Page 94 of A Forgery of Fate

Haidi’s fins unfurled over the carpet, and her hair slowly sank below her shoulders. “Youhavechanged.”

“Then will you help us?” he asked.

For the first time, she laughed. A short laugh, but I sensedElang had eased some of her doubts. “Ever the businessman. I supposesomethings do not change. Unfortunately, if it is safe haven in Nanhira that you seek, you know I cannot grant it.”

“I am not asking for sanctuary. My request is to borrow magic, enough to repair my castle and protect it against my grandfather’s future attacks. We will only need enough to last through the Resonant Tide.”

“Is that when your curse comes to an end?”

“It is when many things must come to an end.” Elang gave me a meaningful look, and my stomach made the smallest flip. Come the Resonant Tide, our arrangement together would draw to a close. I thought I’d been looking forward to it, but now I wasn’t so certain.

“In exchange, Your Majesty, I will give you the secret to sangi.”

Haidi arched an elegant eyebrow. “Your most prized secret in exchange for a few weeks’ protection?” She was considering. “I am no stranger to the kindnesses you have granted the merfolk of Yonsar, but if I help you, Nazayun will surely retaliate.”

“And if you don’t, the consequences of inaction could be far graver. You are mistaken if you think you can prevent Nanhira from suffering the same fate as Yonsar.”

“Truth,” Queen Haidi allowed. “You’ve gotten better at negotiating, Elangui. I will take that risk, then, but I will need assurance from your end.”

“How can we prove ourselves?” I asked.

With a flick of her hair, Haidi sent her guards and servants away. “Do you know how Nanhira protects itself from the Dragon King?”

I shook my head.

“Look around you. You will find that my realm is shieldedby a cloak of silk. Enchanted silk spun by my ancestor Liayin, long ago, when the merfolk and dragons were at war. She was the most gifted weaver in all the realms. But despite the admiration that Liayin’s talent brought her, she wished only for one thing.”

I seemed to be the only one who didn’t know the story.

“Love,” said Haidi softly. “You see, she’d wed a human, to her family’s great distress. It wasn’t even a prince or a king, but a young shepherd who played the flute. To be together, they were forced to endure many trials. Like you and Elangui, Lady Saigas.”

I gave a tense nod, sensing these parallels might lead to an unsavory end.

Haidi rose from her bench, her hair billowing behind her. “In honor of the lady Liayin, I have invited you to my court, because I am sympathetic to plights of the heart. I know, Elangui, that you are without one, but I see the changes in you that Lady Saigas has wrought. And so, my request is simple: Show me that there is love between you. Real, genuine love that might break the curse upon Elang. In return, I will give you my aid.”

Show me that there is love between you.

Never had my mind gone so blank so quickly.

How did two people show that they were in love?

They make excuses to be near each other,Fal would say, quoting one of her romance novels.They look at each other as if there’s no one else in the world.

Until a few days ago, I could hardly look at Elang without recoiling. Istillthought him beastly. This was not going to work in our favor.

Elang apparently had the same reaction. “There is noneed for such a trial,” he was saying. “I value Truyan’s life more than my own. Any spell will prove this as truth.”

“I do not question your devotion, Elangui,” replied Haidi. Her gaze gravitated to the red strings around our wrists. “I have seen that your marriage bonds are made of merfolk silk. No thread in this world is stronger. Some say it’s strong enough to unite lovers from one life to the next. But only when that love is earnest and true. Show me that your love is indeed deserving.”

At my side, Elang had gone rigid. I couldn’t blame him. How embarrassing this was, for both of us. But what choice did we have?

I turned to him, venturing close enough that our elbows touched. His nostrils flared, and as I laid my hand on his sleeve, his muscles went taut, cording up his arms.

He pressed his palms to mine. We faced each other the way we had during our wedding, and the red strings tied around our wrists touched, ever so briefly. Elang parted his lips.

“Truyan,” he started. “I love—”

I don’t know what struck me. The acute realization that he was about to lie to the merfolk queen—or how much I didn’t want to hear that particular lie. But my every instinct told me I needed to silence him.

---