Chapter 6 - The Daughter Who Was Already Dead

Mara pressed the kitchen knife against Lord Cassian's throat before he could take another step toward Elara.

"Say that again," she whispered.

The stranger did not flinch.

Outside, the waters of Blackthorn Cove were rising over the harbor walls. Fishing boats strained against their ropes, and somewhere in the village, a woman was screaming for her children to come inside.

But Mara heard none of it.

She could hear only the terrible words Cassian had spoken.

The real Elara stopped breathing three nights ago.

"You're lying."

Cassian smiled faintly.

"Am I?"

Mara pressed the blade harder.

A thin line of blood appeared on his neck.

"She was right here. I held her. I gave her medicine. She spoke to me."

"Of course she did."

"Then how could she be dead?"

Cassian looked past the knife.

"Because the body is not the same as the soul, Princess."

Mara's hand trembled.

Behind her, Elara began crying.

"Mother, please!"

Mara turned.

The little girl had fallen to her knees.

Silver-green scales shimmered across her ankles, spreading slowly toward her calves. Her nightdress clung to her legs as though soaked in seawater, although the floor beneath her remained dry.

"Make it stop!" Elara sobbed.

Mara abandoned Cassian and rushed to her daughter.

She caught the girl's trembling hands.

"Look at me, sweetheart."

"It hurts!"

"I know."

"What's happening?"

Mara pulled Elara into her arms.

"Nothing is taking you away from me."

Cassian watched silently.

Then he said, "You may believe that, but you cannot promise it."

Mara turned toward him with hatred in her eyes.

"Get out."

"I came to offer you a choice."

"Get out!"

Cassian slowly drew a small silver hourglass from his coat.

Inside it, black sand flowed upward.

"The vessel is awakening. When the final grain reaches the upper chamber, the borrowed heart will remember its original owner."

Mara stared at the glass.

"What happens then?"

Cassian looked toward Elara.

"Princess Nerissa will awaken completely."

"And my daughter?"

He did not answer.

Mara understood his silence.

She lifted the knife again.

Cassian sighed.

"Your husband was equally stubborn."

At the mention of Daniel, Mara froze.

"What do you know about my husband?"

"More than you."

"Where is he?"

Cassian glanced toward the distant lighthouse.

"Closer than you imagine."

Then he withdrew a folded parchment from his coat.

"Ask yourself why Daniel never returned, even after escaping the Guild. Ask why he spent years traveling with the woman who stole your sister's heart."

Mara's breath caught.

"Seren?"

Cassian smiled.

"So you know her name."

Mara's face went pale.

She had never met Seren Vey.

But she had heard that name before.

Seven years earlier.

On the night Daniel disappeared.

Beneath the abandoned lighthouse, Daniel slammed Edmund Vale's journal onto the stone table.

"No more riddles, Seren."

The scarred woman stood near the underground pool, her hands clasped tightly together.

Tomas watched them both.

For years, his son's disappearance had been the deepest mystery in his life.

Now Daniel was alive, but every answer seemed to reveal another betrayal.

"You knew Mara was the Queen's daughter," Daniel said.

Seren nodded.

"And you knew Elara carried royal blood."

"Yes."

"And you knew the heart you placed inside her belonged to Mara's younger sister."

Seren looked away.

Daniel's voice hardened.

"Did you know from the beginning?"

A long silence followed.

Finally, Seren whispered, "Yes."

Daniel staggered backward.

Tomas closed his eyes.

The admission hurt more than he expected.

He had begun to believe Seren was a frightened woman trying to correct a terrible mistake.

Now he wondered whether anything she had told them was true.

Daniel drew a slow breath.

"Then why did you let me believe it was a simple bargain?"

"Because you would never have agreed."

"Of course I wouldn't!"

"Elara was dying!"

"Another child was going to suffer!"

Seren's expression broke.

"I know."

"No. You don't get to say that as though it excuses you."

Daniel turned away.

For a moment, Tomas thought his son might strike her.

Instead, Daniel pressed both hands against the stone table.

His shoulders shook.

"I trusted you."

Seren approached him.

"Daniel—"

"Don't touch me."

She stopped.

The words seemed to wound her more deeply than any weapon.

Tomas stepped between them.

"There's something I don't understand."

Daniel looked up.

"Father?"

"The Queen said the princess's body still lives. Cassian's people want Elara. The Guild wants her too. But Seren says the king ordered Nerissa killed."

He turned toward Seren.

"Why would the king want his own daughter dead?"

Seren hesitated.

"Because Nerissa could hear the drowned."

"So can Elara."

"Yes."

"That doesn't explain why it frightened him."

Seren looked toward the crimson coral fragment.

"The drowned remember things the living have forgotten."

Tomas frowned.

"What things?"

"Promises. Crimes. Betrayals."

Her voice lowered.

"And sometimes, the truth about who killed them."

Daniel slowly straightened.

"King Vaelor feared his daughter would discover something."

Seren nodded.

"His greatest crime."

"What crime?"

Before she could answer, a violent tremor shook the chamber.

Dust fell from the ceiling.

The underground pool turned black.

A low voice rose from its depths.

"Seren Vey."

She froze.

Daniel grabbed his pistol.

The water bulged upward.

For an instant, a man's face appeared.

Silver hair.

Dark green eyes.

A cruel, handsome expression.

King Vaelor.

But unlike the portrait upstairs, his face was marked by deep black cracks, as though his skin were made of broken porcelain.

"Your Majesty," Seren whispered.

The king smiled.

"You have kept my daughter waiting."

Seren backed away.

"You're supposed to be dead."

"Death is a door, Seren. And you helped me find its key."

Daniel raised the pistol.

"What do you want?"

The king's gaze shifted toward him.

"Daniel of Blackthorn Cove."

His smile widened.

"The father who abandoned his child."

Daniel's jaw tightened.

"I didn't abandon her."

"Then why have you not returned?"

"Because your servants hunted me."

"An excuse."

The king looked toward Tomas.

"And you, fisherman. You rescued my youngest children from their captors."

Tomas stiffened.

"The twins?"

"Yes."

"Then why were they trapped in my net?"

Vaelor's expression remained calm.

"Because someone wanted them dead."

"Who?"

The king looked toward Seren.

"Ask the woman who stole my crown."

Seren shook her head.

"Don't listen to him."

Vaelor laughed.

"Still hiding behind lies?"

The black water rose higher.

Then the king spoke words that made Daniel's blood run cold.

"Tell him about the night you watched Elara die."

Mara unfolded Cassian's parchment with shaking hands.

The paper was old and stained.

At the top was a date.

Three nights earlier.

Beneath it, written in Daniel's unmistakable handwriting, were five words:

The vessel has stopped breathing.

Mara stared.

"No."

Cassian watched her carefully.

"The bond has been unstable for years. Three nights ago, it failed."

"Then why is she alive?"

"Because something else entered her."

Mara looked toward Elara.

The girl's crying had stopped.

She sat beside the fireplace, watching them with wide silver-green eyes.

"Mother?"

Mara hurried to her.

"Sweetheart, do you remember three nights ago?"

Elara nodded slowly.

"You were sick."

"Yes."

"Your fever was very high."

"I remember."

Mara swallowed.

"What happened?"

Elara looked toward the window.

"I heard someone singing."

"Who?"

"A little girl."

Cassian remained near the door.

Mara ignored him.

"What did the girl say?"

Elara hesitated.

"She asked if she could come inside."

Mara felt the room grow cold.

"Inside where?"

Elara pressed a hand against her chest.

"Here."

Mara's heart seemed to stop.

"What did you tell her?"

The child lowered her eyes.

"I said yes."

A terrible silence followed.

Cassian spoke softly.

"And that is how the princess entered the vessel."

Mara shook her head.

"No. Elara is still Elara."

Cassian approached.

"For now."

The girl looked frightened.

"Mother, who is Nerissa?"

Mara embraced her.

"Nobody you have to be afraid of."

Elara shook her head.

"She's afraid too."

Mara pulled back.

"What?"

"The other girl."

Elara touched her chest.

"She's crying because she thinks everyone wants her to disappear."

For the first time, Cassian's expression changed.

He studied Elara with sudden intensity.

"Can you still hear her?"

Elara nodded.

"What is she saying?"

Mara moved between them.

"Leave her alone."

Cassian ignored her.

"Tell me, child."

Elara closed her eyes.

Then she whispered, "She says she didn't ask to be put here."

Cassian's smile vanished.

"What else?"

"She says the king is lying."

He stepped forward.

"What did you say?"

Elara opened her eyes.

"The king is lying."

Cassian's face darkened.

"About what?"

The girl began trembling again.

"About the drowned children."

Outside, the harbor bells rang violently.

Cassian seized her wrist.

"Who told you that?"

Elara cried out.

Mara slashed at him with the kitchen knife.

The blade cut across his sleeve.

Cassian released the child and stepped backward.

For a moment, his human appearance flickered.

Beneath his skin, dark scales flashed.

Mara stared.

"What are you?"

Cassian looked at the blood staining his sleeve.

His expression became cold.

"A man who has served the rightful king longer than your village has existed."

He reached toward Elara again.

Mara raised her knife.

But before he could move, a deafening crash erupted from the fireplace.

The iron-bound treasure chest burst open.

Black water surged across the room.

The jailer rose from the darkness, its skeletal hands gripping the edges of the broken chest.

Cassian stopped.

For the first time, he looked genuinely afraid.

"You."

The creature smiled.

"Lord Cassian."

Its black eyes gleamed.

"Still stealing children for your master?"

Cassian drew a narrow silver blade.

"You were supposed to remain imprisoned."

"So was your king."

The jailer stepped onto the floor.

The room seemed to darken around it.

Cassian backed toward the door.

"Stay away from the princess."

The creature tilted its head.

"Which princess?"

Cassian hesitated.

The jailer laughed.

"Ah. You don't know, do you?"

It turned toward Mara.

"Tell him, mother."

Mara felt her stomach twist.

"Tell him what?"

The jailer pointed toward Elara.

"Ask your daughter who has been speaking with her."

Elara began to cry.

"Please stop."

The creature knelt.

Its terrible face softened into an expression that almost resembled pity.

"Little one, tell them."

Elara looked at Mara.

Then she whispered, "There are three of us."

In the lighthouse chamber, Daniel stared at King Vaelor's reflection.

"What do you mean, Seren watched Elara die?"

The king smiled.

"Ask her."

Seren shook her head.

"He's manipulating you."

"Then deny it," Daniel demanded.

She remained silent.

Tomas felt a cold dread spreading through his chest.

"Seren?"

The scarred woman slowly sank into a chair.

"Three nights ago," she whispered, "I felt the bond break."

Daniel stared.

"The bond between Elara and Nerissa?"

"Yes."

"What happened?"

"Elara's heart stopped."

Tomas gripped the table.

"No."

Seren looked at him with tears in her eyes.

"I was at the lighthouse when I felt it. The crown fragment began to bleed. I knew something terrible had happened."

Daniel approached her.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I didn't know whether she had survived."

"You said nothing!"

"I was afraid!"

Daniel laughed bitterly.

"You were afraid?"

Seren stood.

"Yes! I was afraid that after everything we had done, after all the people we had lost, Elara was dead and it was my fault!"

The words echoed through the chamber.

Daniel stared at her.

Then he turned toward the king.

"If the bond broke, why is she alive?"

Vaelor's expression became almost tender.

"Because my daughter finally found her way home."

Seren shook her head.

"No."

The king continued.

"Nerissa's heart remembered its true purpose. When the human child's life ended, the princess awakened within the vessel."

Tomas struggled to breathe.

"You're saying Elara is gone?"

Vaelor looked at him.

"The body remains."

Daniel raised his pistol.

"Enough."

The king smiled.

"You cannot shoot water, Daniel."

"Then I'll find something I can shoot."

He turned toward Seren.

"Can Elara be saved?"

She hesitated.

"There may be a way."

Vaelor's expression changed.

For the first time, anger flickered across his face.

"Be careful, Seren."

She ignored him.

"The Heart of the Tides can separate the souls without destroying the vessel."

Daniel stepped closer.

"Where is it?"

"Inside the royal palace."

Vaelor laughed.

"Then come and take it."

The water suddenly collapsed into the pool.

The king's image vanished.

But his final words lingered in the chamber.

Bring me the three children.

Tomas looked toward Seren.

"Three children?"

She did not answer.

Daniel noticed the expression on her face.

"What does he mean?"

Seren's hands trembled.

"Nerissa and Elara are not the only souls connected to the royal heart."

Tomas stared.

"Who is the third?"

Seren looked toward the journal.

Then she whispered, "A child who died before either of them was born."

Back in the cottage, Elara was trembling in Mara's arms.

Cassian stood near the door, his silver blade raised.

The jailer watched him with amusement.

"Three souls," it murmured. "One borrowed heartbeat. Such a delicate arrangement."

Mara held Elara tighter.

"What are you talking about?"

The creature looked at her.

"Your daughter is not dead."

Cassian's expression hardened.

"Lies."

"Her heart stopped. Her soul did not depart."

Mara felt a rush of desperate hope.

"Then where is she?"

The jailer pointed toward Elara's chest.

"Still inside."

Elara looked up.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you."

Mara stroked her hair.

"Then who are the others?"

"Nerissa," Elara whispered.

"And?"

The girl hesitated.

Her silver-green eyes darkened.

"Someone older."

Cassian lowered his sword slightly.

"Older?"

Elara nodded.

"He says he remembers the palace before the Queen was born."

The jailer's smile disappeared.

Mara noticed.

"What is it?"

The creature slowly rose.

For the first time since emerging from the chest, it seemed frightened.

"That is impossible."

Elara pressed both hands against her ears.

"The voice is getting louder."

Cassian stepped forward.

"What does it say?"

Elara began shaking violently.

Mara tried to hold her still.

"Elara!"

The girl's mouth opened.

But the voice that emerged was not hers.

It was deep.

Ancient.

And filled with terrible satisfaction.

"At last."

The candles went out.

Every window shattered inward.

Seawater erupted through the floorboards, rising in twisting columns around the room.

Cassian dropped to one knee.

The jailer stumbled backward.

"No," it whispered.

Elara slowly lifted her head.

Her eyes had turned completely gold.

The ancient voice spoke again.

"Seven years they hid my vessel. Eight years they fed it stolen life."

Mara stared at her daughter in horror.

"Elara?"

The girl smiled.

But it was not her smile.

"Your daughter is sleeping, Princess Mara."

Cassian bowed his head.

"My king."

The jailer pressed itself against the wall.

"You were destroyed."

The golden-eyed child turned toward it.

"Only my body."

Mara felt the world collapse around her.

The creature wearing her daughter's face extended one small hand.

The broken treasure chest trembled.

Every gold coin that had vanished from it began emerging from the walls, the floor, and the seawater.

They circled Elara like a glittering storm.

Then the ancient voice spoke the words that revealed the true purpose of the royal gold.

"Every soul they imprisoned was a piece of me."

The jailer shook its head.

"Vaelor..."

The child smiled.

"Not Vaelor."

Cassian slowly raised his face.

Confusion replaced his reverence.

"What?"

The golden eyes fixed upon him.

"Vaelor was merely the son who betrayed me."

A terrible silence followed.

Then the being inside Elara whispered:

"I am Aurelion, the First King of the Deep."

And beneath Blackthorn Cove, something enormous opened its eyes.