Seaweed (24 page)

I gripped Tor’s hand tightly.
It’s worse than a haunted house.

I imagined Germans sleeping in these bunks. How they dreamed at night of winning the war and about the terror they must’ve felt when they lost this battle and knew they were about to drown. It gave me the shivers.

I’m tired,
I said
, please let’s lie down and rest.

We lay down on one of the slats. Tor put his free arm around me and I pressed my back into his chest like old times. I knew it didn’t mean we were back together. I wanted Tor’s comfort to help me to forget that we were in this nightmare. I think he wanted mine, too.

Tor had been so quiet since our capture.
What are you thinking?

I’m trying to figure out a way to escape.

Will someone from Rai help us?

They will do something. I don’t know what. They don’t want to start a war, but they won’t just sit around and let Prince Mol take you.

That brought me some comfort.

And they must want to save you as well.

Yes, they probably know by now that I failed at my mission.

The door opened. We sprung upright.

A swath of red hair. Shava!

Hello.

Not exactly the type of Rai help I was hoping for. Did she see Tor holding me close?

Shava?
Tor swam to her. He’d forgotten that I was attached and I resented the jerk to my arm and being forced to greet her. Thankfully, he didn’t kiss her.

Are you okay?
he asked her
. How did they capture you?

Oh, but I’m not a prisoner, Tor.

Tor’s eyelids fluttered in confusion
. Then why are you here?

The door opened again. Ky. Great. Why didn’t we just have a big party while we were at it?

The surprises didn’t end there. Ky swam up to Shava and put his arm around her shoulder.

Oh, you’ve got to be kidding,
I said
. Are you together?

Shava laughed. Hysterically.
Yes, we are. Tor you blew it. I’m done waiting for you.

But he’s Lars!
he said.

She didn’t blink.
And I’m Lars.

Tor’s jaw dropped like he’d been slapped.
You’re defecting?

I never really belonged with the Rai anyway. I always felt “less-than” because of my Lars father. If it hadn’t been for my mother’s royal connections, I would’ve been outcast long ago.

Your family cares about you, Shava. Think about what you’re doing.

But do you care, Tor?

Of course.

Not enough to leave
her
.

I can’t leave her here, Shava, you must know that.

I don’t just mean leave her here. I mean
leave
her.

Tor didn’t answer right away
.

I told you Shava,
Ky said, a slimy smirk on his face
. You are Lars. You belong here, with me.

Shava’s face hardened. The door opened and she followed Ky out without looking back.

I followed Tor around the room (had to) while he scrounged around for something that could unlock our cuffs.

We only got through half of the built-in drawers before the door opened again. Two large Lars swam in, followed by a beefy male Lars. He was the Schwarzenegger version of Lars with chiseled biceps and pecs. He had thick curly black hair like an inky mop and his eyes were more yellow than brown. If it weren’t for his thick bright red tail, I’d have thought a demon just entered the room. Maybe one did.

As it was, his presence completely freaked me out because I knew who he was long before one of his guards announced him. Prince Mol.

Oh, help me.

I reached for Tor.

Which was the absolute wrong thing to do.

Prince Mol bellowed,
Don’t touch him
!

I pulled away. Fortunately there was about two feet of chain linking us. I pulled as far away from Tor as possible.

Prince Mol swam around me and I could feel his eyes scanning my body. I couldn’t stop quivering.

So this is the girl
, he said.
Nice. I’m happy to have another wife, and this one is not only beautiful she will produce for me beautiful Lars children with the blessing of Rai.

Another wife?

He stopped in front of me and stared meaningfully into my eyes.
You, my dear are the hope of the future.

He cackled ridiculously, like he’d just told the funniest joke. His guards joined in. Then just as suddenly he stopped. To Tor he said,
We will see who has the blessing in the end.

And to me,
Yes , my lovely, we will have a big wedding, a spectacle. The Rai will cry of course, but we will celebrate lavishly.

Again his eyes landed on Tor.
Prince of Rai, you will be released. We want the girl, but we don’t want a war.

Please,
Tor said,
might I request some time to say goodbye.

The prince cackled again.
Why not? Let it be known that Prince Mol is capable of mercy.

The instant Prince Mol was gone, Tor got frantic. We continued searching through the remaining drawers desperate for something that might help us. I spotted a thin rusty blade.

Tor, here’s something. I think it was once a nail file.

Let me see it.

Tor worked our cuff with the file and I grimaced as it tugged at my skin. I thought the edge of the cuff might draw blood, but then suddenly, it snapped.

We were free, from each other anyway, and part of me wasn’t exactly happy about that.

We’ll keep the cuffs on,
Tor said,
unlocked and keep them believing that we’re still bound together. It might give us an edge.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Our current prison cell was devoid of squid and lobster or other aquatic squatters. Also of windows through which fish could swim. I was hungry again.

Do they plan on letting us starve to death?
I held my stomach with my free hand for emphasis.

I’m sure they don’t mind letting us get uncomfortable, but I highly doubt they’ll let us starve.

As if they could hear us complaining (maybe they could? I hoped not!), the door swung open.

Ky swam in, a halibut in each hand. How nice.

Tor and I stayed closed together, as if our cuffs were secure. We accepted the fish with our free hands and ate greedily.

I understand you had your first meeting with your future husband
, Ky said, clearly mocking me.
I think you will be very happy here, Dori. So sorry to see you go, Tor. The guards wait outside to release you.

Tor gave me a sideways glance. I didn’t know what Tor could do to Ky, but I knew I had to distract him somehow.

I swam so I was positioned closely in front of him keeping eye contact.
Actually, Ky, I’m impressed with Prince Mol. I’d expected someone, you know, old, fat and bald, but he’s really quite handsome
. If you liked guys with yellow eyes and red tails.

Ky’s eyebrows shot up. Not the response he was expecting. He didn’t have a chance to retort, though. While Ky was checking me out, Tor slipped out of the cuff and moved stealthily behind Ky. He wrapped the loose chain from our cuffs around Ky’s neck and pulled until Ky’s eyes crossed and he slipped to the floor like a doll whose batteries had been turned off.

Good work
, Tor said
. I do hope you were only kidding, though
.

He tried the door.
It’s locked.

All my hope flitted to the ground along with Ky. Who by the way, wouldn’t stay passed out forever. Unless he was…dead?

What are we going to do now?

The door handle vibrated. Someone was trying to get in, but whoever it was obviously didn’t have a key.

Get behind me, Dori.

I did as Tor asked, holding on to his back. My heart raced. How were we going to deal with whatever was about to come through that door?

The knob continued to shake until eventually the door slowly opened.

There was no one there. I questioned Tor but he just shook his head.

Down here
.

A mass of seaweed swirled around on the floor. I stared more closely. A head the shape of a small dragon popped up.

Barnaculoese!

Tor and I both shot over to him. If I’d known how to safely hug a sea-nymph, I would’ve.

Come, we don’t have much time.

We followed Barnaculoese down the hall. Two Lars guards were incapacitated on the floor.

How?
I asked Tor.

Barnaculoese has a powerful sting
. Good to know.

The little sea-nymph must’ve spent some time scouting the place out with his terrific seaweed disguise, since he seemed to know exactly where to go. He stuck to the shadows, and we slipped behind other Lars who obviously didn’t understand the strategic mind of the Rai or their sea world alliances.

We made it to an alternate exit, a window opening large enough for me and Tor to squeeze through.

You first, Princess,
Barnaculoese said.

Princess?

Why’d you call me princess?
I asked Barnaculoese once we were all out of the submarine and a good distance away.

When he didn’t answer, I asked Tor.
Why did he call me princess?
A joke? Because I was almost forced to marry a prince? Not funny.

We can talk about this later. We need to get you to a safe place.

Soon other Rai joined us, as protection, I supposed I didn’t feel like talking with them around. As I expected, we swam toward the seamounts and into a cave when we reached the closest one.

As soon as I entered the cavernous space, my heart began to race. I was okay with rooms in ships, I guessed because they were like rooms in houses, but caves were like tunnels, which I Did. Not. Like.

The way my chest tightened and my breathing accelerated, I felt faint. I almost wished I were a Lars, if it weren’t for all that other unsavory stuff.

Dori?

I just need a minute. I really don’t like caves.

Okay, I’ll help you breathe. Look in my eyes.

I focused on his eyes. The deep set green eyes that had turned my life upside down. His face was gentle and kind and the way he helped me calm my breath was so caring.

And he’d just saved my life again. I wanted to throw my arms around him and kiss him.

But that would be humiliating, because he didn’t feel that way about me. Not anymore. I was important because of how I could personally upset the clan balance by bringing the Rai blessing to the clan of Lars should they succeed in capturing me.

I’d escaped this time, but it wasn’t the last I’d see of them, I was sure. I’d be on the run from them for the rest of my life now.

Dori?

Yeah, I’m good. Just exhausted. Can I sleep somewhere?
I remembered how Shava just closed her eyes while suspended in one spot. That wasn’t what I meant.
Private?

Tor showed me a ledge, similar to the one I tried to sleep on the last time, and instructed the Rai guards to give us some space.

Do you want to be alone?

No. Please stay.

Tor nestled in behind me, pulling my back to his chest.

Is this okay?

Yes.
I let out a long breath. Yes, it was great.

Our breathing fell into a comfortable rhythm.

Tor,
I finally asked,
why did Barnaculoese call me princess?
He didn’t seem like the kind of creature to make jokes, and something was twigging me.