“It was a Naiad,” Naomi said in a shallow voice. “One of Selene’s favorites, though I have never seen one on this continent. They guard her fortresses in Italy and Greece. The Naiad comes from the depths quickly to steal her prize with her long arms and cannot last out of the water for more than a blink of an eye. She will have already embraced him and taken his last breath. A Naiad steals life with greed. We will not see your friend again.” She shook her head sadly.
“I don’t know what a bloody Naiad is, but the thing I saw was hideous.” Danny shuddered. “It was seven feet tall with slimy seaweed hair. Its skin was gray and dead-looking and peeling off. Its arms were twice as long as its body. If that thing touched me, I would’ve gone to wolf instantly and snapped its head off.”
“Out of the water it’s a hideous monster,” Naomi agreed. “Under the water it’s breathtakingly beautiful, a gorgeous nymph with long flowing hair and angelic features, except for her arms. They remain twice as long as her body. Naiads hunt their prey from under the waters, entrancing those who look upon them, convincing the innocent they are drowning and in need of saving. All of Selene’s servants stayed clear of them and the waters.”
“If it can last only a few precious moments out of water, it dies if we can get it to shore?” I said. No one said anything. “Right?”
Naomi worried her lip, a gesture so human it looked odd. “Yes. Technically that is true, but a Naiad is a powerful being and will not be easy to wrest from its habitat. What you say is not simple, and believe me, your friend is already gone. We need not engage her now if she does not come for us. If we best Selene, then all her of spells, and those in her control, as this Naiad must be, will become null or will be freed. If we are forced to pass back this way, she will be uninterested in us if we stay out of her domain.”
The water began to bubble in front of us and there was thrashing beneath the surface. “Look. The water is moving,” I yelled. “Ray must still be alive.” I took off before I knew what was happening. My wolf snarled for me to stop. No. We don’t leave him behind. He deserves to live just as much as we do.
“Jessica!” my brother yelled, racing toward me. “Don’t do it!”
I dove headfirst into the stream.
It hadn’t looked that deep, but as soon as I hit the water I understood. This wasn’t an ordinary stream. It was an underground lake. What appeared to be a small river actually deepened into a big cavern underneath.
The water glowed.
A strange light issued from under one of the lips in the shoreline, but I had no idea why. The glow was tinted green, so possibly something phosphorescent. I swam down farther and spotted the Naiad with Ray. She had him around the neck and she was diving quickly. He struggled against her, forcing them to sink deeper. He had used his fists in some capacity, because the Naiad was leaking something green from an eye and appeared to be furious. As I took a stroke closer, she wrenched her head toward me and opened a mouth full of sharp teeth like a giant fish.
I had no idea how long I could hold my breath, but I knew I wouldn’t die of asphyxiation. Passing out from loss of oxygen now, however, would not be a good idea.
I followed, and the Naiad bared her teeth again in a soundless hiss. She stopped and brought Ray around. Her face was beautiful, just as Naomi had described, but her teeth were wretched—needle-sharp tips running in several rows like a shark. Her long arms looked grotesque, bending at multiple joints. They held Ray close, trying to contain his struggling.
I maneuvered myself into a position to tread water vertically, facing them. “Come and get me, you freak,” I screamed into the water. I could hear my voice, but I had no idea if I’d made any coherent sounds.
She paused and then swam closer to me to investigate, with Ray in tow, one arm still firmly locked around his neck. Her feet were webbed like flippers, even though they sported toes on the ends. That was creepy.
“What’s the matter? Too scared?” I said on my very last ration of air. I had to breathe, or risk passing out, so as she swam closer, rage and menace etched in her perfect features, I headed toward the surface with a big kick. I hoped she’d follow, because if she didn’t I was out of luck. My head crested the top of the water and I opened my mouth in a big gasp, taking in as much air as I could. Now that I was supernatural, my lung capacity was much bigger than the last time I’d dallied in the water, and I was relieved.
“Jess,” Tyler screamed. “Kick over here and I’ll pull you out!”