I turned back to him. “It’s hard to think about dresses when I know my family could very well be hungry tonight, especially without me there to dive for pearls.” I almost mentioned my injured sister but stopped myself just in time. I had to control my emotions around Ceren, no matter how much he rankled me.

Before he could answer, the carriage rattled to a stop. I felt it rock as the driver leaped down and came to open our door.

“We’re here,” Ceren said, handing me out of the carriage. “Lake Elwin, the largest of the Linrose Lakes.”

Talin and his guards stood off in the distance, some mounted, others holding on to their horses’ leads as they waited for our arrival. Talin was still on his dapple gray stallion, looking as majestic as the day I’d seen him at Old Castle. There was a part of me that wondered if he’d help me if he knew what Ceren had planned for the Varenians. I wanted to believe that he’d helped me last night.

But he’d also convinced me to dance with him at the ball when he must have known how his brother would react. I couldn’t help thinking that Ceren was right. Talin was a lionfish, beautiful but dangerous, drawing me in even though I knew he could cost me everything.

When he spotted me crossing the field, he dismounted and walked forward to meet us. He bowed in front of me, his brown hair falling over his brow. “My lady.”

“Your Highness.” I curtsied, letting my own hair shadow my face, always conscious of my scar around him. I looked away quickly, pretending to take in the landscape. “I didn’t get to fully appreciate Ilara’s beauty during my journey here.”

I could feel his gaze on me. “I always believed Ilara was the most beautiful thing in the world, until I visited your home.”

I had promised myself I would avoid eye contact with him today, but my glance betrayed me at his words. Was he referring to Varenia, or Zadie? Or was it somehow possible he meant me?

Ceren’s hand landed heavily on my shoulder, staking his claim. “Thank you for meeting us, Talin. I know your men are busy, but I think what you’re about to see will impress even you.”

“Are you so difficult to impress, Prince Talin?” I asked.

He smirked in response, and something caught in my chest.

“Only when it comes to me,” Ceren said. “Isn’t that right, brother?”

Talin ignored him and took my arm. My pulse quickened at the contact. “I am very impressed with your bride-to-be,” he said over his shoulder.

I could feel the tension rolling off Ceren as he walked on my other side. Along the bank of the river, Ceren’s guards and the young page were inflating the air bag with a pair of large bellows.

Talin scratched at his hair. “I must say you’ve outdone yourself this time, Ceren. I have absolutely no idea what I’m looking at.”

Ceren continued on toward the device. “Not to worry. You will soon enough.” He unclasped his coat and handed it to the boy. “I’m afraid I need to undress for this presentation. My lady, please avert your gaze. I wouldn’t want to spoil our wedding night.”

I scowled and turned away gladly. A few moments later I heard a splash, followed by Ceren gasping at the cold. I turned around to see his head and bare shoulders floating above the water, his hair fanned out around him on the surface.

“Is it really necessary for you to do this yourself?” Talin asked. “It seems dangerous, and none of my men can remove their armor fast enough to help you should you need it.”

“I wouldn’t go in there if my life depended on it,” one of the guards muttered.

“At least let me take my armor off before you go in,” Talin said, but Ceren brushed off his concern.

“I won’t need help. Boy, hand me the hose and goggles.”

The waters around Varenia were crystal clear, and we were used to opening our eyes underwater, but this lake was murky and dark. The little page tossed the goggles to Ceren. He looked terrified, but it was hard to say if it was the water, Ceren, or the contraption that was scaring him. Probably all three.

Ceren placed the end of the hose in his mouth and took a few breaths to test it. Then he removed the hose for a moment and told Talin to time him before diving under the surface of the water.

One of the guards began to count off the seconds as we watched from the edge of the lake.

“How deep is it?” I asked Talin.

“I have no idea. Ten feet at the most, I’d think. You didn’t see it, but he weighted his feet against the buoyancy.” He thought for a moment. “You knew about this, didn’t you?”

“Your brother showed it to me, yes.”

“Where? In his study?”

I bit my lip. Did he suspect my real motives for lurking near there last night? “Yes,” I admitted.

He searched my face. “You’ve been to the flooded bloodstone mine, haven’t you?”

His eyes reminded me so much of home, it made my heart ache. “If you mean the lake in the bottom of the mountain, then yes.” I was only vaguely aware of the guard reaching two hundred.

“He took you all the way down there?”

I hesitated again. I didn’t like to lie, but I couldn’t admit out loud that I’d spied on the Crown Prince of Ilara, especially not to his brother. I gave a curt nod.

“Do you know why my brother created this device?” Talin demanded.

“Yes—to harvest the Varenian pearls for himself.”

I could tell by his reaction that he had already realized this. “I’m surprised my brother would show this to you. He knows it means the end for your people.”

“Our people,” I said, fiercer than I’d meant to. “And yes, he knows. I think he enjoys causing me pain.”

“Sadly, I’m afraid you might be right.”

I knew Ceren’s guards were watching us, but I took a step closer to him, taking in his scent of sunshine, sweat, and horses. “Doesn’t it pain you to think of what will become of them? You’ve seen Varenia now, eaten at our governor’s table. You know my family. You can’t just pretend we don’t exist anymore.”

I watched his profile for a response, but his expression didn’t change. Just when I had almost given up hope, he found my littlest finger in the folds of my skirt and wrapped his own finger around it. It was only a fraction of a moment, but it was a far more intimate response than I’d expected.

Lionfish! my subconscious shouted, and I twitched my hand away from his, but my heart pounded with something other than fear.

“That’s ten minutes,” the guard said. I looked over at the page, who knew that we’d reached the end of the test as well as I did.

“He should surface any moment now,” I said.

Behind me, the guard resumed counting.

A sense of dread washed over me, raising gooseflesh on my bare forearms. “You don’t understand. He hasn’t tested the device for more than ten minutes. He should have surfaced already.”

“He’s probably just showing off,” said the same guard who had vowed not to enter the water.

I looked at the page again, to where his foot rested just inches from the hose, and realized what he’d done.

Talin had begun to remove his leather armor, but I could see immediately that he’d meant what he said earlier—the process would take several minutes, and right now every second counted. I was frozen in place, unsure of what to do. Ceren’s death would be the end to all of Varenia’s problems. If he died, Talin would inherit the throne, and while I may not trust him entirely, I did not believe he would cause further harm to his own mother’s people.

And if Ceren lived, he could be affected for life. Who knew how long he’d been without oxygen? I thought of the poor page. He couldn’t be more than twelve years old. Ceren would be so furious and humiliated by all of this... It wouldn’t go well for anyone.

But in Varenia, if someone was in danger, you helped them, unless the risk to yourself was too great. Banishment was the only exception, and that was different. Dangerous criminals couldn’t be permitted to stay in Varenia, and at least they had a chance of survival. But how could I live with myself if I stood by and watched a person drown? Even if that person wouldn’t have done the same for me.

“Damn it!” Talin swore as he tore at one of the dozen buckles on his armor. “Someone do something!”

“Unbutton my gown!” I screamed, presenting my back to Talin. If he wanted his brother alive, there was no time for propriety. “Now!”

      21

After a moment’s hesitation, Talin unfastened the buttons as fast as he could, and I yanked off the sleeves and stepped out of the dress in my undergarments. Kicking off my slippers, I raced past the stunned guards and dived into the water, reminding myself not to inhale when I broke the surface.