Page 65 of Pregnant With Their Babes

“Llyr, no!” Oz roared, pushing Llyr behind him. Oz glared at King Augustine. “If a human finds a merman, he belongs to that human—isn’t that your way?”

Llyr’s father roared with laughter. “You humans really do believe that everything belongs to you. The land. The sea. And everything it encompasses.” The laughter faded, his scowl returning. “You plunder the land and now eye the seas as a means to gain more to destroy. The sea is my realm, not yours, silly boy. And my son belongs to no one.”

“Except you? Right?” Oz cried. “You’ll marry him off to a child. To gain what? What is it you trade for the life of your son?”

“What?” Llyr’s father focused on him. “That isnotwhy I arranged your marriage. Alphonse will be the leader of a great nation. With you at his side! You deserve a great merman king as a husband… not a weak, pathetichuman.”

“Does it matter what I yearn for?” Llyr asked. “Youneverbothered asking me!”

“No. I suppose it matters not what you want,” Llyr’s father roared. “As youcannotbe with these men.”

“Why not?”

His father seethed. “You’re not of their kind.”

“They’re my mates!” Llyr cried.

His father’s face turned to stone. “I’m aware.”

Llyr gasped.“You knew?”

“It was prophesied… that the omega born of the shell mark would be bound to two of human blood.” His father’s face fell. “And that omega’s children would be evil. They would destroybothour worlds.”

“No!” Llyr cried. His stomach twisted. “That’s impossible.”

“The Enchantress herself assured me you were the omega of the ancient scrolls. You were born with the mark…”

Llyr shook his head, doubt filling him.

“Lies,” Dagr said at his side.

Llyr’s father ignored Dagr and eyed Llyr. “Why do you think I kept you under lock and key all these years? I was endeavoring to keep you away from them… I was attempting to savebothour worlds. And everyone in them. I thought you would be happier if I could prevent your paths from ever crossing. You wouldn’t be forced to walk away from them like you’ll have to now.”

“Stop listening to him, Llyr,” Oz cried. “What we feel is right and true. I know you sense that.”

King Augustine pointed his trident at the middle of Oz’s chest. “You have no idea what will befall this world if you three join together.”

“I remember you spouting a similar prophecy of the world ending when Deandra came to me,” Oz’s father said to the Llyr’s father.

“Mother?” Oz asked, spinning to face his father. “What does mother have to do with this?”

Llyr was growing more confused by the moment. He concentrated on his father’s angry face—King Augustine scowled at Oz’s father.

“And look what happened to Deandra,” his father cried to Oz’s. “You killed her… precisely as I expected you would.”

“Ididn’tkill her!” Oz’s father cried.

“No. I did!” Oz screamed.

King Augustine glared at Oz. “You? You put that bullet into your own mother?”

“No, he bore no fault,” Oz’s father spat, rushing down his dais. “Prince Oswald attempted to fight off the bandits who stopped him and his mother on the road, after they’d killed all the men sent to protect the pair. The bandits aimed at him—and hitherinstead. He was only a boy when it happened.”

Llyr saw the pain crossing Oz’s face. He needed to move closer… to hold his human until the pain passed.

His father inched closer to Oz. “You look like Deandra… you have her eyes. Too bad you were unable to protect her when it mattered most.”

“Father!” Llyr cried.

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