But I almost stumbled back into the water at the sight of it all. Most of the faeries had escaped, with those remaining being held captive by merfolk soldiers and a few furious-looking humans. In the centre of the destroyed wedding aisle, Arenn laid across the floor while another man straddled his chest. Over and over again, the young man swung his fists at Arenn’s jaw. Each time I shuddered as an awful crack echoed across the crystal walls.
“I told you I’d kill you, you bastard,” the man snarled,striking Arenn again. “You think you can just take her from me. She’s my wife!” he growled.
Above him, the water dragon painted circles in the ceiling. It watched them both, growling menacingly when Arenn wheezed, “Hardly a fair fight if you have me cuffed in iron.”
“As if you’ve ever played fair.” The man struck the prince across the jaw.
Emotions warred inside of me. Fierce emotions I didn’t understand. When I tried to think what they meant, an awful headache clapped against my skull.
“Naria,” a woman hissed. I glanced down to see Queen Amabel on the floor, angry bruises blooming across her face.
“What’s happening here?” I crouched down to her level.
“You need to give Arenn this.” Holding back a sob, she slipped something small into my palm. “It’s a key he can use for the cuff. Please, just save us all,” she begged.
“Hey!” A merfolk soldier charged towards us.
I leapt back, keeping the small object hidden in my fist.
“Where did you come from?” he barked, but when he raised his trident, a powerful voice made us both freeze.
“If you dare touch her my dragon will tear your limbs from your chest.” The man on top of Arenn stared straight at me. “Naria,” he sighed my name as if it were a prayer. “You weren’t supposed to see me like this.”
“Why are you here?” I demanded, swallowing down tears. “Why are you hurting him?”
The man shook his head, his dark brown hair glinting under the quartz lights. “You don’t understand. This man is evil. He stole you from me then took all your memories, butI’ll find a way to bring them back.” His gaze dropped to Arenn as his voice turned lethal. “I’ll make sure of that.”
“Please stop hurting people.” I drew closer to him. “Just take me if you want, but don’t hurt anyone else.”
The man’s stormy eyes darkened. “The others will all be let go, but not Arenn. Not while I’m still breathing. He can’t be allowed to hurt you again, Naria. And if I leave him now, he’ll only find another way to take you from me.” Desperation clouded his gaze. “Don’t you see? Even this wedding was just another trick. Faery weddings are powerful, forest princess. Even more binding than those stones on your wrist. Had he married you today, your bond would’ve run deeper than it is now. I wouldn’t have been able to dampen your connection to him like I did before.”
“What are you talking about?” I rasped.
“My aunt explained everything,” he went on. “She told me how I used my Gift without knowing to cut your connection with the prince and replace it with our own merfolk bond. That’s how I’ve been able to save you from drowning, to speak to you even when we were miles apart. Just look at your wrist.”
“Ignore him, human. He’s lying,” Arenn groaned from the floor.
Hesitantly, I raised my arm. Arenn had told me the crystals on my wrist represented our engagement, but could never explain why mine were blue and occasionally fizzed like bubbling water. “That can’t be true,” I stammered, but when I glanced back at the man, his gaze was fixed on my closed fist.
“What’s that in your hand?” His voice hardened.
“I…” My fingers opened to reveal a small key – the keyto Arenn’s cuff.
“Give that to me, human!” Arenn boomed. “I need that!”
The man struck him across the face again “Enough with the squirming or I’ll try drowning you again,” he growled.
“Give it to him!” Amabel cried out from behind the merfolk soldier. “Save us all!”
“Quiet!” the soldier barked.
The key felt far too heavy in my palm. I should throw it. It’d be so easy to toss it to Prince Arenn and let all this chaos come to an end. But confusion pounded in my head like my heart in my chest. And for some reason, I trusted that stranger more than I trusted my own mind.
Shaking my head, I backed away from the men, ready to throw the key into the river. When, out of nowhere, a red-haired faery snatched it out of my hand and launched it across the chamber.
“Brother!” Elara yelled, before collapsing down to the floor just as merfolk soldiers swarmed her.
Arenn snatched the key with one swift jerk of his wrist.
