Beyond The Depths

Chapter 5

White-hot pain drew me from sleep, hitting me with the intensity of a dozen shark bites. My eyes flew open as I cried out, glancing around wildly. A flash of movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention and I flinched. A hand had a death grip on my shoulder, nails digging into my skin.

"W-who are you?" I stuttered, my voice tight with fear. When I saw his face, I bit down on a scream so hard I felt my teeth puncture my lip. Blood trickled down my chin, quickly disappearing into the water.

Raven-black hair framed a severe face, platinum eyes filled with malice staring into my own. Ronan Finch. He leaned closer, his lips inches from my ear. "You can't stop what's coming." His voice was honeyed, his words filled with disgust.

I saw my opening and took it. His grip relaxed fractionally as he spoke, but that was all I needed. I grabbed the hand that was currently gripping my shoulder, bending the fingers backwards until a sickening crack filled the bedroom. He bellowed in pain, eyes alight with fury.

I twisted his arm behind his back, a small part of me secretly enjoying the pained gasps he choked on. "Don't ever come back here again," I hissed, voice low. He didn't make a sound, his body going limp in my grip.

Foolishly thinking he was surrendering, I let go of his arm. That was my first and last mistake. The minute my fingers let go, he was moving. He spun around to face me, his left arm hanging limply at his side, then slapped me hard across the face.

My head snapped to the side, eyes watering. Blood filled my mouth, but I quickly spat it out. I opened my mouth to call for a guard, but before I so much as inhaled to speak, he was gone.

I let out a breath that ended in a sob. The sound had hardly finished echoing before the door to our rooms burst open. My hands were trembling wildly at my sides, but I couldn't tell. I couldn't feel the pain from my cheek. I couldn't even feel my pounding heart, the adrenaline that must have been surging through me, leftover from the fight.

Guards in gold-and-crimson uniforms swam in, eyes sweeping the room. "Princess," one of them asked, his voice low and deep. "We heard a scream. Are you alright?"

I couldn't speak. I could hardly breathe. I was shaking so hard I could feel my teeth clacking against each other. Why would Ronan come back? After all this time?

"Isadora?" A worried voice spoke up from the doorway. Tears filled my eyes before I even realized I was crying. The side of my face began to sting, the pain making me break down all over again.

A blurry figure swam in front of me, his eyes traveling the length of my body. "Come sit down," he murmured, his voice low. Kai had a gentle grip on my hand as he led me over to the bed.

I hadn't meant to open my mouth, but once I started talking, I couldn't stop. "Ronan," I blurted. "H-he was here. He said, 'You can't stop what's coming.'"

Kai's eyes darkened; I saw his body tense. "Why come back now?" He asked.

I glanced outside, but it was barely dawn. Shaking my head, I quickly got dressed. "I have to see what's going on," I said, ignoring the knowing look in his eyes as he inhaled to speak.

He only gripped my hand, his eyes locked on mine. "I'm with you," he said. "Now and forever."

We swam to Aegrem, fear and confusion creating a knot in my stomach. When we arrived at the palace, I immediately sensed the change in mood. My heartbeat sped up, and I had to stop myself from immediately rushing to my parents' suite.

Every face we saw was somber, tightening the knot in my stomach. The door was slightly ajar when we swam in front of it, causing my heart to skip in my chest. Then I heard the sound of low, tense voices. I rushed into the room, my hands shaking.

Mom and Dad were sitting on the couch beside each other, their bodies tense. The latter's hands were clenched into fists and when I looked closer, to my horror, I realized they were shaking. Aunt Bella and Uncle David floated beside the couch, concern on their faces.

"What happened?" I asked, my heart in my throat. If Ronan had done something...

Dad cleared his throat and looked up at me. I took a stroke backwards, the defeat in his expression stealing the water from my lungs. "Word arrived from Nepptheas an hour ago. Two servants to Queen Naia were found dead in their rooms this morning." He said the name with such disgust that I shivered. "No culprit has been named, but all kingdoms are being questioned."

The thought of any of our family having anything to do with this was insane. I immediately turned to Kai, placing a hand on his cheek. "You need to go," I whispered softly. As much as I selfishly wanted him here, safe, with us, I knew deep down that he needed to be with his mother to deal with any fallout from this mess.

I saw the words in his eyes before he even opened his mouth. I shook my head, kissing him hard. Neither of us let go for a moment; I think we both could have stayed in that kiss forever. He kissed me one last time before swimming out of the room.

Dad swam over to me, eyes widening in alarm as he noticed my cheek. "Isadora, what happened?"

I gingerly touched my cheek, wincing at the tenderness of the skin. I had all but forgotten about Ronan's early-morning visit. Mom swam over to us, her expression mirroring Dad's when she saw my face.

She gently lifted a hand, but froze mere inches from my face. Who did this to you? Her hands were shaking as she signed, but I understood her well enough.

I took a heavy breath, exhaustion quickly replacing the adrenaline inside me. "Ronan Finch was here. I don't know how he got in or why he came in the first place, but just before our fight, he spoke. 'You can't stop what's coming.'" A shiver ran down my spine as the words left my mouth.

Without a word, I turned and swam out of the room, down endless hallways, until I finally got down to the entryway of the palace. When I emerged into the open water, I took a deep breath and screamed at the top of my lungs. All the anger, fear, anxiety, and pain was released from my body in a rush.

I knew one thing with absolute certainty, but it scared me to death to admit it. Not all of us would emerge unscathed from this. Some of us, I knew, would suffer wounds so deep they would be next-to-impossible to heal.

I swam into bed hours later, unused to having the bed to myself. I missed Kai's warmth and his solid presence. Despite the many emotions still plaguing me, I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

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