By the time the sun rose over the water early the following morning, I had been drifting in and out of sleep for hours. Whenever I closed my eyes, I would hear Ani's and my voices and our heated argument. It wasn't until I had opened my eyes and seen the sun streaming through the windows in my suite that I heard the knock on the door. I sat up with a jolt, rubbing my tired eyes.

Everything came rushing back: Ani, our argument, the tears in her eyes as I turned my back on her and left the suite, my desperate swim to Aegrem, and the worried eyes of Uncle Jay as I passed out. Rallying my depleted strength, I rose from the bed and swam unsteadily to the door.

When I opened it, Aunt Nerissa was on the other side, worry etched on her face. I gave her a weak smile, ushering her inside. My stomach grumbled as I saw the food tray in her hands, reminding me it had been long since I'd last eaten. Thank you. My signs were unwieldy and rough, but I could tell by the expression on her face that she understood me.

She swam towards the bed, setting the tray on the side table. When I saw you two in the entryway, you passed out on Jay's shoulder... Gods, Drew. I didn't know what to think. What happened? Are you okay? Where are Ani and your parents?

Though I tried to hide it, the wince that crossed my face at Ani's name didn't go unnoticed. After pulling on a clean shirt and returning to bed, I picked up a piece of shrimp and popped it into my mouth before responding. Ani and I had an argument yesterday. I couldn't stay in Pelathas, so I swam here. I made it to the palace before I passed out. No one else besides you and Uncle Jay knows I'm here.

I looked up and met Aunt Nerissa's gaze, making sure she saw the unspoken words in my eyes. I didn't want anyone else to know I was here. That would only invite questions I was certainly not ready to answer. She nodded, but I could see she wasn't happy about it. Drew, please don't ask me to keep this from your parents. They're our oldest friends.

I let out a tense breath. I wouldn't ask you to. No sooner had I lowered my hands than the door opened. Uncle Jay stuck his head in, worry and exhaustion shadowing his eyes.

"Good, you're awake. How are you feeling?" He swam inside, meeting Aunt Nerissa halfway. She kissed him on the cheek before taking his hand.

"Better, thank you," I replied. And I meant it. The few hours of sleep I got had partially restored my strength, but I still couldn't swim home. I met Uncle Jay's gaze, hoping he saw the gratitude in my eyes. "I mean it. Thank you both so much."

I knew by how their faces darkened that shadows had entered my eyes. I looked down and realized my hands had clenched on the blankets. Uncle Jay exchanged a glance with Aunt Nerissa, and when the latter's eyes widened as she vehemently shook her head, I knew what was coming.

I took a steadying breath and blew it out before speaking. "I've been experiencing some debilitating headaches for the past few weeks. I had just figured that a combination of stress and lack of sleep was causing them. However, Ani and I realized yesterday that the pendants' reappearance might have been causing them. And then..." I trailed off, squeezing my hands into fists.

It wasn't until Aunt Nerissa took my hand that I realized I was shaking. "Then, in a sudden, unexpected rush of anger, I heard Ross's voice in my head.

"'I know what your family was. I know who you are, Drew Ryan Mercer. The son of a murderer. I am the only one with this information, but I can do much damage with it if prompted. Imagine what would happen if Ani were to find out. She would leave you. And you would be all alone. Just as you should have been all along.'"

"I snapped." Shame crossed my face as I recalled the words I'd shouted and Ani's response to them. "'Why won't you just leave me alone?' The words burst from me with the might and force of a tsunami. Ani flinched as if I had struck her. I wanted to tell her that I loved her and that the words weren't (and would never be) directed at her, but nothing came out when I opened my mouth."

I let out a shaky breath, swiping at my eyes as a few stray tears threatened to escape. A lump formed in my throat, but I shoved it down. "I saw the worry in her eyes and knew she wanted to help me, but she didn't know how. It was the fear in her eyes that broke me, though.

"I couldn't bear the thought of her being afraid of me. I told her she didn't understand, and she told me to help her understand. She said I knew Ross was just angry and jealous. That's the only reason why he wrote the note in the first place. And then she asked me why it was affecting me so much."

I stopped and took slow, deep breaths. My voice shook when I spoke again. "I knew Ani hadn't meant it harshly, but my temper was already on a hair-trigger, and it snapped as the word left her mouth. 'Because he was RIGHT!' My voice rose until I was shouting, and she'd flinched at the echo.

"'A part of me will always agree with what Ross called me, no matter how often others tell me the opposite. The son of a murderer.'" I didn't fail to notice how Aunt Nerissa and Uncle Jay flinched at the title. "'I was this close to killing Wyatt. If Sara hadn't stopped me, I would have.'"

This time, when I paused, I dragged a trembling hand down my face. I knew nothing I could say would make either of them stop loving me, but a part of me still balked at telling the rest of the story. As I opened my mouth to continue, I felt hands clasp mine, squeezing gently.

"I wanted to." My voice broke, but I forced myself to keep going. "Deep down, a small part of me still considers myself Jacob Mercer's son. That's why I hadn't wanted to tell Ani. I didn't want her to see me as someone to be afraid of—someone to hate. Like I see myself."

Aunt Nerissa let out a sob, a hand flying to her mouth as she swam to me and pulled me into her arms. I knew she had struggled with self-loathing at one point in her life, and to see me now battling it had to be agonizing. I could feel her shoulders shaking as she sobbed, and that only made me cry harder.

I heard Uncle Jay take a deep, shuddering breath and then let it out slowly. "You know, Rissa and I had a pretty nasty fight when we were your age. It was stupid and petty, but it didn't feel like it then. She came to Pelathas for a few nights to cool off, and when she got back, we both realized how dumb our fight had been. Even then, I knew that she would never stop loving me. It may have felt like it at the time, but look at us now. We're happier than ever." He swam to Aunt Nerissa, pulling her into his arms.

I could tell by the look on her face that she knew what he was talking about. She hugged him tightly, and the love between them was evident. My heart ached as I thought about Ani and the words (both spoken and unspoken) between us. "I don't know." It was my turn to take a shuddering breath, and I felt tears gather in my eyes as I exhaled. "I want to go and apologize to her more than anything, but I don't know if I can face her."

Uncle Jay nodded. "Do you want us to come? I know your parents are worried sick about you." A pang of guilt slammed into my heart as the words left his mouth.

I nodded. I inwardly winced at the thought of making that swim again, even though I knew it would probably be better than apologizing via a note. After I had finished the rest of the shrimp and drained the bubble tea, the three of us left the palace. Whenever I tried to rehearse what I would say to Ani, I just kept hearing the words I'd shouted. "'WHY WON'T YOU JUST LEAVE ME ALONE?!'"

It wasn't until Uncle Jay put a hand on my arm that I realized we had arrived in Pelathas and were approaching the palace. I blinked, realizing I had been immersed in my thoughts the whole time. My hands trembled, but I clenched them into fists. "We're right here." Uncle Jay's calm, soothing voice dispelled any lingering anxiety and shame I had left.

When we got to our suite, I closed my eyes, took a deep, steadying breath, and let it out slowly. The knock sounded extra loud in the tense silence that had fallen over us. My heart skipped a beat as the door opened. The first thing I noticed was the pallor in Ani's expression. Her red-rimmed eyes were bloodshot and glassy; her nose was pink; the dark circles under her eyes were stark.

She looked like she hadn't slept in days. I tried to speak, but her tearful gasp stopped me. When she threw her arms around me, I held on for dear life, as if I were a sinking ship and she was my lifeline. "I'm so sorry," I breathed into her hair, clutching her tightly. "I didn't mean—I wasn't—"

When she silenced my words with a kiss, I melted into her. The kiss conveyed everything that needed to be said—how sorry I was, how much I regretted the words I'd shouted, how much I loved her. She clung to me like I would disappear if she let go. After several long moments, we finally broke apart, clutching one another's hands.

"I'm so sorry—"

"I didn't mean—"

We both smiled nervously at our verbal collision. I nodded at Ani, encouraging her to go first. She took a deep breath, exhaling deeply before speaking. "Gods, Drew, I'm so sorry. I never intended to upset you. I'm just worried about you. I love you so much; it would kill me if something happened to you."

A few tears slipped down her cheeks when she finished speaking, and when I reached out to brush them away, she didn't flinch. I held her hands tightly and gazed into her eyes, filled with my love for her. "You are my whole world. I'm not used to good things happening to me; being a pessimist has become my defense mechanism. I have to admit that Ross's note got to me.

"Somehow, without knowing the intimate details of my past, he managed to pinpoint and isolate my deepest and worst fear: abandonment. When Faye died, I felt like I lost the other half of my heart. I shut everyone and everything out. I didn't leave my suite or get out of bed. It took me until a few weeks after her funeral—the day I met you—to realize that she wouldn't have wanted me to wallow and grieve her forever."

I inhaled a shuddering breath, squeezing my eyes shut as I exhaled. "I know that you don't—and would never—judge me based on my past or who my parents were, but with a biological father like mine, it's hard not to fear that I'll eventually turn out to be like him. After what happened with Wyatt—" I broke off, breathing heavily as the memory threatened to smother me.

Me. Wyatt. Sara. The dagger in my hands. Sara swiping the dagger at the last second to make the killing blow.

She squeezed my hands as she gazed at me. "You've got to stop beating yourself up about that. No one blames you because there's nothing to blame you for. You didn't make the killing blow; Sara did. Judging by their relationship before his death, her reasons seemed valid. And as for Ross, don't let him get to you.

"He doesn't know you like I do. You are a kind, generous, and loving merman, and I am incredibly fortunate to call you my husband." She kissed me, slowly and sweetly, when the words left her mouth.

Mom and Dad came by our suite later, relieved to see me and Ani together. The former smiled at Ani before pulling me into a hug, her relief washing over me like a tidal wave. "Oh, gods, Drew. We were so worried. Are you okay?"

I took Ani's hand, squeezing gently. She didn't let on whether she felt the shudder that rippled through my body. "I am now." And I meant it. Ross was the furthest thing from my mind as I looked at my wife and my parents, those who would do anything to keep me safe. And vice versa.

No matter how many times Ross tried to break me, he couldn't dig deep enough to break our bond. It was something that he didn't have—and never would. I drifted off to sleep later that night with Ani's head on my chest, feeling more relaxed than I had in a long time.

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