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“Thank you,” I say over my shoulder as Castor guides me up a long ramp. We’re almost to the back wall. Its plush carpet cushions my golden shoes. Each step is like walking on a pillow. While Castor is smoothly stepping up this ramp, I’m more tiptoeing through a muddy spring field. I’m racing to keep up with him while I’m still sinking in.
And I’m trying to not look at anyone. “Castor,” I whisper.
His eyebrows shoot up in question, but he does slow down.
I cock my head to the hem of my dress where my golden shoes are sticking out.
“Sorry, my starfish. I only want to get you away from these sharks,” he whispers in my ear. “Now laugh like I’m the funniest person in the world.”
My eyes widen. Because I don’t have one of those cute little girl laughs. My laugh is somewhere between a donkey bray and a cough. Instead, I slap his arm and say, “Ha ha.” I actually said ha ha. Inside, I’m turning to stone. This is not playing their game. This is not how I’m going to get home.
His eyebrows shoot up again, and he laughs. But it’s genuine, rich, deep, and shoots right through me. Castor’s green eyes twinkle. And my lips mimic his. I can’t help but smile. I have my own personal storm of confusion going through my body.
Castor proceeds to the doors, but this time slower, allowing me to get a grip on the squishy carpet. Unlike the normal door on the tunnel the guards took Nico through or the huge door to the other corridor, this one is round. There’s a sign next to it in a language I recognize as Dorian. When I get closer, it flashes and changes to English.Great Sculpture Hall, parking, food and shopping this way, it reads.
When we approach the huge door, it rolls open instead of sliding. It’s gleaming brass with a shiny blue stone embedded and at least twenty feet tall. During the docking ceremony, I saw it over the top of the crowd, but it was so far away and not moving. And I was trying so hard to remember every detail about the members of the council and their mates. The rest of the room sort of blurred out.
The door rolls back, and I gasp.
2
Holter
Watching Belle being led away from me was as hard as watching Nico turn himself over to the city guards. There was no other option for either, of course. Nico wasn’t going to get away with things, and no one was going to let Annabelle go anywhere alone with me. Not unless they assigned me the task.
They leave the docking auditorium, and I wonder what Belle thinks about the great hall. Bass showed her videos of it in her lessons, but it really is one of those places you have to see for yourself.
With both Belle and Nico gone, I’m off to find Alder Callis, our dad. He raised the two of us after the Drakoses flipped the small Callis world upside down. Nico’s father. My father too. Muster and Alder are both our dads. Dorian don’t talk about who in a pod is the biological father of a child––we aren’t even supposed to think about it. But to me, no matter how much people try to say Nico takes after Alder or Muster, he doesn’t look like either. No, he resembles Pietro, one of the two mates who died in the crash with Nico’s mother Richeal.
Muster is off on theOmicron. He’s a military male, always has been, but he’s never striven to become an officer or a diplomat. Not that he would be much use when it comes to something like this. He’s the least diplomatic person I’ve ever met.
I’m still shocked that Alder isn’t here. I’ve never seen him miss a docking ceremony before. He’s usually the first one to rush toward Nico after they step off the line. But then, today isn’t one of honor. Still, it’s not like Alder at all.
My only thought is the docking is a surprise, but there was a good turnout for our arrival. He had to have known about it. The room is still full of people searching for favor from the governors. But the crowd is parting for me. It’s like they are all schooling fish and I’m the killer shark. It’s rather fun actually. As ageminae,I’m used to having no one notice me. But that’s not the case today. Today, I’m the person to avoid. It’s a weird feeling to like being the unwanted—not that I want Nico to be in the position he’s in. But then again, I never thought either one of us would have gotten this far in life.
Castor took Annabelle out the main door to the great sculpture hall, which is near the parking area for thesoloaguvan bajeskåf.They’re personal subs, as plush as any expensive human car. I’m heading in the opposite direction of both the government holding areas and the great hall. Glyden Dome.
I wind through the crowds. My destination, the citywide transport, is just up ahead. Officially anomada aguvan bajeskåf, we just call themomadas. It circles the outer rim of all the domes and will be a lot faster than taking direct transport with the crowds of the docking ceremony crowding the platforms. The mermaids and mermen who were there aren’t the type to take city transport. No, they are the type to have private vehicles. And they aren’t the type to shed their beautiful gowns and uniforms to take to their flukes.
“Holter.”
I’m almost to the back entrance of the hall, and I want to ignore the voice calling to me. But fuck if I can, not when it’s a friend of Nico’s and also someone with a little bit of clout. He’s known to hang with males I wouldn’t trust my garbage with. Governors mostly, but all kinds of government types.
I pivot-turn toward him. “Eros.”
“Hey.” He reaches his arm out for me, shaking it like I’m not ageminae. I’d appreciate it, but I don’t trust him. Only, as they say, as far as I can throw him. He’s always got another motive.
I take his outstretched arm, and he pulls me in for a complete hug.
“I’m so glad to see you.” He smacks my shoulder like we’re good friends.
“Good to see you too.” I take a step toward the door, but he hasn’t let my hand go, so I slingshot back to him. I glare at his hand, and he drops mine.
“What’s your rush?” Eros’s trademark smirk is firmly in place. I heard a squid once, in thegeminaedorm, talking about who they thought had killed more people. Nico was in the lead, I was in the top ten, but Eros? Eros’s name was thrown by ageminaefrom Zaffiro. The other squids shot the idea down. But he wasn’t wrong.
I give Eros the look that says you can’t be serious and cock my head. “I’ve got to get going.”
“Oh, seriously, you can’t be worried about Nico? This is just a little hiccup for Nico Callis. He’ll get out of this with a wave of his golden hand.”
