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Mom and Dad exchange a look. One of those looks parents give each other when there’s bad news. I wish they’d just tell me what’s wrong. Is one of them going to die? My throat closes up. I don’t want to lose either one of them. Sure, we have our differences, but I can’t live without them. I can’t.

Dad reaches across the table to take Mom’s hand. She looks away and blinks quickly. He places his other on top of mine.

I break out into a cold sweat. “Who’s dying? Is it me?”

He gives me a kind smile. “Nobody, sweetheart.”

It takes me a moment to realize what he just said. I look between them again. “You’re not sick? I’m not?”

They both shake their heads. Then exchange another look before Dad clears his throat. He gives me an apologetic glance, but his eyes shine with excitement. “We’re moving back to Valora.”

There’s no way to describe my shock. To say someone yanked the air right out of the room wouldn’t do it justice. I can’t blink. Can’t speak or even breathe.

Mom scoots closer to Dad but keeps her gaze on me. Her eyes are definitely red. “Your … your—” She turns to look at him. “I can’t do this. You tell her.”

Dad turns to me. “Your Uncle Tiberias is dead.”

I haven’t seen him in years, but the news guts me. When I was little, he was my doting uncle. My mind flashes back to the moment I found out my younger sister Aria had died in the car crash. I struggle to breathe.

My dad says something, but I have no idea what.

Not only have I lost my uncle, but this affects every other aspect of my life too. I can forget about Roman, college applications, and getting a track scholarship. We’re moving to Valora.

I shake my head, and tears blur my vision. “No! I’m not moving back there.”

Dad frowns. “We don’t have a choice.”

“Can’t we just go to the funeral and come back?” I plead with my eyes, despite knowing the answer. It isn’t that simple. But there has to be a way out, and I’ll find it.

“With my older brother dead, I’m the new king of Valora,” Dad says. “There’s no avoiding it. And besides, we already missed the funeral. Not that we’d be welcome for it, anyway.”

I jump from my seat. “But you said we’d never have to go back! You promised!”

Mom wipes her eyes. “We never expected Tiberias to die so young.” Her voice cracks. “It’s a shock to everyone.”

I struggle to find a loophole. Then I realize the big one. “But Dad was banished! We can’t return. We can’t!”

He shakes his head. “We have to. Despite my differences with Tiberias, I’m the new leader now. My banishment is lifted.”

“I’m not going.” I dig my heel into the ground.

Dad gives me a sympathetic glance. “It doesn’t work that way. You’re next in line after me. You’re now the new heir to Valora’s throne.”

“No.” I step back, shaking my head. How can they throw all of this at me at once?

Mom gets up and wraps me in a warm embrace. “I know it’s a shock. But that’s where we belong. We aren’t meant to live on land.”

“I’m doing just fine, thank you very much. Yes, I’ll miss Uncle Tiberias. But I haven’t seen him since I was a kid, and I have my life here.” I step back and glare at Dad. “In fact, I’m doing so well that I’m going to get another track medal this afternoon. Then I’m going to Harvard. Notice how none of my plans involve an underwater city? Not one.”

Dad rises. “You’ll get a better education at the Dark Sea Academy than even at an Ivy League school. You’ll have far more opportunities as the king’s daughter. And you’ll be able to use your real gifts. Ones that don’t involve legs.”

“I’m not going anywhere!” I grab my backpack and run out of the house.