Beneath the Waves Read online

  Table of Contents

  Synopsis

  What Reviewers Say Ali Vali’s Work

  By the Author

  Acknowledgments

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Chapter Twenty-four

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Chapter Twenty-six

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Chapter Thirty-two

  About the Author

  Books Available from Bold Strokes Books

  Synopsis

  No one has her life more mapped out than Kai Merlin. She’ll succeed her mother Galen and carry out every duty expected of her—the most important of which is to keep hidden the secrets her people have kept for eons.

  Vivien Palmer’s life has been just as planned out by her parents, and their dream is for her and her brother Franklin to eventually run the family business. But Vivien’s dreams lie in the depths of the oceans searching for clues to the shells she and Franklin wear around their necks.

  A chance encounter as children forever linked Kai and Vivien for life, but can they find a way to be together despite what’s expected of them?

  The answers lie beneath the waves.

  What Reviewers Say Ali Vali’s Work

  Balance of Forces: Toujours Ici

  “A stunning addition to the vampire legend, Balance of Forces: Toujour Ici, is one that stands apart from the rest.”—Bibliophilic Book Blog

  Carly’s Sound

  “Vali paints vivid pictures with her words—Carly’s Sound is a great romance, with some wonderfully hot sex.”—Midwest Book Review

  “It’s no surprise that passion is indeed possible a second time around”—Q Syndicate

  The Devil Inside

  “Vali’s fluid writing style quickly puts the reader at ease, which makes the story and its characters equally easy to get to know and care about. When you find yourself talking out loud to the characters in a book, you know the work is polished and professional, as well as entertaining.”—Family and Friends Magazine

  “Not only is The Devil Inside a ripping mystery, it’s also an intimate character study.”—L-Word Literature

  “The Devil Inside is the first of what promises to be a very exciting series. …While telling an exciting story that grips the reader, Vali has also fully fleshed out her heroes and villains. The Devil Inside is that rarity: a fascinating crime novel which includes a tender love story and leaves the reader with a cliffhanger ending.”—MegaScene

  The Devil Unleashed

  “Fast-paced action scenes, intriguing character revelations, and a refreshing approach to the romance thriller genre all make for an enjoyable reading experience in the Big Easy. …The Devil Unleashed is an engrossing reading experience.”—Midwest Book Review

  Deal With the Devil

  “Ali Vali has given her fans another thick, rich thriller…Deal With the Devil has wonderful love stories, great sex, and an ample supply of humor. It is an exciting, page turning read that leaves her readers eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.”—Just About Write

  The Devil Be Damned

  “Ali Vali excels at creating strong, romantic characters along with her fast paced, sophisticated plots. Her setting, New Orleans, provides just the right blend of immigrants from Mexico, South America and Cuba, along with a city steeped in traditions.”—Just About Write

  Calling Out the Dead

  “So many writers set stories in New Orleans, but Ali Vali’s mystery novels have the authenticity that only a real Big Easy resident could bring…makes for a classic lesbian murder yarn.”—Curve Magazine

  Blue Skies

  “Vali is skilled at building sexual tension and the sex in this novel flies as high as Berkley’s jets. Look for this fast-paced read.”—Just About Write

  Beneath the Waves

  Brought to you by

  eBooks from Bold Strokes Books, Inc.

  http://www.boldstrokesbooks.com

  eBooks are not transferable. They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work.

  Please respect the rights of the author and do not file share.

  Beneath the Waves

  © 2016 By Ali Vali. All Rights Reserved.

  ISBN 13: 978-1-62639-610-4

  This Electronic Book is published by

  Bold Strokes Books, Inc.

  P.O. Box 249

  Valley Falls, New York 12185

  First Edition: May 2016

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

  Credits

  Editor: Shelley Thrasher

  Production Design: Susan Ramundo

  Cover Design By Sheri ([email protected])

  By the Author

  Carly’s Sound

  Second Season

  Calling the Dead

  Blue Skies

  Love Match

  The Dragon Tree Legacy

  The Romance Vote

  Girls with Guns

  Beneath the Waves

  Forces Series

  Balance of Forces: Toujours Ici

  Battle of Forces: Sera Toujours

  The Cain Casey Saga

  The Devil Inside

  The Devil Unleashed

  Deal with the Devil

  The Devil Be Damned

  The Devil’s Orchard

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you first to Radclyffe for your support, advice, and for giving me such a wonderful home with BSB. You, Sandy, and the rest of the team have been supportive and continue to make the process not only fun but flawless.

  There are things from my childhood that left an impression that are hard to forget. All those adventure books that fired my imagination made me an avid reader, but the ones that I really loved were any book about Atlantis and the Bermuda Triangle. That there could be a place under the water hidden from us, or a place that held secrets that could make ships disappear without a trace to me were page turners. That’s where this book was born all those years ago, so thank you to Radclyffe for allowing me to finally add my tale to those from my childhood.

  Thank you to Shelley Thrasher for again making the editing process a great learning experience. Losing about a third of the book because of a bad flash drive a week before my deadline was the type of excitement I don’t ever want to repeat, so thanks, Shelley, for making a stressful situation less painful. Your patience, teachings and assistance are always appreciated, but your friendship is what I treasure most.

  Thank you to the BSB team who all work so hard to bring every book to print, you guys are the best in the business. Thank you, Sheri, for always finding the right cover for every bo
ok, to the other authors who are always there to offer encouragement, and to my beta reader. How lucky I am to have Connie Ward offer her input and humor from the beginning of every book, so thank you for keeping me on track.

  Thanks to you, the reader. Your support at events and your wonderful emails have meant so much to me. Everything I write is always done with you in mind.

  Thirty-one years seems like a long time, but it’s gone by in a flash. The loss of my dad this past year was difficult, but C was there to hold my hand not only through the hard times, but through our great adventures. If life is a canvas, mine is full of bright colors and a collage of happy times because of you. The good thing is there is still plenty of painting left to do, so thank you for loving me and making me laugh no matter what. You’re my best friend, and I love you. Verdad!

  Dedication

  For C

  A lifetime is not enough

  And

  For my niece and nephew

  You make me proud in every way

  Chapter One

  “Gods, let me not screw this up,” Kai Merlin said as she stood naked staring out into the dark waters outside the glass wall in her room, gripping and relaxing her hands. In the distance she could see the patrol vessels that hovered close by, but still far away enough to ensure privacy.

  She was at the eve of the day she’d both looked forward to and dreaded. Leaving the safety of home and her parents made her nervous, though not enough to put it off. She wasn’t the first to do this, but she was different, no matter her parents’ efforts to raise her with as normal a childhood as they could. Despite that fact, she was under the microscope of a nation.

  “One of these days you’ll make the front page, if you keep this up,” her mother Galen said as she came into view in the reflection, holding up a robe for her.

  “Don’t give me that,” she said as she turned around so Galen could tie the robe closed. “Your consort tells me you’re seldom clothed once your day is done, and since you’re the one who taught me the wonders of skinny-dipping, I believe her.”

  “Your mom talks too much.”

  “And my mama loves her anyway,” Kai said as she kissed her mama’s forehead before leading her to the sofa behind them. “Will you miss me as much as I will you guys?”

  “Don’t make me cry since I promised your mom I wouldn’t embarrass you by blubbering through this whole thing tomorrow. And yes, terribly, if that was a serious question.” Galen rested her head on her shoulder, something Kai remembered doing when she was younger and didn’t top her birthmother by nine inches. “I’m your mother and I miss you when you’re gone thirty minutes, so this should be pure torture.”

  “Will I hurt your feelings if I admit how excited I am, even if I’ll miss you?”

  “I’d be disappointed if you weren’t,” Galen said as she took her hand.

  “So would I,” Hadley, her second mother, said from behind them. “We love you, and not a day will go by that we aren’t here if you need us, but it’s time for you to start down your path.”

  “You promise to keep this one out of trouble?” she said as she tapped Galen’s forehead.

  “I’m sure that if the stories of the sirens were true, all of them would look like your mother.”

  “I might keep my clothes on tonight if you’re comparing me to some sea monsters,” Galen said, shaking her finger at Hadley.

  “They lured unsuspecting seafarers because they were as beautiful as you,” Hadley said as she ran her fingers through Galen’s light-blond hair.

  “Listen well, tadpole,” Galen said as she laughed. “This one can talk her way out of anything.”

  “Well, almost anything. The seafarers didn’t realize they were in danger until it was too late,” Hadley said, laughing as she threw the bag she’d carried in at Kai. “By the time I woke up from that love stupor you put me in, I was forever wrapped around your little finger.”

  “Such a complainer you are,” Galen said as she accepted Hadley’s kiss. “And I had to do everything I could to make sure all those pretty girls that were after you crashed and burned on the rocks.”

  “You two are going to keep me blushing until I’m ninety,” she said when Hadley bent and kissed Galen again.

  “You’ve got more to worry about than that.” Hadley ran her hand over Kai’s head. “Are you ready?”

  She nodded and moved to a chair so her mothers could sit together. “I’ve planned for months and have been involved in every stage of implementation, so if I forgot anything, it was a committee oversight,” she said and smiled. “Is this for me or your siren there?”

  “A gift from your mama and me,” Hadley said as she pointed to the present. “We want you to look good, but let’s go over one more thing before you open it.”

  “I’ve already promised to be good.”

  “You seldom are, so listen,” Galen said with a wink. “Tomorrow after the ceremony we’d like to talk to you about something that has to do with your mission.”

  “What is it?”

  “Your mama said tomorrow.” Hadley put her hand up to keep her from bugging them anymore.

  “You’re seriously going to leave me hanging so I won’t be able to sleep tonight?” She glanced from Hadley to Galen.

  “Open that and it’ll ease the pain,” Hadley said.

  Inside was a new uniform with the insignias of team leader and academy graduate. Once her mission was done, she hoped her uniform would resemble her mother Hadley’s and the sleeves would be covered with the history of the missions she’d completed all over the world. For someone who’d married well, her mom had never taken the easy road, and she and her mama had always been proud of her for that.

  “You have fulfilled my greatest wish from the day your mama placed you in my arms, and we couldn’t be prouder of the woman you’ve become. The gods gifted us with only one child, and now I know why. No other could’ve been more perfect for us than you, Kai, and your mother and I love you,” Hadley said as she stood up and helped Galen to her feet. “Our future’s in good hands.”

  Kai hugged Hadley first and then comforted a crying Galen, who seemed unable to get any words out. “I might be an only child, but maybe that’s a good thing. It would’ve been hell sharing you two more than I have to already. Thank you for the gift and for everything else.”

  “Try to get some sleep, since the eyes of the nation will be on you tomorrow,” Hadley said as she put her arms around Galen.

  “No pressure, Mom, thanks.”

  “You’ll do great.” Galen placed her hand on her cheek. “After tomorrow every single and available citizen will want you as much as they do this one.” She pointed back to Hadley.

  “That’s a burden I’m willing to carry,” she said, making them all laugh.

  *

  “Jesus…Vivien.”

  Vivien Palmer heard hers and God’s name called out sharply, which broke her out of her daydreams. Every man around the large conference table was staring and frowning at her except for her brother Frankie. His smile probably wasn’t because of her inattentiveness, but because, like her, he figured the board members present thought she was having a blonde moment. No one except Frankie and her thought these things were less than riveting, so she almost felt the restraint it took Frankie not to laugh.

  “I’m sorry, what was the question?” she asked her father, Winston Palmer, who happened to be the guy with the biggest frown.

  “What’s the estimate for Triton?” he repeated, his lips barely moving because of his clenched teeth.

  They stared at each other until her father rolled his eyes and sat, obviously not in the mood to push her in front of an audience waving as if to give her the floor. She wrapped her hand around the carved shell at her throat and prayed for the patience it took her to make it through these board of directors meetings her father insisted she attend. Given a choice, she would’ve traded the confinement of the teak walls, big leather chairs, and the testosterone-tinged air for digg
ing a ditch in a hurricane.

  This was a command performance, though, since she was the most experienced member of upper management on the only subject on the agenda. Triton was the newest production platform in the Palmer Oil Production and Exploration Company’s fleet, and it had been her responsibility from the drafting table all the way through the construction and implementation phases. This actually was the first full day she’d put in at the office in months, and if she had her way, it’d be the last for a while.

  “The crew’s sleeping-quarter modules will ship in about a week, so expect them in place twenty days after that. Everything else looks good for the startup date we’re shooting for, but we can’t relax yet. We’ve passed every test OSHA has thought to throw at us, but we expected that after the Deep Water Horizon disaster. Permitting has become a nightmare, so we can’t afford any slipups if we want to expand operations in the outer shelf with the leases we just acquired.”

  “We have a solid safety record,” one of the board members said. “That should count for something, damn it.”

  “Whatever any of us did before Horizon doesn’t matter to the inspectors. Everyone in the Gulf of Mexico has to prove themselves all over again, especially in deep water,” she said as Frankie winked at her after clicking through the pictures she’d provided for her presentation. “None of the inspectors wants to be the one explaining how something happened again to CNN and every other news outlet in the world while gruesome pictures of birds play in the background.”

  “Those news-hound sons of bitches kept showing the same damn birds,” another board member said.