Chapter Thirty-Four
Serena spends the rest of the tide in the archives reading the book. By the time the light dies down, plunging the library into a predictable darkness, Serena folds the hardback closed, finished with the last page. Without a word to Mariam, she replaces the book in the hidden room and pulls on ropes, closing the light sources to both coves.
Serena goes directly to The Dry. There is a decision to be made, and Serena doesn't want the king to make it for her. As soon as her Ungainly legs hit soft sand on the beach, she sends out a call, loud and reckless, for Liam.
The ocean crawls forward, licking at her ankles, then retreats. One, two, three. On the fourth frothy wave, the forest in front of her moves in the wind. One braided rope, tinged with yellow, swings out. Serena knows her border of wolfsbane is still there.
The wind dies down and behind her there is a lull between the waves.
A voice howls from the forest. "About a month too early, girl—but if you are that anxious..."
It isn't Liam.
Serena's neck prickles with chills. "I am not here to submit," she says, her voice sounds small against the forest.
Laughter reaches out, playing tricks with her ears. It seems to come from everywhere. Serena looks between the trees, squinting. She can only smell one wolf, yet she feels surrounded. She brings her trident closer, holding it with both hands diagonally in front of her.
There is another lull in waves, as if the ocean herself waits to see what will happen next. The wind compensates for the quiet sea. Heavy gusts of air blow several strands of wolfsbane ropes out from between the trees. When they part like a curtain, Serena tries to focus beyond them. A blackened shadow leaps forward, taking the form of a werewolf. Its fur is as dark as the night, and its fangs are as yellow as the wolfsbane flower.
Serena raises her trident, and the wolf stops just short, snarling. He doesn't stare at the golden tips threatening to pierce his eyes—he stares at her.
"Alaric?" Serena recognizes him as the same werewolf that chased her the night of the excursion and as the one she watched confer with the king. The scars he left on her leg begin to burn.
Alaric pushes off his front paws, so he stands on two legs, towering above her. He is almost twice her size. He points one claw at her, the rest curling in. "I am the betrayed." His voice is gravelly and thick. The forest seems to lean forward with him, bearing down on Serena and her ocean. He sucks in a breath and seems to grow even taller. He roars, throwing spit against her hair as his growl thunders through her.
Serena uses a surge of adrenaline and lunges forward, aiming her trident at his midsection. He bats the weapon aside and Serena rolls with it so she doesn't lose her grip.
The werewolf follows. Serena gets to her feet, bringing the stem of her trident up to catch him under his chin. His jaw snaps shut as his head is thrown back. A quick spin, and she slams the stem of her weapon just behind his knees. His enormous body pounds against sand.
Beyond him, a plume of smoke drifts up from the trees. Serena sniffs the air. The scent of singed wolfsbane comes to her.
"No!"
They are burning the wolfsbane patch.
She starts forward, holding her trident at the ready. Still on the ground, Alaric reaches for Serena's foot. His claws dig in, ripping through the webbing between her toes.
Serena falls face first into the sand, knocking the wind out of her chest. She forces herself to move, rolling over. Her gills strain, searching for the air that won't come through her mouth. Instead, they suck in a steady stream of sand.
Alaric leaps, landing on top of Serena and pinning down her arms and legs.
Serena coughs, sputtering out granules that work their way from gill to mouth. The werewolf gets an eyeful of wet sand. He blinks furiously, releasing one of Serena's arms to paw at his face. Serena still grips her trident, so she thrusts it toward the wolf. It smashes into his snout with enough momentum to throw him off balance. Serena kicks out with her feet.
Just as on the night of the Temporal Caste excursion, Alaric flies, end over end, into the waves. This time, before he even splashes into the water, Serena is on one knee nocking an arrow already drawn from her quiver. She takes aim, the wolf's eye set in her sights.
Someone pushes her bow down. The arrow shoots harmlessly into the sand.
"Please don't," Liam's words tumble out of him between heaving breaths. He looms over Serena in his Ungainly form. "Not yet. I have to make sure the majority of the pack would back us first, and not just seek revenge for him." His eyes plead with her, his mouth downturned, showing just a touch of the gleaming white teeth behind his lips. No sign of fangs, fur, or claws.
Serena glances out at the werewolf, dripping with cold seawater, as she stands.
"Careful, Serena," says Liam. "You don't want to start a war."
"Sorry," Serena says with bite to her voice. She retrieves the arrow stuck in the sand and puts it in her quiver. "But the war was started eighteen years ago. I'm going to finish it."
My life depends on it, she thinks.
Now at the breaker line, the wolf shakes his whole body, ridding his fur of the salty water.
Liam takes a step toward him. "Alaric—the wolfsbane patch is enough for tonight. Leave her alone."
The wolf shakes his head, but Serena cannot tell if it is because he is still wet or because he is saying no to Liam.
Alaric stalks around Liam and Serena. Serena can't help but notice the way Liam slowly inches his way in between the dueling pair. When Alaric's back is to the forest, he dips his head and shakes his fur again. This time drops of water do not fly off, but hair does. He sheds his fur, showing bright pink skin underneath. Bones crackle and pop, Serena can see their distortion beneath his skin.
Liam produces a cape from a bag that hangs around his waist on a string. When she looks back up, Alaric is in Ungainly form. It is a frighteningly fast transformation. Serena stares at his naked body until Liam throws the cape at Alaric.
Alaric smirks as he unfolds the cape, and wraps it around him.
Serena tightens her grip on the trident.
"I mean it, Alaric—leave her alone," says Liam.
Alaric glances at Liam. "I have left her alone, for almost eighteen years now." He ties his cape closed and lowers his gaze at Serena. Black, wispy hair falls around his face in wet strands. "Her time is running out."
Alaric steps to the side, forcing Serena to counter. They make a slow, wide circle, with Liam in the middle. Something tickles Serena's feet. She looks down to find she is standing in Alaric's shed hair.
Gross, she frowns, looking down. Moving her toes around, she makes a small pile of the hair. "If I choose to go with you, on the next full moon—what will become of me?" Serena asks, keeping his eyes on her face and not what she is doing in the sand.
Alaric lifts his chin, looking down his nose at Serena. "So your king will be giving you the choice?" The wind picks up, whipping his cape just below his knees.
Behind Alaric the tide is receding.
He is right, my time is running out.
Serena steps out from around Liam. "Why do you want me?"
Liam glances at Serena. "So you are the sacrifice he was talking about?"
Serena nods, and they both wait for Alaric's answer.
He huffs, crossing his arms. "Ungainly women have trouble yielding pups—only one has managed so far. We believe we need a maiden."
Serena's mouth drops open and beside her, she can see Liam do the same.
The tide is nowhere near Serena, but her ears ring with the sound of rushing water. Panic blooms in her gut, twisting its way up her chest like a sharpened knife.
Liam is the first to speak. "You never said that was part of the plan."
"What's the problem?" Alaric holds his arms to the side. "We get our pups—they get their little baby…fishies, or whatever. Everyone is happy."
"Not her," Liam shakes his head, fists clenched. "Find another if you must!" he screams,
shoulders hunched and rounded.
"No." Alaric's tone is firm. "It has to be her. We need her bloodline."
Smoke tendrils from the wolfsbane patch slink across the sky, reaching out over the ocean from the forest. Soon, it will dissipate into the ocean, just like Ungainly CO2, over time. Whatever happens in The Dry eventually creeps into the ocean, and the creatures of The Deep pay the price. The Undine must have their beaches back, or they will never survive what is to come.
Alaric follows Serena's gaze to the smoke. "You hide behind the flower too much," Alaric's snarl turns up into a cruel, twisted smile. "There won't be any hiding after the next full moon."
"Serena," Liam turns toward her, but he keeps his gaze steady on Alaric. "Run."
She hesitates, considering both men. Liam's fingers are curled into his palms, and she can see the veins in his forearms turning a deep blue. Alaric stands with his feet shoulder-width apart, one slightly behind the other.
But there is nowhere to run. Two werewolves stand between her and the ocean, and behind her the wolfsbane patch is gone.
Alaric bows his head so he is staring at Serena through lowered lids.
"Serena…" Liam says. "Run—now!"
Serena bends for a quick second, laying her hand on the ground. Alaric lunges. She can see the action in his eyes before he does it. Serena dodges to the opposite side of Liam, opening her stride and aiming for the waves.
They are so far—the receding tide is wholly unnatural.
Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Alaric twist. It is a canine-like move, yet he is still in Ungainly form. Footsteps pound the sand behind her, approaching quickly. Just as Alaric is about to slam into her, Liam collides with him mid-air. They both fly over Serena as she sprints.
She can hear them hit the sand behind her and she prays they don't transform until she is submerged. The scales along her legs, responding to the fear coursing through her body, begin to fuse. Icy salt water splashes against her ankles as she reaches the farthest stretch of water. It encourages the remaining scales to emerge, forcing her legs together. The webbing between her toes grows into fins and Serena reaches full transformation before she is deep enough to swim.
She looks over her shoulder and sees Alaric throw Liam into the trees. He turns, running for Serena before Liam even hits the ground. Serena doesn't flounder in the knee-deep water. Like an invertebrate staring at the glowing extension of the deep sea dragon fish, she is mesmerized, unable to react to the danger. Instead, she opens her mouth, letting her voice flow freely. She steadies her heaving breaths by opening her gills, allowing both organs to work simultaneously.
The ocean responds, and before Alaric can reach Serena, he is backpedaling in the sand. Serena looks to the water. A huge wave, at least twenty feet high, barrels toward them. Serena pushes up on her arms. Her fins flap once in anticipation.
The wave engulfs her and she is gone by the time it recedes. Scales extend around her closed fist, protecting the handful of Alaric's fur she holds.