It was time to end all the horrors Adaro had brought to this earth.
And for once, instead of being driven by anger, I felt calm. This was the only way forwards. It was almost tragic to think Adaro had spent his entire life suffering in hatred.
Adaro snarled. He raised a muscular arm, calling the serpent.
A wave slammed into me at her arrival. I held my ground, letting the deluge wash back down the rocks.
After years of practice, aligning my aim felt natural. I held the crossbow firmly, not taking my eye off my target.
Adaro grabbed at whatever he could reach to pull himself further into the hull.
The sky darkened as the serpent raised a massive head. There was a wet, cracking sound of her jaws opening. The back of my neck prickled.
Adaro was scrambling away, but not fast enough. Bile crept up my throat at the thought of shooting this man in the back.
I exhaled. “For Eriana Kwai.”
For the protection of everyone back home, for Lysi, for merpeople—and for myself—I pulled the trigger.
A hot breath of air washed over me. I dove sideways, catching a fleeting glimpse of the bolt leaving my crossbow.
The serpent’s snout slammed into the rocks where I’d been and snapped closed over nothing.
The bolt plunged into Adaro’s ribcage.
The serpent drew back to lunge again. The remains of the fishing net fell from her jaws, scattering over the beach.
Adaro fell, bolt protruding from his side. Crimson blood oozed from the wound. But he was still alive.
“No,” I whispered.
I needed something to act as a second bolt. A rock, or a branch.
The serpent was too quick. The other set of jaws opened overhead with a wet crackle. The beach darkened further. I rolled to the side, but I was helpless out of water. A tooth caught my arm, knocking me flat. I dropped the crossbow.
The serpent’s breath engulfed me. My fingers found a sharp rock.
I lunged for the crossbow, stretching, reaching. I slammed the rock against the shaft. It was too short and fat, but there was no time.
I aimed at Adaro’s crumpled body, teeth gritted. My makeshift ammo wasn’t going to leave the weapon properly.
A drip of hot saliva hit my shoulder. I squeezed my eyes shut and pulled the trigger a second time. The crossbow vibrated as the sinew snapped.
I waited for the pain of those fangs sinking into me, thinking of Lysi.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE - Lysi
The Liberation of Utopia
The Nereid Peaks cascaded into the distance, each underwater mountain higher than the last. I stopped to get a feel of the landscape. The prison could have been anywhere in these peaks and valleys. It would take days to scour the whole range.
Maybe the mountains broke the surface to form islands. It would be a good place to keep a lot of merpeople. Was I looking for a good place, though? Or was I looking for something miserable? The vista of coral felt too close to paradise for it to be a prison.
No matter what happens, keep going.
Spio’s words looped in my mind with every stroke. I’d done what he said, expecting him to catch up. But I kept going, and going, and the sun changed positions, and still I swam alone. I forced myself to keep a quick pace, fighting the urge to turn around and search for him.
Panicking would do me no good. I had to keep going. If I didn’t find Queen Evagore, how were we supposed to make a peace treaty with the humans? We needed a reformed kingdom, and for that, we needed our queen.
