A Mermaid's Curse

Chapter 12

I woke up early the next morning, unable to quiet the racing thoughts in my head. Mostly I just kept thinking about Stella. Aside from what Mom had told me about her parents and brother, I realized I didn't know much about her. What had she done for a living before she'd become one of Mom's ladies-in-waiting?

I quietly got dressed, pulling my hair into a tight bun before leaving our room. Kai hadn't so much as moved while I'd gotten ready; I had no doubt he was sleeping soundly. More than anything, I wished I could join him.

I hadn't had a good night's sleep in months. Truthfully, I dreaded sleeping almost as much as I craved it. If I slept, I knew my nightmares would be full of things I wasn't ready to face. People I wasn't ready to confront.

I rubbed a hand over my face, exhaling heavily. Almost everyone was still asleep; the sun hadn't yet risen over the water, painting the outside of the palace an inky black. Pulling my cloak tighter around myself, my hand drifted to the pocket of my cloak, the object nestled inside. I could feel the power radiating from it, beckoning to me. Until this morning, it had been locked in a drawer in the very back of our closet, hidden from prying eyes.

The Lost Soul Pendant. Even thinking the name sent chills down my spine. If I didn't force my thoughts elsewhere, they would be filled with the screams of the voices trapped inside the pendant. I shuddered, withdrawing my hand from my pocket. This was the only way I could think of to get Stella to cooperate.

With only my thoughts for company, I swam down to the dungeons, my heart pounding wildly in my chest. A small voice in the back of my head cautioned me against this visit, facing her. I ignored it and continued swimming.

The guards at the entrance straightened at my approach, bowing deeply. I simply inclined my head in response as I swam inside. I took a steadying breath, exhaling deeply. My hand again drifted into my pocket, closing around the stone. I hoped and prayed with everything I had that I wouldn't have to use it, but I had to be prepared.

The cells were facing each other, with four to a row. A small pathway in between the cells was the only access point. I kept my hands clenched in my cloak, almost crying out at the power radiating from the stone. There was a reason it had stayed hidden away in my closet—the power was too immense.

I took deep, bracing breaths in through my nose, exhaling forcefully. Chin-length auburn hair crept into my vision, framing a heart-shaped face streaked with dirt. Grey eyes zeroed in on me, staring blankly for a moment before widening in recognition. Stella coughed, clearing her throat before trying to speak. "Isadora. I assume this is not a social call?" Her voice was low and scratchy, likely from disuse.

"Why?" was my only response. My hands shook at my sides as I steeled my nerve. I reached into my pocket, clutching the stone in my hand. I had to bite back a shiver at the power that exuded from it. Immediately, I heard multiple voices, all screaming. Shouting. Pleading.

Teeth gritted, I thrust my hand through the bars, extending the stone to Stella. Her fingers were ice-cold as her hand brushed against mine. As soon as it was out of my hand, I faltered. My eyes stayed glued to her face. I expected a pretty severe reaction—considering the effect it'd had on me.

If it was affecting her, she showed no signs of it. Her face remained carefully blank, eyes staring straight ahead. Finally, after several agonizing moments, she handed the pendant back to me. I quickly stuffed it into my pocket, afraid to touch it for even a second, lest those images resurface.

My voice was shaking as I spoke. "If you saw what I think you did, maybe it will convince you to help us. We will do everything in our power to make sure that no family has to go through what you did."

She scoffed, finally turning her hate-filled eyes onto my face. "You speak as though we survived some horrible tragedy. Not everyone lived, Isadora. Multiple families are at home tonight without their fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers. The people who could've helped them—who had the resources, might, and power—never answered their call for aid, not until it was too late."

Her voice was biting, each word spat out as if it tasted bad. "How could you possibly think seeing that would convince me to help you? If anything, it just reinforced my hate for your mother, your kingdom. I will never forget what she did. Nor will I ever forgive her."

I almost turned away, bitter and discouraged. At the last second, my mouth opened, the words pouring out. "I'm sorry that you lost your parents and brother. I can't possibly imagine what that must've been like. But think about all the other families that have lost someone. Did they turn their back on their kingdom? No; they chose to keep fighting. Because they knew that was what their loved ones would have wanted."

I inhaled a quick breath, my heart beating in time with the anger coursing through my body. "Do you think your parents and brother would be proud if they could see you now? What you've become? No. They would be ashamed. You're nothing but a traitor." The word slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it.

Stella's cheeks reddened; tears appeared in her eyes, threatening to spill onto her cheeks. Immediately, I wished I could take it back. Her lips were pressed together, wobbling slightly. With that, she turned back to the wall, her stare turning blank once more.

Anger swirled around inside me, black and dark. I didn't realize I was shaking until I'd arrived at our suite and tried to open the door. After several tries, it opened from the other side, revealing worried eyes. Kai took in my appearance: hands clenched into fists, body shaking with barely-contained anger. I couldn't imagine what my expression was.

Wordlessly, he took my hand, leading me inside our suite. If it hadn't been for his grip on my hand, I wasn't sure I'd have been able to stay upright. As we swam into bed, he locked eyes with me, breathing deeply, then exhaling. He did this several times, encouraging me to copy him.

After a few minutes, my breathing finally returned to normal. Tears gleamed in my eyes, but I quickly blinked them away. "Let me know when you're ready to talk," Kai said softly, running a hand down my cheek.

I nodded, turning over on my side and closing my eyes. Silent sobs wracked my body, the pent-up anger and sadness I'd kept hidden away finally coming to the surface. I wasn't crying for myself, I realized. I was crying for all the parents, children, and friends that had to go to bed tonight without their loved ones.

Kai wrapped his arms around me, his grip warm. Sleep found me quickly, the exhaustion of the past hour dragging me under.

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