Captivated Ch. 02

Ryan smiled at the burly man and nodded. "We're not trying to make waves around here, Mac," he said.

"Then you four just steer clear of our Charly."

Ryan didn't respond. He just gave the man a last smile before he turned and followed his brother back to their table.

Mac watched until the mainlanders took their seat, and then he shook his head before he turned and went back behind the counter. "They're gonna be trouble for her, Stella," he muttered beneath his breath as he passed the blonde waitress.

"Yeah. I think you're right, Mac. The sooner they're gone, the better."

"For them, yeah," Mac said with a last frown across the coffee shop.

****

"What a nutcase, huh?" Sharon said as she shook back her platinum blonde locks.

"I don't know, Sharon," Cheryl said as she smiled and shrugged. "I mean, he looked as if he really believed what he was saying."

"All nutcases do, Cheryl," she said wryly. "I mean, didn't you get what he was trying to say? He was implying that that Charly girl is some kind of sea creature. A Siren."

Sharon frowned curiously. "Siren?"

"Yes. Mermaid."

Ryan's dark eyebrows gathered as he looked doubtfully at the elegant blonde. "Is that what you got out of that conversation? That that Gems-guy believes Charly is some kind of mermaid?"

To his surprise, both blondes looked at him incredulously, and to his astonishment, they both asked at the same time, "You didn't?"

****

Later that day, Royce stood on the deck of their yacht and looked out toward the horizon. The vessel was anchored in the simple harbor where other luxury yachts were moored, and except for Charly Meeren's rowboat, apparently all ocean vessels were required to be confined to this area.

He was smoking a cigarette as he peered at the horizon, squinting eyes against the smoke and the setting sun. The warm glow of the sun reflected in the peaceful rippling waves of the ocean and it produced quite a spectacular seascape, but he saw none of it. He was too deep in thought to enjoy the remarkable view before him.

His dark hair blew gently around his proud, high-held head as he let the aromatic smoke slowly leave his full lips. Behind him, his younger brother calmly walked over to the railing and came to stand beside him, slipping hands into his pockets as he looked off into the horizon as well.

"Where are the ladies?" he asked his younger brother.

"Down in the galley trying to whip up dinner," Ryan answered with a chuckle, and shrugged when his brother twisted his head and arched eyebrows. "Yeah. I know. We'll be getting the message soon enough that they'll want to go out to dinner." Then he looked curiously at his brother as he watched him quietly return his attention to the horizon. "Strange day today, wasn't it?"

"Hm-mm."

"What part struck you as the most strange?"

Royce arched an eyebrow as he looked incredulously at his younger brother. "What part wasn't?"

"Well, most of it had been, but what struck me as the strangest occurrence today was the fact that the ladies appeared to have heard what neither you nor I heard, and what was never said."

"Are you talking about what happened at the coffee shop this morning?"

"That's exactly what I'm talking about." Ryan shook his head. "They both believed that that Gems fellow implied that Charly Meeren was a mermaid." Then he chuckled and shook his head. "Why on Earth did they get that impression? That Gems fellow said nothing of the kind. He never even implied such a thing, either."

Royce wasn't laughing. "I recall reading somewhere that sea creatures, or sea sirens, are female, and that only female humans can understand them on some sort of psychic level because they're uniquely attuned to them due to their gender."

"You can't be serious!" Ryan cried out incredulously. "You don't seriously think that Charly Meeren is a...mermaid, do you?"

He looked at his younger brother as he flicked his cigarette butt away. "There's something about Charly, Ry, and I aim to find out what that is."

To be continued

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