I had an out-of-body experience for a heartbeat of time. Which was worse, forcing the mers to mate against their consent or plunging one of them onto the table’s spikes?
“I assume that is in your current level of power.” The king’s tone left no question about the expectation that it had better not be out of my ability. Sadly, it wasn’t.
I started to speak but had to clear my throat to get the words out. “Yes. There is very little skill required to float a body over the ground.”
He kept his eyes trained on me, as if expecting me to crack. When I didn’t, he finally continued with his instructions. “Make sure you do not get one of the mers Charity was able to capture. Use one of the ones bred here. We need the new captures for fresh blood in the gene pool. I know the ones she was able to capture were young, but when the females are of age, they will pair well with my bull. If one of them is male, perhaps I will have another prize specimen to rejuvenate my collection.”
Gwala looked over at Sonia, who kept her eyes trained straight ahead. He ran his fingers over her ear, as if tucking a stray hair back into place. “While what Charity has done is important, she is not of the caliber deserving the indulgence of a wild mer.” His gaze returned to me. “In fact, if you can bring a sick one, all the better.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Evening meal. So, it would be soon. Only a few short hours away.
If I hadn’t already been glad the end was near, I was now. No way was Brett going to stand by while a mer got sacrificed simply to acquire more time to prepare. I wasn’t certain what I would have chosen to do if he hadn’t arrived. Thankfully, I wouldn’t have to find out.
“Very well. You are dismissed.” Gwala motioned toward the door. “If you need anything, please discuss it with Veronica. I will be busy with Charity’s preparation. There is much to do before she has fully proven herself trustworthy of such an induction.”
We turned toward the door, following his dismissal.
“Oh, wait.” Gwala laughed. “What was I thinking? Veronica will not be in attendance this day. No vampire that isn’t a Royal will be within the Cathedral during the ceremony. If you need anything, come to me or to my queen.”
Schwint spoke when I once again hesitated too long. “I am certain that between Finn’s power and my own, we can compensate for any lack of training.”
With another of Gwala’s dismissive nods, we headed toward the exit once more.
“This will be my first transition ceremony as well, my king. How many Royals will be in attendance at such an event?” Sonia’s voice was quiet but loud enough that her words carried to us before we’d fully left the room.
Gwala sounded almost bored as he answered her. “I did not call in Royals that are out of the country, as I would if the vampire were more important. While Charity is deserving of this reward, she is hardly worthy of a full procession. There will only be a few with us this evening. Less than twenty, I would imagine. Regan and his fellows are supposed to leave to oversee some drama in one of the European Squares today. I do not think I will ask them to stay. They are needed too much there to bring things back under control.”
Sonia and Gwala continued to speak as we walked away, but their voices faded past understanding.
Less than twenty. A lot, to be sure, but much less than I’d feared, with all the non-Royals being sent away. As soon as we were back in our room, I contacted Caitlin and let her know that it was about showtime.
Less than twenty. Sonia had to have asked that for our benefit. Smart. So she really was on our side. I’d been having a hard time believing it.
Less than twenty. Twenty nearly all-powerful vampires. Here went nothing.
Forty-Three
BRETT WRIGHT
It tookall of my restraint to keep from rushing up the stairs and confronting the vampires that dumped the young mers into the pool. Not that it would have done any good. Probably would have ruined everything. Thankfully, by the time I realized what had happened, the vampires had gone.
Ventait noticed the three mers’ arrival instantly. Something about a change in the water. I felt nothing.
Upon seeing them, I couldn’t contain my anger. The broiling water around me scared them even more than they already had been. That and my lack of a tail.
They were of a tribe I’d not seen. There were two males and a female. Guessing from human years, I took them to be between five and thirteen years old, the girl being the eldest. She took a protective stance in front of the smaller males, despite the fear in her expression as she looked at me. Their skin was dark, with almost a greenish hue. Their moss-colored tails had long barbs running down the front.
Seeing Ventait swimming about freely caused a change in many of the mers. Sadly, not as many as I would have expected. I feared what would become of them in the ocean—there seemed no will of life left. I’d not been able to get the bands off Ventait’s wrists, waist, or tail. They were too tight against him to fit my fingers between, and I feared what fire would do to him. Still, he was free. If anything, the bindings caused him to look even fiercer, when combined with his seemingly permanent expression of hate.
Even as he explained to the other captives that we had a plan, leaving out the details Finn had managed to communicate to me, there seemed little hope in his tone. Not that I could blame him. Even to me, the task seemed nearly impossible. A battle with close to twenty vampires? Not a likely success. How much more farfetched it must seem to a male who’d been chained up for nearly fifteen years.
Ventait had remained silent when I’d relayed Finn’s plan, until he discovered he was not a part of it. Again, I couldn’t blame him. If someone had told me I wouldn’t be allowed to take vengeance on my captors, no way I’d listen. Once again, Syleen’s words came back to me. That I’d been born with legs for a reason. Even though I was more mer than anything else, if I’d had the tail I longed for, I wouldn’t be able to help my family. Ventait would be helpless out of the water, regardless of how many or how few vampires there were. Neither did I press the point that he wouldn’t be much better if the battle was to take place inside the enclosure.
I looked at him, his vitality, his beauty—seeing all of them. The new children. The ones who’d lost hope. The ones who’d never seen any part of life except existence under the Cathedral. We couldn’t fail. It wasn’t an option. Twenty vampires or hundreds, the mers would be free. They had to be.
Finn hesitatedas he stepped through after rolling the stone away, his eyes wide as he saw Ventait in the water beside me. Even after all the time that had passed and all the changes between us, I was able to read his thoughts nearly as easily as my own.
