Page 2 of Sea of Evil and Desire (The Deep Saga #1)

K ing Neptūnus had a feral glint in his eyes when he handed me over to the prince. I could see it even though I was barely conscious, scarcely drawing breath in my watery surroundings.

I never thought I would die like this . . . not in my wildest human dreams. But I wasn’t human anymore, and here we were in the Kingdom of the Deep.

Edward let out a noise of terror. It was my fault that he was here; now, he too would have to suffer at the hands of the prince.

The last time we’d seen Prince Aigéan, I had thought him beautiful, with his dark hair floating in the swell, his crimson-tipped tail, and the packed muscles in his glistening, inked torso. Now? Now, all I could think about was the claws he’d exhibit when he tortured me. What would they feel like raking through my flesh? A chill skittered down my spine as I continued to take ragged inhales.

I would die immediately, but Edward was Drowned. His wounds might heal, and the prince could hurt him again and again—just as he had José.

None of this would have happened if I hadn’t moved to Ruadán’s Port. Would I take it all back if I had the chance? No. I had started to feel like there was a place for me here, however short-lived.

I did have some regrets, though. I wished I could have learned more about my family and this world I never knew existed. Been the one these people needed . . . I wished I could have known the intimate touch of a man, as I was about to die a virgin.

The prince’s cold, clear voice echoed from the back of the great hall. A guard grabbed me by the hair, and my trembling body was drawn from the floor to face him.