culture Center in Discovery Park, staring out over the Shilshole Bay. Camille and Delilah were a little ways away, sitting on the grass. We were all bundled up. It wasn’t cold, but a chill definitely hung low in the air.

Mitch reached up with his uninjured arm to take my hand. I leaned down and pressed a kiss to his forehead. We still didn’t know what would happen when he tried to shift—the pins in his other arm were there for good and the elders of the Pod couldn’t give us an answer, either.

Luckily, marine Weres—unlike most other Weres—weren’t affected by the full moon. Why, we didn’t know, but we shifted when we wanted. Perhaps it was because the ocean was already aligned to the moon, with its effect on the ebb and flow of the tides. Or maybe we weren’t truly Weres, but some other type of shifter… But the upshot was, Mitch wouldn’t have to transform until he felt ready. I could feel his longing, though, to bathe himself in the Ocean Mother’s waters.

Camille brushed her hair out of her eyes and looked over at us. “So is everything okay?”

Mitch and I glanced at each other; then Mitch nodded. “Yeah… I understand why Siobhan kept her past a secret.”

“I wanted to forget the past,” I said. “I almost had myself convinced that all my lies were real, that what happened with Terrance had been a nightmare. But I guess you can never run away from your problems. Sometimes you have to face them head-on and defeat the demons that reach out of the dark to grab hold of you.”

“What happened to Terrance’s cronies?” Delilah stood up and sucked in a deep lungful of air, keeping a wary eye on the water. Even though the waves were a good distance from us, I could see her pull back. I wondered what it would be like to be so afraid of the water. For me, the ocean was an embracing mother, a refuge and sanctuary.

“Chase wrote it up as self-defense, and the Pod’s indicted Lon for attempted murder and kidnapping. They also caught the other one—Keith—and both of them are going before the Tribunal. I doubt they’ll make it out alive.”

“Good riddance,” Camille said. After a moment, she turned a dazzling smile our way. “So, did I hear talk of a trip to Scotland?”

“In a bit.” I tried to repress a smile, but it broke through anyway. “But first, we’re going to Ramsey, on the Isle of Man, where my mother will meet us. Her people still live there, and so I’ll be able to meet my relatives on her side. This is the first time I’ve spoken to her in over a hundred years. She thought I was dead all this time.”

Mitch laughed. “I still can’t believe I actually married a princess.”

“I’m not a princess, you doofus.” I gri

“Yes you are, or you will be, once they verify your birth with your mother.” He shrugged, then winced. “Ouch, remind me not to do that again.”

“I take it you’re reclaiming your rightful heritage?” Delilah clapped her hands. “It’s just like a Cinderella story!”

“Cinderella story, my ass,” I said, snorting. “Prince Charming can go suck rocks. I’ve met my true love and he’s a contractor.”

After a moment, my smile faded. “Seriously, I have no idea what will come of this. My mother can visit her homeland, but she can’t rejoin her people—it’s been too long and they’re pissed at her for keeping it a secret from me.”

“What about her parents? How do they feel?”

“My grandmother insists that I be entered into the rolls of the Pod, even though I was born into my father’s people. She says since my mother was abducted, I didn’t have a choice as to birthplace, and that I’ll be given dual status with both the Puget Sound Harbor Seal Pod—my Pod of choice—and the Isle of Man Selkies—my mother’s people. We’ll fly there about six weeks before our daughter is born. And she’ll be born into my grandmother’s people, and given dual status, too.”

“What if they want you to return home to rule someday?” Camille dusted off her dress as the clouds began to roll in.

I stared at the water as it broke along the shore. What would I do? Would I ever return to my mother’s people to accept the crown? I loved it here; I loved the freedom that being just Siobhan Morgan gave me.

Queen and princess—those titles required a certain loss of freedom. Did I want that? Would Mitch ever accept that?

“I have no idea. Our daughter can make up her mind when she comes of age—we won’t influence her either way. But for me… I think I’d like to stay here, if I can. But who knows what will happen?”

“What about Terrance’s people? Will they come after you for revenge?” Delilah asked.

I shook my head. “No, not if everything goes right. They think he died in an accident. That way the Cobh Selkie Pod and the Finfolk won’t take revenge on my mother’s people. But someday, if my grandmother calls me to help her, I may not have a choice.” I looked down at Mitch and he squeezed my hand. “Would you go with me if that happened? If I’m called to lead a war?”