5. Eve
EVE
With a gasp, I lurch up from the bed.
Blinking the sleep from my eyes, I take in the unfamiliar room. The shackle is gone from my wrist. My skin has healed as I rub the faint pink mark. I’m still wearing my crumpled clothes.
Blue silk sheets tease my skin. I turn to survey the ornate headboard. It’s shaped like a clam shell. Instead of a pearl at the center, it is my wondrous bed.
Rows of fluffy pillows crowd behind me. It’s larger than a king-sized bed—meant to fit someone seven feet tall, I’m sure.
The room is decorated sparingly.
A small desk and sitting area make up the right side of the room. To the left, a wardrobe with silver handles presses tightly against the wall. Beside it is a small door that I’m praying leads to a bathroom.
My breath catches as I take in the window.
An expansive glass frame runs from floor to ceiling. It makes up the entire right wall of my room. Beyond it, I can make out the murky blue hues of ocean water. Hazy shapes ripple in the distance, distorted by the glass.
A school of rainbow fish swims by in a rush.
My eyes track lower, taking in the small silver pool fitted to the bottom of the window. Foamy white water crests at the lip. It bubbles and shimmers.
It’s more than just a pool, I realize with a start. The bottom is dark and opens into the ocean.It may be my only way out. There’s no way my door isn’t being guarded.
Stretching my arms above my head, I rub at my skin. Oiliness from his tentacles lingers. I bare my teeth at a few red suck marks along my legs. Hickeys from a kraken, how wonderful.
My head pounds as I take stock of myself and my limited options.
This room is a testament to their knowledge of human comfort. If what he says is true and he’s been searching for me for centuries, he's spared no expense. How is there breathable air this far below the surface?
All the monsters I had seen, including the king, bore gills in some capacity. Were they all forced to breathe like humans for my comfort?
These are all questions I would gladly forgo asking in exchange for a way to reach the surface.
Harven’s face swirls in my head. The desperation of his kiss and the desolation at my refusal to have him replay over and over. Mate, he called me. Heirs. Bedding.
The dead bodies of those other women. He killed them. All of them. He’s a murderer—a monster.
I’d rather die than let him touch me.
The phantom stench of death returns and sours my stomach. It’s all too much to withstand. My heart clenches painfully the more I think about it. I need space to form a plan.
Maybe I could try the pool and see—
The door to my room bursts open on groaning hinges. I fight not to roll my eyes as I take in the three figures polluting my entryway. As if this situation couldn’t have gotten any worse.
They’re still in their matching outfits from earlier. The male with closely cropped white hair and glistening abs stays tucked close to the female with curling teal hair. Both their faces are carefully blank while the female with dark blue hair casts me a disapproving glare.
She tosses a pale scrap of fabric onto the bed beside me.
“Up, human,” she commands. “King Harven sent us to prepare you for dinner.”
“And if I refuse?” I arch a brow
“You’ll break his heart,” murmurs the male with a wry smile.
My eyes drift over his tall frame. Not nearly as imposing as the king, there is an openness about him that settles my nerves. It doesn’t hurt that he’s ridiculously handsome. Even for a sea creature.
I still can’t believe I’m here. That monster like this exists. If I manage to escape, I’ll write a tell-all about what I’ve found. Make millions and never give love a second thought.
The teal-haired female glances between the two of us, brushing his arm with the back of her hand. Her gaze is wary. As if she is bracing herself for a blow. Her glimmering scales have gone pale.
With a sigh, I slowly stand. The marble floor is warm against my bare feet.
“Who are you?” I ask.
“The King’s Pearls,” the glaring one states. “We’ve served as the king’s lovers for centuries. We are a staple of his court and a marker of his virility as a ruler.”
“Nixie has served the king the longest. A fact she never lets anyone forget,” the male says, inclining his head. “I’m Bly. This is Seera.”
He jerks his webbed thumb towards the other female. She bestows me a soft smile before sliding herself behind the male.
Maybe it’s because I’ve spent my life around couples—was just on board with a dozen newfound lovers—but the two of them are clearly together.
In a capacity that’s much different from what they are with the third.
“The king sent us to make sure you are comfortable,” Seera explains. “As queen, it will be our job to serve you as well.”
King Harven has given me personal use of his lovers. How considerate.
My disdain must show on my face, for Nixie narrows her gaze. A delicate snarl falls from her navy lips. The thin material of her gown bares most of her slick, silver-dusted skin.
“You’re getting ahead of yourself, Seera,” Nixie sneers. “She may not last the week down here. Her kind is so fragile.”
A humorless chuckle leaves me. I’ve seen enough of the world to know what this is. Nixie suits blue far better than the green tones of jealousy.
I pluck the dress from the bed and let the thin sheet of pale blue silk unfurl.
“Relax. I have no desire to replace you. If it were up to me, I’d happily let you serve in the king’s bed and return to the surface without a second glance.”
Nixie grins, clearly pleased by my answer. The other two exchange wide-eyed glances. Bly and Seera share an unspoken conversation. In unison, they turn, their bodies drifting closer again as if they can’t help it.
“There is no way out. The king believes you are his mate,” Seera says. “Once you are pregnant, it will be fully confirmed. The curse decrees that only his true mate shall bear his heirs. That is not a role any of us can fulfill.”
“Curse?”
“Did they not—”
“Be quiet, Seera,” Nixie hisses. “This is not our information to share.”
Seera steps further behind Bly. The male shoots Nixie a warning look that she dismisses with a haughty wave of her hand.
“Dress, human. We will escort you to dinner.”
I glance between the three of them, then back down at the dress. I raise a brow.
“Can I get some privacy?”
“There is no need for modesty,” Nixie scoffs. “Your sole job here is to be bred by the king. You are lucky to be given such fine material to wear. It’s wasted on your dull skin.”
“Ouch, tell me how you really feel.”
Color darkens Nixie’s cheeks.
A part of me can sympathize with her. She thinks I’ve come to steal her man and her job. Her worries are unfounded. Still, maybe if she were a little nicer, hooking up with the king out of spite wouldn’t be making a small, devious part of me grin from ear to ear.
I won’t. I hate him, but Nixie shouldn’t push me to prove a point. He had been desperate for me. If I’m in possession of this magical womb he needs, surely I could use it to my advantage.
Lucky for her, I have no plans on ever letting him touch me.
“Wait outside, Nixie. We will dress the human,” Bly says, stepping forward.
The dark-haired female huffs but strolls to the door. Her dress parts, revealing more of her scaly thigh.
“Hurry. The king is in a foul mood, thanks to her.”
That shouldn’t make me as happy as it does.
The doors rattle shut, and Bly smiles. He extends a hand toward the dress I’m clutching and winks at me.
“Come on. We won’t bite.”
Rolling my eyes, my lips twist to the side.
Nixie was correct. In this nightmare, there was no room for modesty. Why should I care that these creatures are seeing me naked? Much has already been taken from me. What’s a little bit more?
My hands shove down my shorts. I slip the shirt off my shoulders. My fingers tangle in the tie of my bikini top when Seera holds up a hand.
“Wait. Perhaps we should turn around.” Both Bly and I raise eyebrows at her, but she presses on. “The king may not be pleased if he discovers we were the first to see her naked. Or naked at all, for that matter.”
The fact that he thinks he has any sort of ownership of my body makes my rage spark. I’m almost tempted to order them to look at me out of spite. My better judgment wins out as they turn around.
Tossing aside my bikini, I’m displeased to discover bras and underwear haven’t made it to this underwater society. Nothing covers me except the thin dress. If you can even call it that. A scrap of silk is a more fitting description.
The fabric is cut to billow to my ankles. It is thin enough for my nipples to press through the front. It gathers with a pearl pin at the top of my breasts and gapes in the center, leaving my arms and stomach bare.
“You can turn around.”
They do so immediately. Seera’s eyes brighten while Bly’s secretive smile returns.
“Very lovely. May I?”
Seera gestures towards my hair.
Dipping my chin, the female approaches and twists small sections of my limp hair away from my face. I doubt I’ll ever use a blow-dryer again. Good thing I’ve always been partial to my natural hair.
“What are you?” I ask, before pursing my lips. “Is it rude to inquire?”
Seera chuckles softly. Her teal curls tickle my shoulder as she threads a glittering pin through my hair.
“Bly and I are both merfolk. Nixie is a siren.”
“That seems fitting,” I mumble.
“Please forgive her, my queen.” She continues before I can argue with the title. “She has been King Harven’s favored Pearl for a long time. With you here, our roles will be changing. She doesn’t know how to handle someone else being more important to him.”
Finishing my hair, I gently touch the artful style she’s arranged. I look like a queen despite the circumstances.
“What about you two? Do you feel put out by me being here?”
The two of them look at each other with soft smiles. Secrets thread through their eyes as another unspoken conversation passes between them. The look is so intimate I nearly avert my gaze.
“We don’t mind,” Bly finally answers.
I’m sure they don’t.
“The king has been searching for a long time,” Seera adds. “Leaving our bed for yours is no slight. Not when it means furthering his line and strengthening the realm.”
I groan. I can’t take any more talk about my magical womb.
“Sorry to disappoint, but my bed will remain empty while I’m here. The last person I’d share it with is King Harven. Unless he means to take me by force.”
Bly swallows thickly.
“The king would never do that.” When I don’t look convinced, he presses on. “It’s the shock of your new situation. Once you have eaten and properly rested, you’ll see that—”
I hold up a hand.
Rest and a good meal will not change my resolve. The burning in my chest intensifies in agreement. No amount of time will convince me to fuck the king who has murdered so many of my people. Who would’ve murdered me had I not been fated for him by some fucked-up god?
“My mind will not be so easily swayed.” I meet both of their gazes, making sure they hear me when I say, “I will never welcome that monster into my bed.”