Sea Spell (Waterfire Saga #4)(34)

“No, you listen to me, Sera. You’re in danger. Way more than you know.”

“Because of the spy. I know that, Mahdi. I—”

Mahdi cut her off. “What you don’t know is that the spy’s also an assassin. When Portia gives the word, he’s going to take you out.”

A chill crept up Sera’s spine. “He can try,” she said defiantly.

“According to Portia, he’ll succeed,” Mahdi said. “He’s a good shot, and he—or she—is close to you.”

“From now on, you’ll have bodyguards with you around the clock,” Des said.

“We have got to find this sea snake,” said Yazeed.

“What’s Portia’s timeline?” Desiderio asked.

“I don’t know,” Mahdi said. “I do know that they want to keep the spy in place for now, though. He just told them that you intend to attack Cerulea.”

“Did they believe him?” Sera asked hopefully.

“Of course,” Mahdi replied. “Why wouldn’t they? Every piece of info he’s ever given them has been accurate. Vallerio’s pulling troops out of Atlantica and the Southern Sea as we speak and bringing them back to Cerulea.”

Sera and Des grinned at each other. They quietly slapped tails.

“Yes!” Yazeed whisper-cheered.

Mahdi looked at them as if they were crazy. “I just told you that Vallerio knows your plans. And that he intends to annihilate you. That’s hardly a cause for celebration.”

“It’s a fake-out, bro!” Yazeed said. “We’re going to the Southern Sea.”

For the first time since Sera, Des, and Yaz had swum into his room, Mahdi smiled. “Awesome move,” he said. “As soon as I get back, I’ll do everything I can to convince Vallerio to move even more troops out of your way.”

His words caused Sera’s smile to fade. “Mahdi, you can’t go back. If they find out about you…” She couldn’t bear to finish the thought.

“I have to, Sera. I’m your only source of information there, the only one who can warn you when Portia tells her spy to kill you.”

“Mahdi’s right,” Desiderio said solemnly. “He’s a lot more valuable to us in Cerulea than he is in the Kargjord.”

Sera nodded, though it felt like she was ripping her own heart out. “If anything happens to you, I’ll never forgive myself.”

“It won’t. I promise. I’ll be gone before the wedding,” Mahdi said. “And you three better get gone now.” He glanced at the door to his room. “I have to head to another meeting with Guldemar soon.”

Yaz nodded. “Dude, be careful,” he said, reaching for Mahdi’s hand. He pulled him close. The two mermen slapped each other’s backs. Then Desiderio did the same.

Mahdi dug in his desk drawer and pulled out a small box. “Here are some more transparensea pearls. Take a lot. Enough to keep you invisible all the way back to the Karg.”

Yaz and Des took some pearls and cast them. Sera didn’t.

“I’ll catch up,” she said.

She couldn’t leave Mahdi, not yet. It had been so long since she’d seen him, and during that time not a second had gone by that she didn’t think about him, long for him, and talk to him—if only in her head. Were a few short minutes with him so much to ask for?

“Sera, it’s too dangerous. You can’t—” Yazeed started to say.

Desiderio cut him off. “Come on, Yaz.”

Yazeed shook his head, clearly unhappy. “We’ll meet you just past the north gate. Don’t. Get. Caught.”

As soon as they were gone, Mahdi cupped Sera’s cheek. She curled her fingers around his wrist.

“I barely recognize you,” he said, his eyes traveling over her face. “Who is this fierce warrior in front of me? What happened to the merl with the long hair, and the gowns, and the conch glued to her ear?” His voice was teasing, but the pain in his eyes was real, and raw.

Sera knew that pain well. It mirrored her own.

“Where’s the merboy I once met who only wanted to play Gorgons and Galleons with my brother?” she asked. “The one who didn’t talk much. Who definitely didn’t want anything to do with the principessa his parents picked out for him. Do you think we’ll ever find those mer again?”

Mahdi shook his head. “We’ll find better versions of ourselves, Sera. Better than what we were, better than what we are.”

He gathered her into his arms then and held her close. Sera squeezed her eyes shut, trying to hold back her tears.

“Mērē dila, mērī ātmā,” he whispered, his cheek against hers. It was Matalin mer for My heart, my soul. “I’ll be with you soon, Sera, I promise. Until then, be careful. Please.”

“Swear to me that you’ll be careful. Swear it,” Sera said fiercely.

She had a terrible, unshakable feeling that something would go wrong, that she’d never hold him close or look into his beautiful eyes again. She took his face in her hands and kissed him deeply.

It was Mahdi who broke the kiss. “You’ve got to leave,” he said, his voice gentle but urgent. He touched his forehead to hers. “Good-bye, Sera. Never doubt that I love you,” he said, and then he let her go.