sleep, Maeve cracked open her eyes at the sound of a young male voice. He was speaking Eberoni, but with an accent she’d never heard before.
It had been an extremely long swim, broken by a few rest stops on tiny uninhabited islands that the seals had known about. Shortly after dawn, they had finally reached the northern coast of what she believed was the Isle of Secrets. Utterly exhausted, she hadn’t bothered to even look at the island or shift into human form. Her seal friends had shown her a secluded cove, and there they had scooted onto two flat rocks for much-needed sleep.
“Quentin,” a female voice replied to the boy. “Leave them be. They look tired.”
“But won’t it be easier to kill one of them if they’re asleep?”
Maeve jerked completely awake.
“The queen loves sealskin,” the boy continued. “If we bring her a dead seal, she might give us less work to do.”
The queen? Lobby hadn’t mentioned a queen, only a sea witch. Maeve lifted her head to look at the newcomers. Two people, one a young woman and the other a boy who looked about nine or ten, were on the western edge of the cove. They were descending a path down a grassy sand dune to the beach.
The woman was dressed in a plain, unbleached linen shift with a ragged hem a few inches above her bare feet. Around her shoulders, she had knotted a linen shawl, and in her hands, she carried a large basket. The boy, dressed in shorts and a ragged shirt, was also barefoot. When he reached the beach, he ran toward the water, lifting a primitive, makeshift spear.
Damn! He actually meant to attack them. Maeve slipped into the water and shifted. As she straightened so the water came to her shoulders, the young woman and boy flinched, dropping the basket and spear.
“What the . . . ?” Quentin retreated a step.
“Please don’t hurt the seals,” Maeve told them. “They’re my friends.” At the sound of her voice, the seals woke up and started barking at one another. Calm down, Maeve told them. I’ll make sure you’re not harmed.
“How did you . . . how can you look . . . ?” The young woman glanced at the other seals, who had quieted down. “Are they like you?”
“No,” Maeve replied as she took a step toward the shore. “I’m a selkie. It’s my gift as one of the Embraced.”
The young woman stiffened with shock. “N-no. That can’t be true.”
Quentin pointed at her. “She’s lying! We’re the only ones who are Embraced.”
Maeve looked them over. With their ragged clothes and bare feet, they didn’t appear to be part of an army. “Are the two of you Embraced?”
The young woman moved closer, eyeing Maeve with suspicion. “There are many Embraced on this island. We were told we’re the only ones.”
“That’s right!” Quentin glared at Maeve. “So you’re a liar. And a fraud, pretending to be the queen! I’m going to tell!” He darted back up the grassy sand dune.
“Quentin, no!” the young woman shouted, but the boy disappeared over the crest.
Pretending to be the queen? What on Aerthlan did the boy mean by that? Maeve waded toward the shore, anxious to get some answers.
The young woman approached her. “I don’t know where you came from or how you found us, but you had better leave now.” She motioned to the seals. “And you should take them with you.”
“I will.” Maeve joined her on the beach. “I just have a few questions first, if you don’t mind.”
The young woman gave her a wary look. “I have questions, too.” She unknotted her shawl and handed it to Maeve. “Here. You must be cold.”
“Thank you.” Maeve tied the shawl around her hips. Her long hair was covering her breasts.
“We must hurry.” The young woman glanced nervously to where Quentin had disappeared.
“Why? Is there an Embraced army hereabouts?”
The young woman gasped. “How . . . ?” She stepped back with a frightened look. “How can you know about us? Where did you come from?”
“The Isle of Moon.” Maeve assumed this young woman was one of the babes confiscated by Lord Morris. “You came from Eberon, right?”
“I—I don’t think so.” The young woman shook her head. “I’ve lived here as long as I can remember.”
“Do you have parents here?”
The young woman frowned. “Wh-what are those?”
Maeve winced. “There was no one to raise you, take care of you—”
“Oh, you mean the queen’s servants.”
Another mention of a queen. Maeve recalled the dream she’d