Ocean's Infiltrator Read online

  "Shit, I can't do it. I can't," she said, over and over. I realised that some of the salt water droplets streaming down her cheeks were tears.

  "It's okay," I told her.

  "No, I didn't mean to lose control like that. I can't," she murmured.

  "What's wrong?" I asked, worried. I shifted to the side, so I slid off her onto the sand and coral shingle. Ow. I tried to ignore the sharp bit of coral digging into my bum. I reached behind me, grabbed it and threw it across the water with a splash.

  "I have a duty to protect my people. I can't let you live, knowing about us," she said, her words fast and forced. "And I can't do it. I tried to pull you into the deep, but I lost control of my tail and I couldn't. I had to take you back to shore. I have a duty to return to my people. I lost control of my tail and I couldn't…" I wasn't sure if she was sobbing or laughing.

  Did she just try to drown me? I wondered, thunderstruck. But she gave me her air, kissed me and felt me up instead, before she carried me to shore. Last time I went swimming with her, she fought off a full-grown tiger shark with nothing but a knife. Like she said, she can't kill me. I thought about her soft tail, twined around my leg. It seemed pretty well under her control to me.

  "How can you lose control of your tail?" I blurted out.

  "I got turned on and I lost control. I lost my tail and I couldn't breathe…it's never happened to me before. I've heard it could happen, but it never happened to me, or anyone I knew…" she said, wiping her face with one hand.

  I was even more confused now. "What do you mean, you lost your tail?"

  Her fingers closed over mine, pulling my hand down. "I lost control and lost my tail…" My fingers were warm, wet and inside her before I worked out what she meant. She shifted her legs wider apart, pushing my fingers in deeper.

  "You're saying that when you get turned on, your tail disappears and you go back to human?" I guessed. Well, that explains why you can't fuck a mermaid. You just need get her hot enough to turn human.

  "Yes." She sniffled. "But now I'll have to return to my people and admit I couldn't kill a human who knew about us. I will have to return to try again. I must ensure my people stay hidden from humans."

  "So don't go back," I responded, rolling back onto her and pinning her to the sand. I figured she could throw me off fairly easily if she wanted to, but she didn't even try. She won't hurt me.

  She looked up into my eyes, a wry smile on her face as she shook her head. "I must. I carry vital information my people must have."

  She still held my hand between her legs. I stroked her idly with my thumb, hearing her sharp intake of breath. "Stay with me," I murmured. I was rock hard for her and I knew she could feel it.

  "I have to return home to my people and tell them of the danger I have placed them in," she replied mechanically, sounding out of breath.

  I increased the pressure but not the pace. "Your people are in no danger from me. Who would I tell and who'd believe me? Besides, I want you and all your secrets for myself. Stay with me."

  "I can't. I must return."

  I looked at her, carefully. Her eyes were closed, her breathing coming in ragged gasps. "But not until dark. You still have all day." I kissed her lightly. "Stay with me for today."

  "Yes…" she breathed, arching her back up. She spread her legs wider and my knees hit the sand between them. I pulled my fingers out of her and she didn't stop me. Half on top of her, half between her legs, in one thrust I'll be inside her, no tail in the way this time.

  "What are you waiting for?" she murmured. "I didn't lose my tail because I wanted you to finger and tease me. Are you having second thoughts about sleeping with a fish?"

  "Fish don't have boobs," I managed to say, planting a kiss on hers. "You're not a fish. You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

  "But I'm not human," she said softly. "Human women don't have tails."

  "Right now, neither do you," I replied as I slid inside her, as easily as she'd slid through the water. Oh God, she feels good.

  For the first time in my life, I had sex on the beach. Not the sticky cocktail, but the sticky, sandy, salty, orgasmic experience that was nevertheless mindblowing.

  Then we headed back to her house and used up all the hot water, washing off the sand that had gotten everywhere.

  8. Laila

  "Elder Cantrella, will you answer the Council's call? Will you be our ambassador to our sisters, the people of the ocean's gift in the Atlantic Ocean?" Elder Darma's words were ceremonial, a formal request and tone that she did not use in her role as teacher.

  I waited for Mother's response, though I knew what it would be.

  "I would be honoured to answer the Council's call. I request one subordinate to accompany and assist me in this important task. I ask for my daughter, Laila."

  Now I understood why my presence was considered so necessary at this, my first Council meeting. I remained silent until addressed, as was required of me.

  Elder Darma glanced at me, but her response was to my mother. "The girl is old enough to be an adult, but she has not yet done her duty for her people. Can she be trusted to behave as required on a diplomatic mission of such importance?"

  I almost opened my mouth to respond, but managed to control myself.

  Mother eyed me seriously before she spoke. "Laila is my daughter. She will do as she must to protect her people. She will do anything that is required to ensure this mission is a success. I will make sure of it."

  Elder Nafula lifted her chin, her eyes also on me. "If the girl does her duty among the humans, she will be an adult, with all the rights of any other adult of our people. She will be able to choose or refuse this mission, as she decides. Child, would you not prefer to do your duty, than such a dangerous mission?"

  I gritted my teeth at being called a child, for it was twenty years since my birth at the Nursery Grounds, but I swallowed my ire. We all knew the penalty for defying the Council, for Sirena had borne years of exile until she complied with their commands. This was the first story we learned as children. I had heard it from Elder Sirena's own lips when she was my teacher, so the story had a poignancy heightened by the bitterness of her tone.

  "I will answer the Council's call to any task that is required of me, whether it is duty among humans or a mission among sisters in a distant ocean. I will do as the Council commands me."

  I ardently wished to do anything that didn't require contact with humans. After my mother's traumatic experience doing her duty among humans, I would happily remain at the Council's beck and call for the remainder of my life than risk similar pain.

  Elder Darma's words took me by surprise. "Elder Cantrella, the Council agrees to send your daughter to assist you in your diplomatic mission. You may depart once your preparations are complete. The Council wishes you a good and safe voyage. We will eagerly await your return with what tidings you can bring."

  I relaxed in relief. No human would touch me until after my return. No matter how dangerous this diplomatic mission might be, it held no terrors for me. Only humans could fill me with fear.

  9. Joe

  The shower, the bedroom, the kitchen table, the sofa bed, back to the bedroom…Shit, I think I'd saved up three years' worth of sex to have in one day, and so had she. By the end of the day, my skin felt like there was a mild electric current running over it and I was going to ache for a week, but fuck, it was good.

  Vanessa kissed me one last time on the beach, as the sun set behind her. She held me close and murmured in my ear.

  "I will go home to my people. I will explain why I did not kill you and why I believe you should live. I cannot promise that they will not send another of my people for you, but I will return to you and try to prevent it. My people will send me back to land again and I promise I will find you. Until I return, fly home and stay out of the water."

  She pulled her dress over her head and handed it to me. I stood transfixed on the beach, watching her run naked into the water, boobs flying, as
she dived under a wave. When she surfaced, she turned and blew me a kiss. Then she leapt and twisted, orange light reflecting off her skin as she arced up into another dive. She splashed her tail flukes at me and vanished.

  So her people were going to send someone to do me in. I thought of her taking on a tiger shark and decided I'd bet on her over any hitfish her people sent. After all, what could be worse than a tiger shark going in for the kill?

  I headed back across the island to my shack. It was a hot night, but it felt cold without Vanessa.

  10. Sirena

  The water on my skin was cool, yet for that long swim home I burned. I was haunted by the sensation of his hands on my skin. This skin, not my human skin. He'd caressed me with such love and such trust, even as I'd tried to drown him. In return, I'd spared his life and trusted him with the secret of my people. Now I must pay the price for my stupidity.

  The Council convened for my return.

  I did not wait for a formal greeting or welcome. For the first time in my life, I was eager to return to land. "My preparations are complete. I will live among humans in their city called Perth. My house is in readiness for our arrival."

  Elder Darma asked the question as custom demanded. "I take it that, as always, our secret was preserved? Did any of the humans suspect you were not one of them?"

  I hesitated. "One human had evidence from three years ago. I destroyed the evidence. There is no risk to us."

  "And what of the human?" Elder Darma voiced the words none of the others had the courage to say.

  In any normal meeting, I was expected to answer that the human had also been destroyed. Yet I would not. For the first time, my leadership could be called into question. Is it time for the tables to turn? Will the Council defy me, mirroring my childhood defiance?

  "He yet lives. I place this human under my protection, for he has assisted me in the past and he will continue to do so into the future. He will not betray our secret, for he will not betray me. If he even thinks to do so, I will call the sharks and watch them devour him alive. I do not forget and I will not forgive."

  My statements were accepted without a murmur. I expected some disagreement, if not outright defiance. I looked for Cantrella, whose hatred of humans should have driven her to demand Joe's death, but she was not present. "Where is Cantrella?"

  Elder Darma looked as if she welcomed the change of subject. "Cantrella has been sent on a diplomatic mission to the Atlantic sisters, to obtain information about changes in their ocean. With her she took her daughter, Laila."

  My relief at their easy acquiescence paled in significance when compared to the risk they had placed the child in. "You permitted Laila to go on a diplomatic mission to the Atlantic, before she has done her duty? I fear that may have been unwise."

  Elder Darma was alarmed, but not excessively so. "The girl did not go alone. Cantrella requested her to assist in the mission. She will ensure the girl's safety and ours."

  I agreed with their choice of ambassador and was quick to reinforce this. "Cantrella was a wise choice, for her inclinations match those of our Atlantic sisters. She was not of the Elder Council when their last delegation visited the Indian Ocean, but that may be to her advantage."

  Elder Darma was surprised. "Why do you say that?"

  I chose my words carefully. "I refer to the incident with Alexandre. Cantrella may have forgotten about it."

  Elder Nafula spoke. "How could she not be aware of it? Her partner conducted the investigation herself."

  Elder Indah, ever the healer, entered the discussion in a soft voice. "Cantrella was still deeply traumatised by her time on land and Laila was not yet weaned. She may not have been as perceptive then as she is now."

  Elder Darma's confusion was evident. "What import has history on relations with our sisters today?"

  I tried to keep my words brief, when speaking of an incident that had deeply distressed us all. "It was twenty years ago. The Atlantic sisters are very traditional. I think it very likely that a similar incident will take place in their own ocean this year. I do not think it wise for Laila to be involved with the Atlantic sisters for such an event."

  Darma avoided mention of the disaster. "Cantrella is well able to care for her daughter."

  Few Elders knew the daughter as well as her mother. I was one of the few, so I tried to explain, "Cantrella's hatred for humans may overcome her concern for her daughter. Laila fears humans and I fear for her if she is persuaded to take part in their…traditions."

  Elder Darma's concern was genuine. "What do you suggest we do?"

  "If it is too late to recall Laila, then we cannot risk a diplomatic incident in sending another sister to retrieve her." I took a deep draught of cool water before I gave my orders. "I suggest we wait and hope. If my fears are realised, then you must send her to me on land in Australia. In the meantime, we can hope that there is no further trouble."

  Elder Darma's voice was uncertain. "Do you think it likely?"

  I delivered my parting commands. "The Atlantic sisters are nothing if not traditional. It may be their undoing, for in their limited contact with humans they may underestimate the humans' communications technology. I will hear of it among the humans before the news travels to the deeps. When the child returns, send her to me. In fact, send any children for whom it is time to do their duty among humans, starting with Laila and Estella. I will be in a position to ensure secrecy is maintained, whilst the girls' safety is assured."

  Elder Darma was older than I and today it showed. She was tired. "It shall be as you decree. Our hopes go with you and the child."

  I acknowledged her good wishes and acquiescence, but it was not my child who occupied my attention. It was poor Laila that my mind dwelt on as I prepared for our departure. I would not have permitted the child to leave.

  11. Joe

  I heard the generator start and saw the lights in Vanessa's house as I finished my dinner. Oh my God, she's back. And somehow I have to say it, before my tongue ties itself in knots again.

  I walked out my front door and onto the path. I stood at the bottom of the steps and looked at the shadow moving across the curtains of her front window. It's Vanessa. It couldn't be anyone else.

  My head was swimming and it felt like there were fish in it, too. I lifted my foot to the first step and heard the faint sound of her laughter from inside the house.

  That's what she'll do when I say it, or if I freeze up and can't get the words out. I hesitated with one foot in the air.

  Shit. I chickened out and headed back to my shack. I'll try again in the morning.

  In the morning, I dithered in the bathroom, trying to shave as smoothly as possible. I changed shirts twice, determined to look as good as I could. Or at least make sure I wore a clean shirt.

  When I couldn't procrastinate any more, I stepped out onto the coral shingle again. I closed my front door as quietly as I could. I stood on the empty path with my eyes closed, taking great big breaths, trying to calm myself down. It felt like my heart was imitating her generator, it was going so fast.

  Vanessa, I love you. Please marry me. I repeated the words in my head, hoping they'd come out right. Suddenly, I wished I'd bought a ring I could offer her, something big, impressive and sparkly. You didn't buy one because you know you don't have a hope in hell of her saying yes. You're only asking her because you'll kick yourself for the rest of your life if you don't ask her. You're fucking talking to yourself, too.

  I forced myself to walk to her steps, then stopped and closed my eyes. I took a huge, deep breath.

  "Are you all right, Joe?" Vanessa's soft voice asked.

  Shit.

  She sat on the veranda, hidden in shadow. She looked concerned as she set her steaming cup down on the table and stood up.

  "Yes," I tried to say, but the first time I squeaked. I got the word out on the second try.

  Her eyes were wide with curiosity, but she didn't say anything else.

  I swallowed and somehow my feet ca
rried me up the steps to the decking. I stood in front of her before I fell to my knees. From this angle, I could only see her eyes over her boobs. If I talk to her boobs, I can do this.

  "Vanessa, I love you," I began, my eyes intent on the faint outline of her left nipple through her shirt. "I'd do anything to make you happy. Please, marry me, so I can spend the rest of my life making you as happy as you make me," I told her right nipple, more clearly defined than her left.

  Vanessa's boobs dipped down, so they almost touched my face. Her hands found mine and she pulled me to my feet as she straightened up. With difficulty, I shifted my gaze to her face.

  "Joe, you still barely know me and I won't stay on land all my life. I will return to my people. You'd be better off with a human woman." She smiled fondly.

  I shook my head and forced the words out. "I don't want a human woman. I want you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

  "Joe, I won't be around for the rest of your life. I only spend a small amount of time on land and the rest is among my people, in ocean depths where you can't go. I have a responsibility to my people," she tried to explain.

  I voiced my biggest fear. "You have someone else already, don't you? Some Brad Pitt clone with a sexy tail who lives down in the mermaid city, waiting for you to come home." The words came out bitter.

  She laughed softly. "No, I have no partner among my people. Nor do I have one among yours."

  I sighed in relief. "Then marry me. You can stay with me whenever you're on land, and when you go back to…the mermaid city…I'll wait for you. I'll always be here for you. We'll get a house near the water and I'll take care of you, every day you're with me. I'll make you happy, Vanessa. I'll do anything for you. I love you." I stumbled over the words, but I managed to get them out.

  Movement caught my eye at the front window of her house. I turned, but I only saw the blank window. Vanessa turned to look, too, but there was nothing to see.