Page 26 of Of Rime and Ruin (Sirens of Adria #2)

Chapter twenty-four

Nahla

I wake to the sound of fish slapping on the floor. Foggy from sleep, I barely make out the clawbeast’s looming silhouette. It’s the middle of the night. From his mouth hangs a large silverfish, its bloody scent spiraling into my cage.

It’s not his only catch. Two more rest on the floor, their glass eyes staring at me in the darkness.

He spits the final fish from his mouth and tosses it to join the rest.

I rub my eyes. Did I summon him in my sleep? My hand finds my throat. There’s no spell vibrating. No magic stirring in my stomach.

Ice traces my spine.

No. He came of his own accord tonight.

I push from the floor, heart pounding, and glide toward him. He watches me with eyes black as midnight.

A low grumble emits from his shadow, and his hand reaches through the bars. One claw extends. Flexes. He’s beckoning me.

“Hi, big guy,” I whisper.

Tonight’s the night I break free. If he’s here willingly, then he could be inclined to help. I’ll have to time it right. Persuade him when he’s vulnerable.

Fuck rule number two—I can go home without exploring the castle, if he’ll help me now.

His hand finds my face in the darkness. The scales on his palm are cold and leathery as they slide against my skin. My body ignites at his touch, all nerves zapping to attention. My heart pounds harder.

Claws glide over my scalp, slipping into my hair. His thumb tucks beneath my chin. I try not to think about how easily my head fits in his palm. If he wanted to, he could crush my skull like a lushfruit.

The tip of his claw taps my temple twice. Then his thumb brushes my lips. His mouth curls into a snarl, and he leans closer, turning his ear.

I hold still, the only movement coming from my gills. Of all the reckless things I’ve done, befriending the Beast may be my stupidest idea yet.

His thumb strokes back and forth over my bottom lip. I part my mouth at the touch, bubbles leaking out. He stares at my mouth. His brows tug, expression troubled.

He taps my temple again. Then with his other hand, he taps his own head.

Oh.

I awaken my magic and form a spell. With a quiet hum, I lift from my mind and weave into his.

He grins, teeth glinting in the darkness. His thoughts brush my conscience, surrounding me with caressing mist. They swirl with an exuberant current, lifting me and sucking me deeper into his mind.

Hello, Sunfish. His voice reverberates through me. Miss me?

Of course I did! My heart threatens to burst from my chest.

He purrs. Missed you, too.

Any romance books today?

He blows bubbles from his nose and his eyes tighten. Not today, sorry. He prods me with his thoughts, testing and inviting me in deeper.

He’s friendly tonight. Vulnerable. This could work. It’s now or never.

What do you say to another favor? I ask.

Sunfish needs something? I will fix.

I strengthen my song and extend to surround his center of self. Then, I fill him with my vision: the Beast breaking my cage. Carrying me through the water. To the edge of the Rime. Through the mountains. Dropping me there.

The orb flexes, resisting my influence. Confusion colors his thoughts.

I push harder— break the cage. Take me out of the Rime.

His claws curl around the bars.

Break the cage.

He tightens his fists. With a loud crack, he rips the gate clean off. The ceiling shudders and splinters.

Vaughn stirs at his post, snorting loudly.

The Beast’s hands snare my waist, and he tucks me into his side. His thighs tense, his hind claws grate into the ice, and he launches from the tunnel. Water rushes past me in a whoosh of cold current. Behind us, the ice collapses in a mess of rubble.

Vaughn shouts after us. I watch his form shrink into the darkness of the night as the Beast swims away.

Sunfish is free?

Wow, that voice. Mighty and rumbling, the thunder of him strikes me every time. I shudder against his chest, fighting my instincts to flee.

He’s helping me. Friendly. Whatever I’ve done to convince him, it’s worked. Hope burns through my chest.

He speaks again: Free? This time tinged with annoyance.

It’s a question.

I push all my warmth through the connection. Yes! Free. Good Beasty.

His chest rumbles against my ear, and he pulls me in tighter.

My spirit lifts as we leave the cavern, entering open waters. Skylights pierce the waterline, filtering through like rainbow dust. The sea celebrates my victory, welcoming me into its waiting embrace.

I’ve done it! He listened to me. Just as Keen said, I made him my bitch.

My stomach swells with pride. Take that, Winona.

Perrin may be disappointed tomorrow morning when he swims to his shift, only to find his prisoner missing—but I brush the thought aside. He’ll find something else to do, surely. He’s a bright youngling with a big heart. The king is lucky to have him in his service.

And the king! A laugh escapes my lips. I never have to see that asshole again.

The Beast dips, and the seafloor rises to meet us. My heart skips. I cling to his chest, squeezing my eyes closed as the sharp shale bottom rushes closer, closer. I cringe, preparing my body for the sting of rock and stone.

With a gulping tune, I strengthen my spell: Look out!

At the last second, he lifts. We skim the floor a scale’s breadth away. His chest rumbles again, and he tightens his grip.

If he will not listen, I’ll have to break free myself. I ball my fists and dig into his stomach. His abdomen flexes, muscles hard and tight. Unaffected. I wind up my punch and land it square on his ribs.

He grunts. Then, No.

His hands grip my hips, and he turns me around so that my ass presses into his stomach, and my arms swing free. I wriggle, my tail slipping against his legs.

He growls, wrestling my arms to my sides. One hand finds my throat, wrapping around and lifting the length of my neck and snapping my teeth together. His leathery thumb brushes my gills. Be still.

The sensitive skin blooms beneath his touch, sending shocks of sensation through my body. I grit my teeth and obey. I know when I’m defeated.

Good girl.

I quiver in his grasp. And, fuck me, maybe it’s the deep rumble of his voice.

Or the pressure of his hand on my neck, his thumb stroking as I sing softly to maintain our connection.

His body pressed against me, swallowing mine whole.

Or the sheer joy that swims in his mind at the thought of me, like he’s seeing the sun for the first time.

But my insides turn to mush, and the hidden slit in my tail softens and swells.

I wave my hand, trying to clear the scent from the water.

He inhales. Recognition dawns, and his thoughts darken. Sunfish is —he searches for the right word— hungry?

There’s an edge of humor to his inner voice. At the sound of it, my arousal strengthens.

Shit.

This is out of hand. I try to retreat, sucking my mind out of his grip. But as I withdraw, the shadows in his mind rear and take hold, pinning me with freezing tendrils. Sucking me back in.

No , he says. His thumb strokes my gills, tracing the soft ruffles. Stay .

The Rime sprawls before us, drowning in the hues of midnight. I strain to see into the darkness.

A sour taste fills my mouth. Where is he taking me, if not out of the Rime? His lair? I imagine a cave full of squirming hatchings, mouths gasping for the feed, and I shiver.

No. I will not go down like live bait. Even if he’s friendly about it.

I’m the godsdamn Princess of the Brine—a stupid one, but a princess nonetheless—and I will break free of this place. Of the king and his wretched Beast.

How stupid was I to think he’d listen to me? That my little “we’re friends” routine would work on such a complex, dark being?

He’s murderous. Angry. Manipulative. I sense it in his thoughts as he pins me in place against his body, his hands squeezing me tight. If he squeezes any harder, he’ll crush me.

So I abandon my pride. Time to grovel. Please. Please take me away from here, oh mighty Beast.

He snorts, bubbles tickling my hair. Beast.

Please. Out of the Rime. What do you want? What can I give you? I’ll let you come with me. Are you trapped here, too? Do you want to leave?

I concentrate on my memories of the sun. Warm water. Golden rays.

His tail thrashes, as we turn again, lifting from the seafloor into open water. Can’t leave.

We pass through a swarm of silverfish, and he snatches one from the cloud, slurping it into his mouth. His jaw works against the top of my head, crunching the bones.

I can hunt for you. Any prey you want, it’s yours. I’ll help you. It tastes better when I hunt. You might like a sunfish. Come, let’s leave the Rime and I’ll catch you a whole swarm.

Sunfish. His hand slides from my neck, tracing the length of my arm. He finds my hips, and his claws curl into my scales.

Sure. We can hunt sunfish. All yours. No problem, big guy. Let’s go get them.

His claws dig deeper, pricking the surface of my skin beneath the scales. Pain springs, and I scent my blood in the water.

Mine.

My ass bumps against a protrusion between his legs. His hidden sheath, bulging, flexing behind me. A flash of affection in his thoughts. Then, Cute.

Fuck. That’s not what I meant. This is not what I want.

We’re approaching the surface. The lights dance in the sky overhead, like a rainbow painted against the blackness. I suck in their beauty through watery vision.

Come on. Take me out of here. The king will never know.

The king?

The shadows in his mind rear high, hardening in an instant. Ice pierces my mind, and I flinch as the brain freeze seizes me.

He will know. His last words suck into a dark vortex of emotion, disappearing in an instant. His thoughts are replaced with a singular, building roar.

I slip out of his mind, cutting the connection spell, and land within the boundary of my skull. Fuck.

The roar bursts through his mouth, loud in my ears.

I thrash and kick, pushing away from his body.

His grip on my body breaks, and he flounders, reaching for me.

I dodge, twisting out of the way. His teeth glint in the darkness to catch the rainbowed rays of the skylights, his smile twisting into a snarl.

I pump my tail. His claws graze the feathered edge of my fins.

No time to think. Just swim. Faster. Faster. I scan the dark water for familiar landmarks. Where is my escape?

He roars again, drowning the sound of the heartbeat thundering in my head.

I don’t make it more than three pumps before his hands are on me again. I slam into his chest. Arms tighten. A push of muscle, and we launch through the water.