A Mermaid's Curse

Chapter 10

I thought that with the way my nightmares had been going, there was no possible way they could get any worse. Well, I was wrong. It's identical to the previous night—with one significant difference. Instead of the ghosts being unfamiliar, each one wears the face of someone I love. Mom. Dad. Kai. Aunt Bella. Uncle David. Their cruel expressions pierce my heart, sharper than any dagger.

Mom swims up to me first, eyes hard and face harsh. Honestly, Izzy. We had such high expectations for you. What a disappointment you turned out to be. There's no love in her expression as she stares at me. Just cold harshness.

I find myself unable to break her stare, helpless against the shame and disappointment in her eyes. I know the regret and guilt I'm feeling is no doubt reflected in my own eyes. Uncle David is next, face identical to Mom's. "You don't deserve to be a princess. You're nothing but a disappointment." Their words are like rocks, pelting me head-on.

My chest begins to tighten; breathing becomes increasingly difficult. I've had enough of them to realize the signs of an impending panic attack before it's even started. That doesn't mean I know how to stop them, however. I float in place for what feels like hours, unable to move.

I scan each of their faces, desperate for some sort of sign to remind me who is really under those masks. Instead of seeing the kind, compassionate eyes of my parents, husband, and dearest friends, complete strangers stare back at me. Dad shakes his head, disgust written on his face. "You're still a failure. No matter how many lives you save, no matter how many mermaids and mermen look up to you, that's what you'll always be."

His words catch me completely off-guard, triggering a fresh wave of doubt and despair. It's word-for-word what one of the ghosts said in the previous nightmare. I swim up to him, looking him dead in the eyes. "Dad, please! I know you're still in there. It's me! It's Izzy!"

His face remains expressionless, mouth a tight line as I stare at him. For a long moment, it's not my father I see in those dark-green eyes; instead, he's replaced by a sneering merman with eyes identical to his own.

"How much longer do you think you can keep up this façade?" Uncle Noah hisses, voice cold. "You were never cut out to be a princess. If everyone knew the real truth about you, your parents, they would turn tail and the three of you would be left with no one. No subjects. Nothing. Of course, there is a way to make all of this go away."

By that point, I've already begun to sink back into that state of depression and hopelessness. His last sentence, however, makes me look him in the eyes. "What are you talking about?" I ask, not daring to hope.

His eyes are void of any emotion as he stares at me. "Your aunt and I have already been banished from Aegrem, so obviously we wouldn't be around to keep an eye on you. So, I have another person in mind." Without a word, he turns toward the door, motioning to someone just outside my line of sight.

My heart stops dead at his words, dread sluicing through me like lava. He can't possibly be talking about... I freeze, eyes widening in horror as a mermaid swims up to us, face blank. The long, auburn hair is gone, replaced by a short, chin-length bob. Those eyes that had once held such appreciation and awe when around my mother are now cold and empty.

Shaking my head, barely able to contain the grief and rage swirling around inside me, I turn back toward Uncle Noah. My hands, fisted at my sides, shake wildly as I attempt to get control of my emotions.

"Please," I beg, my voice on the verge of breaking. "Not her. Anyone but her." I can't even fathom what Mom would do if she saw Stella.

After so long... I can't breathe as I stare at the latter, searching for any sign, any hint, that she's still in there. Cold emptiness pours off her body in waves, slamming into me with the force of a thousand rogue waves. The mermaid that had once been proud to serve my mother as one of her ladies-in-waiting is nowhere to be found.