Into the Triangle (18 page)

Turning back to his friends, Gabe made sure his satchel was firmly attached to his side. The precious cargo inside would be the key to the coming confrontation. "Let's get up there and stop this war before it's too late."

Mary and Aaron nodded, falling into place on either side of him as they slowly waded through the water, toward the surface.

Breaking though the water, Gabe was momentarily blinding by the bright sunlight. The air felt strange and light; he'd gotten so used to breathing in the water. A light sea breeze whipped away the moisture from his skin, leaving Gabe feeling chilled and a bit shaken. Already he missed the soothing embrace of the ocean, the way the water cradled his body like a long lost lover. His body felt heavy and cumbersome, unlike the fluid way he was able to move in the sea.
This sucks
!

He heard a low grunt come from behind him, and then a feminine gasp. Both sounds let him know that Aaron and Mary were both feeling the same awkward sensations as he was.

"The sooner we get this done and over with, the better," Aaron grumbled.

Gabe couldn't agree more. All he wanted to do was run back to the safety the water represented, but instead he forced himself to place one foot in front of the other and move forward.

Sand clung to his wet bare feet as he slowly led the way up the barren beach, heading toward the thick barrier of trees a few yards away. He thought he remembered the general direction of the small village all the inhabitants of Bimini Island lived on after they passed through the Triangle, and since neither Aaron nor Mary voiced concerns, Gabe figured he was heading the right way.

After what seemed like forever, the thick forest of trees began to thin and he could barely make out the straw roofs of some of the huts when a sudden rustling to his right warned him they weren't alone.

Two men burst out of the bushes, brandishing sharpened spears, loincloths hanging low on their gaunt hips.

"Don't move!" one demanded.

"Freeze!" the other said, which sounded ridiculous since he looked like a stiff wind might blow him right over.

Right at that moment Gabe was never more grateful that the mer wore almost normal clothes in their city; he would have hated to face down these men nearly naked and vulnerable in a loincloth.

Before Gabe could open his mouth and respond to the commands by say something stupid like 'take me to your leader', Aaron pushed forward.

"Charlie! Steven! What the hell are you two doing? Since when do you guys work patrol?"

This time it was the two men who looked shocked, both of them staring at Aaron in surprise.

"Aaron? Is that really you?" the first one said, as he lowered his spear and stepped forward. His long brown hair was covered in filth and the scraggly beard on his face was clearly unkempt. Covered in what looked like bruises and sores, the man was thin to the point of being emaciated. It was startling to see; Gabe couldn't remember anyone looking that bad before he'd been kidnapped by Father Willis and then subsequently rescued by his mate.

What the hell has happened since the last time we were here
? Glancing over at Mary and Aaron's bewildered expressions, he could tell they were wondering the same thing.

"Yeah, Charlie, it's me. What the hell is going on, man? What happened to you?" Aaron asked.

Charlie shook his head while his friend, Steven, looked like he was about to be sick.

"I can't believe you're back. No one knew where you were, and when we went to Father Willis with our concerns, we were turned away by his two goons… No one has seen Father Willis for weeks, and with Horace and Simon calling the shots, things have gone to hell. There's not enough food and people are dying! We weren't on patrol today… there is no more patrol. No one is keeping the village safe and we were out trying to get food… we lost our fight and—"

"Wait," Gabe demanded, breaking in to the panicked man's tale. "You're having to fight for food?"

Both Charlie and Steven nodded, but this time Steven spoke. "There's not enough food to go around anymore. If you're not strong enough to fight for your share, then you starve. The women and children are dying… that's why we were out here hunting—even though we've been forbidden to leave the village."

Gabe shared shocked looks with Aaron and Mary before turning back to the others. Something about the haggard and beaten down look of the two men clicked with him, and he knew he had to not only stop Father Willis, but he had to save the village as well.

I am the chosen mate to the King of the Merfolk
…
these humans are just as much my people as the Mer. I will help them.

Stepping forward, he placed a hand on Steven's thin shoulder and nodded at Charlie.

"Lead us to the village… we've got a story to tell everyone then we'll put a stop to this nonsense once and for all."

Chapter 18

"Dear God," Mary whispered in horror.

Gabe had to agree whole-heartedly as he stared at the decimated state of the village. What one was a happy, thriving community was now an almost complete collection of ruins.

"What the hell happened here?" Aaron asked, a thin layer of rage in his tone.

Both Charlie and Steven stopped at the edge of the village, cowering away from the other three's anger.

"We told you, with Horace and Simon in charge, things have turned ugly," Steven replied softly.

Gabe shook his head as he watched a young mother try to split a small bowl of what looked like mashed bananas between three thin, starving children. "I know what you said, but never in my life did I imagine it was this bad."

Gone was the tranquil village Gabe had seen before. Villagers wandered around, sneaking distrustful glances at each other, and there were even two men fighting over a small scrap of meat. The cooking fire had long burned out, and huts were in terrible disrepair; some of them were now nothing more than piles of ashes on the ground, as if someone had set them on fire. Children wept, women wailed, and haunted-looking men did their best to provide for their loved ones. Everyone was thin, protruding ribs and sunken in eyes proclaiming something terrible was happening there.

"Come on, we've got to end this," Gabe told the others as he stomped his way through the village, heading toward the large hut at the village center that belonged to Father Willis and his henchmen. Mary and Aaron followed closely behind him, the others following a little slower.

Many people turned to watch them as they passed, and Gabe could feel their uneasy stares like daggers in his back. The clothes he wore, plus the air of authority that clung to him now definitely caused a stir among the villagers. Muttering and whispering arose; especially when people caught sight of his companions.

Gabe ignored it all as he made his way across the clearing and finally reached Father Willis's hut.

The pearl on his forehead burned in warning, but still Gabe raised a fist and pounded on the door.

There was no response.

Glancing back at his friends, Gabe shrugged at their questioning gazes. Pounding on the door again, this time with louder than the last, he started to feel a bit silly. Everyone in the village was watching him, and Gabe knew their curiosity could turn to hostility at any moment if he wasn't careful.

Mob mentality could be a very dangerous thing, which was why he hoped facing Father Willis and his cronies right away would make these desperate people side with him.

Before it's too late and the Merfolk show up to decimate us all
!

Just as he was raising his hand to knock again, the wood door of the hut suddenly swung open toward him. Gabe quickly jumped back to avoid being hit.

"Who the hell is banging on the door?!" an angry voice snarled.

Simon looked exactly like Gabe remembered from that terrible night a few weeks ago—same angry look in his eyes, same cruel tilt to his mouth. He glared at the people before him, looking moments away from attacking.

Standing in the doorway, Simon completely filled the small space, tall and strong, so filled with rage and evil that for a moment Gabe was paralyzed with fear. Memories of being strapped down to Father Willis's table overwhelmed him and he opened his mouth to respond but nothing would come out of his suddenly dry throat.

A sharp jolt from his pearl, like a small electric shock, broke him out of the state and he cleared his throat, drawing Simon's attention back to him.

Simon studied him for a long moment, as if he knew he'd seem Gabe before, but couldn't place him.

Yeah, this meathead definitely isn't the sharpest crayon in the box
…

Simon's eyes fell on Gabe's pearl, and widened considerably.

"You!" he growled, fists clenching. But behind the sudden bravado, Gabe spotted what looked like a flash of fear inside the bigger man's eyes.

He couldn't help himself then; Gabe smirked up at the big asshole, relaxing his tense shoulders and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Hey there, Simon-boy. Can Father Willis come out to play?"

Simon glared, but made no move to come after Gabe for his insubordination—even if he looked like he desperately wanted to.

"What are you doing here?" he asked. "I thought you left?"

Gabe snorted. "Left? You mean escaped… after Father Willis tried to kill me. But you remember, don't you? I mean, you and the other meathead were there after all. I seem to remember you two strapping me down to the table so Father Willis could rip out my mate pearl!"

He made sure to speak loudly and clearly, so that all of the ears trained on them could hear every word he spoke. His tactic worked, because the moment his voice faded a cacophony of murmurs and whispered questions flew between the villagers watching the strange scene.

Simon opened his mouth, no doubt to deny Gabe's claim, but he was interrupted by a weak voice calling out from inside the hut.

"Who's at the door, Simon?" Though the voice was shaky and feeble, there was no doubt in Gabe's mind it belonged to the horrible man he'd come there to face.

"Why don't you come out and see for yourself, Willis!" Gabe yelled.

Simon glared and took a step outside the door, no doubt to lay into Gabe, but Aaron was right there and ready.

Dashing past Gabe, Aaron lashed out with a quick one-two, and before anyone realized what was happening, Simon was knocked on his ass, staring up at them in confusion, as if he didn't know how he'd gotten down there.

"I'd stay down, if I were you," Aaron warned as he stared down the fallen man. "My mate taught me a few things to make sure I'd never be hurt again, and I'm not afraid to use those new skills. I still owe you one for stabbing me, so don't tempt me."

There must have been something in Aaron's eyes that warned the normally thickheaded goon he wasn't kidding, because Simon glanced away and did as told, staying on the ground.

"What is going on out here?" a weak voice demanded from inside the hut—then there he was.

Damn, he looks rough,
Gabe thought with a small sense of satisfaction.
The jolt he got from Paxton and my pearl must have hurt him more than I'd originally thought.

Father Willis looked like he was at death's door. The priest had been skeletal before, but now he had wasted away to nearly nothing. Sickly gray skin was stretched tight over bones, and the yellow pallor to his face warned of possible kidney failure. His black robes hung off his thin frame, billowing about him, making the priest look even smaller. So weak and frail he'd become that Father Willis couldn't even stand on his own; he was propped up in the doorway with the help of Horace, his other henchman. One of his hands was wrapped carefully in cloth, and Gabe could just make out the burned, twisted remains underneath.

Wonder how he explained that injury to everyone
? "
I burned my hand in a freak moment when I tried to rip a man's mate pearl out of his forehead
."
Yeah, I'm sure that would have gone over well with the villagers
.

All in all, Father Willis was in bad shape since the last time Gabe had seen him. He didn't know what all had happened to the village leader in the past few weeks since his escape, but he could only hope it would be fatal for the bastard.

The only thing that hadn't changed about Father Willis was his eyes.

Madness filled those beady black eyes the moment they settled on his face, and Father Willis instantly flushed with anger.

But oddly enough, Gabe felt no fear.

I can do this.

"Gabriel, I had not expected to see you again." Father Willis shot a quick glare over at Horace, and one at Simon, who still sat on the ground. "I was told you were no longer going to be a problem for the village."

"Hmm, I'm sure that irritates the shit out of you, but the rumors of my demise had been greatly exaggerated." Gabe fought back a snicker. He'd always wanted to use that line and never thought he'd have the opportunity to.

Judging by the look of horror on Horace's face and the annoyance on Simon's, the two idiots had never told Father Willis he and the others had managed to escape. No doubt they'd been reported as dead, and in Father Willis's weakened condition, he'd had to take their word for it.