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For the next twenty-four hours I couldn’t eat or sleep. I sat by the door to the shuttle room and awaited Frano and Lukas’ return.
It was a minute past midnight the following day when Frano showed, his clothes damp and his face as white as snow.
‘He’s gone,’ Frano whispered, staggering past me. ‘My brother is gone.’
‘What happened?’ I asked, following Frano out the double door where guards watched us with concern on their faces.
He ran all the way to his office, muttering as he went, ignoring my questions and pleas as though I didn’t exist.
‘Where are you going, Frano? What’s happening?’ I asked, seizing him by the wrist.
Finally, he stopped and turned to face me, his blue eyes wide.
I shivered.
Though he looked at me, it was as though he was staring right through me.
‘No need to worry. I’ll dedicate my life to finding my brother. And the merking.’ He nodded and smiled. ‘Yes. And if getting my brother back means I must create a mermaid, then I’ll do what it takes.’