Page 53 of Seas the Day
Graven’s laughter echoed across the beach as he melted back into the forest, leaving Thalric surrounded by advancing pirates. His wolf howled with desperate fury—torn between the immediate threat and the overwhelming need to reach his mate.
Can’t save her if I’m dead.
The thought cut through his panic with brutal clarity. Survival first, then rescue. It was the only way.
Thalric’s human form exploded outward as his wolf surged to the surface, bones reshaping and muscles expanding until his massive sea wolf stood where the man had been moments before.
End the threat. Get to your mate.
Time was running out.
THIRTY-SEVEN
NAVIRA
The dense vegetation of Rocky Point Island scratched against Navira’s skin as she crouched beside Sylar. She shifted her weight for what felt like the hundredth time, and her muscles coiled further with tension that had nothing to do with their uncomfortable hiding spot. Twisted branches created a natural canopy above them, filtering the twin suns into scattered patches of light that danced across the forest floor. She could still smell the salty ocean from this distance, mixing with the earthy scent of damp soil and rotting leaves, but none of it settled the unease churning in her stomach.
This is wrong. Everything about this feels wrong.
She turned her head to look at Sylar, and his sharp look made her freeze in place. His blue-gold eyes held an intensity that seemed more predatory than protective, and the way he kept checking his watch made her skin crawl.
“I still don’t like that Thalric sent me off with you,” she whispered, unable to keep the frustration from her voice. “He should have listened to my concerns about this whole situation.”
“Just be quiet and stay patient,” Sylar replied, his tone carrying an edge. “This will all be over soon.”
The words sent cold dread trickling down her spine, but she forced herself to push it away. Maybe she was overreacting. Maybe the whirlwind of this past week—an alien planet, sea wolf shifters, a mate bond that had turned her entire world upside down—had scrambled her instincts beyond recognition.
You’ve been wrong before. Remember Jeremy? Remember how you thought he loved you until he didn’t?
The doubt crept in like poison, making her question everything she thought she knew. She’d been on Nova Aurora for barely a week. What did she really understand about pack dynamics or the complex relationships that had been forged over decades? Sylar had been the pack’s head enforcer for thirty years, and had practically helped raise him from a frightened five-year-old orphan into the powerful Alpha he was today.
Maybe I’m just a paranoid human who doesn’t know anything about this world.
She tried to focus on the completed mate bond thrumming between her and Thalric, drawing comfort from the steady pulse of his emotions. He felt focused, alert, determined—exactly what she’d expect from an Alpha handling delicate negotiations. The meeting with Graven must be proceeding according to plan.
But then suddenly something shifted.
The bond exploded with Thalric’s sudden spike of dread and fear, emotions so sharp and violent they nearly knocked her backward. Her heart hammered against her ribs as panic flooded through their connection, followed immediately by a rage so pure and primal it made her gasp.
“Something’s wrong with Thalric,” she said, starting to rise from their hiding spot. “I can feel it through the bond?—”
Sylar’s smile was cold and satisfied, nothing like the expression of a man concerned for his Alpha’s safety. “Nothing is wrong. Everything is unfolding exactly as planned.”
Before she could process his words or react, his large hand clamped down on her wrist with bruising force. She tried to jerk away, but his warrior strength made resistance futile as he hauled her deeper into the island’s interior.
“Let go of me!” she hissed, but he ignored her struggles entirely.
They crashed through the undergrowth, branches tearing at her clothes and hair as he dragged her toward a small wooden hut she hadn’t noticed before. Her Olympic training kicked in, her body automatically trying to find leverage and escape routes, but Sylar’s grip never loosened.
That’s when she saw them—five pirates sprinting past the hut in the direction of the beach, their weapons glinting in the filtered sunlight. Her blood turned to ice as the pieces finally clicked into place.
This was a trap all along. An ambush to kill Thalric.
The realization hit her with staggering force. Her instincts had been screaming the truth, and she’d let Thalric’s dismissal and her own self-doubt silence them. Now her mate was fighting for his life while she’d been delivered straight into enemy hands.
We just completed the mate bond this morning. We haven’t even had a chance to build a life together.
Panic threatened to overwhelm her, but then something else rose from the depths of her competitive soul—the same fierce determination that had carried her to Olympic gold medals and through years of grueling training. The part of her that had never backed down from a challenge, no matter how impossible it seemed.
