I smile at the pair of them.
“I need the nourishment,” Quince says in his defense, patting his stomach. “Do you know how many calories it takes to swim here?”
I turn to the maid, who looks like she’s trying to make herself as invisible as possible in the corner of my room. I’ve never seen her before. “What’s your name?”
“Bailya, Princess.”
“Well, Bailya,” I say, giving her a reassuring smile, “thank you for waking me. I am always available to these two.”
I get a beaming smile in return. “Will there be anything else, Princess?”
“No, thank you,” I say. “Please go on about your day.”
With a grateful nod, Bailya darts across the room, around my two visitors, and out into the hall.
“Give me five seconds,” I say, pushing back my covers and heading across the room. “I need to freshen up.”
“How was last night?” Peri shouts to be heard inside my bathroom. “Did you tell the king about Aurita’s claim?”
“Yes,” I say as I grab a cloth from the shelf beneath the counter. “And you know what?”
“What?” she asks.
“He doesn’t believe her,” I reply. “He doesn’t believe me.”
I scrub the cloth over my face, and the action both relaxes and energizes me. I do the same at key spots—under my arms, base of my neck—and then reach for the toothpaste.
“Peri, can you bring me a clean tank?” I ask. “They’re in the—”
“I know where your clothes are,” she says before I can finish.
Seconds later, she’s handing me a turquoise tank. She whispers, “I heard Quince had trouble with the first test. Did it turn out okay?”
I nod. I dart behind the changing curtain. “The swim from Seaview to Thalassinia nearly killed him.” Stripping off my dirty tank, I open the lid on the laundry hamper and drop it inside. “I don’t know how he will manage two more.”
As I swim out from behind the curtain, sporting the turquoise tank, Peri grins. “He will. Because he loves you, and that’s the point.”
“Are you two gabbing in there?” Quince shouts. “I’m starving.”
“You just ate half the pantry,” Peri shouts back. She winks at me before adding, “Save some food for the rest of the kingdom.”
We swim out into my room.
“Actually, I’m starving too,” I say. Then, because I can’t help myself, I add, “If there’s any food left to eat, that is.”
“Ha ha.” Quince throws an arm around my shoulder as I swim by, pretending like he’s going to throttle me but then changing his mind at the last second and kissing me instead.
“I thought you two were hungry. But if I’m wrong,” Peri says, swimming ahead, “I’ll just go ahead and eat your share.”
Quince laughs at Peri’s teasing. As he takes my hand and swims after her, I’m impressed. His swimming has improved a lot, and he’s actually pulling me with him. I start kicking, just to get us moving faster, and can’t help but smile.
I’m glad to see Peri and Quince getting along so well. I mean, it’s not like they’re going to be spending tons of time together—he may be able to breathe underwater, but he’s still human—but it’s nice to know my best friend and my boyfriend can hang out and have fun.
When we swim into the kitchen, I swear Laver looks at Quince and starts shaking. But he’s a trouper and just orders his sous-chef to pull another order from the pantry.
Quince, Peri, and I sink onto stools at the kitchen counter and wait for breakfast.
“I’m not surprised the king doubts Aurita,” Peri says, grabbing us each a glass of orange-juice gelatin from a tray on the counter. She spoons out a bite and lifts it to her mouth. “She’s got kind of a reputation for stirring up controversy.”
As she swallows her bite and Quince takes one of his own, I swirl my spoon through the gelatin. “So I’ve heard,” I say. “But you saw how scared she was. You saw her hands shaking and her eyes sparkling.”
“Maybe she’s a really good actress,” Peri suggests.
“What are you two talking about?” Quince asks, looking up from his juice.
“When we were in Desfleurelle,” I explain, “the mer kingdom in the Gulf of Mexico, we learned about a plan to sabotage human enterprises.”
Quince frowns. “Like what?” he asks.
“Like sabotaging offshore oil rigs.”
Quince whistles—pretty impressive under water. “That’s dangerous.”
“I know. But Daddy doesn’t believe me.” I shove my gelatin away. “Because of the source.”
“So he’s not going to do anything?” Quince asks.
“No, he is,” I reply. “He’s going to visit King Zostero to ask him about the rumor.”
Laver sets a tray of gourmet breakfast sushi in front of us, and Quince quickly stabs at an awabi roll with his seasticks. The jab comes a little too close for Laver’s comfort, and he jerks his hand away before it winds up skewered.
“And then what?” Quince asks before popping the sushi into his mouth and, I swear, swallowing it whole.
I shrug, making my own selection from the tray. “Then we wait and see. He’s going to send me a message as soon as he has an answer.”