Page 39 of The Dark, Dead, Deep

“Quickly!” Cormac barked. “Before it closes!”

Tor took off at speed, and the soldiers formed a single line as they rushed the tunnel.

A flash of silver caught my eye as a small seal darted past, tumbling and weaving through the water. Rainn must have chosen to wear his other form.

Tor’s body moved gracefully between my legs as the kelpie sliced through the water with impressive speed. Cormac followed closely behind, though I only caught a glimpse of his red tail as we were plunged into darkness.

The rock on either side of the path felt claustrophobic, with the darkness below making it impossible to tell how deep the water was. A moment passed, and then another, before the familiar water of the Twilight Lake welcomed me in a rush. I exhaled a breath through my gills, relaxing for the first time in days.

I felt the currents roll over me as the magic caressed my skin. I hadn’t realized how much I had missed my home until I had been on land.

The path had been lit by faelights from Cruinn, but those were long gone now.

Tor reared to a stop once we reached open water and waited for the rest of the soldiers.

I could only guess where Cruinn was—the general direction and not much else. War had confined each fae creed to their own domains, though it seemed like the selkie, kelpie, nymphs, and the merfolk had come together against the undine in the recent past. Something that my uncle might not have known.

I wanted to make a run for it, but the moment the thought entered my mind, I felt my legs sticking to the ’kelpie’s coat like glue.

Well, that explained that. The magic only held on when the prey expressed a desire to escape.

I exhaled a breath. It was hard enough to send a flurry of bubbles from my mouth.

Once the rest of the group passed through the tunnel, the path behind them closed.

Moira had told me about the magic of the Frosted Sands—that only an undine could pass through. Was that why I had been trafficked through the path?

Somehow, Cormac and his soldiers had managed to bypass that magic to get there in the first place.

How had they known how to get to the Frosted Sands?

My heart felt like it would break through my ribcage as I realized that my purpose was done. The soldiers could kill me at any moment now that they no longer had use for me.

My shoulders tingled as I expected an attack, but none came. Still, my body did not relax as our convoy journeyed further into the lake. My muscles were taut with adrenaline as we swam parallel to the lake’s edge.

My eyes fluttered, and I wanted to sleep, but I didn’t dare. My body must have thought differently because I woke abruptly to the sensation of sliding off the kelpie’s flank just in time to save myself from falling. My movements were sluggish upon waking as I looked over my shoulder and found Shay, his braids drifting over his shoulders as if they were trying to reach me.

“Apologies.” His smile was anything but sorry. “TheBannanwill do as it wants.”

“Bannan?” My brow furrowed. “I haven’t heard that word before.”

“I wouldn’t have expected you to.” Shay stroked one of the braids that seemed most active. “It is a nymph thing.”

“Oh,” I said dumbly, unsure of what to say.

“We’ll be at the Reeds soon enough.” Shay kicked his legs as he swam by my side.

“Will I be safe?” Even though I tried to inject confidence into my tone, I wasn’t sure it worked.

“Why?” Shay asked dryly. “Because the kelpie are a blood-thirsty creed of wild-fae?”

I glanced at Cormac. Had he not told the others what had happened on the beach?

I crossed my arms over my chest. “Because I am a captive and don’t much like the idea of being touted into enemy territory.”

“Unfortunately, the undine are everyone’s enemy.” Cormac approached us from behind, showing that he had been listening to our conversation.

“Yes, yes.” I waved my hand dismissively. “Please continue to condemn me for the sins of my uncle. It’s so dreadfully exciting.”

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