Page 8

W ater rushed into my limp body. It filled my mouth, poured into my nose, my ears, but for some reason I wasn’t scared. The singing surrounded me, louder than ever, and everywhere I looked the water was glowing.

Golden light danced off fish scales. It illuminated the rocks and corals below, making my dress float around me in a rainbow of colours. I’d never seen anything so beautiful.

“Hello, pretty thing.” The singing paused as a soft voice spoke from nearby. I turned slowly to see a young woman beside me in the water. Long red hair haloed her otherworldly features while pearls and shells decorated her bare chest.

“You know, I was expecting that handsome boy I saw in the window. He’d make a lovely gift for the Sea Queen,” she chimed, stroking my cheek. “But I’ll gladly take you instead. For me.”

I smiled. There was no danger here. As she cupped my cheek, I hardly noticed the way her scaled legs moved as one long fishtail – or the way my chest now burned.

“Just relax, my pretty.” The young woman drifted closer. My chest seized, but the pain passed when one of her hands stroked between my breasts.

“Just one kiss will make this all disappear.” She smiled, and then it was as if all my worries melted away. “Just one kiss…”

Her lips were a breath away from mine when suddenly I was yanked back. A shriek cut through the glow.

“What?” the woman screeched. I’d barely noticed the flash of a sword before blood stained the water red. Ice-cold clarity flooded my senses. I gasped. Water burned in my throat as my body twisted and writhed. Two strong arms wrapped around my chest. Darkness switched to panic, then darkness again. I couldn’t breathe.

I’m dying!

My eyes squeezed shut. Acceptance felt like a heavy weight on my bones. At least my people had their kingdom back. My arms went limp. Lukas would help them from now on. My head tipped forward. Lukas would—

A rush of air stung my cheeks as I broke the surface. Water poured from my throat, spouting from my chest in coughs and sputters.

What was that?

“It’s alright, you’re alright,” a soothing male voice came from behind me. His arms were still wrapped around my chest, keeping my face above the water.

“Lukas?” I squeaked through coughs.

“I’ve got you.” He held me firmly. Somehow, he kept us steady despite the huge waves threatening to tear us apart. Above us, more than fifty feet in the air, my balcony hung from the side of the looming palace. The same balcony I’d just jumped from.

“Why did I do that?” I panted, kicking wildly.

Lukas reached to calm my flailing limbs. “Merfolk,” he grumbled.

“What?”

“Merfolk,” he bit out again, clearly not wanting to elaborate. The beach peeked through the rolling waves as he dragged me towards the shore. With Lukas supporting me, I tried my best to calm my breathing, but panic was still clawing up like a trapped scream in my throat.

Exhaling, I squeezed my eyes shut.

“It’s alright, Naria.” His voice softened. “I won’t let you go under again.”

My lower lip trembled. “I just don’t understand… Why did I jump?”

“It’s their singing.” He kicked harder as we approached the shoreline. “It’s like a spell. It catches you, and it’s addictive enough that you’ll drown just to hear more of it.”

I glanced over my shoulder, catching sight of the scowl hidden beneath his damp hair. “But why didn’t you get caught too?” My voice trailed off as I remembered his mother, Queen Erissa, or at least how she looked with her own blue fishtail. “Of course… your mother was—”

“We’re not going to talk about her right now.”

I flinched, but then my bare feet scraped against a layer of sand and a relieved sob leapt from my throat. A long beach stretched out in front of us, its sand ivory under the moonlight. Palm trees stood just beyond the shoreline and amongst them, not far from where we’d washed up, was a tall, lantern-lit archway marking the path back to the palace. Back to safety.

Together, we both flopped down upon the shore.

“Your balcony door stays closed from now on,” Lukas said between heavy breaths.

“Agreed,” I sighed, wiping the wet hair from my face. Stars painted the night sky above as we both laid with our backs in the sand.

After a few more waves tickled my toes, Lukas squeezed my hand. “How do you feel?” he asked quietly.

“I’m fine,” I rasped. Before I could ask him the same question, he rolled over to his side and pushed up from the ground to face me.

“The merfolk didn’t hurt you?” Concern laced his voice.

“I promise you, I’m fine.” I smiled, propping myself up onto my elbows.

His hand reached for my cheek. Brushing my jaw with his fingertips, his tone sent warm tingles down my spine. “Forges Naria. When I saw you jump I—

The tingles turned to ice. Something dark and panting flitted across the beach. I barely had time to scream before a familiar voice roared over the waves.

“You better take your filthy hands off my betrothed or I’ll turn this entire beach to thorns, boy king.”

Arenn . I leapt back. Somehow, the faery prince stood just metres away, dressed in a black embroidered tunic with matching breeches and boots. A familiar silver circlet rested upon his styled dark waves, and with the murderous glint in his eyes, it was as if he’d just stepped out of one of our dreams. Or one of my nightmares.

“What is he doing here?” Lukas growled, pushing up to his feet.

“Quiet, boy. I’m not here for you,” he spat, chest heaving. I scrambled up from the sand as he charged towards us.

Before the faery prince could reach me, Lukas pushed in between us, holding me behind him. “Don’t you dare take another step,” he snarled.

“Or what?” Arenn laughed.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. I glanced up to see the stars fading as they were snuffed out by thick black clouds. Something powerful crackled beneath Lukas’s skin where his hand held mine. Powerful enough to make me shudder.

My heart sank. This was just like when Lukas somehow summoned a lightning storm in the goblin camp. He’d saved me from a dozen hungry goblins using some kind of magic and then refused to speak of it again.

As if I could ever forget.

“Interesting,” Arenn huffed out a laugh, staring up at the sky. “You know I always thought I felt something different about you. I suppose your mother was merfolk, after all. But she gave you more than that, didn’t she? You’re gifted.”

“What?” I breathed, glancing between them. “What do you mean gifted?”

“Do not speak of this.” Lukas glared at Arenn.

“You obviously can’t control it yet. Or I’d be dead by now.” The faery’s eyes sparkled. “Go on. Strike me down.”

I shivered, both from my wet clothes and the new awful chill in the air.

“Do it,” Arenn laughed.

Lukas let out a furious growl. But before he could reach for the sword sheathed at his hip, I stepped out ahead of him.

“Why are you here, Arenn?” I demanded. Whatever secrets Lukas had, he wouldn’t be spilling them here. “You need to return home.”

The faery prince’s eyes caught mine. Something like fear flickered across them as his smirk fell. “But I felt you dying, human.”

“You felt her?” Lukas fumed.

Lightning struck a distant tree, but Arenn barely flinched as he continued, “I felt the panic in your chest and all the air leaving your throat.” He swayed slightly before straightening. “So I came here to rescue you, and bring you home with me. Where you’ll be safe.”

“She’s safe here, with me,” Lukas scoffed.

“Is she?” Arenn swayed again. “Because you nearly let her drown just a moment ago.”

Before either of them could lunge at the other, I planted myself in front of Lukas, pressing my back against his chest. “Enough, please,” I said between them. “I’m fine now so please, Arenn, just go home.”

His amber eyes flicked down to me. “I’m not leaving without you,” he said while groaning.

“What’s wrong?” I asked almost instinctively.

“Nothing.” But as he spoke he doubled over, looking as if he might retch into the sand.

I narrowed my eyes.

“Let’s just go,” Lukas grumbled. Taking my hand, he yanked me towards the lantern-lit archway.

“Wait.” My heels dug into the ground. Glancing back, the faery prince was now struggling to stand. He dropped to his knees, his hands flat against the ground while he coughed forcefully.

“Come on, Naria,” Lukas urged. “If we can get back to the palace, I can call for the guards to deal with him. It’s not safe out here for you. Not with him around.”

“Just wait,” I hissed. “I think he’s injured.”

“That’s not our problem.” He dragged me closer to the archway. “Besides, if he’s ill then it’ll be easier for the guards to catch him.”

Guilt chewed at the back of mind. Lukas was right, I should’ve left him there. But the sound of his pained groans made my skin itch. I was a healer. And if he was sick, it was my duty to heal him.

“No.” I yanked my hand out of Lukas’s grasp. “I won’t leave him. So you can stay and help me, or you can return back to the palace and call for more help.”

“Naria…” Lukas pleaded.

“I’ve made up my mind.” Spinning on my heels, I marched back through the sand. Lukas cried out for me to stop, but I ignored him. This was a terrible idea. I knew it was. But it’d been a long day, I was tired, and for some reason Arenn didn’t seem so scary when he was curled up on the sand like a child with a stomach ache.

“You came back for me,” he said without lifting his head.

Annoyance mixed with the guilt in my mind. This really was a bad idea.

“Where are you hurt?” I started in a cool tone.

“Everywhere,” he groaned.

Lukas caught up just as I dropped to my knees beside the prince. Folding his arms, he watched us with darkened eyes.

“Be more specific,” I pressed. “What are your symptoms? Have you had this happen before?”

The faery writhed in pain before exhaling raggedly. “This is normal. I just travelled too far across the realm without stopping.” A shiver washed over him. “I’ll be fine soon enough. Then I can take you home.”

Lukas shot me a look before motioning to the archway.

Shaking my head, I kept my focus on the writhing faery. “You don’t sound like you’ll be fine anytime soon.”

“I will,” he hissed. “Just give me a few hours.” His entire body buckled again. “Days,” he corrected.

“This is absurd,” Lukas said in a low voice. “Let’s just go. He can recover in the dungeons.”

My heart twisted. Arenn was cruel, wicked, and almost every part of me wanted to see him suffer in a grimy palace cell. But right now, with his groans echoing over the sand, I couldn’t see that wicked faery prince. Instead, I saw a patient.

And unfortunately, I was the only healer on this beach.

“We’ll take him back to the palace ourselves and find him a comfortable room to rest in,” I said, rising from the sand.

“What?” Lukas sputtered. “Why are you helping him?”

“Because it’s the right thing to do,” I replied. “Now please, will you help me carry him to the palace?”

Lukas scoffed. “Really?”

“Yes, really,” I shot back. “He can rest and then he can leave.” And then ideally he’ll be grateful enough to leave me alone for good.

The Drothmore King fixed me with a powerful glare before he begrudgingly took one of Arenn’s arms and hauled it over his shoulder. “He leaves as soon as he’s better,” he grumbled.

“The moment he’s well enough to stand,” I agreed.

And as I took his other arm, I tried my best to ignore the sounds of Arenn’s quiet laughter between his pained moans as we stumbled with him towards the palace.