My eyes swerved to Kye’s closed door. I nodded, forcing a smile on my face, even though the writhing in my stomach amplified.
To be honest, my role in my wedding seemed to be little more than show-up-and-stand-there. The tailor had acquired my measurements when I came to the palace, and the food, music, and decorations were being chosen for me by party organizers who likely had a sharper eye for such things than I could offer.
Though the Calderian vows had been delivered by scroll. They were sitting in my desk, waiting to be memorized.
I probablycould’veused the distraction of learning to ride, but I nodded along anyway, watching her descend down the tower stairs.
Heaving a sigh, I gathered my things to meet Selena.
Half an hour later, I sat opposite my mentor at her dining table.
Filling a teacup with water, she set it down on the wooden surface and slid into the chair next to mine.
“This is our power as Naiads,” she said, watching the little cup with a serene smile. “To communicate with water. You ask a question. The water will answer. It’s known as water calling. To not only engage with water, but to manipulate it, use it, transform it. A gift you’ve had your whole life, if I’m not mistaken.”
Laying her hands on either side of the cup, she stared at the water. A drop separated from the surface, ripples forming on its exit. It rose in the air—not a perfect bubble the way soap floats, but like a living drop of liquid, shapeshifting and malleable, traveling through empty space and coming to rest in front of Selena’s chest.
“Water is always easier to control in a single body than in multiple forms. The entire ocean, vast and deep, could be tamed if you were strong enough, but several thousand raindropspelting through the air in a thunderstorm might never be. If you’re ever caught in a downpour, you’d be better off saving your energy than trying to master the rain.” Another bubble of water, much larger than the first, levitated up. They danced together, uniting and drawing apart, splashing softly into one another, flattening like small planes of glass.
I watched, transfixed, as Selena called the water into the air. Glancing down into the teacup, I realized it was now empty. Selena pulled my hands forward, laying them flat. “I’m going to let go,” she said, still focused on the levitating liquid. “And you’re going to take over.”
I gave a small nod, having no idea how to call to water, but willing to try.
“Don’t break eye contact. Feel the moisture in the air and let that connect you to the water that hovers before you.”
My fingers twitched. I had no idea what to feel for.Moisture in the air?Selena held the liquid for a moment more—and released it.
A static shock tingled in my fingertips, and the pocket of water dropped, dissolving into a shower of lifeless spray. It peppered my hands, hitting my forearms and bounding off my skin, flecking my chest and face with dull inaccuracy. Deflated, I glanced at Selena, ready to try again.
“Some Naiads can’t do it,” Selena said softly, immediately quashing my hopes. She laughed softly at the look of disappointment on my face. “Don’t worry, Maren. You will. With more than seventy full moons under your skin, I canfeelyour energy pulsing every time I see you in the morning, when thespeculaerun down my back. You are a force. You just need time.”
46
Two days until I married Kye.
I’d come up with a plan.
After our vows, after we’d been charged to go to his room alone, I’d sing to him. Then I’d find a way to kill him. Order him to fall down the stairs or jump off the balcony.
There’d have to be witnesses, of course. I wouldn’t get away with stabbing him and leaving him for dead.
But one way or another, I’d take his life before he took mine.
Thaan would be next.
Gazing over a bowl at Selena’s table, I took a steady breath, focusing my energy. A string of water rose, curling into the air in a sloppy, knotted mess.
It was difficult, and as much as I’d practiced yesterday, it wasn’t getting easier. The water tested the will of my intention, like a child experimenting with the boundaries set by their parents. Not quite ignoring me, but not listening, either. Once the call was initiated, it was easier to follow through, gathering more water to me, though it was harder to control, and often zapped my energy.
“That’s good. Don’t waste your reserves on this experiment,” Selena instructed. As though the water heard her words, it fell loosely back into the bowl, splashing and spilling across the table’s wooden surface.
“Try with the ice,” Selena said, glancing at the second bowl.
“It won’t work,” I replied, having no reason for thinking so, other than I instinctively knew it wouldn’t.
“Why not?” Selena asked.
I shrugged. “Because cold temperatures are a weakness for Naiads,” I ventured to guess. “And ice isn’t a liquid.”
