Page 39

One month later

T he sun was already halfway through its rise to the zenith by the time the small strip of sand came into view.

Ora let out a call that sounded relieved—Arden would have echoed it if she could have.

They’d been in the air for hours already, not scouting, just trying to get here, to this tiny island too small for anything other than a few trees and the spit of sand.

They’d made the trip once before, but it had been experimental then. To see if they could. Now, it was by design.

Arden stroked Ora’s golden feathers and leaned close to her head. “Almost there. Great job—and thank you.”

Watching Seidon in missa every week had taught her not to take anything for granted. Especially the aid of this Great Golden Sea Hawk.

They circled the tiny island once, verifying that no one moved on it already.

Ora landed on the open beach, and Arden dismounted, her hands flying over her fitted leather jerkin.

A quick swig of water, a few bites of the breakfast bar she’d been too anxious to eat earlier, and then she was pulling out data crystals and recorders.

She checked the sheathes of her knives too, to be reassured of their presence. She mostly trusted the contact she was meeting this morning. Mostly. But that wasn’t to say she hadn’t been followed.

“You can go hunt if you need to,” she said to Ora.

Ora shot her a look that felt like Are you crazy? Then who would have your back?

She had a point, but even so, Arden rolled her shoulders. “I’m well trained. You know that. I can defend myself if it comes down to it.”

Ora ruffled her feathers then methodically smoothed them again.

Arden breathed a laugh. “Suit yourself.”

She turned back to the water, and a moment later she saw the shadow of someone swimming toward the beach. A head surfaced, dark curls springing up as they met air, and then the mermaid emerged, her tail split into teal pant legs that coordinated perfectly with the teal-and-coral top she wore.

Arden had met more mer in the last month than in all her years beforehand—and every one of them was well-dressed. Jade would find that part, at least, to her liking.

Palming the purple-hued data crystal, Arden strode forward, hand lifted. “Morning, Kiyana.”

Kiyana smiled—but she also looked over her shoulder, which made Arden’s hand fly to her knives.

“Were you followed?”

Kiyana shook her head, expression sheepish. “No. Sorry. Only by dolphins. I was seeing if they were still there.”

Right on cue, a pod of five dolphins surfaced and then rolled back under the waves. Arden’s shoulders relaxed. One thing about these open expanses of water, anyway—there was nowhere to hide. Kiyana would know if someone was following her.

Arden nodded and moved forward again, meeting the mermaid at the water’s edge. Kiyana, she’d already learned, preferred to spend as little time on land as possible and never strayed out of reach of the water, no doubt thanks to the limp she had when walking.

They’d agreed at their previous meeting not to waste time on niceties, so Arden held out the lavender crystal and said, “From King Seidon, for you and the others. Please don’t copy it—show it yourself to whoever you think needs to see it and then destroy it.”

“Of course.” Kiyana took the crystal and slid it into a pocket, then pulled out three of her own, ranging in color from white to aqua. “And our reports for the king.”

Arden took them, but something in the woman’s face kept her from withdrawing her hand. Instead, she gripped Kiyana’s. “How is it down there? How is your family?”

Kiyana’s nostrils flared. “We have no magic among us, so we have escaped any of the violence—but it grows worse. My best friend, her father…they were taken by the Black Tails two days ago. Given the choice of joining them or being killed.”

“I’m so sorry, Kiyana.” Arden’s response wasn’t enough, but what else could she offer? She had no power to stop this, not directly. All she could do was help the resistance, the group of mer that refused to side either with Ralia or the Black Tails, communicate with the only ally they had—Seidon.

The Underwater Underground, Seidon had taken to calling them. In the safety of his office pool, it was an amusing name. Out here, looking Kiyana in the eyes, it was far different.

Kiyana’s fingers shook in hers. “They joined them. What choice did they really have? Every Awakened mer knows that if they don’t, it will mean their death in four weeks, when Mariana is crowned.”

Arden’s breath tangled in her throat. “That’s common knowledge now?”

Kiyana’s face went hard, her eyes flashing dark sorrow.

“Mariana announced it last week, right after our meeting. There’s a recording on the white crystal.

She promised the extermination of all Awakened mer, claiming they were all terrorists.

Her way of recruiting the general populace to her cause. ”

For a second, Arden let her eyes slide shut. It was what they’d most feared then—a full-fledged, all-mer civil war.

“There’s a recording there from one of her brothers, too. Prince Finn. Calling all Awakened to join the Black Tails. He seems to be their leader.”

Seidon had been wondering who was at their head—this would be information he could use. Arden nodded and withdrew her hands so that she could slide the crystals into her pockets.

“Queen Ralia’s health is failing. Mariana has taken over completely, including the military. Her forces have gathered at Margarita Civitas. Finn’s are at Usquerbis.”

Usquerbis . In her mind’s eye, she could see the map of the Sunken Cities that Seidon kept rotating in a corner of his office at all times.

And her stomach churned. While Margarita Civitas was centrally located among the cities, Usquerbis was the farthest one from Daryatla. Well outside of Ora’s range.

At least if they tried to make it in one flight.

“Ralia’s people keep trying to find a way to get a message to King Seidon through the wall,” Kiyana went on. “They can’t push them through, the netting destroys it. But I think some have made it—they’ve been using air guns to send them up and over. Have any been collected?”

“Not yet.” Arden drew in a long breath and looked back toward home. “The king has people scouring the ocean floor on our side of the wall, but it’s too much territory.” And he had too few people willing to do that work.

Let the mer destroy themselves . That was the stance far too many Daryatleans were taking.

As if the Black Tails winning wouldn’t ever affect them. As if Mariana committing genocide shouldn’t offend every heart.

There was no good outcome to this war. Arden wasn’t sure there could ever be a good outcome to any war, but this one…

no matter how things went beneath the waves, they’d feel the shock of it on land.

And the mer people would never be the same.

It brought an ache to her heart, even before she paused to think about Jade being somewhere down there, caught up in it all.

In Usquerbis, she’d bet. It was Black Tails who had taken her, and if they thought she had magic they needed, then they’d take her to the heart of their own power.

It was a lead. Just not one she knew how to follow.

No. That wasn’t true. She knew how to follow it—she just didn’t know what to do about it if she actually got close enough to dive down to the city.

She was no mer. For that matter, she was the worst diver in the Banks in some ways. Not for lack of skill, just for lack of mass. She had to add so much weight to her suit to sink that it slowed her swim.

Ora made a warning noise, bringing Arden’s head snapping around.

The hawk was looking at the sun—reminding her that they still had to fly all the way home, report to Seidon, train with Storm, and make it over to the Banks in time for Mama’s birthday dinner.

Given how lucky they were to still have her, awake if plagued by constant migraines, there was no way Arden would miss the celebration.

“I know,” she said to the hawk. Turning back to the mer, she offered a tight smile. “I can’t linger long. Anything else not on the crystals?”

Kiyana shook her head, sending her spirals of black hair dancing.

“Just…be careful, Wind Rider. Sooner or later, either Mariana or Finn will realize that King Seidon’s cousins have friends.

They’ll realize we’re talking to him somehow.

And if they put together that no sea hawk has ever been spotted this far out to sea before… ”

“We’re careful.” She gave the assurance easily—words she spoke so often, to so many people, that they were as familiar as please and thank you to her tongue.

“We stay high enough for the flight that it’s unlikely anyone would even see us and then spiral down to the island. We’ll spiral up again when we leave.”

Papa always pressed his lips together, clearly wanting to argue.

Mama clutched Arden’s hand, the pain in her eyes from her constant headaches darkening still more.

Storm got that fierce look on his face and found a new weapon, small and compact, that she could train with.

Seidon always insisted they add one more hawk to the chain they’d created, so that she was out of communication for less and less time.

It was a wonder Ora’s family hadn’t flown off by now in revolt. Instead, they flew in ever-widening circles so that they could call to each other. Report in, so to speak.

If ever Ora didn’t reply for more than an hour…well, she honestly wasn’t sure what would happen. The other hawks would come and search? That was the only option, she supposed. Seidon couldn’t chase after her, not until he figured out how to cut through the wall.

Kiyana looked no more convinced than anyone else ever was, but she nodded like they all did and held her tongue.

This was all they had. No one liked it, but no one could really argue with it.

The mermaid lifted a hand and backed toward the water. “Go with the One.”