“Does he really love me?” said Serena, her throat closing with the threat of tears.
“Don’t be silly. You’re his angel fish, remember? You’re the mother of his children.”
“I’m also the witch who gave him a love potion without his knowledge.”
As Casius watched, Serena’s strong, beautiful face crumpled. She sighed—a sound so sad and heartbroken that it made Casius’ skin blaze crimson with rage at Athena.
“Sometimes I think it would be best if I just took the locket off and broke the spell. At least then I’d know if it was real or all a big lie. He has to love me by now, right? Maybe not in the way the spell book thinks he should, but he must love me.”
“I have no doubt that he does.”
“Then why can’t I bring myself to do it?” She sighed again, and Casius’ skin turned grey. “If she is his true love, part of me wishes she would just go ahead and kiss him already and be done with it. This is torture, Casius. I can’t take it much longer.”
“You’re really going to give up?” said Casius, a hard edge in his voice. “You’re really going to let that giggling, wide-eyed little tramp take everything from you? Who says she’s his true love? She’s just a redhead with a tiny waist who’s appealing to Triton’s old habits. He’s reliving his youth a little. It’s typical at his age. It could still be a problem, but only if you let it. You have to remind him that you’re the one who’s perfect for him. You’re the one who’s been by his side all these years. And you have to make sure Athena knows you’re not going to give him up. If you give up, she’ll get bolder. Is that really what you want?”
“No,” said Serena, her jaw set, her eyes full of light again. “If she’s staying because she likes quality time with my husband, then we’re going to make sure she doesn’t get any.”
— — —
Hazel had a nasty urge to laugh at the desperate urgency in Serena’s voice.
“The children are saying they haven’t seen you enough the past few days,” she told Triton. “Fiona asked me where you were just a few minutes ago, and she looked so sad with her little pouty lip.”
Hazel held back a scoff. Triton had been seeing his daughters just as much as usual. Serena was just pissed because Athena was usually with him when he did, and the little mermaids hung on her every word when she talked about her travels—swimming side by side with migrating whales, dodging sharks in a feeding frenzy. Hazel had just seen Fiona before she’d come around the corner and seen Serena blocking Athena and Triton’s path out of the palace. Fiona had been playing with Rona, and both had been laughing. Serena was only saying Fiona was sad because she knew Fiona was Triton’s weakest spot.
“I think we should go on a family picnic,” said Serena. “Just you, me, and the kids.”
Triton looked sideways at Athena and said, “Oh, yes, a picnic sounds good. We haven’t done that in a while. Are you sure you don’t want to invite your mother or Hazel or Casius or…anyone else?”
Serena’s smile flopped and then turned into a stony grimace. “No, darling. Everyone is busy, and besides—”
“I’m not busy,” said Hazel, swimming around the corner she had been hiding behind. “A picnic sounds fun.”
“Are you sure, Hazel?” Serena said through clenched teeth, her dark eyes boring into Hazel, begging her to take the hint.
Hazel took it alright, but she put an innocent smile on her face and feigned obliviousness. The ugly, envious monster inside of Hazel was rearing its head more and more often since Moira had started back with her daily malicious jabs at Hazel’s inadequacy and her inability to live up to family expectations, and had started the new game of acting like she was a servant. When Athena had shown up and Hazel had seen the threatened, panicked look on Serena’s face when she looked at her, a wicked little thought had taken root in Hazel’s head. Finally, she’ll know what it is to be outshined, to have the person she loves most, whose approval she craves, look at her like she will never be more than second best. She’ll finally really know what it’s like to be me.
“I thought you said you were going to be practicing in the cauldron room today,” said Serena, a fake, sugary smile on her face that reminded Hazel eerily of Moira. When Hazel put a thoughtful look on her face—eyes turned upward, mouth pursed in concentration—and began to shake her head, Serena added in a chilly voice, “Sea God knows you need it.”
The insult took Hazel’s breath away, but instead of crumpling and slinking off as she did with Moira, Hazel’s turned her mouth into a wickedly sweet smile that perfectly mimicked Serena’s. Game on, bitch, she thought.
“No, I don’t have any plans for today. I practiced my magic yesterday. I’m not like you, Serena. Magic takes a lot out of me. I can’t practice two days in a row or I just get frustrated. A picnic sounds relaxing though.”
“Wonderful!” said Triton. “Are your mother and Casius busy?”
“Oh no, not at all. Mother doesn’t have any appointments today, and it’s not a lesson day for Celine and Ariana. I just saw Casius chatting with Maren in the kitchens. He’s not doing anything either.”
“We’ll make it a party, then,” said Triton. “The more the merrier, right, Serena?”
Hazel could have sworn she saw blue sparks flash in Serena’s eyes, much like the purple flames that sprung up in Moira’s when she was angry, and bit her lip to hold in a triumphant laugh.
“Absolutely,” said Serena.
Hazel watched Athena flinch back from Serena’s disturbing smile.
“Why don’t you come along too, Athena?” said Triton, like the idea had just occurred to him.
“Oh, that’s very kind, but I wouldn’t want to intrude on a family outing.”
“Nonsense. You’re not an intruder here; you’re a guest. You can’t stay here all alone.”
Athena looked away from Serena and up into Triton’s face. Whenever she looked at him, she got a warm feeling under her skin, like swimming over the jet of a hot spring. Each time she looked at him, she felt both afraid and invigorated. She knew that he belonged to someone else, but she also knew that she was hopelessly, irrevocably smitten. At times, she thought he felt the same. At others, she was sure he was just being kind. Regardless, when she looked at him, Serena didn’t scare her; in fact, Serena was entirely forgotten.
“Alright then, I’d love to come.”
— — —
“Something must be done, Serena,” said Moira.
Moira had dragged Serena into the cauldron room as soon as they had all returned from the picnic. Serena fiddled with the ingredients on the shelves, straightening and rearranging them needlessly.
“About what, Mother?”
She knew exactly what Moira was talking about, but the idea that those around her could also see what was going on, that Triton might be slipping away, was embarrassing and painful. If others could see it, it must be real.
“Don’t play dumb with me. That ugly, red-haired bubblehead is threatening everything I…we have!”
“She’s not a bubblehead, Mother,” said Serena, hating the truth of the words. “She’s smart and she’s adventurous. And she most definitely isn’t ugly.”
“All the more reason to do something about her!”
“Why should I have to?” shouted Serena. All the anguish and fear that she had been feeling since Athena’s arrival overflowed. “He should love me! After all these years, I shouldn’t have to worry about chasing off other mermaids. I shouldn’t still be wearing this locket around my neck. Every time I touch it or think about it, it makes me want to scream! I hate it! I hate it!” Serena tugged at her hair instead of the necklace—still afraid, deep down, of casting it away and facing the outcome.
“Serena,” said Moira, her voice a soft coo as she swam to Serena’s side and put a hand on her shoulder, “darling, calm down. You see what she’s done to you? Y
ou have to put a stop to this.”
“And what do you suggest I do, Mother?” said Serena, her fury giving way to tears. “The locket shudders more and more each day. He cares for her. I think…I think he loves her, or at least he’s getting close, even if the spell is still making him love me too. If I send her away, if I’m cruel to her, it may finally break his bond to me. I can’t lose him.”
“If you can’t banish the problem, eradicate it,” said Moira, locking eyes with Serena.
Serena turned away from her mother’s gaze, a whirlpool raging in her head. It would be so easy, and she would never have to worry about Athena again. She would never have to worry again at all. If Athena was in fact Triton’s “true love” (though Serena was still was not convinced such a thing existed), then she would be the one and only mermaid who could ever break the spell. No one else would ever threaten Serena’s marriage if Athena was to die of a strange and sudden illness. But perhaps merpeople would grow suspicious. The disease that took Poseidon and Amphitrite had not resurfaced and had not taken any more lives. If it were to suddenly spring up again and kill yet another threat to Serena’s happiness, perhaps someone would catch on. But even if someone did, what could happen? She was queen. She was the law. But so was Triton, and if he grew suspicious, if he connected the death of Athena, or worse, his parents, to Serena, he might banish her or divorce her (which seemed the worst option). But would he? If she got rid of Athena before Athena got a chance to break the spell, then the love potion would still be working. He wouldn’t punish or leave her, maybe not even suspect her, if his judgement was clouded by love. But did she even want the love potion to work anymore? What sort of marriage was she in, really?
What ultimately made her say, “No, Mother, I will deal with this another way. Don’t bring it up again,” was the simple reluctance to commit such a crime and destroy everything she had built for herself. She was a just queen. A beloved queen. She was known as The Queen with the Golden Heart. Could she truly be proud of that reputation, truly deserve it, if she were to murder again? Because that was what it was—murder. Whenever the thought surfaced, she always shoved it aside, but it was the truth. And she would not do it again.
“Serena,” said Moira, her mouth a hard line.
“No, Mother! That’s final,” said Serena, holding herself tall, her face smooth and stern as a marble bust.
Moira huffed and swam from the room. She’ll want to discuss it soon enough, she thought. That mermaid’s not going anywhere soon.
Serena’s posture remained hard and determined as she watched Moira go. She had meant what she said. There would be no poison brewed in her cauldron. She would just have to keep a close eye on Athena and make sure there were no opportunities for True Love’s Kiss to rear its ugly, venomous head.
Chapter 8
We All Go Tumbling Down
“You know what you should go look at?” said Hazel when Triton and Athena told her they were going out for another mini-tour of another area of the city. “There’s this gorgeous cave full of crystal that’s just dazzling at this time of day. It’s on the southeast side of the city, near the edge, just past the urchin farm.”
“That’s right around where we first met,” said Triton, looking at Athena with a bright smile. “I think we must have been right by it, but I never looked inside. Too many other things to look at, I guess.” His happy smile turned flirtatious, and Athena blushed. Triton said, “What a wonderful idea, Hazel. Thank you.”
“Oh, don’t mention it.”
Hazel waved them goodbye with a satisfied smirk. Now off to sidetrack Serena until they get far enough away, she thought. I’m sure she’s lurking somewhere nearby.
“Hazel, have you seen Triton?” said Serena, appearing as if on cue.
“You know, I think I saw him up on the sixth floor looking for one of the kids.”
“Thanks, Hazel,” said Serena, sounding out of breath. She shot up through the water towards the sixth floor like a sailfish after a tuna.
Finally, something I’m good at, thought Hazel as she watched Serena go without a second thought, never guessing that Hazel was lying to her, thwarting her attempt at thwarting Athena’s vie for Triton’s heart. Serena would be stunned to find out that Hazel had been doing her best to let Athena and Triton be alone together ever since Serena had decided to be relentless in her attempt to stop that very thing. Perfect Serena wasn’t going to have everything she ever wanted anymore. Perfect Serena should have kept her mouth shut about Hazel’s magical ability. Hazel had always known that was how Serena felt about her, but Serena was always trying to act like she cared, like she truly believed Hazel could control her magic. But when she had made that comment right to Hazel’s face a week ago, it confirmed what Hazel had suspected all along. The words still rang in Hazel’s head. I thought you were going to practice magic in the cauldron room today. Sea God knows you need it. Well soon enough, if all continued as it was now, Serena was going to need Hazel’s help to get Triton back, and Hazel was still debating how long she should make Serena beg before she said yes, or if she would say yes at all.
— — —
“Hey, do you think we could meet up with Dariel and the other dolphins after we explore the cave?” said Athena as they drew close to their destination.
“Oh, well,” said Triton hesitantly, “that’s sort of something Serena and I do together…like a tradition. I don’t know if…I mean she’s been so…”
“Oh, of course, I understand,” said Athena, hanging her head in embarrassment and disappointment, trying to ignore the sharp slice of jealousy in her chest. “Forget I asked.”
Triton hated seeing her lips pulled down in disappointment almost as much as he hated knowing he had put the frown on her face. But he wasn’t going to change his mind. It seemed wrong to share that special ritual with Athena. His heart ached when he thought back to all of those times swimming with the dolphins with Serena. She always had a smile on her face, and her laugh warmed him up from the inside out. He hadn’t heard that laugh in a while. Over the past fortnight, Serena had laughed less and less. In fact, all of his most recent memories of her contained sharp words and a hateful frown. She was gloomy, and she was always following him around. He used to love having her always at his side, but lately her presence was like the dark, swirling waters right before a hurricane. He found himself seeking Athena out more and more to escape Serena’s terrible gloom. Athena was sunshine and gentle currents. Serena was dark skies and choppy seas.
Of course, deep down he knew that Athena was the one making Serena act that way, but he tried to ignore it. He couldn’t just toss Athena out. He was fond of her. She was a fun and intelligent friend, and he enjoyed her company, that was all. Serena should be able to see that. Athena was no threat to her.
“There it is,” said Athena, swimming faster.
Triton sped after her. She looked over her shoulder at him and said, “Race you!”
“No fair, you have a head start,” said Triton, feeling like a child again, as he often did when around Athena.
Triton reached out and grabbed her by the base of the tail and pulled her back. Then he pumped his tail as hard as he could and shot over the top of her head.
“Hey!” said Athena. “And you said I was a cheater!”
Her laughter followed him into the cave. It was a rich laugh—high and sweet, almost like a child’s giggle. He found himself comparing it to Serena’s deeper, sultrier laugh and couldn’t decide which one he liked better.
He pulled up short just inside the cave, and Athena swam into him. Her torso slammed into his back. She put her hands on his shoulders to push herself back, and she did not take them off as she laughed.
“Sorry,” she said in between laughs, pressing her forehead into his back. Then she looked over his shoulder, and her laughter was cut off by a gasp of delight. “
Wow! You said you didn’t know about this place?”
“I can’t believe it either,” said Triton. He thought he knew every inch of his kingdom. He had known there was a cave here, but somehow he had never gotten around to going inside it. He didn’t come to the southeast side often, at least not this close to the city’s edge. It was mostly farm land.
The cave was not a perfect dome; there was a large hole in the top, but that was what made it so dazzling. The powerful summer sun shone down through the water and into the cave, setting the millions of shards of cave crystal embedded in the rock on fire. The entire cave wavered like a mirage cast in rainbow light. The crystal reflected the sun in prisms of every color, and the water seemed to glitter. The cave did not go very deep, and it was only one chamber. It was like a giant geode broken in half and laid crystal side down on the sand.
“It’s absolutely gorgeous!” said Athena. She started laughing again as she swam around the cave doing flips and spins in the water.
Triton watched her move, unable to pull his eyes away, hypnotized by the grace of her white tail as it caught the rainbow lights and reflected them back. She caught him looking, and the exhilaration of being alone with him in this beautiful place and the way her heart pounded when she saw desire for herself in his eyes made her daring. She winked at him as she pushed a strand of her vibrant red hair out of her face. His blush egged her on, and she beckoned him with her tail.
“What are you waiting for, Triton?”
Triton swallowed hard. It was the first time she had not addressed him as King Triton. His name sounded smooth and exotic on her lips. His eyes lit up with an almost predatory hunger as they ran over her from head to fins. He chased after her, and at first she fled, laughing, but after a few laps around the cave, she turned around suddenly. He swam into her outstretched arms before he could backpedal—not that he wanted to. He wrapped his hands around the smallest part of her waist and was delighted to find that he had been right on that first day he saw her. His fingertips brushed one another at her back. Her spun her around, holding her like that, and she threw her head back and put her arms above her head, and from her lips came the sound of pure joy.
The Sea Witch (The Era of Villains Book 1) Page 15