One Salt Sea: An October Daye Novel

“Your Majesty, the Countess Daye was merely undertaking her commission as she understood it, seeking to find the answers to the troubles which plague your fair Kingdom’s shores,” said Etienne, in a voice as slick as buttered silk. “There has been no treason here. You have my word on that.”


“Yours, but not her own? An interesting statement in and of itself.” The Queen’s breath was warm against my ear as she leaned closer, and hissed, “Blood will tell.” Even with her voice pitched so low it was barely audible, the power native to her bloodline—Siren and Banshee both run in her veins—hummed through my bones, chilling them. She can’t command you with her voice. But she can kill you.

“I believe the blade in your hand is distracting her such that she is unable to speak in her own defense,” said Etienne, still sounding utterly calm. I wasn’t sure whether I wanted to hug him for keeping things under control, or slap him for not pulling her off me. “If you would release her, I’m sure she would have a great deal of interest to share.”

There was a long pause. Finally, with a snort of derision, the Queen snapped, “Very well. But if she so much as twitches toward a weapon, both your lives are forfeit, for cause of treason.”

I found myself strangely relieved that she hadn’t said “for reason of treason.” I’m pretty sure the Queen would have slit my throat if I’d started giggling. “Cool by me,” I said, trying to move my vocal cords as little as possible.

“Then we are in agreement,” said Etienne. “Your Highness?”

The Queen pushed me away, making a sound that would have been rude coming from anyone who wasn’t royalty. I took advantage of the shove, using it to justify taking two long steps away from her before I turned, dropping immediately into a full formal curtsy. It was the only appropriate thing to do.

“Rise,” snarled the Queen. “I would like the explanation I have been promised.”

I straightened, keeping my expression neutral. It wasn’t easy. “Yes, Your Majesty.”

The threat of coming war had sea-changed the Queen of the Mists once again. Her white-foam hair was plaited back, making the alien lines of her face seem sharper and more angular. There was a new madness in her eyes, layered thick over the old, making it almost impossible to look into them for long. I forced myself to keep looking at her. Whatever she was looking for, she wouldn’t find it if I let her stare me down.

She stared into my eyes for a count of ten, a wordless curse on her snarling face. Bit by bit, the new madness broke, fading back into the old, familiar kind of crazy. It said something about my day that I viewed this as an improvement. “Well?” she demanded.

The power had gone out of her voice. She was still an angry monarch, but she was no longer an angry monarch on the verge of making my brain run out of my ears. “Whoever told you they saw me enter the Undersea was correct. I was invited by the Duchess of Saltmist, so that I could search the quarters of her missing sons for any signs of who might have taken them.” I didn’t mention that she’d invited me because I asked her to. Somehow, I didn’t see that helping my case.

Her eyes narrowed. “How did you survive this ‘visit’?”

“I can show you. May I get something from my pocket?”

“If you reach for a weapon, my guards will cut you down before you draw.”

“Kinda figured.” I slipped my right hand into my pocket as slowly as I could, producing the shell the Luidaeg gave me. It was warm to the touch, but I couldn’t tell how much of that was from my own body heat. “Have you seen one of these before?”

The Queen gasped. The sound grated against my bones. “Where did you . . .”

“You know the Luidaeg and I have a long-standing association. She wanted me to monitor the situation between the land and sea.” The shell was nothing but a communication device, but she didn’t need to know that. I sure as hell wasn’t going to show her any of the other things I was carrying.