The Mermaids Madness

you’re so skilled, why couldn’t you stop Lirea from doing that to you?”
    Morveren bowed her head, staring at the lumps of scars and misshapen scales. “I never claimed to be a master. Her wind spirits took me by surprise, and her madness gave her strength. I was able to stop her from killing me, but that was all. Even if I had the strength to overpower her, I would have destroyed her mind in the process. That’s the other risk of sheer, brute force. You may crush that which you hope to control.”
    “Sounds like Talia again,” Snow commented.
    Morveren lay back and smiled. “Now see if you can persuade that poor beast to bring me some of that fish.”

    By the following morning, Stub refused to come out on the deck if Snow was anywhere to be found.
    Morveren had assigned one task after another. She would splash water onto the side of the cutter, telling Snow to freeze a single drop without affecting the rest. When Snow finally managed that, Morveren sent her off to cast an illusion only one person would see. That took most of the evening, but eventually Snow returned, exhausted and exhilarated, leaving behind one very confused chef.
    Morveren divided her time between rest, Lannadae, and Snow. Currently she and Lannadae were shut away in Danielle’s cabin, enjoying a morning nap. How much sleep did mermaids need, anyway?
    Snow turned her attention back to the carpenter who was working to repair a section of the starboard railing. Morveren hadn’t given her any more lessons, so Snow had been making up her own. She hummed to herself, gathering her magic for another attempt.
    “There you are.” Danielle smiled as she approached. Talia followed close behind. Danielle carried Stub in her arms, but the cat hissed and fled when he spotted Snow.
    “Can this wait?” Snow asked, still concentrating on the carpenter. “I’m this close to making him pick his nose.”
    Danielle held up a biscuit. “I’m glad to hear you missed breakfast for something important.”
    Snow tried one last time, but the pick turned into a scratch at the last moment, and she gave up. She scowled at the carpenter, then grabbed the biscuit. Her mouth watered at the taste of raisins and cinnamon. “Thank you,” she mumbled between bites. “I’ve been practicing, that’s all.”
    “So we’ve noticed,” said Danielle. “You wouldn’t know why Bradley refused to cook this morning, would you? He was saying something about last night’s peas screaming in pain and trying to climb out of the pot when he boiled them.”
    Snow tried not to laugh and nearly choked on her biscuit.
    “The poor man’s still praying for forgiveness for every legume he’s ever tortured,” Danielle added, lips curled as if she couldn’t decide whether to smile or scold.
    “Captain Hephyra says the water ahead grows thick with seaweed.” Talia twisted her hair into a braid as she spoke. “It’s slowing our progress, and it could be dangerous.”
    “It is dangerous,” Morveren said, her voice as clear as if she stood beside them. Morveren crawled across the deck, followed closely by her granddaughter. “We’re here.”
    “Where is here?” Talia leaned out to study the water ahead. “This is practically a swamp.”
    Snow joined Morveren at the rail. Up ahead, clumps of dark red plants carpeted the waves. From here, it looked thick enough to stand on.
    “It’s gotten a little overgrown,” Morveren commented.
    “A little?” repeated Talia. “That morass could sink an unwary ship.”
    “That’s the idea.” The muscles in Morveren’s arms were like ropes as she pulled herself higher. “I like my privacy.”
    The crew was already trimming the sails, bringing the Phillipa around so she skimmed the edge of the seaweed.
    “I’ll need help getting through this mess,” Morveren said. “I enchanted the plants to stop anyone who tries to get too close.”
    “Why would you do that?” asked Talia.
    Morveren looked at Snow. “I’m sure you’ve collected other trinkets over the years, in addition to that mirror you spoke of. Would you let strangers snoop through your things? Unfortunately, the plants have spread in my absence. And there may be . . . other dangers. I never expected to be away so long.”
    Snow hoped her eagerness didn’t show. Enchanted plants? She knew the fairy folk used similar magic, but they guarded those secrets closely. “What other dangers?”
    “That depends on how much those plants have grown,” said Morveren.