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Gill huffed and looked away.
Nemo gave me ahand slapto say well done.
By now, my head had cleared of the ache, and I could think clearly. “Where are the pirates taking us?”
“Princess,” Fin said, “we’re being taken to the black market in the Darkwoods, where they intend to trade us.”
The words scraped my throat raw. Farrall hadn’t wanted me traded. He’d demanded the pirates contain me until he’d finished his plans. Had the pirates betrayed him as he had done my father? Seemed kind of fitting.
Holding on to the bars, I pulled myself to my feet. “You there. Pirate,” I called out to the man steering the wagon.
“Yes, my love,” he growled, not even turning to look at me.
“I’m the second daughter of King Triton,” I declared. “You will release me and all the creatures held captive this instant. My father will reward you handsomely for your efforts.”
The pirate cackled—it was a horrible sound that grated on my every nerve and set fire to my insides.
“King Triton ain’t himself these days,” the man said. “The commander rules the sea throne. I answer to him, not you.”
I slumped to the wooden floor of the wagon.
“Don’t waste your time, my sweet princess,” said Fin, warming my hands in his. “They’re paid soldiers of fortune. They care not for our plight. Or the plight of the other shifters.”
He had an air of aristocracy about him. The way he addressed me told me he was well-educated. Of high birth, perhaps. Possibly a member of one of the noble families. But what was a noble doing with soldiers? Normally, they only took strategic and elevated positions like that of general, not lower ranks such as captain, which would force them to mingle with the everyday soldiers.
“Shadow, the panther in the next wagon.” Fin was treated to a growl as he said the man’s name. “He was kidnapped from his tea plantation days ago, along with all his workers. An attempt to earn their freedom by offering to pay off the pirates failed. Sadly, he discovered, these pirates don’t bargain. They want power and control, and to expand their empire.”
My chest did a one-two punch at Shadow’s courage and love for his workers. But then it sagged at our plight.Shellfish. We had to get out of here before we were split up and traded to sick slugs who kept us in cages like dogs and tormented us until we performed tricks.
“They will pay for this.”My voice came out hoarse.
Fin shuffled to my side, and little fireworks popped in my chest as his leg grazed mine. “Princess, did you get caught in the pirates’ net, too?”
“No.” I said, biting my lip to hold back the anger and hurt of Faraall’s betrayal. “Is that how you ended up here?”
Fin stared at his hands and nodded. “We were searching for Gill’s missing sister. We tracked down clues that led to the bay in Shell Cove. The pirates were moored there, unloading creatures from their ships.”
News that the pirates were trafficking shifters hit hard like a hammer blow to the chest. How many merfolk and shifters had they kidnapped? Their poor families must have been worried sick.
“We snuck aboard, searching for her.” A dismayed tone crept into Fin’s voice. “We found her trapped in a cage. But when we tried to free her, we were apprehended. We lost her when they unloaded us, and three separate caravans departed Shell Cove. One headed north into Utaara. Ours headed northeast, toward the Darkwoods. A final caravan headed west into Tritonia and into the voodoo witch territory.”
How horrible.Poor Gill.“I’m so sorry,” I whispered, reaching out to squeeze his hand, but he yanked it away.
Fin hung his head. “I let my men down.”
Nemo’s huge hands clamped down on Fin’s shoulder. “Don’t say that. It was an accident.”
My heart twisted with anger at those filthy pirates setting traps for my people. One day, I would seek vengeance on the no-good bandits. Feed them to the sharks, along with Faraall, until there was no more of them left to scourge my father’s kingdom or the other realms of Haven.
I fiddled with my fingers, unsure whether to admit how I’d ended up in the wagon. These three mermen were soldiers. Would they believe their leader had traded me to the pirates?
“Princess?” pressed Fin, refusing to give up.
“I was kidnapped by the commander and traded to the pirates.” My voice was tiny, like that of a child.
Nemo both squeezed and rocked me at the same time. “No way. He would never do that.”
White-hot heat coursed through my veins. Not at what Nemo had said or over the fact that he seemed to only see the good in people. But because this morning my whole world had been turned upside down. I’d been betrothed to a man I loathed, a man who held my father under his spell like a puppet. Then that same man had tossed me to the pirates. Sea god knew what the slimy slug was doing to Nimian. The ache in my chest threatened to split me in two. I held back tears on the verge of spilling.
