The Mermaid He Sold Away

crack, a sound that echoe

r. Croft!" the auctioneer's voice boomed through the gra

, bulletproof glass tank for the world's wealthiest monsters to bid on. The water was cold,

l, was Dr. Aris Thorne. The man I ha

first met him. He was a marine biologist, he' d said, studying coastal erosion. His boat had capsized in a squall, and I h

f the cold ambition I saw in them now. He would touch my face, his fingers tracing the patterns of my scales where they met my skin. He to

nic, I didn't hide my tail properly as I scrambled out of the water. It slapped against the rocks, a loud, wet sound. He stared, his gentle expressio

He didn't say a word as they sedated me and lifted me from the water. He just stood to the side

unprecedented biological discovery. The first day, they took blood samples, tissue scrapings. Aris was there, his voice calm and professional as he

biggest funder, and she clung to Aris's arm like a beautiful, venomous snake. She looked at me

, her voice sickly sweet. She tappe

she "accidentally" kicked the bucket, sending my meal scattering across the dirty floor outside my ta

omething he' d designed so we could talk. One night, I saw him alone in t

hoarse. "Please. Wh

ic anomaly," he said, his voice flat. "A new species. You don't belong in the world." Then, with a single click,

uits came to my tank. They ran a series of checks, their ins

tion for the auction," he told them, his voice devoid of any e

He stood so close I could see the tiny lines around his

murmur. "The world isn't safe for you. This way, you'll be own

ising to the surface. "Protect me? You pu

it." He turned his back on me and walked away. The heavy laboratory door swung shut