Page 52 of Ocean's Whisper

The midnight-blue craft sliced through the waves, spray flying up around them as Nereus pushed the engines harder. No normal boat could maintain such speed without riskingstructural damage, but this vessel—like its owner—was far from ordinary.

"The siren will have protection," Xavier said, checking the weapons locker. "Probably water wraiths, maybe bound selkies."

"Let her have an army." Nereus's eyes flashed turquoise in the darkness. "I'll tear through every last one to get to Isolde."

The Atlantic stretched before them, vast and ancient. Nereus breathed in the salt air, drawing strength from the very element that had nurtured his kind for millennia. The ocean responded to his presence, the waves parting slightly before his vessel, sensing the authority of the water prince commanding them.

"How did you feel when you met her?" Xavier asked suddenly. "Was it like everything before was just emptiness?"

Nereus's gaze remained fixed on the horizon. "I felt like I'd been drowning for three centuries without knowing it. And suddenly, there was air."

A faint smile crossed Xavier's face. "I see it now. The way you look at her, the way you would do anything for her... She changed you."

"She terrifies me, X," Nereus admitted, the raw confession startling even himself. "Not her powers. The thought of losing her."

The radio crackled. "Alpha, six o'clock. Something strange in the water."

Nereus spun to look behind them. The ocean's surface rippled unnaturally, a phosphorescent blue glow spreading beneath the waves.

"The witch is aware we're coming," he growled. "Good. I want her to feel the fear build."

The mate bond fluttered sharply, sending a jolt of pain through his chest. Isolde was afraid. The knowledge made his vision turn red with rage.

"She's trying to use Isolde's powers," Nereus snarled, his knuckles white on the wheel. "Trying to harness something she can't begin to understand."

"Alpha, visual confirmation," came a voice over the radio. "Large yacht, three miles ahead."

Nereus spotted it—a gleaming white vessel, ostentatiously large, illuminated against the night sky. His enhanced vision picked out movement on the deck, figures scurrying like ants. The siren was preparing for their arrival.

"Maintain speed and formation," he commanded into the radio. "No engagement until my signal."

The mate bond pulsed more strongly like a beacon calling him home. His chest ached with a mixture of longing and fury.

"I'm going to rip that witch apart with my bare hands," Nereus growled, the sound more wolf than man.

"Save some for the rest of us," Xavier replied, loading a weapon beside him. "The pack wants to prove themselves now to their Luna."

Nereus felt a surge of pride at those words. His pack—his family—united in purpose to rescue the woman who had, in just a week, become the heart of their existence. His existence.

"That siren doesn't know what's coming for her," Nereus said, a dangerous smile spreading across his face as they closed in on the yacht. "No one takes what's mine and gets away with it."

As Nereus steered the boat closer to the yacht, the water began to churn unnaturally beneath them. The ocean's surface bubbled and frothed as if boiling from below. The mate bond throbbed painfully in his chest—Isolde was very close, but something was interfering with their connection.

"Something's wrong," Nereus growled. "The siren witch is managing to use Isolde's powers."

Xavier tensed beside him. "How bad?"

"Bad enough that I'm going to enjoy tearing her limb from limb." The thought of anyone forcing his Luna to use her powers against her will made his blood run hotter than the disturbed waters around them.

Without warning, a massive tentacle erupted from the waves, slamming down on the boat to their left. The vessel lurched but held firm—Seafang boats were built to withstand supernatural assault.

"Water wraiths!" Nereus barked into the radio. "Defensive formation, now!"

His pack responded immediately, their boats shifting into a protective circle. More tentacles rose from the depths—translucent, glowing with an eerie blue light, and powerful enough to crush steel. These weren't ordinary sea creatures, but malevolent spirits bound to the siren's will.

"All units, silver-tipped harpoons," Nereus commanded. "Fire at will!"

The night air filled with the mechanical whirr of harpoon launchers. Silver projectiles arced through the darkness, finding their marks in the ghostly flesh of the water wraiths. Unearthly shrieks pierced the night as the creatures thrashed in pain.

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