Coralade and Shanleigh looked sheepishly at one another as they replaced their aprons and mumbled a quick, “Yes, my lady,” in unison.
As Xirene shooed both girls out the door, Tatiana pushed her plate aside, her appetite further ruined. No wonder the guards enjoyed living here. A visual brothel, with a half-naked statue in the foyer that freely advertised it.
“I expect you to enforce my wishes.” Tatiana sized up Xirene, noticing she wore a white frock practically covering her whole body.
“I wouldn’t think of having it any other way.” Xirene bowed before retreating to the hidden back rooms of the kitchen.
Tatiana’s eyes slipped shut. She had no idea what had happened within these walls before, but things were most definitely going to change, starting first with the dress code and then with the prisoners. Azor would be getting an earful once he came home.
4
: : :
Leviathans and Oranges
Tatiana swam into the front room, curious to see where the blue-grey-eyed rebel had gone. After scanning the room, she spied Coralade rubbing her tail against him. Oddly, jealousy hit her, until she noticed he seemed annoyed with her flirting, even pushing her away. His dignity intrigued Tatiana momentarily, but as she approached, his eyes caught hers and his gill flaps stopped moving.
Caught you red finned,
Tatiana thought with a smirk.
She swam full force, determined to discover if he did in fact try to steal her from the palace, when she noticed newly placed golden bracers emblazoned with the Natatorian insignia on his arms. His jaw tightened as his eyes met hers, piercing into her. And instead of fear, his gaze lay thick with the secret and a hint of smolder.
He rose from his seat and tipped his head. “Princess.”
Her heart skipped a beat, her cheeks flushing. After her assault on him, she couldn’t believe he’d look at her like that, not to mention she was promised. Even still, she couldn’t collect herself. She looked away and smoothed down the tulle wisps of her gemmed promising dress, embarrassed she still had it on. Confusion clouded her mind, one for her reaction to him, but also in lack of proof. Without a bite mark, she couldn’t be sure if he was the one.
“Princess. I’m glad to see you’ve met Jacob.”
Her insides jumped at Blanchard’s voice. She swallowed hard. Jacob remained stoic, eyes now cast downward.
“Not formally, but then again I have no idea who any of these men are that are occupying
my
living room. Don’t the barracks have a hall for them to commune in? They’re stinking up the place.”
“Of course, milady.” Blanchard straightened himself. “In light of the recent attack, we’re fitting those chosen with armor so they’re prepared to serve the kingdom at a moment’s notice. That frees the Dradux so they can directly serve the King. Though I know they’re annoying to you, the guards are here to keep watch over the prisoners.”
She wanted to roll her eyes and laugh at the absurdity of his statement. Like she needed protection from the rebels. The Dradux, on the other hand, she most definitely didn’t want to be alone with. The ones who allowed parasites to latch onto their tongues and occupy their mouths—she shivered at the thought.
She returned her attention to Jacob, the sneaky little
anemone fish
. He’d slid right into the compound undetected.
What are you up to, Jacob?
Little did Azor know before fitting him with armor, he’d ditched the black rebel robes and bandaged his arm just in time. If only she could take one peek under that sliver of gold to make sure.
Blanchard cleared his throat, gaining Tatiana’s attention. “And in light of your abduction, you’re being assigned a personal bodyguard as well. Jacob will personally make sure you’re safe until the threat is over.”
She turned to Blanchard, aghast and practically laughed. Was he kidding? “Threat? What threat?”
“I heard a rebel abducted you, correct?”
She squinted in disbelief and chuckled, eyeing Jacob for a response. Technically, rebels were on her side. The irony was, they assigned the very rebel who
had
abducted her—she couldn’t believe her ears.
“I really don’t think that will be necessary.”
“Yes, it is, Princess. With everything that’s happened, it’s hard to know who to trust.”
Her lips pressed into a line unappreciative of Blanchard’s subtle implication that she was a rebel as well. Her father had defended her honor; that was the truth. She wanted to shout their innocence across the hall so everyone would hear, especially the guards who continued to glare at her.
“Fish sticks!” she said. “No one is going to bother me. I don’t need a bodyguard. I have Azor.”
Blanchard’s face hardened. “Prince Azor will not be able to provide round the clock protection.”
“And poor Jacob must have a family or something.” She glanced at his finger for a promise tattoo, finding nothing. “This is silly. With all the guards here at the house…”
“I’m only following the Prince’s instructions. You’ll need to take it up with him if you disagree.”
She clenched her jaw, refraining from arguing further.
Oh, you bet I will
, she thought.
Blanchard bowed before leaving to speak with someone else. Jacob remained quiet as the eyes of the other mermen watched her with glaring mistrust. In Azor’s absence, she felt vulnerable—like she was the enemy. Would they lock her up eventually and say it was for her protection?
Without another word, she swished her tail and escaped past Ms. Sea Urchin and her tatas to the second floor. Unsure where to go, she hid in her room. If she could have locked the door, she would have.
Alone, she drifted to the window, reality sinking in, and the tears came. Since she was a little merling, she’d dreamt of the day she’d promise to the love of her life. Never did she imagine a war would stem from that union. A terrible war that pit brother against brother and her lover, not even on her side, wouldn’t find time to comfort her.
She sobbed into her arms until she drifted off to sleep, exhausted.
: : :
Hours later, Tatiana’s eyes popped open and she shook her head to gain her bearings. Never had she slept this much in her life.
Sunlight dimly filtered into the water outside her windows, but she couldn’t be sure of the time, or even the day. Alone in her room, her heart sank like a stone. The lonely quiet of the house hit even harder. Where was Azor?
She swam out of her room and peered down the empty second-story hall. Identical rooms like hers lined the corridor, ending at a set of double doors. The master bedroom, perhaps? She wondered why Xirene hadn’t put her to sleep in there yesterday. She swam forward and bit her lip, carefully pressing open one side of the massive doors.
“Azor?”
The huge room loomed before her. In the center was a large dais covered with bright green moss—she assumed the Prince’s bed, but no Azor. Scary carved faces of snakes and demons lined the walls and looked down on her in disgust, like an intruder. She slithered slowly inside and ran her hand over the back of the door to close it. Something sharp cut into her hand and she pulled away, biting back a scream. On the back of the door, carved into the iron, was a leviathan’s mouth, jutting out at her. Cradled in its teeth was a human baby. The monster’s snakelike body, thick like a redwood trunk, trailed along the walls of the room ending in a tight coil wrapped around a human woman as she reached for her child in desperation.
Tatiana’s chest clenched tight in hysteria. Her eyes darted back and forth, processing the meaning of the dreadful carving. In a flurry of terror, she fled from the room, unable to handle, let alone witness, the frightful sight. Tatiana froze in the hall, gulping to catch her breath. She’d known Azor hated humans, but this? His true disdain shone in all its horrific teeth and snarls—in his bedroom of all places. She closed her eyes, clutching the neckline of her gown, and willed her thumping heart to slow.
Logically, this would be enough evidence to bolt—swim through the Scotland gate, or even through the sharks to the Pacific—and never come back. Before the promise, she’d never stay with such a monster, one who’d had such disregard for humans and for his own kind, and yet the promise wouldn’t let her fathom leaving him now, blackmailing her and rendering her useless when bathed in the beauty of his glorious presence. How could her mind and body be at such odds with one another?
She pressed her thumbs against her temples, trying to force her brain to think straight. At entertaining the thought of running away, her skin broke out in gooseflesh, her heart rate accelerating. Never. She couldn’t. She was bonded to him, hook, line and stinky sinker.
“Oh, dear Poseidon. Why?” she whispered before she slipped down the porthole.
Downstairs guards snored, slumped onto the floor with spears dangling loosely in their hands. She traversed farther down the forbidden hall, cautious not to disrupt the current. On her left was a big meeting room and farther down, the archway leading to the barracks. To her dismay, the room was empty. Across the hall, though, was an arsenal filled with weapons and armor—enough for every merman in Natatoria. She stopped and stared at the vast collection.
Sad groans pulled her attention to her left. She eyed the dungeon doors, wondering how many arrested merman lay shackled behind them. She swam closer and placed her trembling fingers on the iron latch, finding it unlocked.
How easy it would be to help the prisoners escape,
she thought.
“Do you need something, Princess?” a male voice asked.
Her entire body jolted—caught with her hand in the proverbial cookie jar, but she didn’t dare turn around.
Jacob.
“You mustn’t go into the dungeon. It’s not a proper place for a lady.”
She snorted softly at the manipulation behind his words, but kept her hand firmly planted in an act of defiance, hoping he’d go away.
“
I appreciate your concern, Jacob, but this is my house now, and I’ll go where ever I want.”
“I object.”
“You object?” She chuckled. “Sea stars! Who made you my keeper?”
He swam to her and placed his hand gently on hers. Surprising to her, his warmth sent a tingle across her skin. She gasped and pulled away.
He responded and drew his shoulders taut. “I’m responsible for you, and I don’t feel it’s safe for you to be around the prisoners.”
“They can’t hurt me.”
Jacob grimaced. “It sends the wrong message.”
“To whom?”
“To your people.”
She looked away from his blue-grey eyes and swallowed hard.
“All the mers are my people, or are you accusing me of being a traitor, too?”
“Of course not, Princess. But, please.” He motioned she move away from the door, careful not to touch her a second time.
She held her spot. “Are they being cared for? Fed?”
“Yes.”
“And the girl?”
“She was released earlier into her father’s custody. She was at the wrong place at the wrong time.” He stretched out his arm towards the front of the house. “Princess. Let’s go into the other room. Can I get you something? Are you hungry, perhaps?”
Seriously?
The thought of a guard serving her food humored her.
She bit back a smile, tempted to laugh at his lame attempts of distraction, but composed herself instead. “Actually, I’m looking for Azor.”
Jacob exhaled, his eyes losing focus for a beat. “The Prince has yet to return from the palace.”
“What’s taking him so long?”
“I’m not sure.” His jaw clenched and she found it odd he didn’t look directly at her.
“What aren’t you telling me, Jacob?” she demanded, swimming closer to him.
Jacob cast her a quick glance. “Nothing.”
She squinted, her lips curling down in disbelief. “Will you go check on him and find out what’s taking so long?”
He lifted his chin and Tatiana couldn’t help but notice his washboard abs flex.
“No,” he said, determined. “I won’t leave you.”
She shook off her attraction to his physique and balled her hands. “Seriously? Fish fry! There are a bazillion guards here to keep me
safe,
if you haven’t noticed.”
She almost laughed at how incredulous that sounded considering—even while she fought with Jacob—they snored through their argument.
“Shhh,” he said sharply, tugging her by her elbow to the front room. “I’d love to assist, but I have my orders. If something were to happen—”
She pulled away. “I know. You’d be hung by your scales. Blah blah blah. Tube worms! I need to know where my husb—mate is. I am the princess, remember,” she whispered, hard.
“How could I forget?” he said glibly.
She fisted her hands when Jacob wouldn’t budge. “Then take me to the palace if you must
chaperone
me,” she whispered, the edge to her voice hard.
“No.”
“I decree it.”
A small smiled tipped his lips. “You don’t have the authority.”
“Try and stop me.” She swam past Jacob to the front door in determination. “You’re my bodyguard, be one.”
“Princess, don’t be foolish.” He wrapped his hand around the bottom of her fin and held her there.
“Unhand me. Now!” She whipped her tail away from his grasp and swirled around, glaring. “You can’t touch me and you can’t keep me prisoner either.”
Jacob took up a trident in his hands and moved in a flash to block the front door. “I have my orders and I’ll do what’s necessary to keep you from leaving.”
She zipped up to him and tugged on the arm bracer covering his left forearm. “Like putting on these silly things? So I can’t bite you again?”
Surprise crossed his face for the slightest second before he covered his angst with an empty expression. “Princess, contain yourself. This is unbecoming.”
“Unbecoming? Poseidon! You sound like my mother. And I recognize you.” She pointed at his nose, their faces inches from one another. “I know who you are.”
His gaze unfocused as he looked over the top of her head at the stirring guards scattered around them, jaw clenched. “So what if you know who I am,” he said quietly. “Are you going to turn me in? So I can be flogged and arrested just like the rest of the men who stood up for your honor, for your rights?”