“Um. Well, what?” It sounds a tad disrespectful, so I make up for it with, “I mean, I’m not sure what you’re asking me, Grandfather.”

“Are you upset with me that I sent you to Neptune?”

“You could have told me what I’d find there.”

“But you know why I didn’t.”

“Galen.”

Grandfather sighs. “I find that Galen and Grom are of similar disposition, though neither would care to admit it. They both seek safety first, pleasure later. Sometimes this can be a good thing. Most times, in fact. But other times, this can be an inhibition to experiencing a full life.”

I wonder if he’s thinking about Grom forbidding Mom to go on land all those years ago, and thus starting the fight that separated them for decades. I’d like to think I’ve cured Galen of forbidding me to do things, but there are still times when I can see hesitation lurking in his eyes, a fight he doesn’t quite let bubble to the surface. He doesn’t like when I do certain things, but at least he doesn’t tell me not to.

But with Neptune, I think Grandfather was right. I think Galen might have put his foot down, had he known what we’d find in city limits. “I’m not upset with you,” I decide as I say it. “I know why you couldn’t warn me beyond what you did.” Our experience in Neptune wasn’t the stuff of my wildest dreams, especially after what happened to Galen while we were there. But learning about the existence of other Half-Breeds, of a town that accepts both species and lives in unity? It gave me hope. A blossoming kind of hope that might be dead-headed after the events of tonight.

“And how do you feel about the peace Neptune wants with the kingdoms?” He lowers his voice then, probably to avoid the reach of Mom’s hearing.

“I want it to happen.” Period.

“Then let’s work on it together, shall we?”

I’m about to ask him how he proposes to do that, but suddenly Galen and Toraf appear at the edge of the woods, hauling Reed between them, helping him walk. Grom and Rayna materialize behind them, Kennedy thrown over Grom’s shoulder like a sleeping child. His arms sway back and forth like dangling banana peels.

Galen helps Reed sit at one of the tables and ushers for Mom. “His hand is injured.” There’s a cloth tied tightly around Reed’s palm, and from the looks of Galen’s tattered shirt, he was the donor of it.

Rayna cheerfully trades places with Mom, who’s been standing guard at the SUV. Tyrden only woke up once, briefly—until Mom knocked him unconscious again with the butt of her handgun like some sort of gangster.

Mom brings a bottle of water to the table where Galen, Grom, and Reed sit. Toraf joins Rayna at the SUV, helping to bind up Kennedy the same way Tyrden is. I suddenly have an out-of-body experience, taking in the scene out of context.

If someone were to decide to have a picnic here right now, we’d be screwed.

I keep my seat next to Grandfather, adjusting on the bench to hide my nervousness. Right now, anything we do seems like a duty. This picnic table feels like my post for now, and I stand aside until I feel useful. This family-friendly picnic area has turned into a basecamp for mermaid gypsies.

Carefully removing the wrapping, Mom examines Reed’s wound. He’s a good sport, only grimacing here and there, but never verbally relaying the pain he’s in. “You have several broken bones,” she says after a few minutes. “I’ll have to make a run to a drugstore and get some bandages and antibiotic ointment. You’ll need a cast, so the bones can set correctly. You … Does the town of Neptune have a hospital?”

He shakes his head. “We have a doctor. We try to avoid the hospital. For obvious reasons.”

Mom nods. I notice that she doesn’t tell him we’ll get him to the doctor right away; apparently we won’t. “This is going to hurt,” she says, holding up the water bottle. Reed looks away as she pours it onto his palm. I look away, too. I don’t have the stomach for open flesh. After she’s done cleaning it, Mom walks back to the SUV and retrieves a clean shirt, tearing it into usable strips, all but ignoring the two men tied up in the back. She rewraps Reed’s wound and gives him some Tylenol. “It’s all I have,” she says.

Reed accepts it and takes a swig of the bottled water offered to him. He looks at Galen, then at Grom. “Are you going to take me home? Or did I go from one captor to the other?”

Galen folds his hands behind his head and lets out a breath. “I guess it’s time to talk about our next move. My vote is to let the kings handle it.”

“Of course they’ll handle it,” Mom says.

But I know that Galen made the statement for my benefit. He’s letting me know that the world doesn’t rest on my shoulders and that whatever they decide to do about the town of Neptune, it’s not a decision I have to make. It’s meant to bring me relief.

Or is he telling me I don’t have a say? We’ll see.

Grom begins to collect sticks and pieces of wood, piling them in one of the charcoal grills for a fire. Toraf helps him, and within minutes, we’ve got something to cook dinner with. Except, we don’t have any dinner unless someone caught more than Kennedy when they went down to the river.

I notice that Galen doesn’t help with the fire. He stares at it for a long time, as if hypnotized. For the several minutes he stares at it, I stare at him. That’s how I know the exact moment he looks up. And I’m startled by the look in his eyes.