ONCE DR. GRANT had left, I made my way through the dispersing crowd of lab coats over to Noah.
"What the hell just happened?" I asked as I walked in front of him. I had never seen him look so dejected. His once vibrant green eyes had dulled and his lips were downturned.
Noah, didn't look at me in the eyes. "They took Flip." He said softly, keeping his gaze on the elevator.
I frowned, steeping closer to Noah, "Why?"
Noah sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Flip is...was the head of the Pisces department, he was chosen to oversee Dr. Grant's experiment, so he is held accountable for its disappearance."
"So Dr. Grant fired him? Why did they have to drag him out like that then?" I asked, crossing my arms across my chest. It seemed a bit theatrical to me.
Suddenly the memory of my first day as an intern, the confidentiality agreement I signed, and the words EMPLOYEE TERMINATION, flashed through my mind.
Noah didn't answer my question, "Lani, they are going to be watching this place. Remember what I said the other night, don't let anyone know you know anything about the experiment, okay? Trust me, you don't want to be involved." Noah pleaded, his green eyes boring into mine. I could see that there was something else in those emerald depths, something he wasn't telling me.
"I won't." I said, mostly to soothe Noah. It seemed to work and he nodded, putting his hand on my shoulder.
"Be careful, Lani." He said finally, before moving away and disappearing down the hallway. I watched him go as I thought about following him. Part of me wanted to leave early again, but Noah's cryptic words gave me pause.
They will be watching...
They? Dr. Grant and his burly men maybe...
Either way, I had to act normal. And that meant staying for my whole shift as usual, no matter how badly I wanted to rush to the water and make sure the creature was long gone, far away from this place and Dr. Grant as possible.
But first, I had to work. With a sigh, I made my way towards the back of the compound to continue working on the tanks assigned to me since day one.
It was going to be a long shift.
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Hours passed and finally my shift was over. It felt like the longest eight hours of my life, but now I was done and I could head to the water.
As I made my way out of the compound, I looked around for any sign of Dr. Grant and his men, and saw nothing. No suspicious cars or burly men anywhere.
It seemed he really had left.
Either way, the sun was just beginning to set and I still had a while before dark. So, I decided to take a walk along the beach before jumping straight into the water again. If anyone was watching, like Noah suggested, then they might just think I am taking a nice stroll along the beach after a long shift.
As I walked along the sand, I did my best to keep my eyes away from the water. Instead, I focused on the sand beneath my bare feet, swinging my shoes and humming a song. As I walked, I passed an abandoned surf board lying in the sand. It was a deep purple, and small enough to be easy enough to carry. Moving over to it, I picked it up and stood it up in the sand, making a mental note to come back to it after dark. Perhaps there would be no need for me to go swimming again tonight.
After a few hours, my legs grew tired and the sun had fallen. It was a little while past dark, and there were no lights around. Given my dark hair and clothes, I was barely distinguishable from the darkness.
I hoped that this would provide me enough cover to go into the water.
I made my way back to the surf board and took it with me towards the water. It had been years since I had stepped on a board. Ever since my mother died, I avoided them at all costs, terrified of the memories they brought back.
Wading into the water with my board clutched to my side immediately brought up the image of my mother, doing the very same thing the day she died. Wading into the water with such confidence, not knowing what horrible fate awaited her beneath the waves.
I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing, pushing the image out of my mind. I was determined to go out in the water again. I wanted to speak with the creature, I had to know that it would be okay. I was so determined to do everything in my power to save this creature, to warn it of the dangers it awaited if it stayed.
I told myself that it was because it was the right thing to do, and that I was already too involved to back out now. But another deeper part of me knew that wasn't the whole truth. That deep down, if I saved this creature, it would somehow make up for my helplessness the day my mother died. I remembered how many sleepless nights I had after she died, staring at the wall, cursing myself for just waiting on the sand as she drowned. I wish I would have charged into the water and searched for her, even if I found nothing. I should have tried. Done something. And I swore I would not make the same mistake again.
I could not watch the creature that had saved me twice get put in danger, knowing full well I could have done something.
And so, despite the pain of the memories it brought, I hoisted myself onto the surf board and began paddling out into the water. At first, my movements were unsteady, but muscle memory soon took over and I began paddling smoothly like I had been doing it my whole life.
Once I was out far enough, I sat up on my board, turning to the coast to see if anything could see me from the beach. The beach was dark, and I could barely distinguish when the water ended and the sand began. I doubted anybody would be able to see me out here.
"Hey, I want to talk to you." I called out to the dark water. I wasn't sure how to get the creatures attention without drowning, and I had to try something less painful.
I received no response. The ocean was quiet tonight, too quiet.
My legs dangled off my board and I began kicking them back and forth to keep warm. The Monterey water was already cold, but without the heat of the sun, it became especially freezing at night. At least when I swam, my body generated enough heat to keep me somewhat warm, but sitting on the board my body grew cold. A few more minutes passed, and I began to shiver.
"Come on..." I muttered, my teeth beginning to chatter. I wasn't sure how much longer I could wait out here.
"Please...I just want to help you." I pleaded to the open water around me.
Just as I was about to turn back, something scaly and slick brushed against one of my legs. I shrieked and pulled my legs out of the water, looking beneath me to see if I could find what touched me. But the water was too dark.
A chill ran down my spine when I realized that it could literally be anything. I was alone in the middle of the freezing water, at night. The water was surely deep enough for it to be a number of things; including sharks.
I kept my legs on my board as best as I could, now too nervous to put my arms in the water to swim back. With my body laid out on my board, I rested my head on my arms and waited.
Suddenly I heard a splash come from behind me, and I whipped my head around just in time to see the rippling water begin to subside. I turned back around and my heart began beating rapidly in my chest as I closed my eyes and waited.
Please don't be a shark...I repeated in my head.
Once I was sure there would be no other movement, I began to slowly open my eyes. I was immediately greeted with the face of the creature, watching me from over the lip of my surf board. Only it's head was visible above the water, and it was way too close. Our noses were only mere inches away, and from this proximity, I could better see it's features.
As I had suspected, this creature looked very similar to a regular man. With a sharp jaw line and regal nose, I would have assumed this was no creature at all. If it wasn't for the abnormally pale skin and luminescent blue eyes that watched me, I would have blushed being so close to someone so handsome. Though, being this close, it was clear that this creature was no longer an it but a he.
Something shifted on the creature's neck and my gaze followed. Along his pale neck was a line of slits in his skin, which occasionally opened and closed with the current of the water.
Are those gills?
I swallowed, meeting the gaze of the creature again. He simply watched me, with a fierce curiosity as if I were the mysterious creature in the water. I saw his gaze flick down to my necklace momentarily, and in the brief loss of eye contact, I mustered up the courage to speak.
"I came to warn you." I said finally, breaking the silence. The creature tilted his head and regarded me in a way that was eerily predatory.
"Dr. Grant is here." I continued, waiting for a reaction. The creature's eyes shifted into narrow slits as he moved slowly away from my board, and began to circle me. His long white hair trailed behind him as he moved effortlessly in the dark water.
"I am aware." He seethed from somewhere behind me.
"Then you know you have to leave!" I almost shouted, frustrated.
Quickly the creature rounded on me, eyes of blue fire meeting my own fearful gaze.
"It is you who needs to leave." He snapped, rising slightly above me to look down into my wide eyes. He was intimidating, but I refused to back down.
I sucked in a breath, "I will, just promise that you will too. I don't want to see you get hurt." I said softly, my eyes pleading.
Slowly, I could see the fire begin to leave the creature's eyes as he lowered back down so that our faces were level once again. His white hair sprawled around us like silver thread as he leaned in close. His blue eyes glowed like the moon above us, and searched mine with that searing intensity I was beginning to adore.
In the corner of my vision, I saw the water shift, but I held the creatures gaze. I stayed still as he lifted his hand out of the water to touch the piece of hair that had fallen in front of my face. His fingers were long and thin, with sharp claw like nails as white as his hair. I watched in a mix of awe and fear as he rolled the strand between his fingers curiously before meeting my eyes again.
"And I do not want you to be hurt either." He said, in a tone that was much softer than anything I had heard him use before.
Warmth spread to my cheeks and I watched as the creature noticed, observing my heated face with a curious expression.
Just as I opened my mouth to respond, I felt something sharp pierce my back. I let out a cry of surprise, reaching back to try and take out whatever hit me. Just as my fingers brushed against something metallic and thin sticking out of my back, my limbs began to grow heavy and my body felt weak. Loosing control over my body, I slumped down onto my board.
The world began to slow down, and my vision began to blur. I could barely register the feeling of something cold and firm grabbing onto my arm. Suddenly, I began to slip off my board and into the dark water, no longer able to maintain my grip or balance.
Just before my head went under water, I felt the grip on my arm tighten and I was pulled against a smooth wet chest. Now completely paralyzed, my head slumped against the creature's cool shoulder as he began dragging me away, deeper into the ocean. The water rushed around us as the creature moved quickly through the water, keeping our heads just above the surface.
The creature moved quickly, with an air of alarm enough for me to assume we were being chased. My blood ran cold when I thought of who was most likely pursuing us. If I could have moved my head, I would have looked, but my whole body was limp. Instead, all I could see was the long wet strands of white hair that cling to the creatures neck and the water that rushed beside us.
With me in his arms, the creature could not retreat under the water. We had no choice but to keep swimming away, above water, and unfortunately within sight of our pursuers.
But the creature was fast, faster than anything I had ever seen move in the water. A sense of hope briefly washed over me, that is, until a net appeared directly in front of us.