Page 48 of Whispers of the Starlit Sea
“Blame them for the storms.” His shoulders drooped.
“Right.”
He dropped into a chair beside the one she’d abandoned and held his head. “What am I going to do, Ailsa? Everyone has all these expectations of me.”
“Who?” She didn’t seem surprised at his abrupt change of topic.
“The council just cornered me,” he admitted. “They want me to become the heir instead of Thomas. What’s worse, they said Daniel would have done it.”
Ailsa snorted. “Daniel was ambitious, but he was neverthatambitious.”
He ignored the twinge of guilt that she had known his brother better than he did. “If I don’t agree, they’ll just find someone else.”
“Not if you and I stand up for Thomas. He deserves the chance to rule. If he steps down, it should be his own decision, not one that was forced on him.” The heat in her words reminded him of the tiny fireball who had defended her big brother even when they were all small children.
“Even so — Daniel was the one who liked all this political stuff. And I can’t help feeling that I owe it to him to continue.” He stood and moved to study a painting on the wall, that of their shared great-grandfather.
“What do you mean?”
“What if the mermaidsarecausing the storms? What if they’re the reason Daniel died?” he whispered.
After a minute of following his convoluted logic, understanding dawned on her face. “And by being friends with a mermaid, you feel you’re betraying Daniel?”
He could only nod.
“You love her, don’t you?”
Arick tried to deny it, but the ache in his heart refused to let him. “What does this mean?” He showed her the sign that he’d seen the other mermaid use when she was talking to Sorcha.
Ailsa copied his movements, her brows furrowed. “Oh! Was it more like this?” She changed her hand placement and made the motion more crisp.
“Yes, that’s it.”
“It means…bound, or to bind. Why?”
The frown returned to his face. “The other mermaid said Sorcha and I were bound together. I don’t understand what she meant though.”
Ailsa shook her head at him. “You’re going to have to talk to Sorcha about that.”
Right. The exact thing he didnotwant to do.
Chapter thirteen
Thegentleflickeringofthe fire mesmerized Sorcha. Despite seeing flames almost daily since becoming human, they never ceased to amaze her, this wavering source of light and heat that ate whatever was fed to it.
She’d tried touching it once, her finger bearing a red mark for a few days after. The sting was similar to that of a jellyfish, and she’d quickly learned not to put her hand too close. The humans seemed to have many uses for the fire, warmth being a common one. Elsbeth used it to change the consistency of foods, which was a whole source of fascination on its own.
Humans also carried it around in little boxes or on short sticks to bring light with them. Apparently no bioluminescent plants lived above the surface to chase away the darkness.
The thought of home curled around her heart and squeezed. Oh, how she missed her family — even Rona with her constant pushing for Sorcha to do more, be more. Aunt Maeve said that in order to return home, Arick must perform an equally selfless task. But she hadn’t explained what would happen to him when he did so. Would he become a merman?
If he did, she could show him her undersea world — the grotto, the coral throne, her cave of treasures. Her hand drifted to her neck, where the necklace should have been. Maybe he wouldn’t be impressed with her discoveries; he’d probably seen far better on land. But they could swim with the dolphins and explore the shipwrecks together. She imagined his smile, his hazel eyes filled with wonder…
The door opened, and a blush spread across her face as the object of her musings stepped into the room. The frown on his face reminded her of what he had done. How he had allowed her people to be imprisoned and chained up below the castle. A shudder ran through her.
No, Arick would have no interest in exploring Muirin. If he knew about the grotto, he would want to destroy it.
He held out his hand to help her up. “— home?” he asked.
