Page 50 of Kraken the Seal

“If these people treated my mom like they’ve been treating you, she would’ve eaten them,” Delmar said, making me laugh and easing the tightness in my chest.

“She would?”

He nodded. “Yup, even if they gave her indigestion. Kraken women aren’t known for being quiet and subservient. That’s like asking a female great white shark to be more demure.”

I laughed again and more of my anxiety eased. When another appendage wiggled into my hands, I petted it also. Who needed a cat when you had a kraken with needy tentacles?

“Most of my friends wouldn’t have put up with it either,” I said. “Although none of them would eat anyone.”

Delmar snorted. “I might be exaggerating. We don’t eat humans often. Too many big bones and not enough meat. Not like tasty-tasty swordfish.”

“That’s good to know,” I said with a laugh.

“So besides the way this colony treats its women, what’s been bothering you?” he asked.

“As much as I want to keep my seal, I’m worried I don’t deserve her,” I said. “What if she was stolen?”

He gave me a quizzical look. “Stolen?”

“What if the spell took someone’s seal away from them and gave her to me?” I asked, putting in words the idea that popped into my head this morning. “If they tell me that some poor selkie is suffering without their seal, then I’d have to give her up. The thought of that terrifies me.”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” he said. “But I don’t think that’s how the spell worked.”

“You don’t?”

He shook his head. “If it was that type of spell, Elena should’ve been able to trace the seal's origins.”

“Maybe she couldn’t,” I said.

“Maybe,” he agreed. “But there’s no point in worrying until we find out what Norris knows. Besides, if anyone deserves to have a beautiful and adorable seal inside of her, it’s you.”

“My seal agrees with you,” I said, snuggling close and pulling the tentacles in my hands up to my mouth to give them little kisses on the tips before going back to petting them. “And she adores you.”

“She’s a smart seal,” he murmured with a happy little smile. “Placed inside a gorgeous woman.”

Chapter 17

Nina

That evening, Dale was so anxious to get us to Norris on time that he was waiting on the dock next to our boat. He was wearing a suit that was much too big for him and frowned the moment we emerged from the cabin.

“You’re going to be late!”

“We have plenty of time,” Delmar said, lifting me from the boat to the dock. He didn’t need to, but I got a little thrill at how easy it was for him to pick me up.

Dale didn’t like Delmar’s lack of concern but didn’t respond.

Delmar shook his head. “I don’t get it.”

“Get what?” I asked.

“The way they keep treating me like a monster. Other magical creatures are wary of me, but not scared. Krakens are all about live and let live. You don’t bother us, then we won’t bother you. A lot like bears, at least from what I've heard. The only bear I’ve seen in real life was a polar bear, and he was busy swimming from one ice floe to another.”

“What about other Selkies?”

“I only interacted with a small colony back on the East Coast,” he said. “They let me fuel up and leave. They weren’t friendly, but they weren’t scared either.”

“I wonder why this colony is so afraid,” I said as Dale walked up the dock at a speed we refused to match. When he realized we weren’t following closely, he stopped and waited for us to catch up.