Chapter seven
TAVRIC
Are we friends? She’d seemed so surprised and delighted by the idea of a friend that I had to wonder…
had this girl never had a friend? I thought the answer to that was…
perhaps not, because the way she had smiled, with her entire face brightening, you would have thought I’d presented her with a thousand rainbow butterflies.
I’d felt foolish at first, asking her to stay, but that smile assured me I’d done the right thing.
I wasn’t certain what had come over me, but everything inside of me shied away from the idea of her leaving, even if it was only as far as the village.
Lyri was…a comfort. Something about being in her presence soothed my anguished soul, and with the uncertainty of my father’s health clawing at my back day after day, I needed her here.
I needed her steadying presence each morning, and I needed the distraction of watching her roam the grounds.
But when she’d brought up her desire to earn her keep, I also understood that all too well.
My own need to feel capable was almost compulsive, so I’d suggested she continue helping the laundress in an effort to give her that feeling of competence while keeping her here.
Why was it so important to me that she stay? Yes, I’d fished her from the ocean like a wayward water sprite, but though I felt protective of her, keeping her here long term was not practical, and I knew that.
Yet, if she went away, where would she go? She was so unfamiliar with the world, and I was terrified that she’d be consumed by the chaos and I’d never see her again. Like Melody.
I was on my way to speak with my father when a steward stepped up. “Your Highness,” he said with a bow.
“Yes?”
“One of your shipmen is in my office. He says he needs to speak with you.”
My curiosity was instantly piqued. I went sailing nearly every day, so it was strange that a shipman would feel the need to seek me out instead of waiting to speak with me the next time I was at the docks.
As soon as I entered the steward’s office, I saw a young man waiting in a chair. Martin jumped to his feet, looking nervous as he clutched his cap with both hands.
I smiled to put him at ease. “What can I do for you, lad?”
“Begging your pardon, Your Highness, but I just thought—” He stepped forward and thrust a fist toward me, fingers down, like he meant to give me something.
I held out my hand, allowing him to drop a necklace on my palm.
He immediately stepped back. “I found it. I was swabbing the deck and I found it, caught between two planks.” He looked up at me, eyes wide and excited. “Thought it could only belong to the siren, Captain.”
“She’s not a siren,” I corrected as I closed my hand around the pendant. “Thank you. I will give it to Miss Lyrielle.” Obviously this was the necklace she’d spoken of.
Martin hesitated a moment, clearly wanting to talk more about Lyrielle, but instead he bowed and left.
I thanked the steward and left his office, grateful that I would be able to return such a precious keepsake to Lyrielle.
As I hurried down the corridor, I glanced down at the necklace and nearly tripped over my feet.
I stepped closer to a patch of sunlight streaming down through a window, taking a good look at the piece of jewelry.
It was a flat, round piece of silver stamped with a family crest. A crest I recognized, and yet… didn’t.
The image depicted a castle turret, circled by a crown.
It was, of course, the crown that gave me pause.
Royalty? Was there any other explanation?
The only family crests that incorporated crowns were those of royal families.
My own family crest was a ship’s helm circled by a crown.
Having been educated and raised to be a diplomat, I was familiar with many such crests as I had to be able to identify the royal crests of all the surrounding kingdoms. This one, though, I did not recognize.
Who was this girl, and where had she actually come from?
Instead of going to speak with my father, I went to my library and found every book I could think of that described or illustrated royal crests. I hadn’t found any mention of Branfrie when I searched before, but if I could find this crest, that would mean that Lyri was much more than she appeared.
It was foolish of me. I knew that. Hoping that Lyri was royalty wasn’t going to change the fact that Princess Saria would show up here in barely more than a week, hoping to make a match. But there was a strangely strong part of me that thought, perhaps, if Lyri were royalty…
I shook myself and returned to my investigation, studying hundreds of crests, hoping to find the one from Lyri’s necklace.
Alas, the results were the same as when I’d searched for the name of her home.
It wasn’t there. I looked at each page multiple times, frustrated that I could not confirm my suspicion.
She’d lived in a tower. That tower was likely part of a castle, and yet she’d lived alone with her aunt, completely isolated.
I slammed the book shut and got to my feet, pushing my hands into my hair as I walked to the large window that overlooked the garden.
Instead of going on a fruitless search, I should have been trying to center myself and soak in the quiet peace of my library in preparation for this afternoon, which would be filled with diplomatic meetings that my father was too ill to attend.
It had been a gift that he’d felt well enough to receive his advisors this morning.
I hated holding court. The room always felt too small and too loud, and while I’d always been uncomfortable around crowds of people, it was so much worse now that my discomfort was coupled with worry for my father.
As I looked out at the garden, reaching for the calm that the library usually provided, I was met with the sight of Lyri, and my body instantly relaxed.
I’d appreciated her presence each morning at breakfast. She likely had no idea how much it helped for me simply to see her there, unruffled and undemanding. If only I knew who she was.
Now she was in the gardens, conversing with the gardener, and seeming to ask questions about the different flowers he was tending to. He, in turn, looked thrilled to have an attentive listener.
I lost track of time as I watched her, but eventually I heard the library door open. Instinctively, I stiffened, worried someone was about to destroy my peace, but when my mother came into view, my tension slipped away and I turned back to the window.
She joined me, letting the silence rest for several moments before speaking. “You told her she could stay?”
“Were you eavesdropping on our breakfast conversation?”
“Yes.”
I smiled at her candor. “Is her presence here a problem?”
“Not a problem, but shouldn’t you be looking for a way to get her home?” she asked gently.
I gestured to Lyri, who looked up to where the gardener pointed at the branches of a tree, probably looking for a bird. Her smile was so wide, I could not imagine it getting any bigger. “Does she look like someone who is missing her home?”
“That does not mean no one is missing her.”
The thought of her aunt filled my chest with hot anger. “They are not my concern. She is. And until she gives me some indication that she wishes to return to wherever she came from, I certainly won’t be the one to push her away.”
“You like her.”
“I do.”
My mother rested her hand on my arm, pulling my gaze to meet hers. “Is it more than that?”
“What? Of course not. I haven’t even had time to get to know her.
” I’d been too busy trying to find Melody.
Each evening, I’d taken my small boat and gone out on the water, hoping to catch a glimpse of her, just like I’d been doing for the past several weeks.
With my father’s failing health, the mystery of the mermaid who’d saved my life was the best distraction I could think of.
Though, as I watched Lyri trying to coax a bird closer, I had to admit that she was a close second. “There is nothing more, I assure you.”
“Then why are you staring at her?”
I sighed. “She fascinates me,” I admitted, knowing I couldn’t lie to my mother. “I won’t pretend otherwise, but that doesn’t mean I truly know her.” I stopped speaking, my own words slapping me in the face. Was I talking about Lyri? Or was I talking about Melody?
“She’s a sweet girl, Tav, and I see the appeal, but if you are going to spend time with a young woman, she should at least be a suitable one.”
I swallowed, uncomfortable with the mere suggestion of not spending time with her, which was disconcerting in and of itself. “I thought you would enjoy having Lyri here. You’re always lamenting your lack of a daughter.”
“Yes, but what I and this kingdom need is an actual daughter.”
I bit my tongue, hoping she wasn’t going to say what I suspected she would.
“Someone like Princess Saria.”
A frustrated sigh burst past my teeth. “Not you too. I am not on the hunt for a wife.”
“I know it’s not ideal, but you must take this visit seriously. Promise me that you will honestly consider Princess Saria as an option.”
“I can’t think about entertaining a young lady right now.”
“Then stop giving the entire kingdom reason to think that you are.”
The undertone of accusation gave me pause. “What are you talking about? I’m not the one who invited Her Highness here.”
“I’m not speaking of Princess Saria.” She lifted her brow and then looked pointedly toward the window.
“You’re talking about Lyrielle?”
“Of course I am.” Her voice snapped with impatience. “People talk, Tavric, especially about you. And having a young woman here as your guest, a woman whose origins we don’t even know, is—”
“I know her origins,” I blurted, interrupting her.
She raised one elegant brow in a challenge. “Do tell.”