Hurricane - Book 2

Chapter 11

As the three of them ate at the table, Alberto realized that this was the first time the three Sireni had been alone. No humans.

"How do you do that?" Alberto asked through a mouthful of eggs.

"What?" Eshe asked.

"Disappear like that. You just blend into the wall sometimes, and nobody notices you."

At that, she gave a devilish grin.

"Years of training. You forget I am not a Sireni like Luca is. My species is called Rusalki. We are predators and warriors. We train for battle and hunting from the day we are born."

Alberto remembered when Mattias told him about the different species of his kind and how they were different from one another.

"So you're a different species from us?" Alberto asked.

"From Luca." She said. "Luca is a Sireno. They are farmers, gatherers, only eating basic meats like shrimp and clams. Herbivores, for the most part. They are small and brightly colored living in warm shallow waters."

"So, how are the Rusalki different?" Alberto asked.

"We are bigger, stronger, faster. Superior physically in every way. We are also not so ridiculously colored. All of us are a different shade of blue to better blend into our surroundings. We eat meat and are adapted to cold climates."

Alberto caught a slight edge in her voice like she looked down on the Sireni.

"Why did you say you're different from just me?" Luca piped up.

"What?" Alberto asked.

"When you asked if she was a different species of us - she said she is different from just me. Isn't Alberto a Sireni like I am?" Luca asked.

Eshe paused at this, looking from Luca to Alberto and back again.

"Haven't you ever noticed you look different from those around you?" Eshe asked Alberto.

He thought for a moment. He was always the biggest Sireni in Carollina. The rest of the villagers were petite compared to him. And he enjoyed eating meat when Luca usually gagged at it.

"I've been a little bigger than everyone else most of my life." He admitted.

Eshe nodded.

"What are you saying? That I'm Rusalki? But my scales are purple, not blue." He went on.

"I think you have part Rusalki in you. Half."

Alberto was shocked to hear this. It was true; he had no memory of his mother and very little of his father. Was it possible?

"Just something to consider." She said, picking up her third serving of sausages.

Luca and Alberto made eye contact, a silent conversation happening between them. He could feel Luca was as surprised as he was by this revelation, but also that it made sense.

"I've never seen your Rusalki form," Alberto said as they cleared the table. Luca left some food for Giulia and Mattias in the fridge.

"Luca has." She said plainly. "Have him show you."

"Oh yeah," Alberto said, forgetting Luca and Eshe had met while he was unconscious.

Then he knitted his eyebrows.

"Wait. What did you say? Have him show me? Did you guys have a photoshoot or something?"

"He can show you memories through the Bond." She said casually. But Alberto heard glass shatter behind him and turned to see Luca frozen, a pile of plates shattered on the floor.