“You are not one of us.” An accusing note slid into his tone as the point of his weapon swung toward me. “How did you obtain this?”

“It was a gift.”

As I gestured toward Ping’er’s body, the guard stiffened. He studied us for a moment, finally jerking his head toward us. “Come with me. Queen Suihe will want to meet you.”

Chapter 13

We trailed the guard along the passage that tunneled through the inky depths, the waters merging behind like it was sealing us in—a chill running through me at the thought. The shimmering liquid walls reminded me of the crystal panes in the Fragrant Coral Palace, except here my skin was damp with spray, my pulse racing each time a stray fin or tentacle lashed through the surface. I studied the guard, curious at how the water slid off him instead of soaking his garments. His cloak gleamed brightly, infused with some enchantment. Dragon yarn, the fabled cloth of the Sea Immortals that kept its wearers dry.

At the end of the passageway gleamed a circular door paved with mother-of-pearl and studded with turquoise. Coiled around the frame was an intricate carving of a sea creature. Golden horns curved from its head and bulbous eyes protruded from its face, its spiked tail curling along the ground. As I pushed the door, it held fast, a stinging pain shooting across my palm. I leapt back, smothering a cry.

“Use the pearl,” the guard barked, as though such knowledge were commonplace.

“Does it also control the passage formation?” Shuxiao gestured toward the watery wall that had formed behind us.

He nodded, pressing his ring into the small hole dug in the creature’s pupil. The door swung open, its other side adorned with the same carving. Guards stood by the entrance, uncrossing their spears at the sight of us.

“How does the door open from the other side?” I asked.

“The same way,” he said curtly. “Unless it’s sealed.”

“Why would it be sealed?” Shuxiao asked with a wide smile, one which invited the sharing of confidences.

The guard blinked, a little of his hostility easing. “Upon Queen Suihe’s command, whether in times of peril or when we need to capture an intruder. No one leaves here without Her Majesty’s permission.”

A disconcerting thought. As I glanced ahead, my caution dispersed. Silver flecks dusted the sands, the pathway lined with swaying fronds of emerald seaweed. The seabed was littered with shells in cream, lilac and rose, a few agleam in copper and gold. Some were shaped as fans and stars, others boasting elegant spires atop slender cones—as wondrous as those from the merchant at the Celestial market, all those years ago. A translucent barrier arced above, shielding the city from the sea—and this deep in, the lapping waters were midnight black.