The Sea Witch by Katee Robert

Author:Katee Robert [Robert, Katee]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781951329020
Publisher: Trinkets and Tales LLC
Published: 2020-09-06T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

Zurielle

There’s a reason I didn’t find the time to call home those two days I was in the Underworld before the auction. And I certainly had no intention of doing it now. Too bad I don’t have a choice.

My father’s voice in my ear is usually a comfort. He’s larger than life in a completely different way from Ursa. They both dominate a room, but my father has been the cornerstone of my life. My protector. Sometimes my jailor. The one who lifted me up, but then ensured I didn’t fly too far.

If Alaric is to be believed, he’s also a very bad man who does very bad things.

I wish I could call Alaric a liar, could dismiss his story out of hand. I can’t. There’s too many little things that line up with what he’s said, things that I’ve ignored until this point. Things I can’t afford to ignore any longer.

And the longer I’m outside of his house, the better I can breathe. Surely that’s not normal? I have no doubt my father loves me, but love isn’t supposed to constrict around a person until they can’t manage a full inhale. It’s not supposed to feel like a trap around your leg.

Right?

“Zuri? Are you okay? I’ve been worried sick.”

I open my mouth to assure my father that I’m fine, but that’s not what comes out. “Do you kill people, Daddy? I know that you oversee stolen goods and drugs. Do you oversee human trafficking, too? How deep does the rot go?”

He’s silent for several beats, his breathing coming down the line. “Where are you? It’s time for you to come home.”

Anger flares. It’s not solely directed at him. A healthy chunk is aimed directly at me, at my willful ignorance. There were so many times over the years when I could have asked questions, could have pushed against the boundaries he built up around me, but I was content to be a bird in a cage. Spoiled to an absurd degree, but trapped all the same. Trapped. He kept me all but locked up, yes, but I didn’t challenge him once. Not until I met Alaric. Not until I left Olympus.

“I’m not coming home. Not when my father’s a liar and a thief and maybe even a murderer.”

“Zurielle Ti Rosi, don’t you dare take that tone with me.”

“Or what, Daddy? Are you going to threaten to break every bone in my body?”

He huffs out a breath, sounding like a bull about to charge. “You’re my daughter, and I know what’s best for you.”

“I notice that you didn’t respond to that. Is it because you’ve made that threat so many times, you can’t begin to guess who I’ve been talking to?” Oh, I’m truly angry now. I didn’t even realize how angry until this very moment. “How could you? You bully and preach and force me and my sisters into the boxes you think we should fit into, until we’re damn near paragons of virtue, until we can’t make

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