Chapter 3

"How is she doing? Is there any change?" Holly asked a few days later when Tony walked out of Mermaid's hospital room.

She wasn't sure she liked the look on his face. Tony had closely monitored Mermaid since she'd regained consciousness, but Holly didn't know how to read him.

"Holly, she has amnesia. When she was submersed under water, there was interruption of oxygen flow to her brain."

"So, she can't remember anything at all?" Lori asked.

Holly had almost forgotten her mother had accompanied her to the hospital.

"I'm afraid not," Tony said.

"How long do you think it'll take for her to recover her memory?" Holly asked.

"There is no telling how long it could take. It could be a few days, weeks or even months."

"Can we see her?" Holly asked and Tony nodded.

"Poor girl doesn't even know where home is," Lori said as they walked into Mermaid's hospital room.

Her condition seemed to have improved but unfortunately, the loss of memory meant she had no idea how she'd ended up on the beach, how she'd gotten hurt, who she was, where she was from and if she had any family.

"Holly," she was so uniquely beautiful and innocent.

"Hi, Mermaid, this is my Mom, Lori Mackenzie. She was concerned about you and wanted to know how you were doing," Holly said.

"That's awfully kind of you, Mrs. Mackenzie."

"Holly was very worried about you and the kids won't stop asking how you are."

"Well, apart from the memory loss, I guess I'm doing okay."

"I'm sorry to hear about that," Lori said.

"Holly is my first memory," Mermaid said.

Holly met Mermaid's warm gaze and smiled.

"It'll all come back in time, you'll see," Lori said.

Mermaid smiled faintly.

"What would you like for us to call you?"

"Holly calls me Mermaid," Mermaid told Lori.

"Then Mermaid it is," Lori said.

She excused herself a moment later and walked out of the room.

"Tony wants to report you as a missing person since you don't remember anything, but—." Holly said, recalling her own apprehension about the situation.

"But what?" Mermaid asked.

She was so trusting that Holly questioned the kind of person she'd been before any of this had happened to her. "I don't know why, but I don't think it's a good idea. I think we should wait until you regain your memory. That way we can find out how you got hurt and how you ended up on the beach."

"Do you think someone tried to hurt me?" Mermaid asked.

Holly reluctantly shook her head. "I don't know, but it's wise to take precautionary measures."

Mermaid nodded as both Lori and Tony reentered the room.

"I just spoke to Anthony. We've decided that as soon as you're released from the hospital, you're coming home with us."

The statement surprised Holly as much as it seemed to surprise Mermaid.

"What?" Mermaid asked.

"What?" Holly asked.

"Honey, we can't let you go out there when you've got no idea who you are," Lori argued.

"But you don't know me. I don't know me. I could be a... bad person."

Holly doubted she was, and somehow found herself agreeing with her mother.

"Until you regain your memory, you'll have to stay with us," Lori said.

"But Dr. Calloway said it could take weeks or months."

"Then that's how long you'll stay," Lori said.

Holly looked at her mother and remembered how kind and wonderful she'd always been. It was a shame that it took such a situation for such memories to reawaken.

"I don't know how to thank you, Mrs. Mackenzie," Mermaid said.

Mermaid struggled to sit up from the bed and gently wrapped her arms around Lori.

"You don't have to thank me. Now, Anthony says you'll be released in a couple of days so Holly and I will go do some shopping for you while you recuperate," Lori said, carefully pulling back from the hug in a bit of embarrassment.

*

"How do you do it?" Sixteen-year-old Hanna asked.

"Uh, do what?"

They were in the school cafeteria seated across each other as they had lunch.

"How do you turn a guy down when he asks you out?"

Holly had gotten used to Hanna's intrusive questions. "Simply by saying I'm busy, I've got plans or well, no."

"How do you take it so lightly?"

"Why do you think it's such a big deal?" Holly asked.

"Because it kinda is, Lance is one of the best athletes in the school. Do you know how many girls would die to go out with him?"

Holly nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders at the question.

"He asked you out and you turned him down. How could you do that?"

Holly blankly stared at her.

"I wish I was you right now," Hanna said.

"Don't, it's not fun being me."

"Clearly. You destroy any form of fun," Hanna said.

"Hanna, you can have anyone you want, including Lance."

"Yeah, right."

"You need to work on your attitude and confidence. I told you this."

"Teach me."

Holly sat silently for a second then asked, "What makes you feel insecure about yourself?"  She saw Hanna's eyes move down to her small undeveloped chest and withheld a laugh.

"That's an unfair question," Hanna complained.

"How so? We're trying to build on something here. You're so beautiful, Hanna."

Holly was rewarded with a smile.

"Any boy would be lucky to date you."

*

It had been a week and a half since Holly had found Mermaid on the beach and Tony had assured her that she was in good enough condition to leave the hospital.

Holly thought Mermaid must have been thinking the Mackenzie's were the weirdest family in the world because of their over-welcoming spirit. The whole family was there to take her home; Alanna and Maddy, her sister—Cassie and, her mother—Lori. Everyone was there to take her to the Mackenzie Ranch.

Holly tried to make it to Mermaid's room to warn her about how overwhelming her family could be, but her nieces beat her to it. They came running past her in excitement and Holly couldn't blame them.

"You must be Alanna. You're just as beautiful as Holly said you were and look at you, Maddy. You're so adorable."

Mermaid's natural way with the kids surprised Holly.

"Daddy told us you're coming to live in the ranch," Alanna said.

"I guess I am," Mermaid said, meeting Holly's gaze at the room's entrance. "Holly said you have a lot of farm animals."

"We have a dog too. His name is Chip," Maddy put in. "But he lives at home with us," she added in animation.

"I hope I get to meet, Chip."

Lori and Cassie walked in at that moment and Holly warmly introduced Cassie. "Mermaid, this is my sister, Cassandra."

"I've heard so much about you, I feel like I already know you," Cassie said.

"It's lovely to meet you," Mermaid said.

"Hello, sweetheart," Lori went over to her, gently embraced her and said warmly, "We're here to take you home."

Alanna and Maddy held on to Mermaid's hands in an attempt to help her when she pulled away the covers to reveal her long, lean, pretty legs.

"I don't know if I'll ever be able to thank you," Mermaid said.

Holly watched in silence as her family took Mermaid into their fold. She smiled as her mother told Mermaid about Joshua—her father, and Michael—her brother. Cassie was left behind talking to Tony as everyone else walked out of the hospital.

While waiting for Cassie, the girls told Mermaid the story of how they'd found her washed up on the beach and how they'd carried her to Holly's jeep and taken her to the hospital.

"Why don't I just follow up with mom behind you?" Cassie suggested since the girls were so excited about Mermaid.

Holly shrugged her shoulders when she saw the look on her nieces' faces and said, "Okay."

"Is it true that you can't remember anything?" Alanna asked while they were on their way to the Mackenzie ranch.

"Yes, it's true."

"Are you a real mermaid?" Maddy asked in the curiosity of a nine-year-old.

"I don't know, Maddy."

The answer was good, since it didn't involve crashing the little girl's dreams.

"I think you are. Mermaids have long hair and nails and they're beautiful and when they're on land, they have feet instead of fins like a fish," Alanna explained in the intelligence of her age group.

Holly turned to look at Mermaid, smiling at the explanation. "I heard the same thing too and I have to say, I agree with Alanna," she said supportively.

"Then maybe I am," Mermaid said.

Telling the kids that mermaids did not exist was like telling them there was no Santa, Tooth fairy or the Easter bunny. These were creative fictional stories told to kids to make life a little bit more magical.

"Do you think you'll ever return to your sea kingdom?" Maddy asked in the innocence of a child.

"I think I like the land far much more."

"Will you tell us stories about mermaids and sea creatures when you remember?"

Holly blankly stared at Mermaid at the question then said, "Girls, I think the reason why Mermaid lost her memory when she came to land was because she's not supposed to reveal the truth about her real home. There are bad guys out there who would want to harm other mermaids if they knew where they are." In Holly's head, it sounded like a reasonable answer to the kids.

"So, does that mean we have to teach you how to do humanly things?" Maddy asked.

"Not everything, just fun things like playing and riding horses," Holly said, knowing it must have been confusing for Mermaid to think up things as such.

A few minutes later, they drove into the ranch and Holly parked the jeep.

"Wow, that's a huge house," Mermaid said.

"Come on, we'll show you around," Alanna said and Mermaid followed suit as they got out of the car.

Holly watched in amusement as the girls led Mermaid to the house.

"I think Mermaid is going to be a good influence on all of us," Lori said, a while after they'd all arrived.

"That's Mermaid? The girl you found on the beach?" Michael, Holly's playful older brother, asked when they were all in the large house.

"You have a girlfriend, remember?" Holly said absentmindedly.

"Where's your father?" Lori asked Michael. Before he could answer, Adele announced she was setting the table for lunch.

"In the fields," Michael said.

"The girls are going to tire her out," Cassie said in what sounded like concern for Mermaid. "Girls, time for lunch, she yelled after the kids. "What did Daddy say?"

"We should take it easy on Mermaid," Alanna said.

"Good, now give her a bit of a break. When she's rested and feeling much stronger, she'll tell you if she wants to play, okay?"

Holly smothered a laugh as the girls nodded and took the opportunity to introduce Michael, the first born of the Mackenzie family. "Mermaid, this is Michael. He's our older brother."

Michael, being the polite gentleman he usually was, shook her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well," Mermaid said as she shook his hand.

A second later, Joshua, Holly's father's, walked into the house.

"Oh, Dad, this is Mermaid," Holly said as he took off his cowboy hat.

"No one told me you were such a beautiful young woman. Look at those eyes, bright as the sea."

"You old romantic fool, you're embarrassing the girl," Lori told Joshua while the others laughed.

"I'm not embarrassing her. I'm I embarrassing you?" he directly asked Mermaid who smiled as she shook her head.

"You're welcome to stay here as long as you want," he said.

"Thank you, Mr. Mackenzie," Mermaid said.

"Come on, Dad. Time for lunch," Michael said, placing his arm over his father's shoulder as he led him to the dining room.

"How do you feel?" Holly asked Mermaid when they were finally alone.

"Overwhelmed."

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Holly reassured. "Come on," she said and Mermaid followed her to the dining room.

They sat right next to each other. When Adele finished setting the table, it looked like a Christmas feast. It was the first time in a long time that the whole family was gathered in the same room, eating together.

What made it even more pleasant was how everyone seemed to make conversation that somehow managed to include Mermaid.