Page 9

His brows draw together. “And I was surprised to hear about a seedy bar full of passed-out mermen.”

Crap. Does nothing escape him now that he’s king?

“Anything to say for yourself?” He motions for me to sit.

I plop down into the chair but don’t reply.

“Nothing?”

“I didn’t do anything wrong. All I did was sing. Why are you blaming me?”

He tilts his head. “Is your hair darker?”

“Are we here to talk about my hair or the bar? Or the fact that you banished Mom?” I narrow my eyes.

“I didn’t banish her. She could’ve stayed and remained queen, but she chose to leave us for the surface.”

“Because you announced your engagement in front of everyone without first telling either one of us! What did you expect? You’ve been seeing Mrs. Middlebrooks behind Mom’s back!”

“We’re family now.” Mrs. Middlebrooks comes inside and closes the door behind her. “When in the presence of your father, you can call me Daphne. Or Mother.”

My stomach lurches.

“But don’t call her Daphne in front of your peers,” Dad says.

I can’t even respond. This can’t be happening.

Then Middlebrooks sits on Dad’s lap.

Bile rises into my mouth. How can they subject me to this so soon after losing my mom? And how can Dad not care?

Middlebrooks nestles against him and runs her hands down his arm but keeps her attention on me. “How’d you do it?”

“Do what?”

“Make those drunks pass out?”

“Who said I did anything? Like you said, they’re drunks. Probably faint every night.”

She arches a perfectly manicured brow. “At the same time? While you’re singing?”

“Why not?” I glare at her.

Dad sits up straighter. “You’ll respect my bride-to-be.”

I straighten my back and hold his gaze. “All I did was sing. I can’t explain why the mermen lost consciousness.”

“There are rumors about you having a connection to Queen Sirena.” Middlebrooks leans forward.

“I seriously know nothing about her. Nothing. I grew up on land, remember?”

Dad adjusts his crown. “You can lose the snark.”

“What snark? I never heard about the queen until my hair changed color. Maybe you can fill me in.”

He takes a deep breath. “I don’t know much more than you do. She was the most powerful queen any of the oceans have ever seen.”

“If she was so strong, why doesn’t anyone know about her?”