Chapter 13
Confession of a princess:
I have sand in places where it should not be. I cannot seem to rid myself of it. And it is vastly annoying.
My toothbrush is even infested with the tiny granules.
Merfolk must have the patience of the Fae, because this is absurd. There is no getting rid of it!
Ilooked down at the water and jumped.
Truly, I will deny to my dying breath that I held my nose the first time I entered the ocean…when I had a caster-spelled starfish.
And the ocean enveloped medown, down, down.
The water is not fine! Not fine!
Not fine at all… That bitch!
I kicked hard back up to the surface and screeched, “Why is it so cold?”
Like the royal pricks they were, all the bloody rulers started laughing their asses off at me.
Even my Fae damned king.
Other than Queen Alora, they were still standing upon the sides of the vessels, watching me shriek and splash. Some bent at the waist and slapped a knee, while others fucking pointed at me.
And. They.Laughed.
“I hate you!” I shouted. “All of you! I hate you!”
One asshole after another, they gradually stopped snickering and jumped into the ocean, fully prepared for the chill—unlike me.
I lifted my right arm out of the water and pointed at my father, while I kept kicking my feet. “That was mean, my king!”
“It is a rite of passage that we have all suffered through.” King Traevon’s wide smile showed all his teeth. “Welcome to the Merfolk Kingdom, my heir. Remember how chilling it can be.”
I scowled at him.
That wasn’t ominous or anything.
With a huff, I started swimming toward the Merfolk Queen, following the other four rulers. I would trail behind them from now on. Becausethatembarrassment would not happen again.
When all six of us were together, we looked up at the sun, high in the noon sky, and back down at each other. This quest had officially begun.
“Follow me. I will go slow.” Queen Alora sank down into the water.
Unable to stop the action, I held my breath as I plunged beneath the surface. I blinked a few times until I could clearly see the other rulers around me. Then I swam after my king as he trailed Queen Alora down into the depths of the ocean.
Eventually, I had to breathe. Andpossiblypanicked.
I stopped swimming and thrashed in the water, trying to not take that breath. Terror froze my thoughts and the will to live kicked in. I started swimming back up.
King Athon and King Elon each grabbed one of my arms and held me still, not allowing me to go anywhere.
Queen Mikko floated in front of me, cupped my face with her small hands, and stared right into my eyes. She opened her mouth wide and took a deep breath in…and the Caster Queen didn’t choke on water.
I closed my eyes and tried to calm my brain.
