“Zotera!” I screamed.
She was in front of me an instant later, dry and radiating a level of rage I’d never witnessed before as she looked at the blood smearing the fingers of the hand I held up.
The earth shook violently beneath my feet.
“I think it was a poisoned dart,” I said, pointing at the black offender in the snow. “I feel dizzy, and the spot burns.”
She gently turned me and tugged up my shirt. I had a clear view of the end of the dock as Megan erupted from the lake in a cloud of steam. Her fiery wings extended out on each side of her as she carefully landed on the bucking planks. The wings disappeared as she raced toward me.
“What happened?” she asked.
“Someone shot me with that,” I said, pointing down.
She bent to pick up the dart that Zotera had ignored. The feel of Zotera’s lips against my skin shocked me, and I gave a yip when I felt her teeth lightly close down on my skin.
Abandoning the dart, Megan grabbed my arms and held me still.
“If it’s poison, it needs to come out,” she said, holding my gaze.
I nodded, trying not to panic. Whatever Zotera was doing didn’t feel great. But it didn’t hurt any more than the throbbing. My panic was less about the pain and more about trust. I liked Zotera but apparently hadn’t fully trusted her like I’d thought.
When Zotera stopped and stood, I struggled to stay upright as my insides went hot and cold.
“She tastes like mermaid,” Zotera said.
I glanced at her. “Please tell me you didn’t eat a mermaid.”
“No, Mother. I bit the one who bit me.”
She lifted her arm to show the ripped sleeve of my uncle’s coat.
“Are you okay?” I asked as the pain continued to throb through me.
“I am.”
“But you won’t be, Ashlyn,” Megan said, taking her phone from her wet pocket. She caught my doubtful glance at the device. “Don’t worry. Oanen made sure yours is waterproof too.”
She dialed and held it up to her ear.
“Ashlyn’s hurt. I need you at the lake.”
A shimmer appeared beside us, and Mrs. Quill stepped through.
“What happened?” she asked, looking from me to Megan to Zotera.
“Zotera, this is Oanen’s mom,” Megan said.
Megan held up the dart. “This happened. Zotera said it tasted like mermaid. Can you treat Ashlyn?”
“Of course.” She held out a hand to me and to Zotera.
Zotera glanced at me.
“I trust Mrs. Quill,” I said, hoping it wasn’t a misplaced trust. She was Adira’s sister, after all. “She’ll take us somewhere safer. Take her hand.”
A full-body sweat broke out before my fingers touched Mrs. Quill’s. A second later, we were in a bedroom. My knees gave out with another wave of dizziness. Zotera caught me before I could hit the floor.
The tremors from the lake continued, lightly rattling the bottles on the dresser as Zotera lifted me and gently set me on the bed.
