Page 89 of Sworn to My Heart
We swim between the golden support pillars leading to the main entrance, Bay still holding my arm, pulling me closer to the castle wall to attract as little attention as possible. Maybe we can get inside without causing a scene after all.
But that hope swims away as the golden door opens heavily before we reach it.
“Alianna! I knew you’d come back to your senses,” my father immediately swims toward me, wearing the royal chain made of gold scales over his hips adorning his long black tail, greeting me with the diplomatic smile I loathe.
There’s nothing sensible about what’s happening here, but I bite my tongue and resist the urge to answer him.
I can’t tell if he missed me or if he’s just glad to finally resolve the matter of combining forces with that terror pod.
But as he’s in front of me now, his warm fatherly smile returns, and he wraps me in his embrace, “I missed you so much,” he whispers in my ear, and a sting of betrayal pierces my heart as I imagine his reaction if he knew what I was planning.
“What is she doing here?” His voice suddenly turns cold as he breaks the hug, his gaze landing on Bay, who has been behind me all this time.
“I pardoned her, Father,” I announce quickly before he does something we’ll both regret.
“Alianna, you have no right to pardon her; only your mother can do that,” he reprimands me, looking at Bay with such disdain. He never treated her like this when I was here. If he’s capable of throwing his beloved niece to the pod of traitors just for injuring a guard, what will he do when he finds out what I plan to do?
“She did. Bay is wearing Mother’s emblem,” I reply confidently, though it’s feigned. I can’t afford to fall into negative thoughtsnow; I have a mission to complete.
“I’m going to marry Zale’s son soon, so I should at least have the power to grant a pardon,” I continue, seeing that his expression hasn’t softened. I force myself not to gag as I mention the leader’s name and “marriage” in the same sentence.
“It’s alright, Clarion, she needs to start making decisions on her own,” my mother appears from behind, surprising my father. As always, she tries to mediate our arguments.
“Decisions that don’t include running away from responsibilities,” she adds, clearing her throat, giving me a reproachful look before wrapping me in her arms. This hug is all I need to calm the nerves in my body.
“Mom, I’m ready to get married,” I declare into her embrace, taking advantage of the fact that she isn’t looking into my eyes to see that I’m lying.
“But I have a few conditions I want to discuss...” I continue as she releases her hold on me and smiles proudly.
My mother looks radiant now at my declaration; I’m playing with fire here. She nods excitedly and leads me to my father’s large study on the ground floor at the end of a long corridor. She still doesn’t know what I’m about to ask for, and I’m sure she would tear off all my scales if she knew my true intentions.
Bay swims behind us, relieved she isn’t the center of attention and has successfully gained her freedom.Lucky her.
“It’s okay, Bay, you can go home. You’ve been pardoned; you don’t need to follow me,” I inform her, knowing I need to resolve this issue with my parents.
But she ignores me and continues to follow, as if my whole family has made a hobby of meddling in my personal life. I sigh.
My parents sit on a large open seashell, its soft, glowing interior serving as a plush, inviting cushion. I’m tempted to sit there but prefer to keep some distance from them when they hear my idea,preparing for the fallout. I settle on a white coral seat on the other side of the room.
The room’s walls are lined with precious gemstones that emit a bright light, almost blinding if you look from the wrong angle. Everything in this room is overly extravagant for my taste, but this castle was built to the specifications of my great-grandfather, and no one dares to change it.
“I want the wedding ceremony to take place on land,” I blurt out my request quickly, ripping off the bandage in one go, leaving no room for stammering or misunderstandings.
“Absolutely not!” My mother immediately rejects it decisively and looks at my father in surprise, as if expecting him to back her up.
“We can’t trust them on their territory, and I’m sure they don’t trust us on ours. We’ll do it on land, where we’re all equals and no one has the advantage,” I don’t give him a chance to respond and quickly explain, trying to convey confidence.
My mother runs her hand through her hair and sighs in frustration, but my father seems to be considering the proposal. Good, if he didn’t dismiss it outright, it’s a positive sign.
“Clarion, you aren’t seriously thinking about agreeing to this, are you?” The disbelief in my mother’s voice is palpable.
“Lora, I think our daughter has come up with a wise idea this time,” my father responds, supporting me. My heart leaps with joy in my chest; the plan is slowly moving forward.
“You haven’t been to the surface since you brought Alianna back to us. Do you even remember how to walk on two legs?” My mother retorts irritably. I swim over to her immediately.
“Mom, think about the risk we’ll be in if we have to go to their territory. We can’t fully trust them until after the marriage alliance. Zale and his son are powerful and unpredictable. The wife was the only voice of reason between them and she’sgone...” I fabricate facts to appeal to her sense of logic.
She swims nervously from side to side, considering my proposal, then looks at my father, who nods his approval. She sighs and nods in agreement.
