My Weird Secret Life

Chapter 33: Strangled

      "I'll go with you." I stopped at the sound of the person's voice. I was surprised to see it was Oceana, I looked at her and decided I didn't have time to argue. I swam and didn't talk to her. I didn't want to talk to her. "So what are we doing?" I sighed,"We're going to the palace I need to check something in Agua's room. Just for reference." " Yes, I understand that but why. What did he do?" I don't know why but I was frustrated with Oceana. "For a reason, okay! It's none of your business so stop asking!" What I said was processed in my mind and I saw Oceana's hurt expression. "Oceana, I'm so sorry. I just . . . I don't know, everything's happening so fast and everything about what Kylie said. I never did any of tha-" I stopped myself. I guess I did know. "I'm sorry." I said instead. I looked down at my tail and felt a soft hand touch my arm. My eyes snapped to Oceana's hand on my arm and then they traveled to her face. "Hey, it's okay. You have nothing to apologize for. You've been through a lot haven't you?" She had a small smile on her face and I felt ready to bawl. I nodded my head. I couldn't trust that I wouldn't burst into tears. I don't think I would've been able to stop. I could tell, and I felt the same way, Oceana didn't feel comfortable giving me a hug yet. But it was okay. We were still developing a friendship. And I could tell her words were everything to her. She meant them. I smiled back and she pulled her hand away. "We need to go somewhere fast. Think you can keep up?" She smiled,"Thought you'd never ask, your Majesty." We started our way toward the hospital at intermediate speeds. "We're going toward the Pirates Cove hospital. Wanna race?" She nodded or what I thought was a nod I couldn't tell from all the other blurs. I swam even faster then I did before but Oceana and me were still neck and neck. A little bubble shot from my hand. I smiled and shouted,"See you later!" And I blasted away, the same tingling sensation in my hands. I looked back and saw the shocked expression on Oceana's face. I waved and laughed. I wished Kai was there, we'd have a blast. I waited for Oceana for 3 minutes before she came in panting. I turned around,"Good afternoon, Chloe." The British girl from before looked at me and smiled,"Hello. Anything I can help you with?" "I was just wondering, you know, that day I came in and Kai came in with another girl, Star?" She nodded,"Well, I was wondering if I could borrow her file. Just to see what got hurt." She kneeled down and opened a few drawers, then she popped up and handed me a tan file,"Here you go, love." "Thank you." I opened it up and pretended to read it. Oceana sat in the corner awkwardly and stared at me. "So, would you call Star strong, agile, unbeaten?" "That's pretty specific but yes, she was the top kid in her class. Went to tournaments around the world representing Atlantic City." I nodded,"And remind me again what class was this?" Chloe waved her hand,"Aqua tae kwondo, of course. I think she was also a rock collector. I mean that's what I've heard." I nodded getting all the information I needed. "Thank you, Chloe. Really." "You're welcome," she said looking a little confused about what she helped me with. I swam over to Oceana and stared at her, stunned,"You're still tired?" She nodded,"Well, I'm sorry, it's time to go." I didn't say the rest of what I thought. That I should've argued and told her I didn't have the time. We swam outside. "Hold onto my tail." She gripped it and I told her,"Hold on super tight, okay, I go pretty fast." She nodded," I know." I was about to swim off when someone dressed in black swam up and grabbed me from behind. They narrowly missed slicing my neck with a knife. I made a quick decision and grabbed their back and flipped them over. While trying to figure themselves out I screamed out for Oceana to grab my tail again. She didn't hesitate and yelled,"Swim!" Oceana and me didn't talk at all until we were at the coral house. I burst through the door and Kylie was there shouting at Kai and Rylie. I was so mad I pressed my forearm against Rylie's throat. And just to reassure you I wasn't pressing too hard. It was just in my anger that I attacked Rylie like that,"Rylie, how could you? Betraying me, betraying your friend?" Rylie started gagging and I let her loose for a second but then pressed against her again. "You tried to kill me! Why, what was he offering you?" Kai grabbed me and pulled me off of Rylie. I almost bit him just to let me go. "Let me get her! She deserves what's coming! Kai, let me go!" I tried to grab out to reach her. "Kai, I said let me-" he grabbed my arms and twisted me around so I was facing him. "Zayana, calm down. And once you do I'll let you go, we'll all sit on the couch, you won't strangle my sister, and we'll talk about what's going on." I relaxed but was still ready to fight at any given moment. Someone drifted to the back of the room but I didn't pay attention to them. I was focused on Rylie." Where do you want me to sit?" I said through gritted teeth. Kai pointed at a single chair. And I went over to it with closed fists. If I had feet I would've stomped over to the chair but noooooooo, I don't have feet anymore! I sat down and crossed my arms." Zayana, you need to relax before we have this conversation. If you don't relax we're not going to be able to talk to you and your going to kill Rylie." "I am relaxed! But she tried to, ooh." Kai massaged my shoulders and I instantly relaxed and melted into the chair." Now tell me what's wrong." I sighed," Rylie, is not who she says she is." She looked confused," What do you mean-" " Oh, be quiet. Anyway Rylie's been working behind all our backs. She's been working for Agua." She gasped along with everyone else," Cut the act, Rylie. I already figured it out. And I have the evidence, you were the one who threw the spear at me and I saw a purple maybe pink blur. And someone just tried to slice my throat at the hospital. You. You tried to kill me. How could you and why?" She was about to answer before I interrupted with a threat," And if you don't have a good enough reason, I'm going to have to finish what I started when I came in." I clenched my teeth again. Rylie looked out-of-her-mind scared. " I promise, Zayana, I would never try to hurt you. I promise I wouldn't." I saw truth in Rylie's eyes and sighed," Well if it wasn't you, then-" My eyes bugged and I turned toward Kylie to see her charging toward me with a butcher's knife," Kylie, no!" Rylie screamed. My instincts took over and I dodged to the side. Kai snuck up behind Kylie and thieved the knife from her hand. Kai held Kylie and she screamed and squirmed." Grab the rope from the storage room!" Kai yelled. Island brought back a long piece of rope that he wrapped around Kylie." When did Kylie come back?" I asked," Well, she said said she was going out for treats as soon as you left and came back without it, and when she came through the door she was panting and came in like one minute before you did." Rylie explained. Kylie dropped her head like she surrendered, to be honest I actually wouldn't have choked her to death but I would've been pretty close. And next time I wouldn't have let Kai stop me." Why?" I asked in a small voice. " Well, I was just doing it for the money. We needed it, Agua promised me 1,000 shellons. I just needed to bring you to Agua alive or dead. If you think about it it's really not my fault. Don't take it personal." She smirked an all I could do was stare. "It's not your fault? Really? Kylie, I trusted you and you were going to sell me to some wannabe prince! How could you?" I was hurt. Really hurt," I'm going to the palace. Alone." I added before anyone could interrupt and follow me. I swam out the door and the tears started streaming out of my eyes. The tears I had held in for so long. My tears were like raindrops finally able to drop from the cloud that had held them in for ages. I swam slowly toward the palace. I swam by the boy with jet black hair smiling. I swam by the mom and little kid laughing about something on the mom's phone. I saw a couple holding hands and laughing. How could all these merpeople be so happy? Then I saw the guard. The guard I had met from my first day in the ocean. The guard who had been chasing Kia the first time we met. She was standing outside a shop with no armor and now that I was so close she actually looked like . . . No . . . How? The same dark brown curly and the beauty mark just below her eye. I swam closer and "coughed." " Hi, what's your name?" She turned her head with a donut in her hand. Or what looked like a donut. " A guard. And you?" She looked at me suspiciously," No, I-I meant your name. You reminded me of someone." She looked really confused," What? Look, I don't know you but-" I spotted her necklace." That's a beautiful necklace. Where'd you get it? It looks so familiar." She held it protectively." It's a locket I got from my mom. It has a picture of me and her inside," " Really, could I see it?" She hesitated then opened it up," Wow, it looks-" my eyes widened as big as basketballs. Auntie A? Ain't no way, no how. The first time I had seen her I thought I had gotten a glimpse of Auntie A but in all the rush with Kai it had slipped my mind. "That's impossible, who are you?" "I'm CiCi, short for Cecile." "Cecile, impossible." I had heard Auntie A muttering about a Cecile sometimes. But Auntie A never let me out of her sight. She never mentioned she had a child. She'd been single forever, I would've known if she had a kid. So who took care of this girl? Maybe Auntie A handed her to the queen or she gave her to someone else . . . but she doesn't even like leaving injured butterflies alone. " How old are you?" She looked suspicious again," Why?" " Just wondering because you remind me of someone." She looked satisfied with that answer." I'm fourteen." I nodded, Auntie A had some explaining to do," Listen, I have something to tell you. Who were your parents?" " I'm not telling you." " Why not, it-it's for a survey. I'm doing it on everyone, so who were your parents?" " I-I don't know. My mom was, her." She pointed at Auntie A. I did a tiny gasp," I think-I think we're cousins." She stared blankly at me." What?"