Page 125 of A Yulean Sister’s Guide to Getting Kidnapped

Coltar came to a full stand, wiping the blood away from his face, before he fully turned away from me.

I worked the ties harder, need making me pull so hard I was pretty sure I was going to hurt myself, but I didn’t care. I could feel the progress now, how loose it was.

“All you had to do was stay out of my fucking way.” He slung a punch, landing across Adrian’s jaw. “That’s all you ever had to do, but you couldn’t just do that. Not even for me!”

His dagger was back up, ready to plunge down into Adrian’s chest. “I thought the idea of watching you rot in a dungeon while I lived would be gratifying, but ending you myself doesn’t sound so bad.”

I could feel the ties come just enough that I could slip my hand out. I heard my thumb pop as I did, which probably wasn’t a good thing, but I didn’t even register the pain.

“Stop,” I yelled, hurling myself towards them.

Coltar turned to look at me, but it was too late. I did the only thing I could think of.

I grabbed him and pushed, throwing us both overboard.

My body hit the water hard, a loud splash quickly turning silent as we plunged towards the depths. I didn’t know how to swim, but I just kept kicking, taking us lower and lower. The bolt of light came, but it didn’t matter, I was going to push us down.

I knew what it would mean for me, but Adrian would be safe. The world would be safe from this monster, and that felt okay to me. Coltar tried to push away from me, tried to stop us from sinking, but I was more determined than he was. I was sure he was panicking, making our strength difference less obvious.

That similar pressure I’d felt before, the one pressing down on my lungs, threatening to end me, came again, but I didn’t feel anxious about it anymore. This was a choice I had made.

My senses began to dull at their edges, and I did have a moment of panic, but I knew it would be short.

That was until suddenly it felt like I’d been inflated, my lungs filling with fresh air.

I opened my eyes, expecting the sharp sting of salt, but instead coming face to face with someone I recognized well.

It was the siren.

“Thank you for protecting our city.” Her voice was ethereal. “You have fulfilled your duty thus far wonderfully.”

I knew my vision was too good for being in the ocean, but I saw them drag Coltar away.

I wanted to say anything, thank you, how did you find me, something. I wanted to demand real answers. But nothing came, as if my mouth was taped shut.

“Live well, Princess. Keep the necklace safe. You are our best protector.”

That was the last thing I heard before the world around me turned black.

Chapter 44

Adrian

Sage and Coltar dove off the edge, his knife that was seconds from plunging through my chest clattering to the ground.

No, no, no.

I tried to get upright, but the pain in my tail was too much, sending me careening back down. I did it again, using the side of the ship to steady myself more.

The light was there, a beacon towards her like before, I just had to reach it.

It took some adjusting, but every moment felt like a precious one to lose. Once I was up I turned so my back was to the dagger and grabbed it, maneuvering to try to cut myself out of these bonds.

The knots were tight, but I was able to wedge the blade between the ground and my hands, sawing it until the strands were loose enough to fall free.

It was too late, I was taking too long. I tried to search for that beam of light, but it never reappeared. Without another thought, I jumped into the ocean. My eyes were left open, the salt burning, but I didn’t care. At night it was hard to see them. Had they really gone down that far?

I began swimming down, it was a bit aimless, but I couldn’t just do nothing. I was running out of air quickly, but I tried to ignore the feeling.