“Do you know what happened to our ship?” I ask. “Were there any other castaways?”
“Your ship survived the storm. Last I heard, it was spotted harbored safely in Hadria.”
“That’s amazing news!” I exclaim. “Can you help us return to Hadria?”
“We will lead you there,” Callistia says, clapping again and smiling.
Dayton turns back to his mentor. “Will you return with us?”
Justus walks over. “Aye, I will return to Hadria in time. But I will make my own way there.”
“How?” Dayton raises a brow.
“You have your beast. Perhaps it is not all a curse from the Queen, but partly a gift. Such as the one she granted me.” In a flash of brilliant light, Justus changes into a golden eagle and lifts off into the sky.
“Would you look at that,” Dayton says. “Secrets upon secrets.”
“Maybe he’s right,” I say. “Farron has found strength in his wolf since breaking the curse.”
Dayton doesn’t respond, but his expression sobers.
“You must change as well,” Nereida says.
“What do you mean?” I say, turning to them.
Callistia splashes her tail out of the water, a mesmerizing shade of blue reminiscent of the ocean’s waves. “Well, you can’t expect to swim all the way there withlegs.”
Her meaning becomes abundantly clear.
I’m going to need to turn Dayton and myself into sirens.
CHAPTER 58
Dayton
As someone who has turned into a wolf almost every night for the last twenty-five years, you’d think a little change wouldn’t be that big of a deal. But there is just something incredibly wondrous about being transformed into a siren.
It didn’t even take that long to get the feel for swimming like this. Rosalina took a little longer to adjust to her tail than I did, but I didn’t mind being close to her and helping her out one bit. As amazing as she mademelook with a twinkling teal tail, I haven’t been able to take my eyes off of her since we dove beneath the sea.
Rosalina gleams like a jewel. Her tail is golden, each scale casting a shimmer upon the ocean floor, and her chestnut hair flows around her face like a crown of Autumn leaves. Across her torso is a top of iridescent pearls and seashells, gifted by one of the sirens that have joined us on our journey.
More and more sirens have felt our presence in the ocean as we travel to Hadria. They’ve flocked to see the High Prince of Summer and the Golden Rose.
“We’ll be passing Aerantheis soon,” Nereida says, her voice clear despite being underwater. “The other sirens will return home, and we will continue on to Hadria.”
“Amazing.” I smile, still in awe of being able to breathe and communicate below the surface.
Rosalina is up ahead, surrounded by Callistia and a dozen other sirens. Not only was she gifted the top, but also a crown of shells and pearls, and a bracelet of shark teeth. I can tell by her smile and the cadence of her voice that what Rosalina treasures mostis not the gifts but getting to know these people. She’s soaking up their stories, their friendship, the way plants soak up the sun. As always, her smile is infectious to those around her.
“There it is.” Nereida points. “Aerantheis.”
Far below us, the city of the sirens rises from the ocean floor. The spires and domes are adorned with coral and sea flowers that sway gently in the currents. The buildings seem to dance in the dappled light from the surface.
“Dayton, look!” Rosalina barrels into me, and we spin, twirling together, bubbles billowing around us.
She clings to my neck as I try to steady us by flapping my tail, but I only brush against her. We end up horizontal, her below me.
“Sorry,” she says, flushing. “I’m not quite used to this tail yet. I wanted to make sure you saw the city.”
