Page 68 of Tangled Sails
And welcome death
Or be sold, imprisoned, enslaved
You are no man, you are no man, you are no man.
On a different day and in a different world, the swirling magic that seemed to rise up from just below the surface would have left me entranced. It didn’t spread very far; the glow was only as wide as a wine barrel, but I could feel the power of it pulling on me, like it envied my magic and must claim it for its own.
Harlan lowered the sail and used an oar to maneuver us alongside the shimmering light. Then he grabbed a rucksack I hadn’t noticed before and strapped it to his back.
TAVRIC
Holding on to a mermaid’s shoulders while being pulled through the water at shocking speeds was an experience I’d have to marvel at later. Right now, I was focused on the sailboat on the horizon, especially when the sail lowered.
“They’re stopping,” I choked out past the salt spray in my face. “Did they find it?”
“Take a breath, we’re going under,” Saskia said without any further explanation.
I managed to gulp a breath before she pulled us beneath the surface. My arms ached from trying to keep a grip on her slick shoulders, especially when we seemed to start going even faster, but I was grateful for the pain. It meant progress.
She brought us to an abrupt stop, still underwater, and my eyes popped open—then went wide as I saw a pillar of glowing…magic. That’s what it was; it had to be. Harlan had found the portal she had mentioned. It bubbled and sparkled at the surface and then faded as it reached down into the depths.
Saskia yanked on my arms again and we soon broke the surface of the water. The boat sat close by, bobbing back and forth. Harlan stood in it, throwing some sort of pack on his back.
“Why did you stop? I have to get to her,” I urged, haunted by the sound of Lyri’s singing as it warbled over the water.
“I can’t get any closer, or I risk being sucked into the portal. I’m sorry, Prince. You’re on your own. Go.” With that, Saskia gave me a shove in the direction of the boat, and I didn’t waste time wondering about the why or how; I just started swimming, my arms cutting through the water as Lyri’s singing stopped.
“Please, don’t do this,” she begged. “Please.”
“Keep singing or I’ll slit your throat here and now.”
I swam furiously, my blood boiling with anger, my heart torn open in fear. I was getting closer. If I could just get in that boat and get a hold of Lyri…
The disjointed sound of her singing filled my ears as I reached for the boat. I looked up in time to see Harlan cradling Lyri’s small form, and then they disappeared over the other side, right on top of where the water glowed gold with magic.
“No!” I shouted and dove under the boat, straight toward the light.
Chapter twenty
LYRIELLE
Air hit my face and I sucked in a deep breath, my arms sweeping out to keep myself afloat before I realized that it wasn’t just my head above water. The water was gone, and my clothing was damp but not dripping. Though the darkness around me was profound, I was now lying on what I assumed was a stone floor, trying desperately to catch my breath and slow my heart.
The portal had worked.
“Where are we?” I heard from beside me. It was Harlan’s voice. We’d both made it through. But through to where?
I weakly crawled away from the sound of his voice but didn’t make it far before he grabbed my ankle and yanked me toward him. I fought him with what little strength I had until something hard and sharp pressed to my throat and I froze.
“Do you feel that?” Harlan asked in a terrifying hiss. “That’s what a knife feels like when it’s pressed to your neck. Do not trifle with me.”
More tears leaked out of my eyes. “I can’t even stand.”
“We’ll see about that.” He pulled away, then groped around until he got hold of my arms and hauled me to my feet. I did what I could to stand on my own, but I still slumped against him.
“Where are we?” Harlan repeated as he shuffled a few steps.
“I don’t know. I can’t—” My foot hit a hard object and there was the clang of something metal as it fell and rolled across the floor.
