Morrow and Laswell,” Her Grace decided before she rose from her place on the settee and crossed to the sideboard where she helped herself to a glass of brandy. Everyone in the room gaped at her, as she was a duchess and they did not drink brandy, nor did they serve themselves. Even Epworth looked stunned, as did Lady Lucinda.
“Anyone else?” Her Grace offered and held up a glass.
“I’ll see that everyone is served.” Adam rushed forward.
“What do you mean that our problems are larger?” Epworth asked.
Miranda knew he’d not believe what she suspected, and what Her Grace had decided.
“That unless there is peace between the villages, and a marriage, it will not be safe for any of us to sail, or live along the coast,” Adriana, the youngest of Miranda’s sisters, answered.
Her Grace looked to Adriana and nodded. “Endellion will not allow it to be. The seas have been churning, angrier by the hour, ever since the ship was wrecked.”
If she could not sail into Bocka Morrow, Miranda would be forced to remain at Hollybrook Park because there was no other road that they could take to travel anywhere in England without traveling past Castle Keyvnor.
Silence fell throughout the room and the only person who seemed confused by the conclusions was Somerton.
“Who is King Merrik?” Somerton asked. “I’ve never heard of him.”
“The king of Atargatis,” Diana answered.
He shook his head. “King of where?”
“He is the king of the merfolk,” Her Grace answered.
“There is a king of the merfolk?” Somerton asked in astonishment.
“It’s a child’s fairy tale,” Epworth insisted with little patience. “King Merrik was the son of Endellion, the Sea God of Cornwall, and lives on a mythical island called Atargatis.”
Somerton grinned. “This is all very fascinating.”
He was real, not a story invented for children, but Epworth would not believe otherwise. His grandmother had admitted as such yesterday.
Epworth shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Ghosts, pixies, witches, a mermaid king. None of it is logical. None of it is real.”
“He does exist,” Miranda insisted.
“Really?” Epworth lifted his head, humor in his blue eyes. “You’ve seen him?”
“Well, no,” she answered with a bit of fluster.
“I suspect he is about as real as the ghosts you’ve been chasing. The one that you claimed to have seen and kept you from the ball.” He crossed the room to retrieve a glass of brandy. “While all this talk of merfolk is interesting, we need to come up with a reasonable solution to keep Bocka Morrow from retaliating against Laswell.”
“I’m disappointed in you, Wesley,” Her Grace tisked.
“Why? Because I don’t believe all those childhood stories you used to tell me to be true? They were fairy tales, Grandmother. Mermaids don’t exist. Just as ghosts don’t either, or any other unnatural being the people of Bocka Morrow believe in.”
Miranda decided to ignore him and turned to her family. “Regardless of what Lord Epworth believes, the residents of Bocka Morrow will trust that Endellion is unhappy. But, will they accept that Laswell has already been punished for their crime and not seek retribution for fear Endellion’s rage will be brought down upon them?”
“It’s quite possible,” Epworth said after a moment. “If they believe in this nonsense, then they should be satisfied.” He shook his head. “Mermaids,” he scoffed. “It’s not like anyone has ever seen one before.”
“I have,” Miss Adriana announced.
Wesley stared at the youngest Vail sister. Was she claiming to have seen a mermaid? If so, her imagination was greater than Miranda’s.
“When?” Lynwood demanded.
“When I was much younger,” she quickly assured him. “Remember how I used to sneak out and swim when I wasn’t supposed to.”
“Yes,” her older brother answered.
“One time I swam out too far and couldn’t get back.”
Lynwood stiffened.
“A merman brought me ashore, saved me.”
“It was probably a villager or fisherman who saw you in the water,” Wesley offered.
“I am not mistaken,” Miss Adriana insisted with irritation. “Grandfather even thanked him for saving me, before I was punished for being so foolish.”
“Grandfather?” Miranda questioned.
“Yes. And he told me that I must not speak of it again.”
Which only instilled the idea that it was a merman and not a fisherman, Wesley concluded.
“Well, as we now know what the treaties involve, and what is expected for peace, there is no other option but marriage between our two families,” his grandmother pronounced.
Wesley glanced to Miranda to gauge her reaction, which was a mixture of shock and possibly fear.
“I agree,” Lynwood said. “Those in Bocka Morrow will be less likely to take revenge