“Thank you so much for helping me out, Sam.” I gave him a hug and he nodded.
Liesa pulled me into her embrace. “You be careful,” she said.
“I’ll see if I can rally some people to help,” Sam offered, putting his arm around Liesa.
“Thank you for the offer,” Thayde said taking my hand. “We could use the help, but I also understand this isn’t your battle. I appreciate the both of you helping Morgan and me.”
With that, we left Sam and Liesa and began our walk to the beach.
Chapter Eleven
The Link
The swim back to the mainland was terrifying. The ocean was complete blackness and though Thayde’s strong grip around my waist was comforting, I couldn’t get over my fear of the dark water. Thayde swam fast - too fast for me. It made my eyes sting and my heart race. It probably took a half hour before we surfaced in front of the house.
As we walked up the steps to the gazebo, Thayde pulled me to him and stroked my back.
“I’m sorry, but we had to get here as fast as we could.”
“It’s all right,” I mumbled into his chest.
We quickly made our way to the living room where Mom sat on the couch, her legs drawn up to her chest. The instant she saw me, she leapt up, throwing herself into my arms.
“Oh, baby!” She cried, squeezing the air out of me. “I was so worried!”
As she pulled away, she noticed Thayde’s bandages and stitches.
“Thayde! What happened? Are you ok?”
“I’m fine,” he answered. “Has Tammer come back yet?”
“No!” She sniffed, wiping tears from her cheek. “I haven’t seen him yet. I’m so worried! For a few weeks now, he’s been rallying people, staying out late trying to take care of this. We knew this was coming. Limus’s hatred knows no bounds.”
“All this is because of me?” I asked, disbelieving the fact that this had gotten so out of hand.
Mom nodded sinking into the couch.
“You guys haven’t told her everything, have you?” Thayde was shaking his head. “It’s about time you did.”
“I can’t,” she said.
“Then I will.” He turned to me, putting his hands on my shoulders, gently making me sit with him.
“Morgan, everything seems ridiculous because you’ve been told nothing. Tammer is your real father. Richard took care of you and your mom when Tammer and they had to be apart. Richard and your mom were never married. He didn’t know anything about merpeople – he just knew that Mom and Tammer needed help.”
I heard what he said but felt numb. I just stared blankly at him.
“The reason you were not allowed back to Florida was that my father and his followers knew you could possibly be The Link and that terrified them. Better to believe you were a Halfling and want to destroy you because of that, rather than entertain the thought that you were one of the most powerful merpeople who has ever lived.”
Powerful? I couldn’t even stop myself from crying. I was not powerful.
“Do you remember me telling you that our histories foretold of a merman who would bring peace and order to our world?”
I simply nodded and he continued.
“This merman is supposed to replace Troen and reign over us for many, many centuries. He’s supposed to be the most powerful merman who ever existed. Can you imagine Limus’s reaction when Vitahl hinted you were not a Halfling? Limus’s worst fears were confirmed. That’s why things have gotten so out of hand. They fear you and want you destroyed.”
“How on earth do you know all this?” I asked, incredulous that this could be real.
“I told him while he was recovering,” Mom said. I’d forgotten she was even in the room. “He figured the rest out on his own.” She smiled faintly at Thayde. “He’s got brains, this one.”
Thayde turned to me again. “Now we need to stop this war Limus has started. There’s no doubt in my mind that he and his followers are already on their way. I know it’s frightening, but we have to protect you and you’re going to have to hide.”
Hide? Not on your life.
“There’s no way I’m going to hide. Aren’t I supposed to be the all-powerful one?” I felt ashamed I’d said it.
Thayde hesitated and then seemed to change his mind.
“Morgan, you haven’t even begun to come into your powers yet. We don’t know what you are capable of doing. We don’t want anything bad happening to you. What if you destroyed yourself? I couldn’t live with that, especially when right now I’m able to actually do something to help you.”
And that was that. What could I say? He was right, I suppose, but I didn’t like the idea of hiding while everyone fought for me. It sounded cowardly and that wasn’t who I was.