Xanthus simmered in lethal anger as he held Slink several feet above the ground. He was skinny for a human, and reeked of drugs, alcohol, and body odor. Xanthus forced himself not to crush the human’s windpipe. Just the thought of this vile creature putting his hands on Sara had Xanthus feeling murderous.
“Please, don’t kill me,” Slink said.
“I would love nothing more than to kill you. But I won’t. If you had succeeded in your plans tonight, I would have killed you without hesitation. Instead, I’m sending you to a place where you can never harm or threaten another innocent, and if you knew what fate awaited you, you would be pleading for death.”
Xanthus stepped to the edge of a rocky overhang and pointed his trident toward the water lapping below. Slowly, he lowered Slink into the water. “I send you to the Panthon Prison human cell block to answer for your crimes.” Xanthus knew the prison would accept humans without question.
Small shoots of seaweed sprouted from the sand and slid over Slink’s feet. They slithered up and over his skin like a hundred thin, green snakes, cocooning him as they moved up his body. His eyes bulged as he opened his mouth and gave an ear-piercing wail.
Xanthus had also wondered if the screams came more from fear or pain. Triton had explained how the Heitach worked and had given Xanthus the power to command them. They required water to call them forth, and when they came, they not only covered their victims, but also poisoned them, causing an excruciating amount of pain before temporarily shutting down all bodily function. Miraculously, the cocoon would keep the human alive for transport to any place Xanthus commanded.
These were resourceful creatures. They could get through any barrier, travel any distance around the world, and they instinctively knew the exact place you ordered them to go. If he wanted to, Xanthus could send this man to the United States president’s oval office and the secret service would be powerless to stop them.
Slink drifted away from shore. His wails were cut off as the Heitach covered his face just before he slipped under the surface.
Xanthus made his way back to the grove of trees. There, encircled in darkness, he found Sara. She was curled up, weeping, her body trembling.
Xanthus felt tormented, guilty. He’d known that she wasn’t safe among the humans. But he’d left her anyway, to complete his mission. Well, his mission was nearly complete. Only one guilty person remained to be sent to Triton. Regardless of his duty, Xanthus should never have left Sara unprotected. The humans were dangerous beings. Of course, Xanthus knew she wouldn’t be any safer among Dagonians. What in Hades was he to do with her?
What he wanted to do was carry her off to his home and lock her up safe, where no one could hurt her again. In those long moments tonight when he had been unsure whether she was dead or alive, he’d been frantic. Then it struck him.
He loved her.
He loved her with his whole heart, soul, and being. Xanthus knelt down next to her small form on the hard ground. For the first time, he saw with his eyes the evidence of what she really was—a true daughter of Calypso. Her perfect tail fin shone pale against the dark sand.