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Rays of golden sunlight pierced the horizon. A sweet chorus of birds danced in the branches above. They probably responded to the song Nemo sung, trying to distract himself from the pain. The delicious smell of baked goods—a scent I recognized from previous trips to other realms in Haven—greeted us as we reached the edge of town.
Fin kicked the horse, and it clomped forward slowly. I clutched him tightly, my arms secure around his rock-hard stomach. Throughout the whole journey he’d kept one hand linked with mine. It was perfect. Being so close to him sent a tingle up my thighs.
Mud and brick thatched houses lined the road. A three-story tavern rose up among them, in addition to a bakery, butcher, and a tailor shop. The murmur of voices called us deeper into the town square, where a crowd was amassed around a cobblestone well. What were they doing there at the crack of dawn?
“What’s going on?” I whispered.
“Let’s take a closer look.” Fin nudged his horse to carry him closer.
A stick of a man with a face as red as magenta coral climbed onto the well. He wore a long overcoat, pants that reached just beyond the knees, boots, and a vest. A hat, two sizes too small, rested on his large skull.
“Bring da’ prisoner forth.” His voice boomed through the cobbled square.
Chains rattled behind us. Someone scraped along the ground. The man groaned as if in pain. I prayed to the sea god that he hadn’t been mistreated.
When I turned to look upon the poor soul, my heart pounded so hard, it threatened to burst through my ribcage. “Gill!”
Two officers dragged him along. But why? Couldn’t he walk? His boots and shirt were missing. Pants covered his bottom half. A gray hue had captured his skin. His scales had all but vanished. Merscales were akin to flower petals curling during intense summer heat, and they vanished during severe dehydration.
A drowning sensation captured my gut. Where were they taking him? Why was he a prisoner? What were they going to do to him?
Gill’s eyes flashed with a combination of regret and shame, and he hung his head.
Fin descended from the horse and hurried to his friend. “What in the name of Tritonia is going on here? What are this man’s charges?”
“Who the ’ell are you?” the man who dragged Gill along asked.
“Get out of our way.” The other shoved past Fin and continued to the well.
“Stop. Release this man,” I shouted, gaining the attention of everyone assembled in the square, including the rotund, red-faced drunkard bellowing Gill’s charges. “As a Princess of Tritonia, I order you to obey my command.”
The oversized lawmaker laughed at me, exposing a mouth full of stained, yellow teeth and several dark gaps were some were missing. “You ain’t no princess. You’re noth’n’ but a trollop in a filthy dress.”
Well, I’d give him that. I was a trollop in a dirty dress.
Fin stepped forward, squeezing his trident. “You will apologize to the princess for your disrespect.”
If my heart weren’t going mad, it would have done a little leap in response to Fin standing up for me. A man who would defend my honor—and look gorgeous doing it—was appealing as hell.
The man tapped the handle of his whip in his palm. “Who’s gonna make me? You, and what army?”
Smartass. I’d love to punch him in the mouth and knock out a few more of his teeth. Fin would probably consider that kind of behavior beneath a princess, but I didn’t.
Well, if this clown didn’t believe I was royalty, then only one thing would convince him. Despite the dry conditions, I let my transformation overcome me, and the townsfolk shrieked at my glimmering skin. Without my legs, I collapsed to the ground, muddying my skirt even further.
A few gasps rang out. Everyone stared at me.
“Mermaid,” someone whispered.
“She’s a royal,” another said.
Many in the crowd fell down on one knee to bow to me.
I waved them away. There was no need for formal etiquette.
Still, the man refused to submit to my demand. “Princess, huh?” He eyed me up and down, hitched up his pants, and licked his cracked lips. “Mistook you for a moment there. What can I do for you, Your Highness?”
“Let my merman go,” I said as Fin and Nemo stood by my side.
