Hidden Worlds

by Kristie Cook

  So I just watched the water and waited from a distance.

  They had to return soon. They had to.

  45 - FIN

  Somehow, I’d fallen asleep. This was the last thing I wanted to do as I waited for the King to show up. I’d only closed my eyes for what seemed like a half a second when someone grabbed me and sliced something sharp across my arm.

  I looked up as a goon restrained me and another held a peculiar green plant against the cut. A tingling sensation began to trail through my limbs, taking with it all my fight.

  “He won’t be any trouble now,” the third goon, who held the knife, said to some unseen person behind him.

  I tried to stay upright, ready for my confrontation with the King, but slumped down, suddenly overcome with exhaustion. Through the doorway two tittering mermaids entered, carrying armloads of supplies and clothing. They came towards me, singing their sweet melodies. I forgot my anger and closed my eyes while they played with my hair and put different shirts on me. Off to the side I heard Mom interacting with someone as well.

  I remained drowsy and eventually opened my eyes. The mermaids were gone. I brushed my hands over the shirt they put on me, which glistened with hundreds of tiny black, polished stones. The weight draped the garment snuggly across my chest and arms.

  “I guess I’m all set to give up my life to Lily,” I said sleepily as I grinned at Mom.

  She looked like an angel with her hair pinned around her head, adorned with gems and shells. Only, she wasn’t smiling back. “That’s not funny. What about Ashlyn?”

  Ash’s beautiful face came to mind. “Oh, right,” I snorted, “let’s go find her.”

  She looked back horrified and shook her head. “Finley, you have to fight what they’ve drugged you with. Drink in some water.”

  I swallowed a few gulps, then burped. She sat down, resting her forehead on her hand. Even though my inebriated state made everything seem trivial, I couldn’t deny her worry. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t have the strength to care.

  “Aw, Mom,” I said and sat on the side of the chair, covering her shoulder with my arm. “It’ll be okay, just like you said.”

  She shimmied away and continued to knead her hands together when someone unlocked the door. The same goons who’d poisoned me motioned for us to exit the room. My heart, which should have started to pound, remained at a steady pace.

  They escorted us to a large ballroom in the center of the palace. I somewhat expected to see a mass of people, but found a small group of strangers in attendance—mostly females. The front of the room was typical of the dÉcor of the rest of the palace: colorful sea anemones placed on marble columns were staggered between brilliant coral gardens. Vivid fish darted around the display. Definitely not lavishly decorated with items from all over the world, like the King said.

  Mom leaned into me and whispered, “I’m hoping for a miracle.”

  I looked at her and snickered. “Miracle? I think it’s a little too late.”

  “Just … just don’t kiss Lily, whatever you do.”

  I shrugged and let her pull me inside.

  “Welcome,” a mer-matron at the door said. “And congratulations. I’m the promising coordinator. Maggie, you’ll wait here to be escorted once the ceremony starts and Finley, you’ll stand on the dais to the right of the King’s attendant. For now you can sit in a chair over there.”

  At the ends of her hot pink braids floating in the current, snake faces appeared and hissed at me.

  “Eeew,” I said and moved backwards.

  My mother grabbed my arm. “Finley. Stop it.”

  I wrinkled my face and shook my head—the snakes disappeared. All I remembered her say was that the King would be standing up front with us. “The King is promising us?” I asked.

  Her brow creased. “No, the King’s attendant will be. The King is escorting Tatiana down the aisle.”

  “What?” I let out a gust that flapped my lips. None of this was right. Dad should be taking her down the aisle, not Leon. “And Tatch is going to let him?”

  Mom nudged me in the side and gave me a hard look. “Fin—” She pointed to the front of the room. “Have a seat. I’ll handle the details.”

  I rolled my eyes and followed her instruction, knocking over a sea star sculpture in the process.

  Through the doors on the left of the room, a group of merboys filed in and hovered behind a huge harp. They were dressed in white long-sleeved shirts and stood stiff like statues. I tried to follow their example, but felt myself sliding off my chair. Instead, I leaned back and stared at the diamond chandelier that hung from the ceiling. Sunlight disbursed off the glistening stones and rippled in the water throughout the room. I wished the room was air-filled so I could exercise my legs.

  The snake-haired lady nudged me. “Fin, it’s time.”

  I opened my eyes with a start and maneuvered myself upright. Azor had taken his place on the stage already and to my surprise, our outfits matched. Still shrouded in a cloud of drug induced apathy, I swam up to him and gave him a big high five.

  “Finley.” He grinned smugly. “Ready for the big day?”

  “Righty-O, dog.” I formed my fingers into a gun and clicked my tongue.

  He laughed half-heartily as snake-haired lady moved me over to the other side of the podium. Once she left the stage, the harpist, who had appeared from nowhere, began to play. The boys sang Natatoria’s anthem as a school of seahorses pulled a small pram with my sister and Lily sitting inside. They both wore very ornate head pieces and white dresses, but my sister’s head was tilted haphazardly back onto her chair and her mouth gaped open. The snake-haired lady swam over and jiggled her shoulder.

  Tatch snapped her head up and shut her mouth. She canvassed the room and found me, then gave me a half-smile. But Lily’s terror-stricken expression sobered me up. Lily’s father swam to her side of the pram and escorted her to the entrance of the aisle. Behind them, the King entered and took up Tatch’s arm.

  At the sight of the King, my heart began to pound. He never came last night as I’d summoned. I’d have to confront him in front of everyone now. The music changed to a soft ballad and the four swam down the aisle behind two merlings who tossed starfish onto the white sandy runway.

  Lily gulped hard as they came to the end and behind me, the attendant asked, “Who brings these mermaids to be promised to these mermen?”

  “Her Godparents do,” the King said and passed my tipsy sister to Azor.

  I looked to my mom, who was horrified as Tatchi snuggled on Azor’s shoulder. Where was my courage? Why couldn’t I say anything?

  Lily took my arm, her hand shaking as the attendant began the ceremony.

  “We are gathered in front of friends and witnesses today to join Prince Azor and Tatiana, and Sir Finley and Elizabeth—”

  46 - ASH

  In desperation, I decided I’d hallucinated the whole thing. Mermaids weren’t real. It was time to put the “strand of pearls” away and think rationally. This wasn’t me. I wasn’t crazy. And no guy, no matter how handsome or wonderful, would drive me to act foolishly. I had a life to live and so did Fin. For whatever reason he wasn’t with me, so I’d need to accept it and move on. Today would be day one of that journey.

  I pulled out my homework and stared at the page filled with notes from my teacher. The words blurred and jumbled around, competing with the chaos in my head. Was a little peace too much to ask for? I flung my body back into the pillows and screamed at the sudden burst of pain from my leg.

  I suddenly heard stomping and was startled when my door flew open. Dad stood in the doorway, terror splashed across his face. “What’s wrong, Ash?”

  “Dad,” I said as the tears poured out. “I’m a mess. I can’t stop all these feelings of dread all the time. But there’s nothing I can do to fix the situation.”

  He came and sat next to me, fraught with worry. “Ash, you’re not making any sense.”

  “I saw them, the other night. The
y were taken by their family to some strange place against their will. Something’s wrong, I can feel it.”

  He closed his eyes and caressed my hair. “Ash. You imagined you saw them. Remember? We’ve been through this. They haven’t been home. Mom would know. Jack hasn’t been seen for almost a month.”

  “They weren’t with Mr. Helton. They were alone. It was their weird cousin and some others. Can you please just go over and ask?”

  Dad tightened his forehead. “If that would make you feel better.”

  I shook my head. “Yes, please.”

  As he stood, the bed squeaked, as if adding a small plea for my case. He grimaced and left me alone. I listened as he closed the front door, imagining him walking down the path and around the corner. Within minutes he returned.

  “No one is home, Ash,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry.”

  I rolled over and faced the wall, palming a hunk of hair and tugging. Something had to stop the madness and soon. The shell of my psyche was cracking and at any moment, I knew it would shatter to pieces.

  “Why don’t you come out and spend some time with me in the living room?” he asked.

  I moaned but didn’t move. He waited a minute and sighed, then shut the door.

  47 - FIN

  “Phaleon, what is this all about?” A loud voice boomed from the doorway, interrupting the ceremony.

  Everyone turned to stare at my father. I watched, my adrenaline trying to press past the drug barrier and kick in some liquid courage.

  The King swiveled around, startled. “Jack, so nice of you to join us. Please—” he gestured, “take a seat.”

  “No. I will not,” Dad said with hard eyes. “Why wasn’t I told my children were being promised today?”

  “I’d sent word. Obviously you got it.”

  “Word?” Dad laughed derisively. “Was this the same word that was supposed to be sent back to my family about my wellbeing?”

  “Your messages weren’t being delivered?” The King looked towards my mom with raised eyebrows. “I’m going to have to check into that. But still, let’s not ruin this joyous affair—” He faced forward and motioned to the attendant. “Oberon, continue—”

  “No, we will not.” Dad moved into the aisle, taking a sympathetic look at each of us. “Fin, Tatiana. Do you wish to be here today?”

  I gulped and shook my head. Tatiana remained stiff and bleary-eyed; she didn’t respond.

  Dad tightened his eyes and looked back at the King. “My children don’t agree and I won’t allow them to make a life decision under duress.”

  The King bristled. “It’s not up to them anymore. They’ve broken the law.”

  “And what law is that?”

  “Leaving Natatoria unchaperoned and without permission.”

  Dad’s painful glance darted between Tatch and me, catching the glint of gold from the bracelet on my arm. My gut quivered. “Since when is the punishment an arranged promising?”

  The King took a deep breath and flared his nostrils. “I know we are friends, Jack. But you’ve got a lot of nerve arguing with me. This is what I want to happen.”

  “With all due respect, I am still their father and get to decide who they are promised to. That is the law. Did you even ask why they’d left? Maybe they were concerned because they hadn’t gotten word from me.”

  The King’s face turned red with anger. “It matters not. They’ve accepted and will be promised today.”

  “And Maggie agreed to this as well?” Dad gestured to Mom who stayed frozen in her seat. “She probably wasn’t aware that the parents’ desires trump everything else in this situation and I’m stopping this ceremony right now. Don’t press this, Phaleon.”

  “You are treading in dark water, Jack.”

  They stared at one another in silence, neither moving as the King’s chest rose up and down. Dad stood firm, unwilling to cower in his presence.

  When neither backed down, Dad lowered his head. “I have been a faithful servant to Natatoria and to you my entire existence, even when you were prince. You and I both know this goes further back than my children breaking the law. Even if you are King, you cannot break your own laws voted in by the people—your parents saw to that.”

  “Are you lecturing me?”

  They drifted closer, now only a foot or two apart. The royal guard snapped up from their previous relaxed stance and poised themselves for an attack.

  “So be it,” Dad finally said with a shrug of his shoulders. “Maggie, Finley, Tatiana, let’s go. We’re leaving.”

  “No!” the King shouted. “You will all stay where you—”

  Dad moved to get into the King’s face; his personal guard held him off. “You’ll what? Have us banished? So be it. I resign from the Council. Me and my family will be leaving now.”

  Dad signaled us to leave the room, but the royal guard moved between us.

  “Arrest them!” the King yelled.

  The guards rushed in all directions. Dad let out a cat-call and mers dressed entirely in black charged into the room with spears drawn. The King’s guards were outnumbered two to one, pinned against the wall.

  The King bristled. “This is treason!”

  “We have no wish to fight,” Dad said while taking Mom’s hand. “We only want to leave in peace.”

  A scuffle broke out at the door as more of the King’s soldiers tried to enter the ballroom. The King’s personal guard whisked him out the side door. In the hall, the King continued to bark orders to attack and rescue his wife and son.

  “Come on, Fin,” Dad called, holding open a door located on the opposite wall of were the King just left. “We haven’t time.”

  Mom was at his side, motioning for us to come quickly. I turned to fetch Tatch, but Azor had his hand wrapped firmly around her waist.

  My head whirred, still thick with drugs, unable to concentrate. More men tried to force their way past the stronghold and the guards along the walls fought back, pressing the rebels into the center. Someone grabbed Dad from behind and pulled him through the doorway. Mom screamed.

  Lily dropped my hand and stared at me, as if I should do something. Should I rescue her too? Kiernan, the merman assigned to help me with community service, appeared from nowhere—his black hat askew and makeup smudged—and pulled her into the throng of bodies and, I hoped, towards safety. I stood, still half-dazed, trying to determine who these rebels were as mers from both sides clashed weapons together. Something seemed off with the fight, like they weren’t really in combat but performing a practice exercise on Azor’s field. Fighting was against the nature of our race, and with brother against brother the unspoken goal became “stun your opponent.”

  But with sharp weapons and the heat of battle, high pitched keening filled the room as blood clouded the water. Mermen of both sides began to drop one by one. Were they dead? A larger rebel dressed in black appeared at my side with an extra spear.

  “Get yer sister outta here, lad,” he said while placing the weapon in my hand and pushing me toward Tatch.

  Badger.

  Azor fought a rebel mer while Tatiana stood dazed and confused, leaning against the wall behind him. Fear pounded into my veins watching him. In Azor’s eyes was the intent to kill. In the growing confusion, his attacker looked away for a moment and Azor plunged the spear into his chest. His high pitched wail changed the atmosphere of the room; one of ours had fallen at the hands of the King’s son. He fell to the ground writhing in pain, blood gushing from the wound.

  I locked eyes with the dying man momentarily and I felt fire race along my scales. This was the moment I’d been waiting for—an excuse to avenge the wrongs Azor had committed.

  I let out a battle cry and charged Azor with my weapon. He whipped my sister around to face him, putting her between us. His mouth went to hers, kissing her outright. She struggled at first, but then went limp. I yelled for her to fight him, but it was too late. Tatiana wove her hands up into his hair, fully accepting the promise.

&nb
sp; “No,” I yelled, then cursed. “You’re a dead man now, Azor.”

  He laughed victoriously as Tatch floated next to him, looking lovingly into his eyes. Then she spotted my weapon.

  “Oh, no you don’t!” she screamed and came at me, nails bared.

  One swipe caught my cheek before I could catch her hand when she tried to do it again. The spear fell from my grasp. She thumped me in the gut with her tail, then picked up the weapon and floated in front of Azor, guarding him.

  “I should have done that a long time ago,” Azor said and placed his hands on her shoulders. She relaxed into his touch. Seeing them together washed dread over me.

  “You’re nothing but an animal,” I said. “As long as I live, I’ll hunt you down for taking my sister’s choice away from her.”

  “Oh, will you?” He arched an eyebrow. “What are you waiting for? Let’s do it right now.”

  “I’ll never let you touch him,” Tatch growled. “Get out of here. I don’t want to have to hurt you again.”

  Her interference made fighting him difficult. I raised my tail anyway, my head still thick with whatever they’d used to sedate me.

  “Fin! Tatiana!” Dad called from somewhere behind me over the horde of fighting men. “We haven’t time.”

  “You heard him,” I said and tried to snatch her hand.

  “No!” She pulled her arm away from my reach. “I’m staying with Azor.”

  I turned my head quickly, catching my Dad’s frantic eyes. Could he not see Tatch was guarding Azor? “She won’t come with me,” I called out.

  “Leave her,” he said. “Just come.”

  I tried to grab her again, but she hit my hand with the spear and moved closer to Azor’s side. “Please come with me, Tatch.”

  She looked back at me, sorrow in her eyes. “I’m sorry. You’re right. The promise changes everything. Go while you can.”

  I gulped down my emotion, unable to accept my defeat. “I won’t leave you here. I have to defend the honor Azor’s stolen.”

  “No, Fin. I’ll be fine. I can’t explain it, but I have to be with him.”