IX. Emma's Chance

Emma knew it wasn't their fault. She knew it wasn't Rikki's choice to leave her in a tank of strange mermaids—although Cleo was sickeningly happy about relocating to be with Lewis, so she could blame her a bit—but she still felt resentment.

Nixie wasn't terrible company. She was a bit on the bossy side, though. Sarcastic like Rikki, realistic like Emma, but full of impossible knowledge concerning magic and mermaids. If only she had Cleo's unflagging optimism, they might have got along better.

Emma resented that she wasn't the leader anymore. Even more, she resented having no one to lead.

Nixie couldn't say why she retained her health and normal attitude when so many mermaids had shut down within weeks. It might have been because she was a born mermaid, and not of the moon pool, but then, Emma wasn't in bad shape, either. Only Denman had the file with all the answers.

Emma was taken out more and more to be studied. Denman was sure she was a 'prime breeder' but wanted to wait for the best possible selection of males before her final relocation.

She used to resist. She'd resist going to the surface during feeding hour, when the mermaids were selected and captured for their injections and tests. When hunger won out, and she finally appeared, she'd fight the catch-pole to the last, as well as the men at the end of it who drugged and dragged her away.

But when her fighting meant longer time on the awful metal slab, and punishments dealt out not to only her, but the rest of the pod in her tank, Emma stopped fighting. She told herself it was just for appearances. She'd bide her time, and save her strength, like Nixie urged time and again. It felt so much like giving up, that she had to grit her teeth against the betrayal of tears that prickled each time they took her.

Today, the two scientists who were usually in charge of her experiments dropped her crate before they reached the research lab, and the jolt made her wince. Emma couldn't see more than a pair of legs in cargo shorts and slip-resistant shoes, but the voice was youthful; not like the middle-aged crew she was used to.

"I'll take it from here, guys. Dr. Denman's assigned her to me."

"For what, exactly?" The technician to Emma's right asked, "You're not a scientist."

The one to her left shifted his stance defensively. "Aren't you the guy that sold his friends out?"

The young man snorted. "I'm the reason you now have four mermen instead of the one. But if you want to put it like that... yeah. Pity Zac didn't work out. But I've more than made up for that since. Are you gonna give her to me, or what?"

"Think you can handle it?" By his sneering tone, Emma thought he must mean carrying her crate.

"Let's put it this way. I'm a competitive free-diver. Why do you think Denman let me off without sticking me in the magic pool with my mates?" His shoes stopped just short of stepping on top of the other man's. "I don't need magic to be a sea god. Now are you going to hand over the mermaid, or do I have to page the doc?"

"Transfer papers?" the man growled.

Everything must have been in order, because it was only a matter of seconds before the scientists were walking on, and Emma's crate was hoisted up momentarily into the man's arms. She was placed on a rolling cart, steered into a new room, and set back on the floor.

The crate was unlocked, and Emma sat up to get a better look at her new tormenter.

He was definitely not a scientist. His dirty blonde hair was styled into a short, casual tousle, and his tank showed off a toned and sun-kissed torso. There was nothing about his looks that would lead her to believe he spent any more time indoors than was strictly necessary.

They were in a gym, surrounded by workout equipment of all shapes and sizes, with a small sink and shelf unit that held a variety of fruits, vegetables, and a very nice blender.

Most surprising of all was the friendly way the man held out a hand and said, "Hey. The name's Cam."

"What do I care?" Emma spat.

"You might once I bust you out of here."

She sat up straight. "Are you serious?!"

"Shsh! Not so loud!" he warned, "I can't get you free just yet, but I'm working on it."

Emma slumped back in the crate. "Then why bother?"

"I thought you might like a change in the meantime." His eyes roved over the curves of her tail, taking in the overlapping scales that shifted from various shades of amber, gold, and orange. Emma was struck with a sudden worry that they were duller than before; the golden scales were more of a dark yellow, the amber turning brown, and the orange were a little on the rusty side.

"Thought maybe you'd like your legs back."

Emma kept a close eye on him as he rubbed her down with towels, not trusting for a moment that he had good intentions; especially when she had to keep slapping his hand away from taking his time with the drying methods in certain uncomfortable areas. She forgot to be wary when she was finally dry, and the part of her magic that kept her a prisoner to her tail melted away.

She jumped up as soon as she had legs, wobbled anxiously on them, and was barely kept from falling on her face when Cam caught her around the middle.

"Whoa, now, Landlegs! Where are you going?"

"Anywhere other than here."

"Well, you won't get far that way." Emma glared at him, but she could do nothing on such unsteady feet. She had feet again! She wiggled her toes in triumph.

"Just give it time," he said, helping her sit on the lifting bench. "Denman's got me here to help with grunt work, and she thinks she's roped me into her volunteer research crew. I'm supposed to be helping you get fit so she can test the spawn of mermaids in different conditions."

"Spawn? What's that mean?"

"I dunno. Something sick, knowing her."

"So what are you doing with me if you're not helping her?"

"Like I said, I'm working on a way to get you free. Hey, would you like a drink? I make a killer smoothie." Not waiting for an answer, he started selecting some of the produce from the counter to rinse and break off into smaller chunks.

Emma crossed her arms in challenge. "You betrayed your friends to Denman. Why should I trust you?"

Cam sighed. "It's not like that. Zac and Will... they didn't get it." He dropped the banana he was peeling onto the shelf and met Emma's eyes. "They betrayed me. I act like it was the other way around because it helps to have a reputation around here. Denman's not so scary if she thinks you're on her side."

"Try being a mermaid and then saying that."

"Touché," he smirked.

He finished blending the drink, and brought the product to Emma. "Try that out."

She hadn't seen everything he'd put in it, but after months of only live fish and injected supplements, her mouth watered before she'd even brought the straw to her mouth. As soon as she had, she couldn't keep back a slight whimper. "This is delicious," she admitted. "Just like the drinks I used to make before swim practice."

"You were a swimmer!" he said.

"Yeah," she ducked her head sadly. "Before all this."

"Well, this is my special pre-dive shake," he said with a crooked smile. "Guaranteed to give you a boost." He scratched the back of his head nervously. "Maybe... maybe we could go together, sometime. Me diving, and you swimming."

Emma coughed from swallowing the drink wrong. "Are you asking me out? We're in the middle of a secret lab where I'm being held as an experiment! I've just got my legs back for the first time in months, and you're asking about a fun dip at the beach?!"

He shrugged sheepishly. "It was worth a shot. Could I at least have dibs for the first date when I get you out of here?"

Emma took an extra long sip of her drink before replying.

"I'll consider it," she said with a sniff.

Author's Note:

Surprise! I added another Mako Mermaids character, and updated on a Friday! I think I'll start doing Mondays and Fridays for updates. If everyone is okay with that. :P