Page 25 of The Kraken's Queen

A few merpeople glance in our direction, and shock colors their features. They freeze before remembering protocol and attempt to bow in greeting, though very few pay much attention to me with Erin here. She’s gorgeous, sure, but that’s not why my people are staring. Many of them have never seen a human before. Only a few elders remember a time when humans swam freely beside us, marrying into our kingdom. Their offspring are still here with their own families, but they are creatures of the sea. Not pure human.

Next to me, I hear Erin move around. With her mouth slightly agape, she stares at Tetria and all she has to offer. “I imagine this is overwhelming, but?—”

“It’s beautiful,” Erin cuts me off, awestruck. My heart skips a beat at her words. “Overwhelming, yes, but so beautiful.” She wiggles out of my hold, but I’m hesitant to let her go. None of my people would be foolish enough to hurt her, but I don’t want to take chances when it comes to our queen. She also doesn’t know her way around my kingdom yet, and I can’t have her getting lost.

I let her out of my grasp, though I swim right behind her. She tilts her head and points to the jellyfish. “You have jellyfish to light up your city?”

“It’s not a formal job, but they live here too.” I smile, but Erin is already on to the next thing. She asks about the multicolored coral that makes up most of the buildings, the fish and other sea creatures that roam freely amongst the merpeople. A turtle passes by, and I beckonit forward. The creature swims in our direction then around Erin.

She giggles. “Can I touch it?”

“Him. And yes.” I smile.

Erin reaches out and gently strokes the hard shell. The turtle nudges his head against her hand, and she smiles as she scratches the top of his head.

“Do you want to swim through the city?” It’s the fastest route to the palace, but if it would be too overstimulating for her, we can easily swim around.

“Oh, I would very much like to go through the city,” she says, her voice slightly higher-pitched with excitement. However, a moment later, she deflates. “But…will you wrap one of your tentacles back around me? It…makes me feel safe.”

Makes me feel safe.

No sweeter words have ever been said, and never to me.

I had once thought Erin would be afraid of my kraken side, but who knew she would fear the man more than the monster? Probably because a monster has never hurt her, but a man has.

“Whatever you wish, sweet girl.” I wrap my tentacle around her waist. She relaxes in my grip, melting my damn heart. How is it possible for one human to play with my emotions so easily?

“Thank you, Allarick. You’re a good kraken,” she says, patting me. If it were anyone else petting me like a household pet, I might take offense. But this is Erin, and I welcome all touch she is willing to give me.

Erin says goodbye to the turtle, and I start to lead usinto the city. Colorful pebbled rocks mark the floor, creating swimming pathways. The first place we pass is the Royal Blacksmith shop. Small oceanic volcanoes heat the shop, providing exactly what Eckles—our resident blacksmith—needs to forge spears and household decorations.

Erin peers through the window, watching Eckles forge a blade. Even from here, I feel the heat wafting out of his store. I don’t know how Eckles stands being so close to molten heat day in and day out. He claims it’s comforting because the rest of the waters are “too damn cold; they’ll shrivel my tail.”

“What are those?” Erin’s question has me turning to see what she’s looking at. She points to floating domes, held in place by seaweed rope. About ten of these floating orbs surround the city, but there once were many more.

“Those are homes many humans used to occupy. They’re water-free,” I explain.

“What? Really? How is that possible? There are places here with air pockets? Are all people like you, able to shift between legs and tails…or tentacles, in your case?” Erin asks excitedly.

I can’t help but chuckle at her rapid stream of questions and do my best to answer them all. “The homes have an entry chamber. Once closed, the water drains back into the ocean, allowing the person to walk freely inside their home. The palace has places with air, though that’s set up a little differently. I’ll explain that more when you see it. We set these up as sort of a comfort andfamiliarity for humans who wanted some time out of the water.

“And no. Not everyone can switch forms. There is an extensive training merpeople have to go through to get the magic to gain their land legs. Some people don’t want to put in the effort because they have no reason to go up on land. But those who do can live in those bubble homes if they choose. All my guards are required to have their land legs so they can move freely between land and sea.”

“That makes sense about your guards,” Erin says, mostly to herself. She hasn’t stopped taking everything in. To be fair, there’s a lot to see. She’s like a guppy on her birthday, excitedly taking in everything. I want to show her everything Tetria has to offer. A queen should know her kingdom and people. There’s a lot Erin needs to learn, but those things can come in time. Right now, I just need her to be comfortable in the water.

“King Allarick,” a voice bellows from behind.

Erin whirls around, and recognition colors her features. “I’ve seen you before.”

The captain of my guard halts, clearly caught off guard by Erin’s words. Unexplainable anger ignites in my chest, almost violent in nature. I’ve never been this angry with Delmare before, but how does my wife know him?

Erin chuckles nervously, absentmindedly stroking my tentacle. It’s incredibly distracting and sexy. “I saw Allarick talking to you on the pier,” she addresses Delmare then turns to me. “I might have been…spying isn’t the word but watching. At first, I thought you were speaking to yourself, but then I saw him.” She points at Delmare.

My anger overrode my rational thinking. I remember Erin saying she saw me talking to a man while she had locked herself away in Atina’s room for days to heal and come to terms with her new life. I never sensed her watching us, but it explains why she didn’t completely freak out the first time she saw me as a kraken.

“Then I suppose it’s time to formally introduce you to the captain of my guard, Delmare.”

The older kraken bows low, giving his queen the proper respect she deserves. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, my queen.”

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