The Way of the Sea

Chapter Seventeen: Muir

But Aidan was quiet. How could he tell her that he had let Eden run away? That he'd had the chance to stop her and failed?

Merida turned to face him.

His heart was laid bare and he had no way to hide. She would see everything. The anger. The guilt. The grief. The fear.

But her eyes told a long and somber story themselves. In this moment, she was simply another person who had lost a friend.

At his silence, Merida's head twitched in what could have been a nod. She quickly swept a finger under her eye and picked up a cup of coffee that Aidan hadn't noticed before. "So, she's gone."

"How did you know? Did you see her?" His heart began to race, knowing that if she had seen Eden leave, she had seen his outburst of anger as well.

"No," Merida said. "I was startled awake by people shouting outside. When I looked out the window, I could only see you. You were down by the water's edge." She nodded toward the ocean. "And when I went upstairs and the bathroom was empty..."

Her eyes darkened.

Aidan nodded, though the action took effort.

The wooden floor creaked behind him, and he looked up to see Fredric standing at the entrance to the kitchen, fully dressed but otherwise unkempt. "Good morning."

Aidan tried to speak, but his mouth clamped shut and he swallowed hard.

Fredric headed to the coffee pot without looking at either of them and poured himself a cup. "You two are up early."

Aidan bit the inside of his cheek, dreading the coming storm.

Fredric sipped his coffee. "Ahh," he sighed in a whisper. He lifted the mug back to his lips and paused. He frowned in confusion, noticing, at last, Aidan's puffy eyes, red nose, the streaks of tears he hadn't even attempted to dry, and his sopping wet hair. He flicked his gaze toward Merida and acknowledged that she was avoiding it. His eyes shot back to Aidan and he set his mug down onto the counter, coffee sloshing over the rim. Without a word, he rushed out of the kitchen, swung around the banister, and stumbled up the stairs.

"Eden!" he yelled.

Aidan shut his eyes.

Fredric clambered back down the stairs, skipping the last step and nearly falling in his haste. "Where is she? What happened?"

Neither Aidan nor Merida answered immediately. Darin and Alanna tiptoed halfway down the stairs, awakened by Fredric's outburst. Concern and confusion were evident in the eyes of both of the children.

Fredric maneuvered around the banister and stumbled into the kitchen. He braced firm hands against Aidan's shoulders, his eyes were pleading. "Please, Aidan, tell me where she is." His voice cracked on the last word.

Aidan's tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. A chill coursed through him and he willed his voice to work. "I -- I couldn't stop her. She's gone. She left -- "

"No," Fredric choked and his grip on Aidan's shoulder slipped. "Not her, too."

His distraught gaze drifted behind Aidan to the ocean beyond the window. He shoved around Aidan and burst through the back door, letting it slam behind him as he broke into a run toward the shore.

*****

Eden thrashed and clawed at the rough hands that pulled her down into the ever-growing darkness. She tried to scream but the hand only clamped harder over her mouth. The more she fought, the tighter her assailant's grip became. Before long, she was trapped in the lock of unyielding arms, plunging through the vast expanse of water.