Tatiana blinked at her almost sister-in-mer’s form. A small bump protruded at her bellybutton. “Are you pregnant?”
Lily yanked her head backward, eyes zeroing in on Landon. “You’re one to judge.” Lily flashed her tattooed finger. “Yes, I am. After Fin left me at the alter, Kiernan asked for my hand. And we were promised before we did it, if you’re wondering.”
Tatiana sucked in her gasp, as small snippets of the promising ceremony came to mind. Hardly lucid, she barely recalled what they’d talked about when she’d gotten ready with Lily, or hardly anything.
Lily’s glare turned frosty. “What I don’t get is if you hated Prince Azor so much, why would you bed him before your ceremony?”
Tatiana did a double take. “What?”
Lily laughed cynically. “You had us all fooled.”
Tatiana peered down at the child, wanting to protect him. No one had made any snide remarks about his sudden appearance as of yet. Was the gossip mill talking? Would they think him illegitimate his whole life?
“—and now Jacob? What do you think you’re doing?”
Jacob. What was she insinuating and how did she know anything about him?
“Now wait a minute.” Tatiana’s shoulders straightened. “Look who’s judging whom—”
“I don’t know what twisted line you’ve got these mermen dangling on, but people are in danger. You need to pick the side loyal to your father—to Jack.”
“I am loyal to my father,” she defended.
Lily closed her eyes, her face marred with anger. “Well, you could have fooled me. Uncle Badger and the others have been stuck in pillories all week awaiting today’s sentencing while you’re here…”—she waved her hand around the room, finishing at Tatiana’s perfectly coiffed hair—“playing dress-up. You cannot let Azor do what I think he’s going to do.”
Tatiana’s mouth gaped. “Pillories? He said he was going to pardon them.”
A caustic laugh escaped from her lips. “And you believe him? I thought you were smarter than that. But after seeing this—” She gestured to the child. “Does Jacob even know? Did you tell him?”
Tatiana bit her tongue. What had the others been saying about her and Jacob for Lily to come at her like this? Did they think she kissed him? Tatiana pressed her eyelids shut. Even though Lily had gotten her facts wrong, too many lives were at stake at this point, including Landon’s, for her to confess the truth. “I’m not stringing anyone along, and I have it under control.”
Lily raised a brow, then just laughed, shaking her head. “Control? Right.”
“Is Jacob with Badger?” Tatiana asked.
Lily looked away, disgusted. “No. I don’t know where he is. Rumor has it they’ve locked up the rebel mer matrons in the dungeon and confiscated all the ink, so they can’t come in a sirening mob and rescue the men. People are terrified and hungry, and there’s no end to the Dradux torture.” She looked away, as if ashamed of Tatiana’s ignorance.
Tatiana lifted her chin, her chest constricting. “Thank you for telling me. I'll do my best.”
Her eyes fell into slits. “Your best?” She huffed and slammed her hands to her sides. “Then why are you still sitting here? You clearly don’t care you’re promised to the enemy.” With a quivering lip, she said, “I can’t believe you’re cowering under Azor’s tyranny. I had faith in you.”
With tears falling down her cheeks, she ran from the room.
“No, Lily. You don’t understand.”
She brushed past Pearl as she opened the door.
“What was that about?” Pearl asked, confused. “Wait, miss. You dropped something.”
Pearl disappeared after Lily. Tatiana clutched the baby, trying to withhold her tears when something wet sopped her hand. The liquid came from Landon’s bum.
She tsked, never having changed his diaper before. Taking Landon to the table, she unswaddled him and looked for a new diaper. But once she uncovered him, she discovered Landon wasn’t a boy at all. He was a girl.
“Mother of pearl,” she said, breathlessly.
39
: : :
Ruby Slippers
Ash wriggled her toes and stared at an oil painting of a ship, the Sea Queen, hanging on the wall over a fake fireplace. Underneath on a mantle stood a golden trophy and a spyglass, all human things. Pipe smoke lingered in the air along with garlic. Garlic? Being fish, the whole concept of air-filled homes stumped her. Why did they act so human? Her eyes darted once again to the bloodied sheets on the couch. She tried not to think about who’d lain there not so long ago.
“What’s going on, Jax?” Fin yelled. “It’s like a ghost town. There’s no song! Hardly any sunlight! And who were those freaks that just jumped us?”
Jax had his back turned to Fin as he rummaged in the closet, pulling out black robes and broken oars. “There’s got to be some face paint in here somewhere.”
“Are you kidding me?” he barked, slamming the flat end of the scythe against the brick floor. “How are you and I going to fight those things?”
Galadriel pulled Ash aside. “Where’d Colin go?”
Ash frowned. “He stayed behind.”
“Really?” She blew out a breath. “And Ferd?”
Ash shrugged. “Don’t know.”
“Gah,” she grumbled. “This is crazy. Stop, Jax. Even if we do find something, it’s useless. What are the four of us going to do?” She threw down the wet Dradux cloaks.
“I won’t leave without Tatch. Colin said the rebels were all in the square. We just need to sneak up, pretend to be the guards and set them free,” Fin said. “Badger should be there. He’ll know what to do.”
The scene in the Wizard of Oz where the Lion, the Tin Man, and the Scarecrow snuck into the castle dressed as guards to free Dorothy came to Ash’s mind. She’d crossed into the Emerald City, with strange new creatures, both scary and exotic. But what was next in this crazy world? Flying monkeys? Should she click her heels and wish for home?
“Where do you think Tatiana is?” Ash asked.
“Probably the palace.” Galadriel put hands on her hips, her eyes zipping around the room as if looking for answers.
The deep vibration of a horn penetrated the sea; everyone’s spines stiffened.
“What was that?” Ash looked to Galadriel.
Galadriel’s face fell. “It’s the signal for everyone to gather at the square. There’s to be an announcement.” She brought her fist to her lips and stared at the Dradux cloaks. “I think you’re right Fin. We can blend in. Then once we know what we’re up against, we’ll form a plan.”
Jax and Fin hummed in agreement and each took a weapon and a cloak, but Ash’s stomach turned aerial stunts. How was she to blend in when she didn’t even know the first thing about being a mermaid? Let along holding the weapon of choice for the Grimm Reaper?
40
: : :
Baby Blue
At the signal horn, Tatiana stood from her vanity, dressed and ready to go. Her eyes met Pearl’s who handed Tatiana the sleeping merling girl, dressed in a long gown. “I’ll be with you the entire time, my Queen,” she said before she bowed. “Anything you need, just ask.”
Tatiana nodded, unable to catch her breath, her heart pounding. In a daze, she walked forward and moved into the hall. At once, the guards surrounded her and escorted her to the front of the palace. The entire walk, the soft shush of her beaded gown hitting her bare legs echoed against the stark walls. Her coronation day and she still had no idea where Azor held Jacob.
The group stopped before a porthole leading to the staged area outside in the square. Through the windows Tatiana could see the dais decorated with pillars and sprays of anemones and coral. Oberon, officiator of the ceremony, stood next to three vacant thrones. To his right, the boys' choir sang the anthem while the women and children below huddled together, frightened. Rebels were bound in pillories like Lily had said, flanked in long rows on either side of the square.
The women
watched on in horror and hid their children’s eyes while Dradux guards draped sacks over the rebels’ faces. As far as Tatiana could see, the Dradux hovered menacingly in the current with their scythes crossed over their bodies, uninviting green hoods over their heads.
The last to be covered was Badger. Tatiana gasped, covering her lips with her fingers, her limbs shaking. Was Lily right? This didn’t look like a pardon. More like a massacre. What did Azor have planned?
“Ready?” Azor said behind her, startling her.
“Azor.” She forced a pleasant expression, dropping her hand. “Yes.”
He smiled, eyes still shining. “What? No happy birthday?”
“Oh, right. Happy Birthday.” She curtsied.
He laughed and proffered his arm. “You know you’ll have to kiss me to make this believable,” he whispered while escorting her to the porthole.
“I know,” she said, revolted at the thought of his lips touching hers.
With a quick plunge underwater, the baby awoke. Under her gown, a tiny baby-blue tail flipped out of the blanket and wiggled. Tatiana quickly wrapped her fin up and out of view, looking to see if anyone saw.
“Ladies and mermen, welcome to this glorious occasion. I give you Queen Desiree, Prince Azor, Princess Tatiana, and the newest Prince, Treviathan Jacques,” Oberon bellowed.
Tatiana’s head whipped to Azor. Jacques was her father’s formal name.
Azor leaned in. “Appropriate, don’t you think?”
She shuddered, keeping a firm hold on the rambunctious merling. Of course, not having to change the babe, she’d assumed the merling to be a boy. But how could that have slipped by Azor? He would have found out the instant he took her underwater when her blue tail thrashed around anxious to swim. But most important, if she didn’t keep a firm hold on the child, she’d flit away and all would see.
: : :
Staring at the dais, Ash pulled a ragged breath of water through her tensed gills at the announcement of names. The Prince’s name struck her odd. Did the Queen just have a baby? Another son?
She squinted hard, staring out from under the stinking green hood, while the people cheered flatly around her. A beautiful woman with white-blond hair floated in first and took her seat, stealing Ash’s breath. In her soul, she felt the instant connection and knew instinctively who she was—her mother.
Azor appeared next, smug with his jet-black hair and dark, sinister eyes. Then Tatchi swam in with a gorgeous pink, purple and blue tail, and Ash’s hand flew to her mouth, one in recognition of her best friend and another for the small bundle in her arms.
The guards around them broke into cheers, smashing their weapons together.
Ash jumped. “Holy crawfish!”
Fin moved in closer, taking her hand, but his face portrayed horror mixed with confusion. He looked to Galadriel and mouthed, “What in Hades—?”
Galadriel shook her head, just as stunned. “Maybe she did like him,” she whispered.
“No,” Fin said adamantly. “She hated him up until the moment he kissed her. And, it’s not possible. We left only two weeks ago. Unless…” His nostrils flared. “If he even so much as touched my sister improperly—”
Touched her? Didn’t like him? Were they implying the baby belonged to… not Tatchi?
“Hold up,” Jax interrupted quietly, grabbing Fin’s wrist. “Rumor was they weren’t even, you know, together, so I’d say no… I know my brother wouldn’t have fallen for her otherwise.”
“What?” Fin turned to Jax, his eyebrows pressed together. “How do you know this?”
“I was in the dungeon with the rebels, man. We talk.” His eyes canvassed the line of shackled hooded men. “Jacob’s not with the Princess, though, which is odd.”
“Jacob?” Fin asked.
“My brother is Tatiana’s bodyguard,” Jax corrected.
Ash’s eyes snapped to the front when Azor began to speak.
“Welcome all,” Azor started. “I’m glad you’ve joined us. Though today is to be a happy time with the announcement, my birthday, and my son, Treviathan…”
Murmurs and gasps came from everyone in the group. “Son? How could he have a son? They’ve only been promised for two weeks. How improper.”
“—It is also a sad one to have to inform you that my father has indeed passed.”
“W-what?” Galadriel clutched her neckline, gasping. “Nooooo… He didn’t!”
At the Queen’s wail, Ash gripped Galadriel’s arm, trying to withhold her own sorrow. She responded and embraced her. She knew the King to be a cruel man, chopping off Galadriel’s fingers to hide her promise, but she couldn’t handle seeing her mother so upset, robbed she’d never meet or confront her father.
The Queen continued to sob, interrupting Azor’s concentration, and the crowd broke into confused whispers. Azor’s side fins flared and he motioned to his guards. With a quick bow, he lowered down in front of his mother while two guards manipulated the Queen’s arms like a puppet to place the crown on Azor’s head.
He rose and waved to the audience. “So, without further stress added to the Queen, I accept the title as your king,” Azor said, hurriedly.
“Long live the King,” the crowd mumbled half-heartedly.
“That son of a bass,” Galadriel grunted. “When I get my hands on him.”
Ash was still confused, unsure what this all meant and his reference to his son? Did mermen have more than one wife? But at hearing her mother’s desperate cries, her heart ached to comfort her. She flitted her tail and rose slowly upward, her head tipped backward so she could see the Queen better.
“And with that said,” Azor continued, “for my first order of business, I’d like to address the mermen before me.”
Ash shook her head, releasing the hood for a better view, and stared blankly, out in the open, hoping to gain eye contact with her mother.
: : :
Out of nowhere, someone placed the crown on Tatiana’s head. She startled momentarily, then held her breath and prayed the next words Azor spoke would be to pardon the rebels. If not, she’d let his daughter swim, thus giving the power back to Desiree to lead.
If only she’d stop crying and take the lead.
Desiree’s sobs, though, visibly interrupted his concentration; his face reddening and jaw clenching.
Nevermind. Let him have it. He deserves this, she thought with a vengeful smile.
The Queen suddenly stopped mid-wail and her eyes glazed over. Staring into the crowd, a flicker of hope hit her face. Tatiana scanned the audience for why, for the source, hoping for a miracle, and blinked in disbelief, and blinked again to clear the mirage. But the redheaded girl that was her very best friend didn’t fade away.
“Ash?”
Azor continued on unaware, his body relaxing in the sudden void of grief. “As agents of harm, you’ve been found guilty for your acts of treason, for attacking the compound and attempting to kill your Queen, and you’ll be punished under the full letter of the law. Beheaded—”
“Lies!” the Queen shrieked, rising from her throne. “All lies!”
The crowd gasped.
“Mother?” Azor said, reaching for her.
She sirened and all the mermen doubled over, holding their ears. The merling sent out a small siren of her own. Unthinking, Tatiana placed her hand over the babe’s mouth.
“You will not touch me!” The Queen screamed to the approaching guards. She continued to glare at Azor, pointing. “You are not of royal blood. You are not my son! I replaced you. I replaced you with her, my daughter.” Her finger shifted to the new target; to the redheaded girl fluttering in the current, wearing a Dradux cloak. To Ash.
Ash reached out for her mother, the two of them propelling themselves to meet in the middle.
Fin? What is going on? Tatiana screamed in her head. Get Ash out of here!
We’re here to save you! Fin yelled back telepathically.
She scanned the people surrounding Ash’s tail and didn’t s
ee an army, let alone Fin. What were they doing? I don’t need saving, idiot! Ash does. Get her out of here! Now!
Dradux guards darted toward Ash the same time Azor swam to his mother, yanking her back by the tail from the crowd.
“Do not say another word, Mother,” he threatened. He released her to two Dradux guards who grabbed her arms and pulled her off the dais.
“Silence,” Azor bellowed, lifting his hands. “That’s only my sister, Galadriel. She’d returned to serve me. And of course I’m of royal blood. Queen Tatiana has the royal mark.” He gestured his hand to Tatiana. “Go on, show them.”
Galadriel? Tatiana panned the crowd again to find Ash. She was gone.
Fin? Fin! She mentally called.
She knew she hadn’t imagined seeing her. They had to be somewhere. She’d spoken with Fin even. What did Azor mean she was his lost sister, Galadriel?
At the siren scream beyond the dais, Tatiana’s head whipped around to find her mother-in-mer struggling against the guards. She couldn’t keep up the charade anymore. She had to find Ash. She had to rescue Jacob.
The squirming merling, as if understanding it was her turn to shine, bopped her tail just right and wiggled out of Tatiana’s shaking hands. The blanket fell away, revealing the colorful tail signifying a girl. The crowd gasped.
Tatiana fell back into her seat, watching her twitch her body in the current, happy as a clam.
“It’s not a boy!” someone in the crowd yelled. “Imposter!”
“He is an imposter!” Ash yelled, surfacing from the crowd once again. Her hair like fire framed her head. “I’m the royal heir to the throne! I’m your queen!”
Queen? Tatiana gasped. She’d never seen Ash so vocal before, so brave.
“Arrest Galadriel!” Azor shouted.
And in a flash, Tatiana saw two girls. Two redheads. Two Ashes.
A skirmish broke out around and between the Dradux guards. Siren screams parted a sea of mers, scurrying to find safety as the green hooded figures mobbed in. She spotted Fin and another merman in a Dradux cloak, releasing rebels from the pillories. They’d come to save the day, with backup and look-a-likes apparently. She unbuttoned her beaded gown to release her weighted garment and straightened her black get-a-way dress that had been hiding underneath, when a hand tightened around her neck from behind.
Everlost (Mer Tales, Book 3) Page 26
