Mermaid Tails Read online

  They all seemed happy and healthy, and Giato lingered longest over the ocean fish tank, wondering for the thousandth time what Mihail might be. He had initially thought perhaps Mihail was one of the merfolk. They had a shifted form that was close to human. But they needed to be in the ocean at least once every few days, and Caelfall was a few day's travel from the ocean, so Mihail wouldn't be able to do that.

  There was a chance he could be a kraken, but from what Giato had read, their skin stayed the color of their luminescent scales when they changed color. There were other options, but most of them didn't shift fully to a humanoid form, and the rest were myths.

  The door chimed, and Giato looked up. He squelched the disappointment when it turned out to be another pair of customers and not Mihail, chiding himself to let it go. Maybe he'd go for a walk later and see if he could find any trace of Mihail. It was a small city, so there was a chance they'd run across each other.

  "Afternoon," Giato greeted. He surveyed the customers. They were both dressed warmly, richly, in thick woolen cloaks that were lined with fur at the collars and boots that looked as though they were new or near new. He wasn't certain he liked the look of them, despite the good quality of their outerwear. The one in front, taller and narrower than the one behind him, had a pinched, unpleasant look about him that said he'd haggle to the last coin over prices. The other, shorter and a little stocky, had a mean look that said he'd kick small children if it got him what he was after.

  Hopefully that was just the unfortunate way they looked, like the way Giato could look intimidating if he wasn't paying attention and relaxing his face.

  "Can I help you gentlemen with something?" Giato asked.

  "Yes," the taller one said, his voice nasally. He looked about the shop, his mouth curling with disdain. "I'm in the market for...some rare goods. You probably won't have them."

  Giato smiled. Sometimes first impressions were right. "Probably not."

  Tall-and-unpleasant scoffed softly, casting his gaze about the room. "Mermaid tail."

  "Get out of my shop before I throw you out," Giato said, keeping his voice level. Short-and-stocky stilled, giving off the vibe that he was waiting for the least provocation to launch an assault. Giato let his smile slip, in no mood to deal with this form of asshole today. Not that he ever was.

  Tall-and-unpleasant scoffed again, pulling out a card. He dropped it on the floor, looking put out about doing so. "If you hear of anyone selling, my boss can be reached there." Probably said boss was making them leave the card, given tall-and-unpleasant's reluctance.

  Giato crossed his arms, leveling the two of them with a glare. Tall-and-unpleasant turned and stalked toward the door, and Giato didn't move until he and his surly companion were gone and the door had shut firmly behind them. Mermaid tail. Whoever had told them to come to Giato's shop needed to be shaken, and the two assholes themselves needed to be chucked into the deepest part of the ocean.

  "Mermaid tail," Giato repeated. He walked over to the card they'd dropped, picking it up and turning it over. Messieurs Delacroix, Purveyors of Rare Specimens. The name of the most expensive inn in the city had been written in neat print underneath.

  Why in the world were they looking for mermaid tail here of all places? There were several towns and cities that were closer to the ocean that would be a better bet. Not that Giato wanted them to be able to find what they were looking for, but it seemed an odd thing for them to be searching for this far away. Flipping the card between his fingers, Giato pondered what to do. There was a royal guard outpost in town, but he wasn't certain they could do anything based on him showing up with a card and claiming the men were after merfolk.

  They'd probably dismiss it. If it were dragon scales, they'd run the assholes out of town. There were more than enough dragons in town that such a threat would be taken seriously. Giato didn't know any merfolk.

  Which made him think and worry all over again about Mihail. He might not be a merman, but he was obviously something more than human, which meant he'd be of interest to assholes looking to sell 'specimens' for illegal magical use.

  Giato went to his desk and tucked the card away. He'd go and ask a few of the other shops in the city if they'd had similar visits. Perhaps if there were enough accounts of the Delacroix lackeys bugging shopkeeps about illegal goods, the guard would do something about it.

  He could see if he could find Mihail too, if only to warn him to keep his head down.

  Maybe he knew already, though, and was keeping his head down? Giato's shop was on the edge of the downtown area. The Delacroix goons had likely hit up other shops already, so maybe Mihail had caught wind of them. That was a somewhat cheering thought, even if it meant Mihail wasn't around. He'd rather Mihail be safe, even if he wished Mihail would think of him—his shop, rather—as a safe place.

  Giato shut his ledger and dug his keys out of his desk. He could run a few errands while he was out, stock up on food and maybe even try to find a good pair of gloves for Mihail if he ever showed up again. Tucking a small coin pouch in his pocket, Giato headed toward the front door.

  He'd gotten halfway there when the door opened again, and someone stepped inside. They wore a ragged cloak, the hood pulled up, and Giato would know it anywhere because he'd spent too much time sneaking looks at Mihail when he thought he could get away with it. A wave of relief washed through him, and Giato smiled, even as Mihail removed his hood to reveal that he looked awful.

  His skin was near colorless, his eyes looked sunken with dark bruise-like circles underneath them, and his hair, normally vibrant and vivid, seemed dark and lifeless.

  "Are you all right?" Giato asked, rushing forward. He wrapped an arm around Mihail's shoulders, all but dragging him over to the chair by the ocean fish tank. The fish weren't reacting like normal; they were coming close, interested, but not swarming or swimming excitedly at the front of the tank.

  Mihail shook his head, sitting down heavily. He looked at the tank—no, through the tank, out at the street. Giato left him sitting there, moving to lock the door and drop the heavy curtains into place in front of the windows. It wasn't something he did often; the fish liked light, but sometimes he needed to block out the sun.

  It definitely seemed like now was a good time to have the curtains closed, given how anxious Mihail looked. Giato immediately returned to Mihail's side, grabbing the pad and paper on the desk nearby that he'd been keeping for Mihail when he showed up. He handed it to Mihail, who took it with cold, trembling hands.

  "What's wrong?" Giato asked. He was in over his head, he'd admit that in a heartbeat, but he couldn't leave anyone to be as upset and terrified as Mihail obviously was.

  Mihail took a deep breath, his mouth twisted unhappily as he started slowly scratching out letters on the paper. He turned it so Giato could easily see it, though it was unnecessary; the word was clear as day, even upside down and in shaky letters.

  Curse.

  Giato swore softly. Who would curse Mihail? Why? And what did the curse do? Mihail turned the paper back around and bent his head in concentration, writing slowly.

  They're here.

  "Can you stay here?" Giato asked. He'd murder any asshole mage who thought they were going to get through him to get to Mihail. "Or do you need to go home?"

  Mihail shook his head, starting to write again. Giato waited impatiently, thrumming with energy and wanting to go track down the asshole who thought magic was a great way to abuse people. Probably a human mage, which was stereotyping, but Giato had never met a dragon or fairy or anyone else who used magic that way.

  Home is the ocean. Mihail exhaled, lifting his gaze to meet Giato's eyes. I can't go home.

  Giato grimaced. He had been right, though that didn't clear up the question of what Mihail was. Not important. Important was getting the curse removed. Unfortunately, the only way to do that was to find the caster and make them remove it. Giato was more than willing to do that, but he doubted the caster was going to make that easy.
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br />   "What is the curse?" Giato asked, because that could help narrow it down. He would go to the Royal Guard too. Or better, send Chara to go get them. They could and would help find the asshole responsible, and if he sent Chara, Giato could stay with Mihail and make sure he was safe.

  Can't shift, can't talk, can't magic. Mihail grimaced, fidgeting with the pen.

  Giato nodded. He stood up, pulling his keys out of his pocket. "Relax, stay here. I'm going to get Chara to get some help. I'll be right back." At Mihail's inquisitive look, Giato clarified, "Chara runs the wine shop across the street."

  Mihail nodded and drew his cloak tighter about his shoulders. Giato hesitated, but then headed for the door. He'd send Chara after help, and then he'd get Mihail fixed up with food and try to entice him upstairs. He could get proper rest in a bed.

  Giato didn't bother to grab his cloak, not for simply crossing the street. He locked the door behind him and slushed his way across the street. Thankfully it wasn't cold enough for the melting snow to turn to ice yet. Giato glanced up and down the street, but there were only a few shoppers hurrying about their business. No one gave him a second thought as he crossed the street and let himself into Chara's shop.

  Chara was a fairy, about three feet shorter than Giato, as most fairies were. She was plump, pretty, and had a ready smile that fell away as she took in Giato's expression.

  "What's wrong, Giato?" Chara asked. She came out from behind the counter, tossing her blueberry-colored hair over her shoulder as she approached. "You look like you're about to murder someone."

  "Mihail," Giato said. He paused and took a breath, tamping down on his anger. "He's cursed. I need the Royal Guard, but I don't want to leave him. He said...well, wrote, that they're in town."

  Chara's expression hardened. "I'll go. Did he tell you anything else?"

  "He's from the ocean," Giato said, sighing. "The curse took his voice too, keeps him from shifting and doing magic."

  "I'll go right now," Chara said. She gave Giato a quick hug. "Go look after him. Try not to kill anyone until after the Guard gets there, all right? Let them focus on Mihail first."

  "No promises," Giato said. He was fairly certain if the assholes after Mihail showed up, they were going to get a bruising at a minimum. "Thank you, Chara."

  "You're welcome. Now get back over there. I'll be as quick as I can." She walked back to the counter, fishing out a giant keyring. Giato made a note to get her some of the sweetberries she liked as a thank you and headed back across the street to his own shop. No one out on the street seemed suspicious, and Giato let himself in, flipping the sign on the door to 'closed' after he let himself in.

  Mihail was still in his chair, pen and paper in his lap. He'd fallen asleep, which didn't surprise Giato. He looked as though he hadn't slept in the week since Giato had last seen him. Giato paused by the door to take off his slush-covered boots, and then walked over to Mihail's chair. The pad had two more words scrawled on it, 'thank you,' and Giato smiled as he picked up the pad and pen and set them on the desk again.

  Should he wake Mihail? No, but sleeping in the chair couldn't be comfortable. Giato moved before he could talk himself out of it, carefully rolling Mihail into his arms and picking him up. Mihail stirred, but didn't tense up, instead nestling against Giato's shoulder like he did it all the time.

  Giato's body suffused with warmth, and he smiled softly as he carefully carried Mihail toward the back. He managed the stairs with only a little bit of awkwardness and brought Mihail through the small apartment and into his bedroom.

  Mihail didn't wake the entire time, nor as Giato settled him on top of the covers. Giato left his cloak on, not wanting to wake Mihail, and covered him with a throw from the trunk at the foot of his bed. Mihail promptly cozied in, and Giato left the bedroom, smiling softly as he made his way down the stairs.

  Downstairs again, Giato kept himself busy by cleaning his tanks, feeding the fish, and straightening and dusting the shop. It seemed as though it took forever before someone finally knocked on his front door. Giato immediately walked over, checking briefly to make sure it was Chara and the Guard, not a customer ignoring the closed sign. Chara stood with two women in the thick green-gray jackets issued by the Royal Guard, and Giato opened the door without hesitation.

  "Afternoon," Giato said, holding the door. The two Guards entered, the dark-skinned guard returning his greeting with a pleasant smile.

  "I'm going to get back to my shop. Good luck, Giato," Chara said. She gave him a smile before heading away.

  "Thanks, Chara," Giato said. She waved over her shoulder, not pausing as she made her way across the slushy road.

  "You're not the one who was cursed," the dark-skinned guard said. She was handsome, with a wide nose and wide jaw, an easy smile and thick braids tumbling from her head. The marks on her collar said she was high-level, though Giato wasn't thoroughly acquainted with the hierarchy of the Guard. She offered a hand. "I'm Guard Aliki, and this is Guard Lea. We've been assigned to this case."

  "I'm Giato Affini," Giato replied. "Thank you for coming out."

  Aliki nodded, giving him a smile. "Of course. I'm glad you came to us. I know the Prince's new edicts aren't believed by everyone, and I appreciate you're willing to trust us with this."

  Giato shrugged. He'd never had some of the nasty run-ins with the Guard that some other non-humans had. Particularly in Caelfall, the Guard had always done its best to protect the non-humans in the city, despite the xenophobic policies of the magistrates. Now that Prince Karalos had taken power and was putting a shorter leash on the magistrates, those policies were supposed to be a thing of the past. Policy wasn't practice, but Giato liked the Caelfall Guard. They had several non-humans on their staff, which was a marked difference from other cities he'd visited.

  Guard Lea herself was non-human, now that Giato took a closer look. She had translucent, shimmering skin, though otherwise she looked human, from her brown hair and brown eyes to the shape of her face. She was a few inches shorter and had fewer decorations on her collar, so Guard Aliki was the one in charge.

  "Mihail is the one who's cursed. He's resting upstairs," Giato said. "I can go wake him—"

  "Let him rest a minute," Aliki said. She took off her gloves and pulled out a small notebook. "Tell me what you know, first, and then we'll speak to him."

  "All right," Giato said. "Come, we can sit in the kitchen."

  "Sure," Aliki agreed. She and Lea followed him upstairs, and Giato spent a few minutes making a pot of tea and getting out some snacks before joining them at the table in the center of the kitchen.

  "I don't know much," Giato said, settling in with a cup of tea. "The curse took his voice." Giato paused briefly, watching as Aliki noted that. Lea seemed to only be observing, but she offered Giato an encouraging smile when he looked at her. Continuing, Giato outlined all he knew, which wasn't much. Mihail was an ocean creature, cursed by someone who was in town now, and couldn't shift, do magic, or speak. He included when Mihail had started showing up at the shop, and that he'd been visiting for a few weeks.

  "All right," Aliki said. She tapped her pencil against the page. "No idea who might have done this?"

  "No," Giato said. "I hadn't had the chance to ask, and I doubt it would be anyone I know."

  Aliki nodded, satisfied with that. "If that's all you know, we'd better talk to him now."

  Giato nodded and stood, loath to wake Mihail, but Mihail's safety was important. He walked down the hall to the bedroom, his heart tripping over itself to see Mihail in his bed. He'd barely moved since Giato had settled him, and he looked so right in Giato's bed that it hurt when Giato reminded himself that Mihail was a guest and wouldn't be staying. Especially if they broke his curse.

  Making himself move, Giato approached the side of the bed and gently shook Mihail's shoulder. Mihail shook his head and batted at Giato's hand, not opening his eyes. Giato laughed softly. "Mihail, I need you to get up. The Guard are here."

  Mihail tense
d slightly at that but obligingly opened his eyes. He sat up slowly, shoving his hair out of his face. Giato gestured to the doorway on the far side of the room.

  "There's a bathing room in there if you want to refresh before you join us in the kitchen," Giato said. He squeezed Mihail's shoulder in a hopefully reassuring way. Mihail nodded, giving him a tentative, worried smile before shuffling out of bed and toward the bathing room.

  Giato hesitated but left the bedroom, despite wanting to linger. He rejoined Aliki and Lea in the kitchen, pouring a cup of tea for Mihail and loading up a small plate with the crackers he favored. Then he went into the main living space to fetch some paper and a pen for Mihail to use, since Aliki would need her own to make notes. She'd already covered a page, even though Giato hadn't had much to say.

  Mihail appeared after a few minutes. He'd taken off his cloak, revealing raggedy clothes that were stained and full of holes. They detracted not at all from how pretty he was, and Giato barely waited for Mihail to sit down before he stood, going back to the bedroom to find Mihail a sweater.

  When he returned to the kitchen, Mihail had written one word on the pad. No.

  Mihail didn't look happy, but he didn't look scared either. He was tapping the pen against the paper with annoyance, frowning across the table at Aliki. She didn't seem perturbed, adding a note to her writing pad.

  Giato held the sweater out to Mihail when he looked up. "Here. You looked cold."

  Thank you, Mihail mouthed, giving him a shy smile as he took the sweater. He stood up to pull it on, and Giato returned to his seat, settling in and grabbing another sugar cookie from the plate of snacks. The sweater was entirely too big on Mihail, but hopefully that meant it would keep him plenty warm. If it was also adorable to see Mihail drowning in one of Giato's sweaters, well...at least Giato would have that when everything was settled and Mihail was home.

  Aliki cleared her throat, flipping to a new page in her notebook. "Here's what Mr. Affini has told us so far."