MARILYN SPLASH!Thrown into the pool with a force that sent water splashing dramatically, I found myself amidst a whirlwind of commotion. Fellow mermaids quickly huddled together in a corner, their hushed murmurs of gossip filling the air. Their words were directed at me, but I paid them no mind. I knew their whispers were meant to sting. Just then, Mr. Alphonso rushed to the poolside.“I heard you returned Marilyn. What could be wrong, sir?” he asked, a touch of panic in his voice.“I trusted Star Ocean management and decided to purchase a mermaid here. You assured me that the mermaids here were obedient and well-behaved. How is it that the mermaid you sold me has turned out to be a fucking idiot?” The dark-eyed wolf growled. “Isn’t this the fourth time she is returned here?” One of the mermaids asked, and others murmured in agreement.“What a fool she is,” Another added, and I glared at her.“I’ll scrape out your eyes if you look at me that way again,” the green-tailed mermaid flar
BALINMy Maserati MC20 glided to a stop in front of the Star Ocean mermaid center. I leaned back, studying the building’s facade.“Are you sure you want to get a mermaid from this center?” Jarek, my Beta, asked for what felt like the hundredth time today.I brushed off his question, my gaze still fixed outside. Lin, my wolf, simmered with unrest while my spirit remained battered and bruised. As the Alpha of the Boldbite pack since I turned 18, and now at 32, I still hadn’t found a mate. Crossing 30 without a mate was a dangerous threshold for a werewolf. Mates were ordained by the moon goddess, gifted with the power to rein in every male wolf. Any werewolf passing 30 without a mate usually succumbed to a wild transformation, becoming a rogue wolf. I had managed to contain it thus far, mainly due to my Alpha status. But my 33rd birthday loomed, and if I didn’t find a mate, the consequences weighed heavily on my mind.Lately, I noticed my temper spiraling out of control day by day. Hence
MARILYN “Bring her to me immediately,” a deep, authoritative voice reverberated, sending shivers cascading down my spine.The mere sound of that voice drew me to the pool’s surface, and my curiosity piqued. I strained to catch a glimpse of the speaker, but distance kept him veiled from my sight. Since he arrived at the foundation, I had been eavesdropping on their conversations. Even though my healing ability had faded, and I no longer shed pearls, my sense of hearing had sharpened, allowing me to pick up sounds from miles away. It was a unique talent I possessed—one that I hadn’t witnessed in any other mermaid. Mermaids tended to flaunt their special abilities, eager to outshine their peers.“What are you waiting for?” the voice demanded, snapping me out of my musings.Turning my attention toward the expansive pool, a frown creased my brow. Since Alphonso unceremoniously cast me into this wretched pool, I’d spent my time hidden away, honing my skills. The pool he’d chosen for my conf
MARILYNN With my mouth hanging open, I gazed in awe at the godly figure advancing toward me. My heart raced, and I couldn’t help but drool slightly. This werewolf was, without a doubt, the most breathtaking I had ever encountered. His eyes emanated an aura of danger, and his physique exuded sheer magnificence—every facet of his being exuded perfection.“I want him,” I whispered, instantly forgetting any plans of leaving the foundation.At that moment, his gaze locked onto mine. My cheeks flamed crimson, and I blinked rapidly, attempting to hide my embarrassment by turning away.“He’s looking at me,” I mused excitedly, a surge of anticipation flooding through me. “Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea if he became my owner.” My excitement was an understatement; I felt positively joyful. I was eager to follow a werewolf home for the first time since my capture.“I should be on my best behavior,” I resolved, my determination fueled by the prospect of being chosen by him. However, Alphonso
BALINThe mermaid in the dirty pool is the most beautiful sea creature I have ever seen. Even without scales, she still looked stunning. When I came over to her, I felt a strange thud in my heart. The feeling was so foreign that it nearly scared me. Even Lin, my ever-fierce wolf, seemed subdued by the mere sight of her.I wanted to take her with me, but Lin protested, insisting we find another mermaid since we couldn’t figure out why my heart was reacting this way. I agreed with him. However, I was suddenly enraged when tears rolled down her cheeks. Lin raged, and before I knew it, he took over, killing Alphonso and the unfortunate man. He felt satisfied and let me take control again.I caught sight of the mermaid smiling excitedly at Alphonso’s dead body.“We should just take her home,” Lin said.I didn’t protest; I, too, wanted that. So, I stretched out my hand to her.“Leave with me,” I said, my voice so calm that Jarek stared at me in shock.The mermaid placed her hand on mine, and
MARILYN The Alpha gently placed me in the car, and I felt pampered. My eyes fluttered, and I felt dizzy, probably because my body was adjusting to being out of the sea. Though I can live on land, my body needs time to adjust.The Alpha glanced at me and said, “Get some sleep. We will be there in a while.”I didn’t need to be told twice. I honestly needed to sleep. In a few minutes, I dozed off to dreamland.My eyes fluttered open, and the Alpha said, “You are awake,” with his eyes focused on the road.I rubbed my eyes and looked out the window. I was welcomed by a breathtaking view, far grander than Star Ocean Pack, where I had been. The Alpha’s home was an awe-inspiring mansion, making my previous residence seem like a tiny village in comparison.“Here it is,” the Alpha said as he pulled up in front of the magnificent white mansion.“You live here?” I gestured to him, surprised.He nodded, and I was amazed he understood my gesture so effortlessly. “He’s perceptive,” I thought, feelin
BALINI followed the guard out of the main hall, my mind racing with the realization that today was the Empire meeting day. With the full moon approaching, we needed to plan the hunting grounds and address the issue of young wolves going rogue during their first shift. As the empire’s greatest and strongest Alpha, my presence was crucial. But my thoughts kept drifting back to the mermaid I had left behind.Suppressing the urge to go to her, I focused on the meeting grounds, where the other Alphas stood to welcome me, except for Ryker, the old wolf whom I wondered what he was still doing alive.“Pay your respect to me,” I growled in my Alpha voice.Ryker was thrown off his feet. He fell flat on his face, making me nod in satisfaction. All the other Alphas tried hard to suppress their laughter.“Let the meeting begin,” I pronounced, even though Ryker was still on the ground, probably too embarrassed to get up.“Is the ground more comfortable than the couch?” Alpha Smith, Alpha of the Dar
MARILYN My eyes snapped open when I felt water touch my skin. The first thing I saw was the Alpha staring at me, looking so worried. The worried expression on his face was so genuine that I quickly leaned into his arms. Never has anyone worried about me this way. He seemed surprised at first, but then he hugged me back. Just being in his arms gave me an indescribable feeling. I felt safe and secure in his embrace.“Let’s get you out of here. You can walk, right?” he asked, gently pushing me to arm’s length, probably to check out my legs.I blushed intensely.“Oh, they went back to being a tail,” he muttered.“I guess you get tails once you are wet,” he said logically.I nodded to confirm his logic.He gazed at me for a while. Without warning, he lifted me from the tub and carried me out of the bathroom. My cheeks almost burst as I blushed so intensely.Like a delicate treasure, he lowered me to the bed, ensuring his hand didn’t brush my knife wound.“Give me a minute,” he mumbled.I w
MARILYNHe was still staring at me with that wolfish grin in his eyes.Keiran pinched the bridge of his nose and turned his attention back to the man.“She's been bought” I heard him whisper to the man.There was a scowl on the man's face at that.“Is her master here?” He asked, his voice loud as though he didn't care that I was there.He was rude but for some reason, this wasn't how I envisioned the exiled Alpha to be. Maybe I was mistaken and he just had the same name as the exiled Alpha however Keiran had referred to him as Alpha, no one did that anymore if someone was exiled. They were stripped of their position so it wouldn't make sense if Keiran was doing it “You know I'm right here,” I said lazily.The man let out a smile. “My apologies, sweetheart. I was just going through the necessary details”I sighed and crossed my arms. “I'm not on the list, sir,” I said with an eye raised.A look of surprise flashed in his eyes as though Keiran had not just told him that.“I see. Howeve
MARILYNI couldn't believe it, I was staring at the exiled Alpha and he… he was also staring at me.Shit.He must have noticed someone's unwavering gaze on him because he slowly turned his head and his eyes landed on me and he frowned, looked me over.I should have looked away but I couldn't and we were just having a staring competition until Keiran got to him bowing before the man removed his gaze from mine and focused on keiran.Dmitri was here to buy a mermaid. weird.Keiran was talking exaggeratedly and I was getting tired of just standing In the same spot so I sighed. Why was I waiting for keiran? I knew the way to the poolIgnoring anyone who looked at me, I strode towards the pool eager to get things over with and leave this placeThe pool looked fairly the same. Nothing much hand changed yet not even the stares that I was given.“Marilyn?!” My name was whispered in shock by several of the mermaids who were clustered around talking before I entered I took a deep breath. Their g
MARILYNKeiran spared me a few glances as we walked past some other employees who stopped to gape at me.“Seems everyone is happy to see you” he said, his hand crossed behind him as he glanced at another employee, a silent message passed between them “They cannot be trusted,” Ophelia said in my head.“I know” I whispered to her as though he could hear my thoughts.She muttered something and suddenly she felt distant.“What's happening?” I asked in alarm as she slowly disappeared from my mind.“I'm out. I think I'm done with my job and you're no fun. I'll let Aylin know that you're good. Stay safe, Marilyn. If you need me, you know where to find me” she said, laughter in her tone until she was gone. I couldn't feel her presence anymore.Pity. I thought I was going to get used to her but alas she has a life of her own and it didn't include being in my head all the time.“Thank you” I whispered to no one.Jolting back to reality, I noticed we were now near the pool where the other mermai
BALINDamien was speaking to Kabal in the corner with a frown on his face while his beta attended to me.“Tea or coffee?” The beta asked in a monotone.I slowly dragged my gaze over the man's slender build. “aren't you tired?” I asked in a frustrated tone.His eyes furrowed slightly in confusion. “What is that supposed to mean, Alpha Chris?”“It means that you've asked me that question 9 times in a minute” I said throwing my hands up exasperatedly.His head tilted and his lips parted slightly. “Oh”I rolled my eyes, not bothering to hide the frustration in my voice. “Yeah, I counted” I sneered.He straightened up. “Oh well you didn't answer either way” he also said.“Wasn't that supposed to be your cue to know what that meant?” I snapped at him.He took a step back and sighed. “Very well”I looked back at Damien who was now talking to an elder in his pack but Kabal was no where to be found. Probably gone as usual. Damien looked really pissed off at something as he spoke to the man and
MARILYNThe mermaid foundation was just a stones breath away and I sighed getting down from the bike.“I hate you” I whispered to Ophelia, hoping she could hear the anger in my voice.She tsked.“Oh well at least you learnt something” she said to me.“Yeah, not to trust you” I said sarcastically.There was a brief silence. “But at least you now know some things”“That doesn't change the fact that he cheated” I said stubbornly, leaning on the bike “Did he?” She asked suddenly.I stuck my hands in my pockets and huffed. “You know, for someone who was hell bent on letting him die, you sure as hell want to defend him” I noted.I felt it. Anger.She was angry.“Hell no” she snapped. “I still want him to die”, she said nonchalantly.“Weird because your actions don't actually show that” I reminded her.“Oh well, I… I can't explain myself at this point. Anyways, why are we here?” She asked suddenly changing the topic I looked at the gates that I called home for so long. It was filled with m
BALIN I walked away as briskly as I could before I would do something I'd regret. She was hiding for some reason and even though I wanted to pull her out of her shell, I knew that would only make her more mad at me.I don't know how she managed to be there but not quite there. I couldn't see her but her essence was everywhere, I could feel her, scent her.As I reached the end of the path, my head turned around to look back at the bike. It was gone but the trace of tires on the ground made me smile. She had pushed it away and left.The revv of the engines from afar reached my ears and I wanted to smile. I was agitated, I didn't see her but with so many interactions with her, I was fine already. She soothed my heart. I wanted her back.As I reached the party of my guards and Kabal, I nodded to them“Let's go. Damien must be waiting for us” I said to them.Kabal looked me over and nodded. “Indeed” with that, he dissolved into black dust and disappeared.A guard opened the car door for m
MARILYNHe didn't move his gaze neither did he show like he could see me.I was being paranoid, he couldn't see me. Right?“Ophelia?” I called out to be sure.Ophelia in my head was muttering a few things before she answered me. “no. He can't. He's just spaced out and looking here by chance”He turned back to his mother. I could see the uncanny resemblance between them. She was the older female vision of him and he looked just like her. The only difference being that he looked more ruthless while she looked very calm.“I remember when I was mad at your dad because he was going to become the Alpha because of Dmitri” she said with a smile My ears were perked up to listen to this conversation. It felt wrong. Like I was listening in on something that wasn't my place to hear“He said that it was better that he take over before you grow up to take his place…even if he's gone, I know he's proud of what you've become. He's proud.. I can feel him. He knew you'd make a great leader” She said w
MARILYNStumbling back, my heart began pounding.The woman who looked just as beautiful and ethereal as Balin was arranging some flowers in a flowerpot. Daisies.She hadn't seen me. She couldn't see me. I felt sick to my stomach.I tried to move but it seemed like my legs were rooted to the spot. Ophelia.“Ophelia, let go this instant!” I yelled to her in my head.She was awfully silent but she still didn't let me move “I swear that I'll block you out from my consciousness” I threatened.That got her attention.“Calm down, little one. You can't even do that if you wanted to. If you succeeded then it means I was humoring you. I don't want you to leave now for some reasons” her tone was soft as she led me towards where the woman was humming.I took a look at the daisies and my hand reached out to touch them.“Don't! You'll blow our cover!”, Ophelia hissed and I quickly drew back my hand.“Sorry” I said sheepishly.Ophelia muttered a few obscenities that I couldn't hear and she muttered
MARILYNThe wind whipped past me in the early hours of the morning as I ventured through the path leading back to the Ocean.For some weird reason, I knew the way there for some weird reason, it was like my brain had mapped it out already and my body was just leading me there.A sudden voice in my head sounded. “You want closure, isn't that?”I stiffened and looked around me, the early morning sun doing nothing to help my vision as I tried to look at the sealed off houses on the side of the road.If I had waited till the morning, I could have gone with a car from Damien but I didn't want to bother him anymore than I already had so I had just snuck out.“Who's there?” I didn't know if to shout it out or just say it in my mind. I knew that voice from somewhere but I Didn't know where.“A friend. Surely, you haven't forgotten me so soon” the voice said, in a surprised tone.There was tense silence before the voice spoke. “it's Ophelia”Ophelia… my brain wracked around for that name and I