Chapter 429 My home is here

“You don’t know half of the things your mother went through for your sake, Serena. She suffered so much before she was killed so mercilessly by these monsters. And do you know that your so-called mate has powers that came from killing a royal mermaid? Your mother was a royal, and she—”

Viola turned to look at the mermaid, her eyes hardening with coldness. “I don’t care who she was or anything she did. She gave us away to die. I will never forgive her for it. And if I were you, I wouldn’t insinuate that my husband’s powers came from killing my mother. I could still leave you here at his mercy, and you and I both know my husband has no mercy for your kind.”

Yasmin clamped her mouth shut, unsurprised by her cousin’s cold words, since she’d already been told how Serena tended to act cruel and cold on the surface, even though she carried the kindest heart underneath. However, Yasmin couldn’t see any kindness toward their kind within her. She looked too brainwashed by the creatures she’d grown up around to even consider, for a moment, that her home wasn’t here but with them in the sea.

Ivy had also warned her that Viola was stubborn, but it still hurt Yasmin to know that Viola had no idea what their mother had truly endured for their sake, how she’d been killed because of it, and that her so-called mate might well have been responsible. The killer was said to have come from Silver and had taken their mother’s heart to gain the abilities and powers that came with it.

Seeing that the mermaid wasn’t pushing the subject anymore, Viola resumed lifting her up, with Yasmin’s help, to reach the glass pod and to place her inside it.

It took so much effort to get her inside that Viola’s entire body was trembling by the end of it. The mermaid was so heavy, it was almost as though she’d soaked up water like a rag doll, making herself weigh twice as much as she looked. Viola hadn’t eaten since yesterday, and she’d woken straight into all this stress without any rest. It was really starting to get to her, but she pushed it aside, determined to complete this task first.

Viola began pushing the pod out of the room, grateful that the wheels moved so effortlessly despite the weight inside it.

She was still trying to figure out where and how to get the mermaid out of the building unseen, when Yasmin spoke up. “I don’t need a river or the sea to get home. I can call my Tidekin through any large, open body of water that isn’t enclosed, and it will open a portal straight to the sea.”

Viola was about to say High Tower didn’t have anything like that, when she remembered the large pool Sebastian had taken her to, to learn and practice her powers, and she made her way there instead, grateful it was a deserted place at every hour of the day.

When she arrived, Viola opened the pod and turned it toward the water, to let the mermaid slip in the water. Without wasting a moment, Yasmin dove in with a loud splash, swimming happily in circles, leaping like a dolphin, diving in and out again.

Viola watched the creature until her joyful leaping slowed, her tail’s shine finally restored, and she swam back toward the edge as the center of the pool began swirling in wide circles, opening a portal for her that would lead her back home to her family.

“You gave me your word your mate won’t come after mine,” Viola reminded her, unwilling to let any trouble fall on Sebastian because of this. She had released the mermaid to avoid anyone getting hurt but she wouldn’t like the same outcome to happen even after all her efforts.

Yasmin regarded her strangely. “You don’t actually think he’ll let you go free after this, do you, after you saved me? You should come home with me. I can make you breathe underwater, and—”

“My home is here,” Viola said with certainty, her hand coming to rest on her stomach. “I belong here, with him.”

Yasmin’s eyes followed Viola’s hand resting on her abdomen, and she narrowed her eyes. “You’re with his monster…”

Viola’s eyes hardened at the word the mermaid kept using. Though she was already aware that it was what the creatures of the sea called every werewolf, she didn’t like hearing it used for her unborn child, and she made that clear.

“Don’t you dare use that word here again, or I will change my mind and make sure he catches you again.”

Yasmin looked displeased by Viola’s threat. “Once I am in the water, he can’t catch me again. He only succeeded the first time because I was caught off guard and trying to protect Ivy.”

Hearing her sister’s name, Viola’s hardened expression softened slightly. “If it’s possible, once everything has settled, can I meet Ivy?”

“I can’t promise you that. It’s no longer safe for us to come to the surface. Your monster might harm us for his own selfish use, the same way he did your mother. You are following the same fate she did, and it’s a shame you’re following it with her killer.”

“He was born with those powers, mermaid,” Viola gritted out, realizing that she and this particular cousin of hers were never going to grow close, become friends, or see eye to eye. “He didn’t kill any mermaid. You were supposed to be his first, and I let you go.”

“Keep believing his lies, and you’ll end up just like her, Serena. I hope you come to your senses and return home. And whenever that day comes, you can always send your Tidekin to open a portal for you. Goodbye, cousin.” Saying that, Yasmin dove into the swirling center of the water, and in a flash, she vanished, the water slowly settling back into stillness, as though no mermaid had ever been inside it at all.

Viola felt the tension finally ease from her shoulders, and she could breathe again at the thought that she’d saved her sister and helped her out of trouble. It felt as though a heavy burden had been lifted from her back, allowing her to breathe freely again.

But the relief was short-lived, as the atmosphere around her suddenly changed.

A cold shiver ran down her spine, making her turn around.

She froze.

Her husband stood there, watching her, his eyes the color of frost and his aura bleeding outward like flames of snow.

He was furious. And his anger was directed entirely at her.