14. Annabelle

My corset makes even lookingat the pastries in the shop windows painful. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to eat again. This section of the shopping district is new to me: the arcade. It's beautiful. We started at the southern end. Tall trees soar up high; they're so large I wouldn't be able to put my arms around them. There are walking trails of polished stone that meander through the manicured forest. If I wasn't being bitten in half by my dress, I might actually enjoy this. But I'm following all the rules I learned in my culture studies. Head up, shoulders back, pleasant smile on my face. I nod at Kai. There's a mermaid standing by a vendor trolley.

"If we must," Kai says and veers toward them.

"If we must?" I echo.

"You'll see."

Now I'm not sure I want to see.

"Oh, Kai, how are you?"

"Yana, how are you? I'm so good, sister."

And now I remember who she is: Soren's new mate. Soren is the third-born Drakos son and a male Nico wanted to pass me off to. But lucky for me, Yana just needed a little push to ask Soren into her pod. He's her fourth mate.

"It's nice to meet you again," I tell her.

"Yes, Arabel."

"It's Annabelle," Kai corrects.

"Yes, of course it is." Yana laughs like she's made a joke. "How is the little podlet?"

"Growing," Kai snaps back. And a layer of awkward silence engulfs us.

Yana's not wearing gloves, but she's staring at my hands. "I like your gloves."

"Oh, thanks. I was cold this morning."

"Uh-huh." Yana's champing at the bit. She puts her hand out in front of me like my high school teacher used to do when he wanted a low five, so I slap it. It just happened. I didn't mean to do it, but instinct took over and I smacked her hand. And boy do I feel like it's still echoing as she stares at me in confusion. "Why did you do that?"

"I thought . . . I thought you wanted five."

"I just mated Soren. I'm not ready for a fifth."

"Oh, no... no, I mean I thought you wanted a high five—or in this case a low five. It's a human way of greeting a friend."

Yana's face lights up, and Kai's fingers dig into my arm. "Oh." Yana smacks me back on the side of my shoulder. "Like this?"

"No, I'm sorry, it's just on the hand."

"Right, my hand." She lays it out flat in front of me again, and I'm not sure what she wants me to do. Then she takes her other hand and points to it. "Look, doesn't it look like I'm getting the mark?"

Kai leans over and practically lays her head on top of Yana's hand. "No."

Yana's face drops. "I think you're missing it. See here?" She moves her finger.

I bend over. "Oh, right here, Kai. Look." I point to where Yana's pointing. There's nothing there.

"See? Annabelle sees it." She holds her hand out again. "No, really, this time, hit me. I'm ready, friend."

I give her a gentle tap.

"We've got to go. Annabelle wants to do the full promenade." Kai links her arm with mine and pulls me away.

"Well, it was nice seeing you, friend and sister." Yana smiles and waves. It's then that I notice Soren and three other males standing a distance away. "We're friends," Yana says behind us.

Kai leans over and whispers. "So help me, if you turn around..."

"I'm not going to. But she seems nice."

"She's been sending me pictures of her hand every five hours. There's nothing on her hand but last night's fish sauce." Kai smirks.

"Kai. That's not nice. I think she noticed my gloves, though."

Kai purses her lips and places a hand on her belly. Her eyes flick over me and land on my gloves. "Definitely. Seriously, I know you're out here for other reasons, but you do need to see more than just the big tree section."

"It's quite lovely." I tilt my head and look up. There are birds flying around the faux sky, and above them, past the pretend clouds, are the shadows of fish swimming outside. "I've seen pictures in my culture studies texts."

The tall trees slowly dissipate to shorter ones; there are cherry trees with thick buds ready to burst into bloom. We turn the corner, and I have to stop walking. It's amazing, the way it smells and the vivid crazy colors—pinks, oranges, yellows. It's more than cherry trees. It's like every flowering tree in one place.

But Kai wasn't wrong. I smile over at her. "You doing okay?"

"I'm golden. I can go for a few more hours." She laughs, and I don't miss the groan from Dar behind us. "Look over there; that's Saraphina from Braesen." I glance where Kai's pointing. "No, don't look-look. She wants Castor. We can't let that happen."

"Kai," Bennett half whispers behind us.

"I said what I said. And if you whisper at me again, Bennett, I'll say it louder. Because there is no way I'm having her as a sister." Kai flashes her smile over her shoulder. "But I do love your sister."

"My sister is seventeen, and if any of your brothers so much as..." Bennett stops. "You're just teasing me to get punished again."

"Now you are starting to understand our mate." Dar pulls Bennett a few steps back.

I link arms with Kai again. "Is she really that bad?" Not that I want to think of Castor with anyone but me. How long can he really wait? If he's going to be king, everyone says he'll have to be mated. And I know Nico; he's stubborn. So stubborn. He could take too long to change his mind. Castor said he didn't care about being king, but was that just in the heat of the moment? Okay, Annabelle, focus—that's not why you're here. I'm here to meet mermaids who can help me figure out what's going on with that lab, or anything related to it.

Standing on the edge of the bridge atop a koi pond is a petite mermaid with auburn hair and a striking blue dress.

"Oh, that's someone who might be able to help." Kai takes off for the bridge, but then she turns. "Give us a little more space with this one." She cocks her head and points at each of her mates.

"Fine," they grumble.

"Hey Dahlia." Kai smiles. "Dahlia, this is Annabelle Portsmouth."

"Hi." I lift my hand in a wave, but then the gloves make me feel weird, so I tuck them back at my sides again.

"It's nice to meet you. Marina talks about you all the time. Like all all the time. She's so excited to have a real sister. I mean, we're like sisters. Or at least we were," Dahlia sighs. "Do you know why she's mad at me and isn't answering any of my messages?"

My eyes go wide, and I look at Kai. I hadn't thought this bit out yet. I suppose I'm not supposed to tell anyone that Marina's gone. But I'm not sure.

"Oh, that's hard. I'm sure she has a really good reason. Maybe we can figure it out together." Kai puts her hand on Dahlia's shoulder. I'm guessing that, if they think of each other as sisters, Dahlia is also Zaffiro. "Let's have tea at the Garden House. My treat."

"The Garden House? Do you have reservations?" Dahlia asks. She looks like Kai invited her for a weekend getaway at a palace.

"For three of the most fabulous mermaids in all the Veiled City? They'll find room." Kai steers both of us off the bridge and through a section of white blooming trees. The ground is covered in petals at least an inch thick. They flutter around us when we walk; it's mesmerizing.

"It reminds me of snow," I say.

"Snow," they both say together.

"Oh, tell us about snow. Have you made a snowmale?" Dahlia asks.

"Snowman. And yes, I have." I laugh. The two of them are staring at me like I know the code to the universe.

"That's the Garden House." Kai points to an Asian-inspired teak building sitting in the middle of a pond. A large bridge leads over to it. "Some of the best pastries in the whole city."

"See, I told you they would have space," Kai says to Dahlia, her menu already closed. "The best thing about this place... no male customers allowed." Kai laughs.

"Oh, when I have mates, I'll never want to come here," Dahlia says over the top of her menu.

"Just because I want a minute of peace doesn't mean I don't love my mates." Kai laughs, rubbing her belly. "But yes, I suppose there are days I don't want to be without them too." She looks at me. "That came out wrong."

"I know what you mean." I nod. Kai truly has a kind heart. I messaged her a lot when Eros was gone.

Our order placed, Dahlia leans over the table, her eyes wide. "I can't figure out why Marina's not messaging me back."

"Right, well, what was the last thing she sent you?" I lean forward.

"She was being all sorts of odd. Here, let me show you." Dahlia reaches down to her handbag. At the same time, a tall mermaid with elaborate braids strides up to the table.

"Now, you must be Annabelle." Her face lights up. "I'm Porcia. I have a human mate." She reaches her hand out, and I stare at it for a second.

"Oh. Yes." I shake her hand.

"My mate—or husband, as you will—taught me how to do that. My friends are just leaving. May I join you?"

Dahlia nods overenthusiastically. And I understand why. I feel like we've just been joined by a supermodel with the charisma of an angel; the whole room just feels cozier and brighter at the same time.

"Now, Annabelle—if it's okay that I call you that?"

"Yes, it's her name," Kai says, putting a whole roll in her mouth.

"I know people were trying to foist a Dorian name on you. I wasn't sure if it had stuck."

"No, I'm Annabelle."

"That's good. A mermaid needs to know her boundaries."

Dahlia has pulled out her block, but she also places a leatherbound notebook on the table. She has a brilliant blue fountain pen in her hand, her eyes wide. I think she's going to take notes.

"Oh, how sweet you are." Porcia smiles at her.

"Right, well." Kai closes her eyes tightly, and I have a really good feeling that I'm not going to like what comes out. "Do you know anything about a massive lab cavern under Braesen?"

It's hard for me to keep track, but I'm pretty sure Porcia isn't from Braesen, but rather either Seolfor or Koralli.

She's cool; there's no reaction on her face. "That's an interesting question." She taps her finger on her lips. "Oh, I love interesting conversation starters. Did you know my fifth mate is from Braesen? I should have made him my fourth. Order is so important, you know. But I didn't know it well enough when I was younger. Love and all." She stretches her neck to Dahlia. "You should write that down."

Dahlia gives her a nod and scribbles madly.

"I love the analog; it's so quaint. Right. Fifth mate, from Braesen. His Papa was a scientist. He's gone now. I took care of him during his final days. He talked a lot about his youth. How he didn't have to have a solo, how life was so easy. I asked him how he liked swimming to work, and he became furious. He said, ‘I don't swim to work, Porcia, I take the lift.' I've thought about that ever so often." She reaches for my water, and I nod for her to take it, but a server appears with a complete set of dishes and drinks for Porcia. "Thank you." She smiles with closed lips and waits until they are gone. "I told my mate about it, but he said I must have heard wrong." She gives her head a slow shake. "But I never hear wrong. He knows that now. Anyway, so, yes. Do tell me why you think there is or isn't."

My jaw drops. I... don't even know where or how to begin to answer Porcia.

"Come now, I heard you are all kinds of clever. Decide now—am I trustworthy or not?"

It's an hour of calculations in a minute. I go with my gut. I do trust her. Her story is believable. What ulterior motive could she have for telling me that? "Do you think Braesen is working on the female fertility rates on their own and that's why there are so many pods with more than one female podlet?"

"Oh. A question to answer my question. Are you trying to run for Glyden governor? You know, you would be good. And I think you are clever." She tosses back a drink that looks like seaweed gin. "Yes." For a moment I'm not sure if she's agreeing with herself or if she's saying yes to my questions. "Yes, they definitely have something stinky going on over there." Porcia holds up a finger. "Don't write that down."

Dahlia crosses out what she just wrote.

"What do you do?" Porcia leans back, raises her chin to the server, and her glass is refilled. She's talking to Dahlia, who hasn't lifted her head from her notebook. "Apart from taking analog notes?"

"Oh, me. Right. I'm Dahlia."

"Yes." Porcia nods. "From Zaffiro. Your mother is Coralina. You used to play with my son when you were little."

A blush spreads up Dahlia's neck. "I didn't think you would remember me."

"Yes, well, you've become a lot more serious since those days." Porcia's eyes flick to her notebook.

"I suppose." Dahlia looks out over the top of Kai's head into the restaurant. The crowds are thinning now. "Actually, no, I'm not." Her face blooms into a smile. "It's just I'm worried about my friend."

"Oh, you were going to show us Marina's message," Kai says.

"A message? Yes, let's see it. What is it about?" Porcia holds her hand out, and Dahlia places her block in it without hesitation.

"Hmm, very interesting. And where is your friend now?" Porcia hands the block back to Dahlia.

"I don't know."

"What does it say?" I ask Dahlia.

"Well, her friend must have a lover," Porcia answers.

Dahlia's eyes furrow as she looks at her block and back to Porcia. "What? Marina? I don't think so. She tells me everything. And if she had someone interested in mating her, she would have told me."

"I didn't say someone interested in mating her, I said a lover. The two are not one and the same." Porcia purses her lips. "You may write that down." She tilts her head at Dahlia, who does.

"Can I see?" I ask Dahlia. She passes her block to me. I start from where it's open.

B, I'm going to be busy.

Doing what? I thought we were going shopping for ball dresses at Hortences?

I don't have time for shopping.

I certainly don't get anything from the conversation.

Porcia smiles at me. "You think I'm wrong? Well, I guess I might be. I'm not usually, though. You see, Hortences doesn't like it when mermaids don't show up for their appointments. They will ban you from ever wearing one of their gowns."

Dahlia nods. "It's true."

"What would keep a young, unmated mermaid from going to her appointment? It has to be big."

I nod. More importantly, it was something she knew was going to happen.

The servers arrive and place our lunches in front of us. They even have a plate for Porcia.

Kai claps. "Oh, the first course looks amazing."