Page 82 of Midnightsong
“We use the flute?” He leaned forward again, eyeing the seaflute with interest—not unlike how Lulu’s gaze would zero in on the shiny object.
“Yeah. I write his name in their language there.” Angie traced Kaden’s Renyuhua name and called for him. There was no response from his end, and Angie pinched the skin at her throat. Where was he?
The seconds crawled by, but to Angie, it might as well have been hours.
“Did he change his mind about meeting with us?” Vester asked, quirking an eyebrow.
“N-no. He said he was–” She cut herself off. “Something must have happened.” Her hands grew clammy. “Kaden?” she tried again, speaking into the flute.
Another stretch of hair-raising silence followed.
Then, to her relief, his voice filtered through. “I’m so sorry, my uncle caught me the moment I heard your voice. Wanted to talk to me about honoring my mother’s memory at her favorite Sanyue altar.”
“Oh, thank the ancestors; I thought something happened.” Angie’s breathing returned to an even rate.
The governor’s eyes went wide, a wondrous smile breaking his previously straight-faced visage. “Hi Kaden. I’m Governor Vester.”
“Hello!” Kaden sounded cheery. “A pleasure to meet you, Governor. I’m Mer-Prince Kaden of the Northern Pacific Queendom. Pleased to meet you.”
“And you as well. You are–you are underwater now? And we can hear you so clearly?” The governor hadn’t stopped staring at the seaflute.
“I am.” Kaden chuckled.
The governor reached a out a hand, and Angie handed him the seaflute. “I’m sorry your queen didn’t want to meet with us. I was told there was turmoil in her queendom and she changed her mind.”
“There was an attempt on my life by human divers, here in the Northern Queendom. My uncle is king here, and she heard the news from him.” Kaden paused.
“When I met with her, she had just heard,” Angie added. “After that, she sent me away.”
Governor Vester looked aghast. “That is awful news. I am glad you are okay, Mer-Prince. But this is no way to rebuild an alliance if there are people out there going rogue.” He craned his neck to look behind him. “Give me a moment? Let me get Jena on a video call. I’m not sure if she knew about this.”
“Of course,” Angie said in unison with Kaden, crossing her arms across her chest and her stomach hardening. Finally, the Alaskan governor was willing to help. She didn’t help them during their last war with the mer.
Governor Vester rose to his feet and strode to his desk, picking up his phone. “Hello, Jena? This is Kevin Vester. Do you have a moment?” He stepped away and the Alaskan governor’s clear, assertive voice came on through the speakerphone.
“Hi, Kevin. What can I do for you?”
“I’m here with Angie Song and Mer-Prince Kaden. I called her in for a discussion on mer rights and building mer-human relations,” Governor Vester started. “I was made aware there was an attempt on the Mer-Prince’s life at his queendom off the Alaskan coast. Did you know anything about that?”
Governor Taylor gasped at her end. “Absolutely not and I’m horrified to learn of it.” The amplified sound of rustling followed and Angie scooted to the edge of her couch so she could focus on what the Alaskan governor said next. “But whoever committed this crime, if we find them, will be arrested.”
“We will keep you informed if we hear anything. Thank you, Jena.” The Alaskan governor thanked them in return and Governor Vester ended the call.
“That answered that.” He sat back down in front of Angie, the seaflute resting between them on the table. “Where does this leave us, then?” He directed his question toward Kaden.
“How can we help ease tensions on our end?” Kaden asked.
He sounded so diplomatic, so calm, and Angie wanted nothing more than to throw her arms around Kaden and hug him.
“If you could get the Mer-Queen and Mer-King to stand down and cease killing our divers, boaters, and other civilians, we could go from there,” Governor Vester replied.
“It won’t be easy, but I’ll try to do what I can” Kaden said.
Governor Vester didn’t tear his amused gaze from the flute. “Don’t you want to know what I’ll do on my end before you agree?”
“Oh.” Kaden sounded flustered. “Yes, what will you do in return?”
“Always make sure your negotiations are a two-way street. Something I learned early on in my political career. I used to be overly agreeable too.” Governor Vester said with a soft chuckle, and Angie caught a passing faraway glance in his eyes, as though he were reminiscing. But he returned to their conversation in a snap. “But I will work closely with Governor Taylor to find out who attacked you, as well as Angie, to make the seas a safer place for both humans and mer.”
