The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea

by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

“Ah.” Evelyn held her hands aloft, both stained with ink. “Any suggestions here? I’m out of my depth.” The girl looked at her with obvious disdain. “I’ll send your boy along, my lady.” Evelyn narrowed her eyes at her. “Yes, thank you. Please do send Florian along, and please send the Lady Ayer my regrets tonight. I’m just so very busy, as you can see.” The girl bowed, her face sour. She obviously didn’t think it was proper for Evelyn to decline the offer. She was right, of course: it wasn’t. But the last thing Evelyn could stand at the moment was making more polite conversation with her mother’s friend. Not this night, the first night of the voyage. She needed more time to be angry. “What a little —” Evelyn muttered, but she didn’t finish. The girl wasn’t Imperial. That much Evelyn could see straightaway from the spattering of freckles across her nose, the point of her chin. She may have lost her accent — Evelyn suspected Quark — but she could never escape her face. She’d done a great job adopting the judgmental nature of Imperials, though. Evelyn’s mother would have loved her.