Descendant of the Deep (Siren Song: Book One)

Chapter Nine: Lies

     That afternoon, I snuck into the palace gardens, my brain a puddle of mush. The second I'd left the library, I swore to myself that I would find away to stop the Cocelian siren. How exactly I would manage to do so was still undecided, but I had to start somewhere.
And the gardens were all too perfect. Resting on a flat roof, it was elevated enough off of the ground so that I could see the golden gates surrounding the castle, and more importantly, the guards. If I was to confront this siren in any way, I had to slip past the patrol men first.
     An idea flew across my mind. If I left... I would never have to come back. I could go back to Ruby, pretend that none of this ever happened. To protect myself from the sirens hunting me, I would find alternatives to the ocean when the Call drew me to the water.
     Everything would be like it had always been.
     However, there was a problem. Although most Mer and sirens can't make it on land, Iara could. There was nowhere I could go that I would be out of her grasp.
     Was I being selfish to let Ruby believe I was dead, just so that I was safe? Ruby and I had our disagreements, but nobody deserved to think that their only child betrayed them.
     I would have to take my chances on land and be there for my mom. As soon as I figured out how to get back, I would head straight home.
I watched the guards patrol for hours, memorizing their shifts and searching for a crack in their formations that I could use as my escape. I was so engrossed in my work that I was startled when I heard a voice say my name.
I jumped back and turned around. Aiden.
"What are you doing out here?"
I hesitated awkwardly. "Just putting some space between me and my problems, I suppose. It was getting stuffy in the library."
Aiden raised a dark eyebrow. "You've been getting space for three hours."
To anyone else, I could have lied easily and gotten off clean. But somehow, I couldn't form the words.
Aiden sighed. "What are you really doing out here?"
"I was about to ask you the same thing."
Chuckling, Aiden sat down next to me. My fins fluttered anxiously on the stone floor, wanting to swim away.
"Well, if you must know, I'm trying to catch a break from all the siren stuff going on in the palace. You saw how it was."
I nodded. "Yeah."
"My father is one of the Queen's advisors, so he's up to his neck in questions he can't answer. It's chaotic, all of it."
"Yeah. It's not always like this, is it? Everyone seemed so surprised when they found out the attack was so close to Cocelia."
Aiden shook his head. "Not here."
My eyes darted from him to the ground, the urge to get something off my chest deafening.
"Can I ask you something?"
Aiden scrunched his eyebrows together, but nodded.
I sighed. "Ever since I arrived, there's been nothing but trouble. Queen Melusine believes that my powers would be useful to the sirens, and with the attacks drawing in closer..."
Aiden stared my dead in the eye. "None of this is your fault."
Unconvinced, I didn't respond.
     Aiden heaved a sigh. "Look. You came to Naviana at an extremely bad time. Everything that is happening is the fault of a corrupt person that is seeking power, not you."
     In an attempt to ease the tension stirring in the space, I changed the subject. "I bet there's been lots of commotion among the court about the attack. Does anyone even know where that poor human ship went down?" I felt bad for trying to squeeze information out of Aiden, but if I was to attempt to stop a killer, I had to know where the crime scene was.
"The wreckage was found near the west gate to the city, but nobody knows if the siren was there. The wreckage could have drifted before it sunk."
I chewed on my lip. It was a vague description, and it could span out for miles, but it at least gave me a general direction. I had a lead.
"What do you think happened to the men?" I asked, stories of carnivorous sea creatures popping into my head.
Aiden shook his head. "Nobody knows. The bodies are never found." He began to get up to leave.
"Wait!" I yelled a little too loudly. He turned on his fins and faced me, taken aback by my sudden outburst. Stupid...
I lowered my voice and asked, "Princess Sophia told me there was a meeting in the Throne room. Do you know how that went?"
Aiden looked confused. "Meeting? There weren't any meeting scheduled today."
I furrowed my brow. Why would Sophia lie?