Kingdom of Sirens and Monsters by Tara Quinn

Author:Tara Quinn
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tara Quinn

There was an intense, twisting feeling in my heart that I’d never felt before, like a dagger was continuously piercing through it.

We had stopped for the night, nestled in a grove situated only a couple of hours from Coronis. Long snaking lines of kelp grew all around us, hiding us from any passing travelers, and long jagged thermal cracks surrounded our campsite. They’d been long since established in the bedrock of the ocean floor and provided heat against the midnight chill of the deep seawater.

We’d tethered our seahorses nearby and then promptly dug into our rations—each of us completely famished from the long day’s journey. The food now lay sprawled on the open flap of my satchel—there was salmon and cod, rainbow trout, sea berries, oysters, and clams. I’d had my fill of clams, but Coral and Leif were still devouring the food. It didn’t matter if we ate it all—we could get more tomorrow in Coronis.

Coral avoided most of the selection, her nose wrinkling at the raw fish, but dug into the flavorsome sea berries. Leif, on the other hand, heartily ate the remaining food, his eyes nearly rolling back in his head as he savored the taste of each fish he popped into his mouth.

I sat hunched against a rugged rock, my eyes darting between the two of them. They’d been conversing with ease for hours as they ate. It seemed as if they had endless things to talk about, but I hadn’t been paying close enough attention to recall specifics. My mind kept going to that dark place, the tormenting, twisting feelings continuing to prod at me.

Why was it so easy for Leif to talk to her, but when it came to me, it felt like pulling at teeth? Was I not good enough? Did I need to impress her more? What would she be impressed by? It seemed like my title, the life I could offer her, and the endless gifts I could buy her were not tempting enough. Not good enough!

I ground my teeth, watching the pair silently, and felt that strange feeling tear at me from the inside.

“Do sirens love fish as much as undines do?” Coral asked with a frown, as she watched Leif wriggle an oyster free and slurp it from its shell. Leif had the decency to look sheepish as he swallowed his oyster and wiped his mouth.

“They don’t enjoy oysters as much,” he admitted. “To be honest, the sirens are rather materialistic—and their eating habits are no different. Caviar and crustaceans are favored among the higher ranks because it’s more a status symbol—but mer-hearts have always been a prized food.”

Coral shuddered and looked away, and Leif returned her grim expression.

“It’s barbaric, how they’ve hunted your kind. We may eat fish, but we’d never go as far as to kill your kind for food. Or for power, even.”

“But mer-hearts are still valued,” she pressed, with a pointed look. “They’re used in tonics and potions. They can revert curses... even if you

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