“Of course.” I gesture at the half-dozen guards in Thalassinian uniforms. “We have half an army to protect us.”

Tellin grins and pulls me into a grateful hug. “You are a true pearl.”

I give him a quick squeeze and then shove him away. “Get going,” I say. “You have farther to swim than I do.”

Tellin waves to his Acroporan guards and starts off in a more southeasterly direction. They will hug the coasts of Cuba and Haiti before rounding the tip of the Dominican Republic and heading due south to the palace. My little parade, on the other hand, just has to swim through the Florida Keys and then northeast to Thalassinia.

“Come on, guys,” I say to my guards as I take Peri’s hand. “Let’s go home.”

We haven’t gone fifty yards when someone swims out from behind a large rock formation to our left and blocks the path. The guards quickly tighten around me and Peri in a defensive circle. Each guard draws a Thalassinian dagger, a three-bladed knife that looks like a really sharp, handheld trident, and aims it at the intruder.

“P-p-princess Waterlily?” the girl stammers.

Through the wall of mer shoulders, I peer out at the great threat. She’s a small slip of a mergirl, not more than thirteen or fourteen, I would guess. Her long hair, so black it’s almost midnight blue, swirls around her in the current.

Her hands, clutched over her heart, are shaking in fear.

“Stop, you’re terrifying her,” I say to the guards. I place my hands on the shoulders of the two directly in front of me and propel myself over their mer-made wall.

Peri follows close behind.

“No, Princess,” Captain Frater shouts as I kick myself toward the girl.

Her tailfin is breathtaking. Scales in iridescent shades ranging from bright green to midnight blue. It looks like a giant peacock feather.

“I am Princess Waterlily,” I tell her, swimming closer.

Her wide-eyed gaze stares over my shoulder.

“My guards are putting their weapons away now,” I say, throwing a meaningful scowl over my shoulder in case they miss the fact that that’s an order.

I watch until they reluctantly resheathe their blades. Then I turn back to the girl.

“What’s your name?” I ask.

“Aurita,” she replies, her voice barely a whisper.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Aurita,” I say, extending my hand to her.

She takes my hand and shakes it gingerly, her own hand still shaking. She doesn’t let go.

I wonder why she’s waiting for me beyond the royal city of Desfleurelle. I don’t want to push her, though. She’s already terrified, and it might scare her off if I start asking questions.

I just smile and wait for her to talk. Eventually she does.

“Is it true, Princess,” she asks, “that you live on land?”

Ah, maybe she is considering a life on land and wants to know what it’s like. I’m more than happy to answer those questions.

I smile at her. “Yes, I do.”

“And that you love a human boy?” she asks, almost right on top of my answer.

“Yes.” My smile grows bigger. Maybe she’s a romantic. Or maybe she has her eye on a human boy of her own. “His name is Quince and—”

“Princess, he’s in danger,” she blurts.

“What?” My voice rises to a squeak, and I sense the guards close in behind me at my cry of alarm. Peri floats closer to my side. I try to calm myself enough to find out more. “What do you mean, he’s in danger?”

Despite the extra precautions of royal guards, being a mer princess is not usually a dangerous job. Not in Thalassinia, anyway. There has never been an assassination attempt in my kingdom, and those in other kingdoms have been few and far between.

It never once crossed my mind that my position might put Quince in danger. I’m not sure I could live with myself if he got hurt because of me.

“Not just him,” she explains, and my anxiety levels drop a little. “All humans.”

That’s not much better, but at least it’s not a specific threat against Quince.

“Please explain, Aurita.” I take the girl’s hands in mine, trying to calm her down. “Why are humans in danger?”

“My king,” she says, “King Zostero. He is angry at humans for treating the oceans so poorly. He wants revenge for the oil spills and the pollution.”

“Revenge how?” I ask, not liking the sound of this at all.

Her eyes, the same blue-green shade as her tailfin, dart around like she’s afraid of being overheard.

I lower my head close to hers. “You can whisper it to me,” I say softly. “No one else can hear you.”

I wave Peri away, and she swims back over to the guards.

With a nod, Aurita stretches up and places her mouth right next to my ear. “He plans sabotage,” she breathes. “He wants to destroy human technology so they can’t destroy our world anymore.”

I lean back and try to process this accusation. I just left King Zostero’s chamber, where he seemed more than happy to join my efforts to help the mer world recover from its environmental problems. I hadn’t sensed any underlying anger that might indicate his thirst for revenge. Then again, I had been pretty focused on my mission and on giving my speech about cooperation and the strength of a united front.

I want to question her, but without its looking like I doubt her accusation.

“Why are you telling me?” I ask. “I mean, why tell anyone? You don’t agree with your king?”