Chapter 8

Eight

M errow snuck through the corridor, thankfully having been able to leave the solar before the guard even arrived at the door. She wore the gown of a lady now, covered by a cloak she’d found hanging from a hook on the wall.

It was Sebastian’s cloak. She could feel his essence from the robe wrapped protectively around her. The scent of leather and woodsmoke clung to it, tantalizing her mind with each breath she took. Her head told her to be wary of this man. Not to trust him in the least. But her heart was singing a different tune. Mayhap it was only because she always tried to find the good in everyone and each situation, but she didn’t believe Sebastian was truly evil. If he had been, he wouldn’t have protected her from his men. She would be in the dungeon along with Dee right now, but he hadn’t done that.

The cloak was two sizes too big for her and almost tripped her as she walked, but she didn’t care. She needed a disguise in order to get down to the dungeon unnoticed. For some reason, being wrapped in Sebastian’s cloak made her feel safe and protected, like being held in his warm and caring arms. It was similar to the same feeling she’d had when he carried her in her undine form into the keep after she’d gotten tangled in his fishing net. Or when he caught her when she collapsed in his arms. Nay, those weren’t traits of a truly evil man. Were they?

She could tell there was a stir going on by all the commotion coming from the great hall. Keeping to the shadows, her curiosity got the best of her. She needed to know what was happening.

Hearing men’s voices coming closer, she darted beneath the stairwell to wait until it was clear to emerge again without being seen.

“Our king requests I put together an army to storm Evandorm Castle at first light.” It was Sebastian’s captain of the guard speaking. There was no doubt about it.

“Aye, Captain. We will do whatever King Ravenwolf wants. But might I ask the reason for this battle?” asked a soldier.

“He wants the sea witches that the Blackseed brothers are harboring,” answered Farrimond.

“There are more of them?” asked the soldier in surprise.

“Three in all.” It was Drell who joined them. “Our king is finally acting strong like his uncle. With all three of the sea nymphs, he’ll hold more power than any one of those Blackseeds.”

“But the Blackseeds brothers have magic,” said the soldier, sounding extremely concerned. “How can we fight that? We’ll be at a disadvantage, won’t we?”

“We will, but Sebastian won’t let that stop him,” said Drell. “He is too strong to be intimidated.”

“The soldier has a point, Drell,” said Farrimond. “We’ve all seen what kind of damage those magical beings can cause. And now all of the Blackseeds are married to women even more powerful than themselves. We will lose a lot of men going up against them.”

“Then so be it,” said Drell with no care at all in his voice. “The only thing that matters is that our king knows what is required of him and acts in the appropriate manner. Which he is doing, thankfully.”

The men left and Merrow continued toward the dungeon, shaken to have overheard that conversation. It sounded as if Sebastian was still doing what he thought was expected of him. To gain the approval of others. Why couldn’t he see that none of that mattered at all?

Luck was on her side. Just as she approached the outer room of the dungeon, the door opened and a guard walked past her, never even knowing she was there. Merrow held her breath, hiding in the dark corridor. As soon as he turned the corner, she rushed forward and slipped inside the outer room, only to see another guard. However, he was sitting on a chair balanced by two legs, leaning himself back against a wall. His feet were up on a table and his eyes were closed. She was sure he was asleep since she heard him snoring.

Carefully and quickly, she tiptoed to him, slipping the key ring from his belt.

Mother? Mother I’m here to free you. Where are you? she asked silently in her mind.

Merrow?I’m in the first cell. But you shouldn’t be here. It is too dangerous , her mother answered back in her thoughts.

Be ready to go. And stay quiet. Merrow quickly found the key and opened the outer gate to the inner cells. The gate squeaked and her heart jumped. She held her breath, glancing back over her shoulder. Thankfully, the guard only stirred a little but was still asleep. Merrow saw her mother standing by the cell door. She opened it and together they walked hand-in-hand, sneaking out of the dungeon and into the corridor.

As soon as they were out of earshot, she spoke aloud. “Mother, are you all right?” She hugged her.

“I am fine, Merrow. You shouldn’t have come.”

“I couldn’t leave you here to rot or to be executed.”

“I appreciate the rescue, but where will we go now?”

“I overheard some of the men talking. Sebastian is putting together an army. He plans to storm Evandorm in the morning and steal Melite and Galene.”

“You called the king Sebastian,” said her mother, seeming bewildered. “Merrow, why would you do that? Have you been intimate with the man?”

“It’s not what you think. Now hurry. We need to get there before them, and I have no idea where to even find Evandorm Castle.”

“You don’t, but I do. And I know exactly how we’ll get there too.”

Fifteen minutes later, Merrow and her mother were in a horse-drawn wagon heading toward Evandorm Castle. Her mother was driving.

“Tell me again, Mother. What is this wagon used for? It has a bad stench.” Merrow looked over her shoulder to see shovels and rakes in a dirty wagon that looked as if it had never been cleaned.

“Every two weeks, a gong farmer comes to the castle at night to clean out the castle’s garderobes,” her mother explained. “We were lucky to have snuck out the hidden entrance and found the wagon while the farmer stopped to relieve himself.”

“Gong farmer? Garderobe?” She looked back again and realization hit her. This was the man who cleaned up the human feces. “Eeeew.”

“Humans have different ways of doing things since they live on land and not in the sea,” answered her mother with a giggle.

They took a road in the dark that led to the Masked Sea. As soon as Merrow smelled the scent of water, she couldn’t help her longing to be in it. “I want to stop and swim,” she told her mother, not able to control the urge. “I long to be in the water again and feel as if I’ll die if I don’t do so right now.”

“I understand.” Her mother stopped the wagon at the beach. “You have been out of the water for a while and it’ll help you regain your strength if you at least go for a fast swim.”

“Thank you.” Merrow smiled, already feeling better.

“Daughter, I don’t know if I ever told you this, but undines need to swim at least every few days. If not, we become weak and will die.”

“How can that be?” asked Merrow. “Do you go swimming that often?”

Her mother chuckled. “Nay, Merrow. I haven’t been in the water since the day the portal brought me to Mura.” She looked out over the water and in the reflection in her eyes from the moonlight Merrow saw a deep sadness within.

Her mother’s story was horrifying to Merrow. Without her life in the water, or experiencing the feel and taste of it, she knew she would perish, just like her mother said. “Then why aren’t you dead by now?” she brashly asked, needing to understand this completely.

“I am still alive because I married a human and gave up my life as an undine. I no longer need to be in the water at all.” The sadness did not disappear.

“Oh, Mother! That is awful. Don’t you miss the sea?”

“I admit that at times I still wish I had my tail and that I could swim underwater for hours at a time. But what I miss the most is your father and all my children.” Dee put her arm around Merrow as they walked to the sea together. “There is a shorter way to get to the castle, but I wanted to come down this road to be by the sea once again. Plus, I did it for you, daughter. You need to go in the water now.”

“I will,” said Merrow, hurriedly undressing until she stood there naked. “Come with me,” she begged, holding out her hand. “I will protect you, and you can at least experience the sea once again.”

“Nay,” said Dee, shaking her head. “As much as I want to, I am afraid I cannot. Over the years of being landbound, I have grown to fear the water and everything I once loved.”

“Afraid?” Merrow chuckled this time. “Mother, this is the sea. Our home. It is where you bore fifty children, and raised them. It is a place that you always loved. How can you fear it?”

“This is not our sea, Merrow,” her mother reminded her. “We are on Mura now. This is the Masked Sea. It is quite different. It doesn’t feel the same. Now go. We don’t have time to waste. We must find your sisters before King Ravenwolf does, if what you say is true. It seems the man only wants my children in order to be able to control them and to feel powerful in his own way.” Sadness washed over her face once more. “I see now that King Ravenwolf is no different than his uncle in the least.”

As much as Merrow wanted to talk more with her mother, her desire to swim and feel her tail again was calling to her. She couldn’t ignore it. Stepping up to the water, she let the waves wash over her toes. It felt cool. Invigorating. Inviting.

Unable to hold back any longer, she dove into the water, feeling her shift swiftly happening beneath the waves. When she surfaced, she once again had a tail. It felt so damned good!

“I will be right back,” she called out to her mother who was still standing on the beach. Merrow dove beneath the surface, swimming lower and lower, studying the fish and underwater fauna that was so different than that of her home.

She smiled and reached out to pet a dolphin passing by. Her long hair floated in the water around her. Wanting to explore more, she swam farther and lower, forgetting all about time. Then she came across a spot that seemed to be moving and shimmering. It swirled in a circle almost creating what looked like a tunnel. It was then that she realized it reminded her a lot of the portal that had brought them here.

Her eyes grew wide as a portal opened wider and wider until she could see someone peeking out from the other side. It was her brother.

“Nerites!” she called out to him. He floated through the portal and approached her.

“Merrow, I have been searching everywhere for you. Father is furious that you took your younger sisters to the Mystic Reef and now the three of you have disappeared. Thankfully, I saw what happened and told him about it.” He looked around. “Where is Melite and Galene?”

“Nerites, how did you open the portal?” she asked instead of answering his question.

“Father was able to open the portal. He lent me his Calling Conch to use since he said that was what we needed in this situation. I remembered the vibrations of the water of the place you disappeared, and those vibrations led me here.”

“It is so good to see you, brother.” She wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug.

“Lead me to your sisters,” said Nerites. “The portal will not remain open for long, and I can only use the conch shell to call upon it once every few days.”

“Galene and Melite are not here in the water,” Merrow told him. “They are landbound and at a castle. Mother and I are headed there to rescue them.”

“Mother?” Nerites jerked backward in shock at hearing this.

“Yes, she is alive. But she is no longer an undine. She was forced to marry a human.”

“Father will be furious to hear this.” Her brother scowled, reminding her a lot of her father in one of his bad moods.

“Nay! You can’t tell Father about this,” she warned him.

“Why not? Mother is his wife. Of course, he has to know.”

“Mother is also ashamed of what happened to her. She doesn’t want Father to find out. She feels it is better if he, as well as our siblings, think she is really dead.”

“And is that what you think, too?” Nerites shook his head, making no secret of how he felt.

Merrow wasn’t sure how to answer. Then she thought of the love her parents once held for each other. It didn’t feel fair. It wasn’t right to keep them apart. Even after all that happened.

“I don’t know if I agree with Mother, but it is her choice, not mine.”

All of a sudden, Merrow heard her mother’s voice calling to her in her mind. Nerites heard it as well.

“Nerites, something is wrong. Mother is trying to reach me. Come with me and help us. Please.”

Nerites looked back to see the portal closing. “I can’t,” he said. “I need to get the Calling Conch back to Father or I might be trapped here as well.”

“Then go,” she told her brother. “But come back when you can. I will try to have our sisters ready to swim through the portal as soon as you open it again.”

Merrow, King Ravenwolf’s soldiers have me. Stay hidden or they will find you, too.

“Nay, Mother. I’m coming to help you. Hold on.” She said it aloud under the water, knowing her mother would hear it either way. Merrow swam as fast and as hard as she could, popping her head out of the water to see the soldiers dragging her mother away. They had her mount the back of one of their horses. There were only two men. Merrow realized that she’d been gone longer than she thought because the sun was already lighting up the horizon.

She wanted to help her mother, but was worthless in this form. With a tail, she wouldn’t even be able to walk on land. It took time to dry off and for her legs to appear. By then, the soldiers would be back at the castle. Merrow blamed herself that this happened. She never should have asked to go for a swim in the sea. Now, she was about to pay for her mistake.

Her mother looked back at the water as she rode away atop the horse with the guard, talking to Merrow in her mind.

Find your sisters and take them home, Merrow. Don’t come back for me. This is my home now. Save yourselves. Please. Go.