I glanced all around, but there was no sign of the mystic. Confused and slightly alarmed, I swam over to Veronica and Julian to join their conversation. They both stopped speaking and looked at me as I approached them. Likely my face was giving away my tumult of emotion.
“What happened?” Veronica asked, just as Julian asked, “Are you okay?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted, and then told them both what had just happened regarding the merfolk mystic.
“She approached you?” Julian asked, when I had finished, even though I had just told him the full story. Surprise widened his features.
“Yes,” I said, and pointed toward where I had been standing. I reiterated what I felt was the most important part, “She knew about Elva’s curse.”
“I’m sorry,” Julian said. “Forgive me. It’s just that she doesn’t
