A tremendous roar came from the old blood bank. The ogres must’ve finally realized he’d escaped. Leo grimaced at Rodrigo, although his amber eyes flashed with humor.
“Guess we’d better get out of here.”
Rodrigo blinked at him impassively. “Yes, it seems that would be for the best. I can’t wait to hear what your brother has to say about this escapade.”
Leo groaned. The last thing he wanted to do was tell his brother about another poker game gone wrong, but since he was already late to the royal function, there would no doubt be interrogations as to his whereabouts last night. And as good as Leo’s poker face was, his ability to lie to his brother was just about zero. Might as well spill the truth and hope for the best.
“Hold on tight, Rod.” Leo grinned and flashed a set of white fangs. “Things are about to get bumpy.”
They sped off down the street in a cloud of motorcycle fumes and flying fur.
Chapter Two
Eina followed her elder sisters through the maze of ocean tunnels they inhabited deep within the Bering Sea. Her aqua colored tail flashed, the large scales reflecting what little light made it this far into the dark waters. Mermaids joined them at every corner as they headed for the main gallery carved into the rocky bottom of the sea.
Anticipation hung in the cold water, tasting like sweet salt on Eina’s tongue. She flipped her long, silky black hair over her shoulder and swam faster, eager to begin that evening’s briefings. Her sisters had been gearing up for a big political move on their Monstranian neighbors. The kind that would announce their presence to the supernatural world and their demand for a seat at the table.
“Welcome, sisters of Aestus.” Loriella, the eldest of the mermaids, greeted them as they swam into the cavernous basin and took their places. She had long, flowing brunette hair tinged with silver. The scales of her tail held the slightest shade of ruby red. The soft, youthful curves of her face didn’t reveal her advanced age of over five hundred years. “I’m glad you could join us.”
Eina folded her hands and tried to force herself to wade in place. Her dark brown eyes darted from sister to sister and a pink blush colored her high cheekbones.
“Should’ve brought some crab cakes,” said a feminine voice next to her. “I have the feeling things are going to get good.”
She glanced to her right to see a creature no longer than her forearm. It had the body shape of a human, but also a translucent quality that ebbed and flowed with the water around it. Large blue eyes looked at her from a round, childish face. Flowing amber locks of hair fell all the way to its ankles.
“I wish you would take these meetings more seriously, Cascade,” Eina told her with a serious frown. “They could mean the world to the future of the mermaid species.”
“As opposed to luring sailors to their doom?” Cascade said with an innocent blink of her eyes. She fanned out her delicate little arms. “I suppose you’re ready to leave that history behind?”
Eina swatted at the water sprite, but she darted out of reach. “You know those are rumors fabricated by male humans. The same humankind that painted us as naked, helpless creatures with nothing but coconut shells to cover our intimate bits.”
She looked down at the light blue blouse that covered her torso. Her blood still boiled when she thought about the objectification of her mermaid sisters at the hands of men. As if being part fish wasn’t hard enough. They had to go and paint a picture of lusty half-women who fell in love with any sailor they met. As if that could really happen.
It would take a strong knock on the head for Eina to fall for anyone, and even then, she was sure she’d come to her senses eventually. The political life was what awaited her. No useless distractions. Just service to better the future for her kind. That was the calling she had in mind.
“Are we ready, sister Loriella?” one of the mermaids in front asked with a slight wave of her hand. “Tell us the world is ready to accept Aestus’ plea for official recognition.”
Loriella rubbed a hand over her temple and sighed wearily. “Unfortunately, the thrones of Monstrana have not been eager to grant our request for an audience. I’m afraid they do not take our request for sovereignty seriously.”
An uproar went through the almost three hundred mermaids present. They shouted and raised their fists, frustration bubbling out of their mouths. Murmurs of war drifted through the water like blood from a shark attack. Eina listened to it all while adrenaline pulsed in her veins. As the youngest of the mermaids, she’d been waiting for something like this. A moment to prove herself among her sisters.
“Sisters, sisters please!” Loriella held up her hand and silence fell once again upon the gallery. “There shall be no talk of violence, yet. We have many a recourse to explore before we swim down that route.”
“What if they don’t listen?”
“What if we storm their castle?”
“How will we make them see?”
“We need leverage,” Loriella replied, swimming from one side of the cavern to the other. “Something that will force them to recognize us.”
As the rest of Eina’s sisters continued to debate, she chewed on the inside of her cheek. The wheels in her head quickly turned. Thoughts and suggestions bubbled within her chest, but her lips remained glued shut. Cascade watched her for several minutes before bursting into giggles.
“You remind me of a blow fish,” she said with another giggle. “Keep those ideas locked in your head for another second, and you’re going to puff right up. Not a good look for you, I should add.”
Eina rolled her eyes at her friend. “No one wants to hear what I think.”
“Is that so?” Cascade turned a circle in the water and peered at her from upside down. “How do you know?”