Tornado of Nightmares (Book 2)

two

A half shrug, "Seems only fair, don't you think?"

I scowl inwardly. This was not what I wanted. I wanted a distraction. Something to pull me from inside my own mind. Something that wouldn't force me back into it. Headfirst.

"Shann is not my first name,"

My eyes widen, "Really?" Pure curiosity spilling off my tongue.

"Shann is my middle name, I was named after my father. The bastard. I hated that my own name was a reminder of him. Of whom he was, how he abandoned us. Left me and Irina to fend for ourselves. We were abandoned and still we could not escape him. I could not escape him. Not with his name a living brand on my soul. So, I stopped going by his name. Shann was my mother's brother's name. It felt much more fitting than my father's."

"How old were you?" I ask softly. "When he abandoned you."

He blows out a breath. "Nine,"

I curse. "You had to raise your four-year-old sister when you were nine?"

Shann's eyes darken. Memories folding over him like a weighted blanket. "I did whatever I could to provide for us. Selling newspapers, finding anyone who would hire me. I did anything, anything to keep Irina safe."

But who was keeping you safe?

I know better than to reach out and lay a hand on his arm. Offering whatever comfort, I can provide. Because it wouldn't help. A hug does not fix everything. Time does. Trauma isn't like smothering out a roaring fire. It's about giving it time to die out. Letting the fire burn and dim on its own. Not forcing it to let go.

His words sink in deep. The things he implied he had to do . . . oh Shann.

"I'm dreading meeting with my father," I admit, all right—here goes. "The last words I ever said to him that were I hated him and that I never wished I was his daughter."

The words feel like a release. Finally uttering the awful things, I spewed at him. And he had stood there and taken all of them. Stood there and didn't say a word. My patient and calm father let me rage and rage and rage. The disgusting words I spat at him. He had just let me say everything—

It wasn't right.

Shann considers me for a moment before responding. "I'm sure you had your reasons for saying what you did."

I laugh humourlessly, "I was angry, it was said out of rage. My emotions were my reasons, and it was foul."

"What happened?" A very casual and careful question.

I shake my head and push off the railing to fully face him. His face holds no pity or sadness. Just mere curiosity.

"The answer to that question would require another truth from you,"

He doesn't smile, but I can see the faint amusement in his pupils to know he's considering it.

He dips his chin. "Until next time—"

A high pitch shriek cuts through Shann's words. It has my blood chilling and my body throwing itself against the railing. I scan the ocean, hoping—praying that what I saw wasn't what I think this is. That it's some sort of night bird squawking at us. My eyes spot it immediately, the endless number of ripples heading straight for our ship. The heads bobbing up from the water, long matted hair coating their faces. One of them makes eye contact with me. The one before. Her black inky eyes trap mine.

"Mermaids," curses Shann from my side.

I curse as well before pushing back and away from the rail. The remaining crew playing cards have sobered and are racing below deck, looking for weapons.