Page 52 of Caged By the Ruthless Thief

“I’ll see you at the ball, Mother.” I smile. “I’m not dancing,” I remind her. I’m a grown male, but as the head of the household, she can put my name on mermaids’ dance cards until I’m mated.

“You should.”

“But I’m not.” There are only ten formal dances at the Vividaria ball. Not that the evening ends after the dancing. It’s not like other balls or events the city holds.

“Very well. Be careful.” Her look softens when she says it to Nico.

“I will, Ophelia.”

She closes the door, and I turn to Nico. Fishbones with torn skin are more attractive than him right now. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

* * *

I stand nextto Nico in the shower, waiting for him to tip over.

“You’re doing okay?” Holter holds out his arm. The shower water has just turned off.

“I don’t need your arm. I don’t need anything. I can do this.”

I’m not going to remind him that he hasn’t been out of the room for days. As his friend, this is still a terrible idea. As his future king, it’s a brilliant plan. Having him show himself, as long as he appears to be strong, will help Glyden’s position within the council. Nole having more clout when I am king will allow us to change policies and get the Veiled City back on course. Back to where we should be.

I’m waiting to get dressed to see if he really doesn’t need help. When he steps out of the shower, it’s the first time I’ve seen him without a nightshirt on. Most of the bandages are gone. His feet are scarred, and his neck has a jagged line extending to his torso. There are dark red lines over his legs. Around his wrists and ankles, the skin is ashen and cracked.

“If either of you utters one word with pity or sorrow, I will take you to the tile floor and stomp on your neck.”

“Nico,” Holter says softly, “I’m not pitying you, brother. But if this is too much, you shouldn’t do it.”

“She’s going to be there. I’m done waiting to see her.”

The rest of us nod. What can we do? This was the plan, to make a big outing of it. Show whoever attacked Glyden that we’re not scared of them. And with Nico there, it makes the message even stronger.

Theomadaallows for Nico to sprawl out. I scoffed when Mother suggested it earlier today. But now that I’ve seen all of Nico’s skin, an ambulanceomadawould have served him better.

The driver takes us through the airlock and pulls up to the main portico of the ball dome. Tonight, this dome is draped in the colors of Zaffiro, Glyden, and Braesen. Other domes around the city have their balls tonight as well.

“I’ll go out first,” says Holter. “You’re sure you want to bring that inside with you?”

Nico has his hand on the trident. And I’m glad Holter asked because I was going to ask the same thing if he didn’t.

“Fuck, yes. Going forward, I’m sleeping with the damn thing. You’re the one who says symbols are so damn important. And you’re not wrong.”

“All right, get out and I’ll hand it to you.” The thing is so long that getting it through theomadadoor isn’t going to be easy.

“Thank you.” Nico’s face is a mask when he stands. It’s a mask all the time, but now I know it’s from pain. He shouldn’t be here, but telling him that didn’t work. And other than starting a civil war with Zaffiro, which isn’t something I want, this is the best option we have—he has. They have. I’m too far in, and I’m going to be in trouble if I get in much deeper. As soon as we get Annabelle back where she should be, I need to cut ties with Nico and his pod. Let them figure this out by themselves.

I angle the trident out from the back of the sub, and Holter steadies the top while Nico wraps his hands round the stem.

There’s a crowd circling us when we step out onto the portico dock. Someone shouts, “Poseidon.”

Nico puts his hand up. Who the hell is he turning into? Getting into theomada, he had a limp, but now it’s gone. He’s stepping carefully with the trident. The thud echoes over the din of the crowd with each step. It’s like the authority of the judges’ staffs.

The crowd swirls around us. It’s mostly males, with a few mermaids peppered in. But I know Kai and Mother have been at the mermaid assembly for a while. The portico is full of orang, and black for Koralli, since they are the hosts. There are touches of blue, and gold for Zaffiro and Glyden. We pass by a group of Zaffiro males who glare at us. It turns my gut.

The doors to the lobby stand open. It’s transformed: A waterfall gushes from the ceiling and winds its way into the room. Braesen mechanical birds fly around. There are three bridges that lead over a stream. Palm trees with orange plumes sway with an artificial breeze. Scents of the tropics permeate the air—coconut and spices. It’s a shame Kai isn’t here she would have loved it..

The trident thumping on the wooden bridge vibrates through the space. There are more males here than in the past years when I’ve been forced to come. They are here to see Nico.

Holter walks beside me, Nico in front of us. I think we’re both thinking the same thing: if he falls, we’ll be here to catch him.

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