Page 21 of Stolen Magic of the Deep

His head slowly lowers as he falters ever so slightly. “I hold powers. Same as yours. Trained, of course, but all the same. It took some convincing after not being surrounded by the sea herself, but it conceded and brought me straight to you.”

“And your tail? Is it mood based, like a cat?” I joke, hoping he knows I’m just trying to fill the awkward silence. “Or does it just curl around you naturally like that?”

“What is a cat?” he asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Cats are pets. A lot of people have them for companionship.”

“Interesting. Do they protect you? Guard you?”

“Well, no. They just lie around most of the time. I don’t have one, though. I’m never home enough to be able to take care of one properly.”

I lift my head from his chest to get a better look at his face. His eyes are glowing a bright teal in contrast to the color they were when we first met, but they’re not just teal. There’s a shimmer behind the color, something almost electric, almost alive. And then it clicks. It’s the same glow I see in the runes that trace across his chest and down his arm. They’re the same exact hue, somehow connected. With this realization, I conclude it must be his power.

“I could tell. Your chambers appeared barren,” he quips, as if he’s known me longer than only two days.

Suddenly uncomfortable with this conversation, I force a laugh, hoping it hides the truth. “You don’t understand. I am dedicated to my occupation.”

“I might not understand, but the ocean does,” he adds, trailing his eyes back up to our unidentified path, as if he can see our destination from here.

What does he mean, the ocean does? Is that some kind of cryptic answer to hide his truth? My confusion with all of this is becoming more conflicting.

I start to get concerned that he can see through my facade, so instead I lay my head against his chest and rest my eyes, ending the conversation.

I honestly do not expect to fall asleep, but the rhythmic glide through the water lulls me into sleep without realizing it. And for some unknown reason, no dreams came. No peculiar voices. Just quiet, blissful sleep.

Unsure how much time has passed, a change in motion releases me from my soundless sleep, paired with his low voice brushing the shell of my ear.

“Hey, Snapdragon, we’re here.”

I blink hard, disoriented by the scene set before me. For a moment, I forget where I am or who said my name. Then his face comes into focus, too close, too real.

“You fell asleep,” he adds, quieter this time. “Did not mean to startle you.”

My head is spinning. Trying to make sure what I’m seeing isn’t a dream. In the distance, bathed in a soft, haunting glow, the kingdom’s palace emerges, its towering structure carved from stone and coral. It stands tall with its own reclusive pride, untouched by time, half-shrouded in the deep’s shadow but impossibly commanding.

“Welcome to Virellan, Sarah.”

ten

Sarah

“Orion—” I gasp. His name softly brushes past my lips, letting the scenery captivate me entirely. It stops me cold.

Every word I’ve spoken to him has been dipped in defiance. But actually using his name? It feels different. Like my tongue has been yearning to say it from the beginning, as it falls naturally from my mouth.

I stiffen in his arms. “Damn it. That’s not what I meant to say.”

But I had. And God help me, I want to take it back. Having his name on my tongue makes me feel like he has some weird control over me now. Like he has won a competition we never knew we were having. That one breath of his name has cracked me open from the inside out.

“What did you mean to say then, Snapdragon?” he questions, edging me more into discomfort, as if he knows I was trying to avoid using his name.

He gently removes me from his arms, and I exhale some of my breath to maintain an even level with him in the mild current as I float just ahead of him.

“This—it’s beautiful. Seeing this is beyond anything I could’ve ever dreamed of.” I speak the truth in my statement. Hopefully, he is unaware of my efforts to change the subject.

The palace sparkles with life in the distance. I glance at Orion from over my shoulder, as he peers down at me sending a shiver down my spine.

“I appreciate that. When this kingdom was built by my father, he commanded it by himself for many years. When he united with my mother, she helped him rule this kingdom before she died, and it’s an honor to share their legacy and what they did for those we protect.”