The Mermaid's Reckoning | ONC 2024

Chapter 3

The wedding wasn't cancelled. The official word given to the castle staff and guests was postponed—until the king could meet with his daughter and bring her to understand how much trouble she was in, that was.

The morning after her failed escape attempt, Pretie's father demanded she speak with him in his throne room—with an audience made up of his closest advisors and a few other members of the castle staff. The girl refused to meet the eyes of any of them, keeping her gaze fixed on her father.

King Moran sat on his plush throne at the front of the room, his head held in his hands as if he couldn't bear to look at his daughter. Rather than have her sit on her own, slightly smaller throne at his side, the man had demanded that she stand before him. Right now, she wasn't royalty; she was a peasant clamoring for his attention. But unlike those that sought an audience with the king, Pretie refused to kneel.

"I would have thought my daughter was smart enough to not climb out of her window in the middle of the night," King Moran finally spoke, his voice barely more than a low grumble. "Instead, here we are. What was supposed to be such a fine, glorious day..." He trailed off with a sigh, as if he was unable to muster the energy to continue.

Pretie raised an eyebrow.

The man lifted his head from his hands, his piercing, blue-eyed gaze meeting hers. "Well, Pretie? What do you have to say for yourself? Your father and your future husband both deserve to know what you were up to."

Future husband? Her eyebrows lifting in surprise, Pretie turned to follow his gaze. Her eyes locked on a familiar pair of grey ones. The prince of San Clivus was none other than the boy she'd seen sneaking out last night. 

"That he was doing the same thing." Pretie blurted, raising an accusatory finger at the dark-haired boy. While his eyebrows twitched upwards, the boy remained silent. As the girl let her gaze return to her father, she noticed that the king's expression had darkened.

"Prince Virid? The very one that went out searching for you when you were reported missing?" 

"No, he— What?"

King Moran shifted on his throne, his eyes narrowed as he stared across the room at his daughter. "When a rumor was passed around that you had escaped from your rooms last night, Virid was the first to send a search party out to find you. He said that he had heard you on the rooftop."

Pretie pivoted to face the prince, her lip curling in a sneer. "You've got to be kidding. So, what? Were you lying when you said you were sneaking out for a drink, or is this whole thing an excuse to save your sorry ass?"

"Pretie! Language!"

She ignored the man's rumbling voice, taking a step closer to Virid. "I am going to kill—"

"Pretie!"

This time, the princess turned. King Moran's eyes were wide as he stood from his throne. When he spoke next, his voice was dangerously calm. "I don't know what game you're trying to play, but I suggest you stop it."

Pretie scoffed. "I'm not playing a game. Virid was there, on the rooftop with me. He climbed out of his own window! He— He used his belt to slide down a pipe!"

The king heaved a sigh. "I don't understand why you're trying to make this difficult, Pretie. Your stories won't get you anywhere."

"They're not stories."

King Moran fell silent, glancing toward his two advisors. They sat on one side of the room, watching the conversation with interest. When the king gestured—not very discreetly—to Pretie, the advisors shared a look. The man sitting on the left hesitantly cleared his throat.