A/N: A special thanks goes to ClassicPurpleRoses and BreakTheWalls for the wonderful reviews. Onto number three, let me know what you think.

Chapter 3:

Breathing Underwater

I awoke to the sun shining in my face from the window above me. Turning my head slightly, there was no sign of Adam in the room. However, my blue duffel bag was sitting on the floor next to the tub I was currently lying in. He must have gotten in the card to retrieve it. Shifting my body, I pulled the plug on the water and let it drain slowly.

Closing my eyes, I forced my tail to return to human legs. It had been three months since I had been in mermaid form; but now I could go another three months without having a tail. It had been a huge setback on my way to putting a huge distance between me and my adoptive parents.

Getting out of the tub, I snagged the nearest towel and wrapped it around myself. Under the duress I had been under last night, I didn't get a chance to admire the beauty of the room itself. The tile on the floor was a slate grey marble and the walls were a lighter grey texture paint.

Opening the duffel bag, I picked out a pair of dark denim jean shorts with a solid black tank. My baby blue sneakers were the only shoes I had, so I had to wear them too with the outfit.

Quickly changing, I opened the door and turned to the right. The staircase was made of the finest oak wood and I admired it as I made my descent. Adam was sitting on the couch in the living room with a book in hand. To be honest, I fully expected him to be gone with my car. When I saw him sitting there, a smile appeared on my face without meaning to. "How are you feeling?" He asked, putting his book down across his lap face down.

"A lot better. I appreciate what you did. I fully expected you to run the second you saw me in that form." I answered with a confession of my own.

"I will say...that I didn't expect to see what I did. However, you saved my ass from those creatures...so you can't be all bad."

"Fair enough…"

I continued down the rest of the stairs and entered the room where Adam sat. The room wasn't nearly as bright as the bathroom was upstairs; but it still held its own light. He continued to watch me as I opened the front door. The warm breeze was welcomed on my skin. Taking the first step out onto the porch, I truly saw how isolated this place was from the rest of the town.

Adam wasn't too far behind me. I could tell that he was curious about what I was doing and I'm sure he had a million questions to ask about my world. My wet hair was blown over my shoulder by the breeze as I made my way down the steps and into the front yard where my car was parked.

"This place is beautiful…" I commented in a low voice.

"Thank you. This is where I come to escape the world for a while."

So my assumptions were right. This place was his. I could hear him walk towards me until I could feel his breath against my bare shoulder. There was an unfamiliar feeling in my stomach. I felt like I was drawn to him by some invisible force. I didn't understand why. "What is your next move?" He asked softly.

"To be honest, I don't know. I've been running for too long. I don't want to run anymore."

"Then don't. I highly doubt anyone will find you here."

"As nice as that sounds, unfortunately they will find me. It may take longer but they will."

Turning around to face him, there was sincerity on his face and comfort swirling in his ocean blue eyes. The knot in my stomach faded and I relaxed. "Alright, until then...tell me more about you." He asked, taking a step back.

"What do you want to know?"

He motioned for me to walk with him. He led me to the backside of the cabin where the small lake lay. The sun reflecting off the water created a shimmering effect. "Anything you want to tell me."

"My history isn't known to me. The only things I know are the fact that I was adopted as an infant. They want to use my abilities to take control of the world through their genetic creations. I have no idea who my birth parents are, except that my mother was a mermaid."

"So there is a possibility that your birth parents are still alive?"

"I suppose there is a chance of that."

I guess I never gave much thought to who my birth parents were. The questions I had growing up could have been answered by them and yet, I grew up without them. Learning as I got older what I could and couldn't do. Of course, my adoptive mother was great at testing my limits when she saw fit to.

The thought of that made me stop walking. I turned to look across the lake at the trees beyond the water. Closing my eyes, I listened. The voices I heard last night in my fevered duress could possibly be my biological parents communicating with me. "Alayna?" Adam questioned.

I held a hand up to stop him from speaking more. Diving deeper into myself, I listened once again. Hoping, maybe even, praying that a voice would answer me. There was nothing but silence to greet me though. Doubt started to worm its way up through me. Had I imagined that voice?

The doubt continued until I heard a different kind of voice. A distress call from under the waters of that lake. Opening my eyes, Adam took notice of the difference in me immediately. "What's wrong?" He asked, trying to understand what was going on with me.

"I can hear a distress call from the water. There is an animal in trouble down there. I shall return shortly and continue our conversation."

"Let me come with you!" He shouted after me.

Taking my shoes off at the bank, I dove in. Adam wasn't too far behind. My body transformed back into a mermaid. My head turned to see Adam jumping into the water after me. He was definitely persistent and I found myself smiling at that notion. "Take my hand." I told him mentally.

The shock on his face when he heard my words inside his mind was justified; but he still took my hand. My ability to breathe underwater was passed to him as long as he held onto my hand. "This is fucking insane." He said with a smile on his face.

"Don't let go, or the ability to breath will fade away."

We swam in the direction of the sound of the call I could hear. The sight of his smile made my heart skip. Was he truly happy about seeing this side of the world? As it turned out, there was a plastic six pack carrier around a turtle's neck and legs. Adam dug into his pocket for a small pocket knife. He handed it to me and I went to work. Cutting the plastic away from the turtle, the creature swam away; but not without letting me know how grateful he was for my help.

I pulled Adam up with me to the surface. Letting go of his hand, he found himself able to breath on his own. He moved his arms to keep himself above the water. "That was crazy. You are something special for sure."

"I wouldn't say that. Trust me, if I could just be a human...I'd take that any day." I answered.

"Why? Most humans are generally assholes and selfish." He questioned.

"Maybe so...it's about how fragile you are. You appreciate the small things in life and don't take things for granted because your lives are short. There is nothing more beautiful than humanity in my eyes."

I started to swim back to the bank with Adam trailing right behind me. Pulling myself up to sit on the warm grass, my legs started to return. My clothes were ruined from the transformation, so I sat on the bank naked.

Adam took off his t-shirt and handed it to me, without gazing at my naked appearance. I quickly put on the garment and stood up from the grass. His shirt was thankfully long enough to cover my female anatomy.

"Thank you for allowing me to see that part of your world."

"You're welcome."

We made it back to the cabin and I quickly changed clothes in the upstairs bathroom; but when I returned to the lower level, Adam stood frozen in the middle of the living room floor. The front door was open and there were two NS001 creatures and someone I hadn't seen in a long time standing with them. Elijah Jackson.

"Ah, Alayna, glad you could make an appearance." He said with a touch of humor in his voice.

"I'm not going back. I will continue to fight back and if that means I have to go through you...then so be it."

"My beautiful Alayna, you don't have a choice here. Your father requested your presence and I was personally chosen for the task."

Narrowing my brows out of frustration, I took steps closer to Adam. I placed a hand on his arm gently as I continued to walk towards Elijah. "Smart girl, there is no sense in resisting."

"Alayna...don't." Adam pleaded.

"It's okay. I'll be fine."

I could hear Adam's voice inside my head. He was emotionally pleading with me not to give myself up. Again, my heart skipped. "Adam, listen to me. I will return. I owe you answers, don't I?" I said mentally.

"Yes, yes you do."

Elijah took a hold of my arm and he urged me to walk forward out the front door of the cabin. Something felt off about the whole situation. Just as I was about to get inside their vehicle, he snapped his fingers. It was his signal for the NS001's to kill their target. I whirled around, screaming for Adam to run.