Page 9 of The Deep End of Death (Twilight Lake #4)

I’d forgotten Nuada’s magic in my stomach, subduing my pearls and scales. The moment I hit the water, my breath escaped, and I sank like a stone, kicking and thrashing, unable to gain purchase.

For a moment, I couldn’t breathe as I waited for my gills to form in my throat.

Nothing happened.

Water filled my lungs—instead of comforting me, my heart began to pound. White spots coated my vision as I kicked out, unable to reach the surface. I wanted to scream, but water filled my lungs, choking me.

Rainn grabbed my shoulders, and we broke the surface. I coughed and spluttered, finally taking a lungful of salty air before the waves pushed us back under the sea.

The boom of cannon fire was muffled under the water but still deafening.

Where were the others? Shay, Cormac and Tormalugh.

The Merrow told us they had jumped overboard, but I couldn’t see. The water churned, thick with bubbles.

Am I going to die ?

I swallowed a mouthful of water.

Yes. I’m going to die .

No pearls. No scales. No gills.

I broke the surface, kicking for dear life.

My hair reflected the moonlight, shining like a bright platinum beacon.

The Merrow’s boat shattered; shards of wood exploded as the captain flung himself into the water.

Rainn pulled me onto his back. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and we began to swim. The pirate ship turned, its large sails shifting with a heavy creak. I dipped under the water, holding my breath. Rainn kicked his feet, and I held on tight.

The pirate ship’s huge wooden belly grew closer, slicing through the water away from the burning wreckage of the fishing vessel.

It was no use. Rainn was a fast swimmer, but not with me on his back.

I couldn’t breathe underwater. I could hold my breath, but not for long. The pirates would see me, bobbing above the surface—if they hadn’t already.

“You have to let me go.” I gasped out, spitting salt water from my lips. “Go find the others. Swim to the shore.”

“I’m not leaving you.”

“They won’t kill me. They won’t know I’m Undine.”

“ I’m. Not. Leaving. You .” He snarled.

I glanced over my shoulder. The pirate ship was gaining on us.

I caught a glimpse of long blond hair on the ship's deck. “That’s Cormac.” I gasped.

The Mer-King sat on the ship's deck—his hands tied in front of him.

“He’s sided with the pirates?”

“No.” I shook my head. “He’s tied up.” I craned my neck, looking over my shoulder toward the ship. “Shay and Tor are on board, too.”

Rainn cursed and stopped swimming.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Something really stupid.” He replied.

They scooped us from the water with a rope, pretending to be benevolent rescuers instead of pillaging pirates.

The remnants of the Merrow’s boat floated around us, and black smoke blocked out the moonlight.

I could only hope the Merrow had escaped into the sea.

‘The Glittering Diamond’

I recognized the mermaid on the front of the ship and the bulbous rump of the boat—its shape defying logic and its sails pale white in the darkness.

Rainn kept his feet, but I wasn’t so lucky. Nuada’s pearl had robbed me of my innate water-fae abilities. I hadn’t realized how much energy it took to tread water without webbed feet and gills.

I hacked up a lung, and my hands slapped the deck as I fell to my knees and kept coughing.

The pirates held Rainn back as he tried to help me.

Cormac, Shay, and Tormalugh were tied to the ship's main mast. Tor’s chin touched his chest, and blood leaked sluggishly from a wound on his hairline, forming a puddle of salt water and blood.

Cormac had been gagged, his emerald eyes burning as he committed each pirate to memory.

And Shay? His eyes were closed. He appeared to be meditating. Or sleeping. I wasn’t sure which.

Rainn and I were dumped on the floor in front of the others before the pirates secured us with heavy ropes.

The ropes stank of fish and mold. Somehow slimy and coarse at the same time.

The last time I had stepped foot on the Glittering Diamond, I had been treated as a prized trophy. Without my pearls, I had nothing they wanted.

I bit my tongue. There was no point arguing with the pirates. Cormac had learned that lesson the hard way—and the rag in his mouth was filthy enough to discourage me from protesting.

It felt like an age since I’d met Captain Hallow.

I prayed to the Tuatha Dé Danann that he didn’t recognize me.

Rainn, Cormac, Shay, and Tormalugh knew nothing of my brief time with the pirates. I had been running from the Princelings on the heels of Lady Bloodtide’s death.

“Oh, my stars and moons.” A jaunty voice called out, appearing from the other side of the ship.

He flashed a toothless grin, and I recognized the pirate immediately.

I didn’t remember his name, but I remembered his lack of teeth.

“A whole host of treasure, sitting on the deck.” He whistled. “A gilded cunt, of pearl and opal.”

My luck had run out.

Toothless remembered me.

“ Belisama’s Ballsack,” Another pirate cursed. “We’ve stumbled on a fortune.”

Another piped up. “At least the raid was worth the cannon balls.” He sneered. “Everyone knows that Merrow boats don’t carry shit.”

“Any of your friends as valuable as you are?” Toothless bent down, his nose an inch from mine. His breath made my stomach turn.

I narrowed my eyes but didn’t answer.

Toothless snapped his fingers. “Grab a bucket of seawater!” He barked.

“And fetch the captain! He’ll want to see this.

” The pirate sauntered away, leaving us surrounded by a jeering crowd on the deck.

I was close enough to Cormac to reach out and brush my finger against his hand if I wanted to, even with the bindings.

“You’ve met these pirates before?” Rainn frowned. “You could have mentioned that when I told you about my plan.”

“Your plan was to get on deck and try not to get killed,” I replied dryly.

“Exactly!” Rainn’s eyes were wide and accusing. “How the feck did you escape last time?”

I gave him a look.

“Yes.” Shay agreed, his eyes still closed. His voice was laden with sarcasm, and his chin still pressed to his chest. “Why don’t you tell us, in front of this captive audience, exactly how you escaped from this ship before.”

Rainn’s cheeks burned. “Why is Cormac gagged?”

Tor lifted his head; blood streaked down his face and crusted around his nostrils. “He might have implied the toothless pirate would be good at sucking cocks.”

“Because of his lack of teeth?” Rainn nodded sagely.

Cormac gave us a look that seemed to say, ‘ Exactly !’ as if it was a perfectly normal thing to taunt a pirate with.

“Naturally, the toothless pirate was rather upset.” Tor drawled.

“How did you all get on board?” I asked. “We woke up when the cannons went off, but you weren’t on the ship.”

“They ambushed us with a net,” Tor replied. “We were under the Merrow’s boat, trying to keep it upright when it started letting on water.”

“Why would they attack the Merrow’s boat?” I frowned.

“They’re pirates.” Rainn shrugged. “I’ve heard the stories. I don’t think they need an excuse to do anything.”

A wordless look passed between us. They might know I was Undine, but the pirates had no idea they had the chieftain of the Nymphs, the Mer-King, the King of the Reeds, and a member of the Selkie Royal family. A veritable buffet of ransoms to be had.

“Do we even have time for this?” Rainn groaned, tilting his head back. “We have lots of things to do! Business to attend to!” He called out to no one in particular.

The door at the other end of the deck swung open, revealing Toothless and the ship’s captain.

Captain Hallow was a Redcap. I knew because he had told me so.

His eyes were curiously dead despite his animated face. I saw the recognition pass over his face like a swooping gull, followed by avarice.

Yep. He definitely remembered me.

We could throw ourselves overboard, but I couldn’t swim far.

How long would Nuada’s pearl remain in my stomach, inhibiting my magic? A week? Maybe more? It was supposed to last for the duration of the journey. I hadn’t realized it would affect my ability to breathe underwater.

“We should keep the girl!” One of the pirates jeered. “Might be nice to have a whore on the crew!”

Rainn bared his teeth, and his eyes flashed. “Come closer and say that again.”

Captain Hallow held his hand in front of the jeering pirate with a quiet warning. He turned to me, though the smile did not touch his eyes.

He reached out, stopping his hand before it brushed against my hair. I jerked back, but the ropes stopped my body from moving far. The captain turned to Toothless. “Are they all gilded?”

“We’ll find out.” Toothless flashed a gummy smile as another pirate rushed toward him with a bucket of seawater.

He pulled the faded fabric scrap holding back his greasy hair and dipped it in the water.

Toothless flung it at Cormac first. The rag hit Cormac in the face, but the Mer-King didn’t react.

I supposed it took more water than that to prompt a tail to grow.

One by one, they dipped the rag.

Tormalugh didn’t change. Neither did Rainn. I didn’t expect them to. They had to make a conscious choice to change forms.

Then they reached Shay.

Shay Mac Eoin was always calm in a tempest.

While Tor held his emotions behind a mask, Shay held back anger that was a sight to behold. I had only seen it once before.

The Nymph looked up before the rag made contact with his writhing braids. He bared his teeth, stark white in the moonlight against his burnished skin.

His eyes shone a pale ice blue that I’d only ever seen before in moments of extreme emotion.

Toothless stumbled back. “Devil!” He dropped the pail, splattering sea water over me and Rainn. The captain blinked, his grin dropping as he noticed Shay Mac Eoin’s eyes.

Once an eager crowd, the pirates raced over each other to put space between themselves and Shay.

“Demon!” One pirate called out.

“Beast!”

I glanced at Shay. His anger subsided, giving way to confusion.