The Mermaids Madness

.”
    “What about holding Varisto hostage?” Talia suggested.
    Danielle looked shocked. “And do what? Cut his throat if the empire refuses to help us?”
    Talia sighed. Danielle was so naive. “The threat might be enough to ensure their cooperation.”
    Danielle looked over at Snow. “The only other choice is to stop Lirea now. There are some who feel we should destroy the knife, even if it means letting Bea die.”
    “I’m impressed someone had the courage to suggest—”
    “Montgomery didn’t get the chance to finish his suggestion.” Danielle shrugged. “I’m afraid my response wasn’t very princesslike. I excused myself shortly after.”
    “Snow will figure this out,” Talia said. “Once she has, we can destroy the knife. That should take care of Lirea, right? Snow might need a few more days, but—”
    “Every day is another chance for Lirea to move her tribe elsewhere.” Danielle lowered her voice. “We should bring Morveren to the palace.”
    “No!” Snow rubbed her eyes as she turned away from the mirror.
    “Morveren might still be willing to help you,” Danielle said.
    “She might also be willing to cut my throat and steal the knife for herself,” Snow said, grabbing another book.
    Talia shook her head. “Not with me here she won’t.”
    “You don’t understand. What Morveren did to Lirea . . . it would have been kinder to let her die. And her magic, the way the knife feeds off of souls. I think it’s more than just the knife.”
    “What do you mean?” Danielle asked.
    Snow picked up a green jar. “Morveren was too weak to escape her island. She needed my help to fight her own defenses. But afterward, she was stronger. Because she had a chance to feed.”
    Even from here, Talia could see the guilt in Snow’s eyes. Snow had gone down to Morveren’s home, but hadn’t realized what the mermaid was really doing there.
    Danielle stood and walked to Snow, looking down at the knife and the books. “How long will it take you to free Beatrice?”
    “I can do this,” Snow insisted. She spun back to her mirror, knocking one of her books to the floor. The jar would have fallen if Danielle hadn’t grabbed it. “If people would just shut up and let me work.”
    “All right.” Danielle backed away and glanced at Talia before leaving. Talia stood to follow.
    Danielle waited for her inside the armory. “Snow’s exhausted. If she keeps working like this, she’s more likely to hurt herself than to save Bea.”
    Talia couldn’t argue. “If we bring Morveren here, we don’t know what she’ll do.”
    “We need her.” Danielle glanced away, her gaze distant.
    “You couldn’t have known Morveren would turn against us,” Talia said, guessing at Danielle’s thoughts. “What happened to James and the others isn’t your fault.”
    “But it is my responsibility,” Danielle said. “That’s what it means to be a princess, right?”
    Talia didn’t answer.
    “Can you keep Morveren under control?”
    That earned a smile. “I’ll fetch a scaling knife on the way down.”
    “Don’t hurt her if you don’t have to.” Danielle peeked through the archway. “I don’t suppose I could just command Snow to take a break.”
    “Allow me.” Talia walked silently to the mirror. Once there, she reached out and began to comb Snow’s hair back with her fingers, being careful not to disturb the bandage. Snow’s hair smelled like chrysanthemums, one of the scents Snow mixed herself. This one was sweeter than usual, with the faint scent of honey blended into the floral smell.
    Talia moved her hands to Snow’s shoulders, kneading the knotted muscles. Her thumbs moved up the base of Snow’s neck.
    Snow gasped as Talia pressed down on a particularly stubborn knot. “The spells in the knife weren’t meant to last this long,” Snow mumbled. “The knife was a stopgap to keep her alive.”
    “What does that mean?” Talia asked, moving her hands down to work the muscles between Snow’s shoulder blades. Snow groaned and lay her head down on the mirror. The bandage was still white, which meant Snow’s bleeding had stopped. That was a good sign.
    “Don’t know,” Snow said. “Gustan was just a component in her spell. But Lirea fought back. Morveren didn’t expect that.”
    “Like she fought back when we stole the knife.”
    “She’s strong. Morveren must have been mad when Lirea wasn’t interested in learning magic.” Snow yawned. “Morveren’s a good teacher. How can such