Ice Crypt (Mermaids of Eriana Kwai Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

south? I thought you were battling for India.”
    His aura darkened, and I added, “Sir.”
    “If I ask you to fight in the south, you will fight in the south,” he said. “If I ask you to fight for a wisp of volcano at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, I expect you to fight until you have either won it, or died trying.”
    I said nothing. After a moment he added, with a threatening note, “Am I clear?”
    “Yes, sir.”
    “So, men,” said Adaro, backing away. “Get moving, if you want to arrive before sundown.”
    The bodyguard handed Katus the slimy rope. My back collided with the rocky wall of my cell.
    “You’re supposed to keep me alive,” I said. “That was your deal with Meela.”
    Whatever Adaro sensed in my mood made his lip curl.
    “It is not in my hands whether you live or die in battle.”
    “Please,” I said. “I don’t want—”
    I stopped myself.
    Adaro’s eyes widened. “You don’t want?”
    Behind him, the two bodyguards drifted closer.
    “That’s not what I meant.”
    Of course not. Fighting Adaro’s war was the only want anyone should have. Even as a prisoner, I felt nothing but the deepest loyalty to my king.
    I thought of this as I stared him in the eye.
    A mermaid I’d gone to school with came to mind. Her family had claimed she couldn’t enter the army because of an illness. The day after admitting she couldn’t fight, she disappeared. Her parents said the illness finally took her—but something was never right with them after that.
    “I do not need to remind you that you are sworn under oath,” said Adaro.
    “My life is dedicated to your reign.”
    He studied me, as though trying to dig beneath my mask of sincerity. Afraid of what he’d find, I recited the oath I’d taken at thirteen years old.
    “I swear that I shall be unconditionally obedient to King Adaro, ruler of the Pacific Ocean and all merpeople within. I shall be ready to give my life for the quest to unite the seas under one kingdom, one rule, with King Adaro the deserving wearer of the absolute crown.”
    He revealed nothing.
    When I spoke again, my lips felt numb.
    “Your Majesty, I would be honoured to serve in the south army.”
    After a long moment, the king turned away. He nodded to his bodyguards. They followed him into the depths.
    I watched them go, feeling their presence long after they disappeared from view.
    My attention snapped back as Katus and Ladon reached into my cell. They hauled me into the open and forced my hands behind my back. Could I break loose as they tried to move me? With full lungs, I could make it further into the kelp this time.
    Ladon wrapped a fist in my hair to force me to stay still.
    “Watch out for lice,” said Katus. “I think one bit me coming back from the weeds.”
    I rolled my eyes. “Can’t that shrimp-sized brain of yours come up with a new insult?”
    He bound my wrists, wrapping the rope all the way up my forearms so I wouldn’t be able to snap it. He yanked it tight. It dug into my flesh.
    “He has a point, babe,” said Ladon. “Heard of a comb? Have some respect for the men in the world.”
    He disappeared to get supplies, leaving me at the end of Katus’ rope like an otter on a leash.
    I ignored his comments. I’d spent my whole life teased by other mermaids. These guys had nothing new to say.
    While the average mermaid spent half the day obsessing over her appearance, any ribbons of seaweed in my hair likely got there by accident while I was chasing a dolphin. My parents had tried for years to get me to care. They gave me the latest makeup and hair products, with kelp paste and ground pearls and farmed caviar. One day, after spending most of my life without friends, I decided I’d try it. I woke up before sunrise, spent a quarter-tide on my hair and makeup, and went to school. I somehow got teased even worse than when I’d gone to school with knots in my hair. My day ended early when a group of girls told me I missed a spot and shot squid ink in