Chapter 41 Malec
Malec
"What are you doing here?" I ask as we leave the main gate, my uncle’s face popping into view, gliding right in front of me.
It can’t be a good sign—if he came here, he came to get me.
“Trouble at home.” He shrugs, frowning as his gaze lands on Onyx’s body, still unconscious in my hold.
He doesn’t say anything, though, just quickly peeks over my shoulder, probably looking for his wife and son.
"Pedro!" Bay’s excited voice makes me wince. That high-pitched tone she saves only for him. Gods help me, if she keeps it up all the way back, I’m diving back into that merhell of a chamber myself.
Myko stayed out of Bay this time, thinking it’d be safer in case the dragonfish surprise us again—or the king decides to vent his bruised ego.
“Trouble at home?” I repeat, just as Bay coils her tail with Pedro’s, her arms wrapping around his neck as he pulls her in and kisses her like it’s been ages.
“Ugh.” Alessio joins us, visibly fighting the urge to curse.
Why isn’t Pedro saying anything? What kind of trouble?
“Something happened with Roran?” I don’t give a damn about their literal union right now.
For some reason, my pulse is rising. Worry seeps in.
We haven’t been home for two days. Pedro was supposed to help her, let me know if something was off... and he came here.
I clear my throat. “Pedro.”
Only now he groans, annoyed over Bay’s lips, and turns to me, small electric bolts flickering from his hand.
I don’t give a damn.
“What happened at home?”
My voice is sharper now, but I can’t mask the concern on my face.
“Your mom needs you home. Something about Roran’s sickness—she said she knows what it is,” he finally answers, still not thrilled I interrupted his makeout session. Bay’s tail’s still latched onto his like a leech. These two need to quit it in public—I don’t know how they only have one son.
Wait. “Mom knows what’s wrong with her?” I raise an eyebrow.
What’s going on with her lately… That day at the office, I could tell she was hiding something, she was too tense. She seemed... off.
I couldn’t name it then, but whatever it was, it clung to the air almost like regret. Moments like this make me wish I could speak to her the way I can with Myko, instead of relying on our bond's shared emotions alone.
And if she’s hiding something… why Pedro? Now of all times?
He nods, but offers nothing more. “She said we should head home. Not another city.”
“Good. That political crap’s not my thing anyway. And the only thing the king gave me was the last known location of his son before he vanished.”
“Oh, and I took his daughter.” I chin-point at Onyx, still limp in my hold.
“The king’s son?” Pedro shakes his head, as if avoiding my last remark. “Another royal’s gone missing?”
I nod as Bay finally unwraps herself from him, her brows drawn as she answers before I can.
“He was last seen at the Hunter’s Port. That’s where I used to hunt humans—it’s a prime spot for unregistered ships. Calmer waters, fewer risks of exposure.”
“He went there to follow his sister. To check on her.” She adds, pointing at Onyx in my arms.
Pedro blinks. Once. Twice. Glances between the two of us.
“One missing prince and one unconscious princess in your hold?” he snaps. “You’re not just bad at politics. You’re chaos. Worse than your father.”
“Thank you,” I mutter, fake-smiling as I roll my eyes.
“Let’s head back. I’ve got one more problem to solve.” The Roran problem.
Her strange soul that pulls me in. Her scars. Her shields. The way she tears them all down for her sister.
Just her pleading face makes my jaw clench. My grip on Onyx tightens. Maybe it’s because she’s a problem I haven’t solved. Yet.
A problem with a god-touched ass and curves, and those blue eyes I never want to see turn red again. I want them bright—like summer skies. Happy.
Free.
I want to trace every one of her scars with my fingers, memorize them—so I can carve the exact same set into her father. And I’ll add some decorative touches for free.
Onyx’s arm slips from my hold as I pick up speed, weaving water around me to push forward. Only now I notice just how fast I’m going. When I look back, they’re all blurry little dots.
My gills pull water in and out in a slow sigh as I stop and wait. I tuck Onyx’s hand back into my hold, my eyes landing on that red talon mark again.
Rune whisperer.
The words pulse in my head. I reacted to the mark in the chamber too—but the way she spoke, the strange words, the way she locked us out… the king’s explanation—
They didn’t banish her because of what she did. They banished her because they realized what she was.
She had nothing but her voice for years—the king said she was the only one of his merlings who bloomed late. The others knew their powers as hatchlings. She found joy only in drawing new shapes, symbols—the weird marks on their castle walls.
Until one day, she opened the old stone door by accident.
Until the guards heard her chanting, caught in a trance.
Even when they exiled her to the hunter’s pod, they weren’t sure if her powers were tied to her pod mark. Because it never lit up on her.
That shouldn’t be possible. My stomach tightens.
She could still tap into her abilities without being linked to a mark, without being linked to me.
That can only mean one thing: Morvakar was involved, even then. And now she’s taken him in...
A cold pulse ripples through me.
I don’t know what it all means. But Mom knows more about runes. She’ll understand more. I think.
We need to keep Onyx close for now. Very close.
“Bay would know how to give her legs, right?” I ask Myko as the thought hits.
“I don’t think Onyx’s ever seen land. Let alone walked on it.”
“Legs aren’t the only thing she’ll get. Morvakar’s inside her now,” he snarls. “We can’t let her out of our sight. Not for a second.”
“Would he be kind enough to teach her how to walk, too?” I shoot back, though the truth is—I’m getting worried. A beast like Myko inside a banished teen princess? That’s an unstable cocktail.
“I’m starting to think you ocean beasts have a type,” I jab when the pattern clicks.
His irritated growl answers me before his mouth does. He shuts me off.
I smirk anyway.
The currents shift—finally—the rest of them catching up. And Myko? He’s worried enough to swim outside of Bay, still.
And with that thought—my smirk is officially wiped off my face.