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Sid’s heart lurched.
He sprang to his feet and bounded out of the cabin. “Jayna!” Panic gripped his heart as he sprinted across the deck and looked over the railing. A stream of bubbles swirled below.
“She just jumped in,” Peter said as he scrambled down the wingsail.
Sid kicked off his shoes and stepped onto the railing. Peter grabbed his shoulders and hauled him back onto the deck. “What are you thinking?”
Sid strained at Peter’s iron grip. “Let me go!”
He yanked himself free, but Peter caught his leg and pulled him back. “Sid! Stop!” The men scuffled. Driven by panic, Sid got on top of Peter and cocked his fist, ready to punch his stepbrother in the face.
“What are you two doing?”
Sid froze at the sound of Jayna’s voice.
The men turned to see her walking towards them—wet, gorgeous, and very much alive.
Sid leaped to his feet. He rushed to her and wrapped her in his arms. Relief flooded through him as he felt her warmth against his bare chest and arms.
She hesitantly returned his embrace. After several long seconds she whispered, “Sid, what’s going on?”
He released her and gazed deep into her dark green eyes. There was genuine confusion.
“I heard you scream, heard the splash. We thought you were dead.”
“Dead?” she asked, her eyebrows raised. “From a fifteen-meter dive? It was exhilarating, but hardly deadly.” She pursed her lips and said, “Does that mean you don’t want to try it?”
Dive? That was a yell of excitement, not a scream of terror. The remnants of his panic faded into embarrassment.
His mother moved to his side and quietly said, “You’re going to have a lot of fun with this one.” Then she took Jayna’s arm in hers. “Let’s go see what the ship’s cameras caught. That dive and Obsidian’s reaction should bring in a few hundred drips.”
As the two women walked away, Sid thought back to the Cerulean Order’s concerns about her. Maybe they were right—maybe she was just a bit too erratic.
Peter clapped a hand on Sid’s shoulder. “Not that I planned on trying anything, but this one’s all yours. That’s a level of crazy I want nothing to do with.”
Chapter 25
Jayna watched in awe as Brianna manipulated the video clips. She had been right about the quality of footage from the ship’s cameras.
Brianna paused and studied the recording for a moment. “By any chance, did you bring your tail?”
“No,” Jayna said.
The disappointment on Brianna’s face sent Jayna’s mind searching for options. “I might be able to get one, though. The Manutai Mer-school rents tails, and they have a boat they use for merscursions.”
Brianna’s face lit up. “Would they rent me a tail?”
Jayna shrugged. “If they have one available, I don’t see why not.”
Brianna grabbed Jayna by the shoulders. “Call them. I’ll rent every tail they have. When the rest of Peter’s guests get here, we’ll turn this boat into a giant mermaid party.”
By the time Jayna finished talking to the Manutai Merschool, two-dozen mer tails were enroute to the Ghidorah, and Brianna had finished work on the clip she had been editing.
“What do you think?” she asked.
The video had amazing footage of Jayna’s dive, and hilariously exaggerated Sid’s reaction. “I love it! How did you learn to do that?”
Brianna grinned. “When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a YouTube star. That’s what streamers used back then. The platforms may be different now, but the basic skills are the same.” She posted the video with a wave of her hand. “There! That should get some traction.”
