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Straton smiled.
    “Shut up.”
    “Kyros.” Xanthus’s voice came from the kitchen. “We’re in here.”
    A foul stench assaulted Kyros the moment he entered the kitchen. “Oh gods. And I just got my stomach settled.”
    “Lucky you,” Xanthus answered. “Hades, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to human food.”
    Sara sat across from Xanthus and ate heartily. “You know, most people love my cooking.”
    Kyros covered his nose and mouth. “Yeah, well, that’s the problem.”
    “What?” she asked.
    “Cooking,” Kyros said. “Dagonians don’t cook. We hunt, and we eat what we’ve caught. Animal meat heated and burned beyond recognition—well, it’s like… I don’t even have anything to compare it to. But it’s worse than rotting flesh.”
    “Ugh. Now I think I’ve lost my appetite.” Sara scrunched up her nose. “You asked for it.”
    Kyros turned to his friend and coughed. “You did?”
    “I’m trying to get used to it.”
    “Impossible ,” Kyros said. “There’s no getting used to that.” He gestured to the plate filled with dead meat.
    “Perhaps I should try feeding you vegetarian food ,” Sara said.
    “Veget… you mean plants?” Kyros asked.
    “Yeah.”
    “Dagonians don’t eat plants ,” Xanthus said.
    “I give up.” Sara stood. “Just eat your live fish in front of those politicians you want to impress. They won’t think anything of it. Oh, and don’t forget to rip the fish’s head off first. I’m sure they won’t mind.” Sara stomped out the door, mumbling to herself.
    “I’m going to pay for that later,” Xanthus said.
    “ Pay for what?” Kyros looked around.
    “Sara’s mad at me.”
    “Mad? Why?”
    “Kyros, you have a lot to learn about women.”
    “Yeah, well, Dagonian women are different from humans… and mermaids for that matter.”
    “Right. But…”
    “But what?”
    Xanthus shook his head. “I don’t know what to do. Sara’s not making the adjustment well.”
    “Her adjustment on legs?”
    “No, no. The legs are fine. I don’t know what the problem is. Perhaps she’s just having difficulty adjusting to her new home.”
    “She’s not the only one,” Kyros said.
    “I know what you mean. Look, I’ve got to travel tomorrow, and I’ll be gone for a few days. I’m going to need you to keep a close eye on her. Make sure she doesn’t do anything stupid.”
    “Like cooking dinner for all of us ?” Kyros shook his head at the thought.
    “No, like putting herself in danger.”
    Xanthus paused for a moment, looking like he wanted to speak. Out of respect for his friend, Kyros waited.
    “Listen,” Xanthus said. “I know you don’t like Sara, and I understand why, but you need to know how much she means to me. If anything happens to her… I don’t think I could survive it.”
    Kyros paused, stunned by Xanthus’s words. He’d had suspicions Xanthus was under the mermaid’s spell. Why else would he choose to destroy everything he once held dear—his honor, his status, his reputation…? She’d even convinced him to move to Bermuda when he should have been moving closer to Washington DC. Xanthus’s words now seemed to confirm Kyros’s suspicions.
    Xanthus turned to leave.
    “Xanthus.”
    He turned back. “Yes?”
    “I do have one question.”
    “What’s that?”
    “Why did she choose to live here?”
    Xanthus shrugged. “I don’t know.” He sighed. “Sara insisted this was where we needed to be. She doesn’t seem to understand it herself. But she was adamant.”
    “And you let her make this decision because… ?”
    “You wouldn’t understand.”
    “No, I think I understand perfectly.” Because the little mermaid had his best friend in her beautiful clutches, and she could bend him to her will.

    Deep in her cave of lost treasures, Aella held a small mirror. The golden handle burned cold in her grasp. She trembled as she admired the most valuable treasure to be brought to her mountains of plunder—the Mirror of