The Rising

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Rubbing her temples, Serena begins pacing the room. Would Society allow the Undine population to taper away, just to save one girl? Or would they willingly give Serena to the wolves? As an orphan, Serena is connected to very few.

  What would Society do for me? If it were Sasha from the beloved Sunbeam family, no doubt the rest of the maidens would willingly give up their lineage for her. But maybe not for an orphan that few like—good Werewolf Liaison or no.

  Still pacing, Serena glances at Nerin who stares at the ground in front of her, hands clasped together so tight they are turning white. Right now, Nerin is not the regal King's Second Serena has always known her to be.

  What would she choose to do? Serena wonders. What would I choose to do? I could take the decision out of all their hands, sacrificing myself to the wolves and allow the Undine to prosper. Serena smiles. I could give Cordelia her calfling.

  Swallowing hard, Serena wiggles her toes. The wolfsbane wound is bright pink now. Suddenly, Serena's head snaps up. "Nerin, what if we attempted mating again? Before the deadline? Not you and me, obviously." Serena's face goes hot with embarrassment. "I mean, just...Undine in general."

  "We've tried since that night, although I suppose you wouldn't know it. The details of such practices were never taught in your classes." Nerin unclenches her hands and brushes them across her hair and back, securing a few loose strands in the bun at the nape of her neck.

  Serena can remember only once when the mating and birthing cycle was discussed openly with the Temporal Caste. Evandre was invited in while Zayla took uncharacteristic leave from her front podium to the back of the caste room. For the most part, Evandre spoke of lunar rhythms in frogs, crabs, and the marine worm, and how reproductive systems react to external stimuli, the most influential being the light of the moon. The Temporal Caste followed the lecture scratching their heads and scrunching their eyebrows together. It wasn't until the very end that Evandre referred to the maiden body as being connected to the moon by blood, hormones, and soul.

  After caste lessons concluded that day, Serena headed straight for the archives. There she found detailed explanations. Just as the moon creates tides on Earth, it interacts with the electromagnetic fields of a maiden's body, creating the ebb and flow of internal tides that trigger fertile physiological processes.

  "Only the light of a full moon allows the fertile cycle in a maiden to emerge, as well as initiates Undine labor—which is a very stressful event for mother and child," Nerin says, continuing to unfold and refold her hands in her lap while she speaks. "We've tried traveling to other islands, but mothers, even in the early stages of labor, have had a difficult time handling the changes in the water, temperature, salinity, and acidity, among others. No child survived it, and sometimes, not even the mother. It is the same reason we cannot, or do not, migrate."

  Serena moves her hair back away from her face. "Our caste lessons weren't very specific about birthing events."

  Nerin nods. "We tried water births at the surface, on the ceremonial whale rock, and of course—more attempts on the beach. None of it worked. Even if werewolves weren't present, the mother was simply too stressed for a successful labor. It became evident that Undine react too strongly to emotion, such as anxiety, fear, or worry."

  "Just like our sensitivity to herbs from The Dry," Serena mumbles.

  Nerin's lips go tight. "Not only is the maiden's massacre still fresh in everyone's minds, but so are all the battles that occurred after."

  "Not for the Temporal Caste," Serena says, her voice just a whisper. Something clicks, and Serena turns to look at Nerin, mouth open. "You've kept the details from us on purpose. You don't want us to know…."

  Nerin lays a hand on Serena's arm. "The Temporal Caste is our last chance. The council voted to keep the details a secret, and the subject became taboo for the rest of Society to mention, especially to you and your caste mates. The less you know, the less there is for you to worry about."

  Serena stands from the cot, crosses her arms, and begins pacing. "How long were you going to wait? Before announcing a pairing of the Temporal Caste to the King's Guard?" There isn't as much bite in Serena's voice as she intended. She stops pacing, finally understanding. "You were waiting until the king follows through with his promise by giving me to the werewolves, and they allow us to mate." Walking toward Nerin, Serena sits down again, bouncing up Nerin’s side of the cot. "I've been told that werewolves wouldn't bother us in the next full moon—they are otherwise occupied." Serena spits it out before she can change her mind.

  "And you believe it?" Nerin asks.

  Serena nods, all too aware that any hesitation might cost her. "We have one more full moon before the deadline is up. If we are successful…"

  Nerin stands. "Then the king won't have to relinquish our youngest maiden." It is her turn to pace the room now. "Very well." She stops, turning to Serena. "I will consult with the king. In the meantime, let Hailey finish with your wound, then Kai can take you to another training session after. I will send for him."

  Nerin nods to Hailey as she takes her leave from the healer's cave.

  Pushing her large, metal cart toward the cot, Hailey watches Nerin disappear down the stairs then turns back to Serena. "Well, that was awkward." She kneels in front of her Serena, pulling the damaged foot to rest on her knee. "She doesn't like it when maidens talk about Murphy, especially not in reference to mating partners."

  "Why not?" asks Serena.

  "Because," says Hailey. "Murphy is her son."

  "I never knew that," Serena says, her mouth dropping open. She has trouble placing the large-boned Murphy in the same family as thin, uptight Nerin, and wonders what other family bonds she hasn't connected.

  "All this time," Hailey clucks, "and never paired. It's a shame. But Kai shows promise for a good pairing. Not that I—"

  "Can we hurry this along?" interrupts Serena.

  Hailey looks up, her forehead creased in question.

  "I'd rather not receive the entire kingdom sitting on this cot."

  "Maidens," Kai enters the cave, taking the steps up two at a time.

  "Too late," Serena mumbles.

  "Must've been hanging close by," Hailey winks at Serena.

  "I couldn't help but notice your trident is out of arm's reach," Kai says, sitting down on the cot beside Serena and leaning back against the wall.

  "Hailey banished it to the corner," Serena gestures to her weapon. "Not supposed to touch it until it is sterilized."

  "Why?" Kai asks.

  "Because," Hailey shoos Kai toward the end of the cot, away from Serena, "the thing was wrapped with wolfsbane and she had already managed to get some on herself." Hailey lifts up Serena's foot, displaying Serena's momentary lapse of judgment right in front of Kai.

  Embarrassed, Serena lets her hair fall to cover her face again as Hailey begins cleaning her toe with a stringent-smelling rag.

  Kai leans forward. "Could be worse, considering your occupation."

  Serena shifts in her seat, trying to pull her foot back.

  Hailey doesn't give, keeping a death grip on Serena's ankle. "Be still."

  Kai hops up from the cot and walks to the trident. He taps his chin, studying it. "Wolfsbane, huh?" He holds out a finger toward one of the tips.

  "Kai Forest!" Hailey's shrill voice causes Kai to jump back. "Don't you go poisoning yourself. I'm low on charcoal as it is."

  Kai crosses his arms. "I wasn't gonna—"

  "Excuse me," Simone interrupts. She stands behind him with a bucket of steaming hot water and several rags.

  "Oh, by all means." He gestures with a grand swing of his arm toward the trident.

  She blushes and he steps back to watch her clean the trident.

  "Ow!" Serena's attention is brought back to her toe.

  "Hush. The sting will go away in a moment. This salve will help to harden the skin on your toe. We don't want it to be as soft as an Ungainly belly."
/>
  Serena risks a glance at Kai, but he appears not to have heard. Simone giggles at one of his jokes while bending to clean the bottom of the trident—hardly appropriate with Kai standing right behind her.

  "Oh, for Poseidon's sake, Simone!" Hailey straightens, waving a toxic rag in the air as she scolds Simone. "No need to scrub the tarnish right off the thing. That is enough—thank you."

  Simone sticks out her bottom lip, pouting. It is bright red, matching her scales. She gives Kai a smile and a wave before collecting her bucket and walking away.

  Serena rolls her eyes but frowns when Kai wiggles his fingers in quick succession—a flirtatious wave.

  "Well, that's all I can do for now. I suppose you'll refuse to allow me to wrap it again?" Hailey asks.

  Serena nods.

  "It'll at least heal faster, that way," Hailey shrugs. "Come see me once every other day—and don't make me hunt you down."

  Kai clears his throat, and both maidens look over at him. He gestures to the trident, asking permission to touch.

  Hailey gives a flippant wave of her hand.

  Not hesitating to grasp it by the stem, Kai picks it up and spins it. The pointed tips make wide arcs, flashing against the glint of candles throughout the healer's cave. Even Hailey stops to watch. To his credit, he somehow manages to avoid both floor and ceiling, not to mention the rows of jars and books that surround him.

  Finally, he stops, approaching Serena. He helps her up with one hand and places her trident in her other hand.

  "Wolfsbane. Smart," he says with a smile.

  Right now, Serena isn't sure if she'd rather have Kai's compliment or his flirtatious wave.

  "Ready for another round?" he asks.

  "About as ready as I am for all the other surprises in my life," says Serena, limping after Kai.

  He hesitates, looking at Serena from the corner of his eye. Then his face splits open in a wide grin and his laughter follows them down the steps. Serena hopes Simone can hear it.