Book Seven: Chapter 165

But her attention was caught by the figure running down the dock, a panicked look on his face. Captain Francois’s arm hung poorly, and one of his eyes was swollen shut. He was already halfway down the dock, his boots thumping on the wood. The destruction of Paradise had the merfolks’ attention, but Francois had Leilani’s.

She dove all the way down to the bottom, her tail flexing powerfully as she raced ahead of the man. Even at full speed on the dock, he couldn’t hope to keep up with a mermaid powered by anger, and Leilani surfaced ahead of him, letting out a shriek of rage as she hurled her father’s trident straight into Captain Francois’ chest. The tines caught him in the ribs and he jerked backward violently, his body flopping on the sanded wood as he came to a stop.

“Got you,” she muttered as she fell back into the water where the royal guard caught up with her. She punched at them as they tried to wrestle her into submission, suddenly aware they had failed to contai