Page 47 of Midnightsong
He had so badly wanted to believe Saeryn was a well-intentioned merman, but the longstanding beliefs he held onto about his uncle were slipping bit by bit.
On the lighter side, several tidesdays ago, he’d gotten word from the family that had been displaced who were now living comfortably in the caves he’d shown them to. They had invited another family and bonded pair to join them.
It warmed his heart to hear. But it went cold again when he heard of their village being used as a military base, sentinels and warriors taking up residence in the displaced mers’ homes.
Kaden stopped. A small youyu sailed by with its tentacles tickling his caudal fins and he curled the tips. The youyu stopped and faced him with its beady eyes, and waved tentacles at him before leaving.
He made his way down the walls toward his chambers, the commotion he had heard earlier growing louder.
A group of mer were gathered at the entrance, protesting, and held back by the sentinels. Some were loudly protesting and others called for the attention of Saeryn. They didn’t seem to have noticed Kaden approaching.
There must have been upward of a hundred mer.
If they were calling for his uncle, he must have rallied the mer there. For what purpose, Kaden didn’t have the first idea.
Several more tailkicks forward and their protests became clear.
To his shock, Adrielle was at the forefront of the crowd, addressing several of them. When she glanced up, her gaze meeting Kaden’s, she raised one arm up, drawing his attention.
His stomach twisted inside his gut when Saeryn appeared and addressed the crowd.
Was he done meeting with the citizens already? That was decidedly fast.
“Exile Prince Kaden!” a small group was chanting. A disembodied voice carried over the group. “He caused the murder of the queen! Why do you allow him to stay?”
Kaden said nothing and moved around the crowd to float beside Adrielle.
“What are you doing out here?” he asked the princess in a whisper.
“Heard your uncle had called for a rally. I came to investigate.”
“I see.” Kaden turned his attention back to the crowd, their attention rapt on Saeryn. Saeryn’s brows were furrowed, thoughtful, arms crossed as he addressed the crowd, group by group.
“King Aqilus and Queen Serapha’s death was his fault!” a merman was yelling over the rest; a stiff finger jabbed in Kaden’s direction.
Kaden flinched.
“Good citizens! He was not the one who killed them!” Adrielle called back.
“He may not have been the one who killed them with his own hands,” a noble mermaid spoke up from the crowd’s center, fingering her thick and heavy-appearing gold necklace. The jewels adorning the back of her hands came into view and Kaden recognized her. She was the head of a prominent noble family who was close to the royals and Alasdair’s lifemate. “But because of him, those dirty landwalkers knew where to strike us.”
The crowd murmured, and she continued.
“If he had never brought that landwalker here we could have kept our locations a secret.” Venom coated her words. “Who knows what she told the others—if the prince conspired with them to slay his mother and take the throne from her?” Her words came out in an angry staccato. “We should be praising the king for saving our queendom from his traitorous clutches!”
Kaden jerked forward. He wouldn’t allow them to drag Angie into this.
Adrielle stopped him from continuing with a hand around his forearm, her grip strong and firm.
“Kaden, don’t. Protesting and talking will do nothing to allay their fears. With their feelings toward you now, they will take anything you say and turn it against you.” Adrielle released his arm.She must have felt him kick his fins, inching himself away from the angry crowd. “Do you want to leave?”
He nodded curtly, ire flooding him and momentarily stealing his voice. Being anywhere else would be better than there.
Saeryn’s command carried over their heads as they departed.
“We must fight back. Kill the landwalkers and avenge our fallen queen!”
The dismay at the citizen’s collective cries of assent plagued Kaden as he followed Adrielle, swimming back to her and Cyrus’ bedchambers.
