Page 18 of The Nymph Prince

I expected a chuckle or at least a scoff from Lorcan, but when he didn’t say anything, I looked at him. He had his arms on the shore, the side of his face against the sand, and his body was gently rocking with the tide.

“Lorcan?”

That’s when I noticed the cloud of blood surrounding him.

5

Lorcan

Seeing that Alek was struggling with his powers, I’d acted on impulse. The pirate captain had been mere seconds from shooting us, and when I’d seen that the opening to the cove wasn’ttoofar away, I’d wrapped my arms around the mage and dove under the water, shielding his body with mine.

I’d thought we’d made it until something pierced my tail-fin and spread through me like fire. I cried out beneath the water, but feeling the warm body in my arms—a man I needed to protect—I gritted my teeth and kept going. The adrenaline coursing through my veins helped me block the pain, and I swam until we’d put enough distance between us and the pirates.

After making sure Alek was on shore, I hung my head and rested it on the sand. He said something, but it sounded muffled to my ears. My energy was draining, and all I wanted to do was sleep.

And so I did.

***

I dreamed I was back in the palace, watching the water outside my bedroom window. But instead of being crystal blue, it was darker. Murkier. The fish that normally swam there were absent.

I was confused, but not yet frightened. No, the fear came from the lone helmet that then drifted past the window. One that was damaged and stained. An ominous feeling settled in my gut.

What’s happening?

Just as the thought entered my mind, I saw the body. It was a man, not much older than I. He was dressed in the finest armor, one of our warriors, but his helmet was missing. As he thudded against the window, I saw his face and released a cry. His eyes were pale, and his throat was cut open.

I awoke with a start, my heart beating painfully in my chest.

“Rest, my prince.”

That voice… it was oddly familiar.

When I turned my head, I saw Malik.

His broad shoulders and thick torso were covered in leather armor, and his dark hair was messy, as if it’d been wet and had dried with the strands sticking every which way. On him? It made him look even more lethal. Wild. Especially when combined with his glowing orange eyes.

It took me several confused moments before everything came back to me. The pirates. The escape. Feeling the sting in my fin.

“Malik? How did you find me?” My voice was scratchy.

“I never lost you, my prince,” he responded.

“Alek? Is he well?”

Malik’s features hardened. “Yes. Though, I am greatly displeased with you.”

“I know.”

“No. You do not know,” Malik responded. “It’s my duty to keep you safe, and yet, you consistently put yourself in harm’s way. I’ve been on your trail since you left, but King Triton ordered me to let you do as you wished. To follow, but not intervene unless you were in danger.”

“Father told you to let me go?”

“He did.” Malik squared his jaw. “And I failed. I couldn’t get to you before the pirates attacked. I ended their pathetic lives shortly after you dove beneath the water, but I was not quick enough, for one still hit his mark.”

I looked down at my legs, noticing the wrap around my left thigh. An ache remained, but it wasn’t that painful.

“The mage,” Malik answered my unspoken thought. “When I found you, he had you on the shore with his hands over your wound. A golden glow came from his palms, and his eyes were of the same shade. As if the sun was bursting from him. We clothed you and moved you beneath this tree.”