Page 55 of Ocean's Whisper

She sensed Marina's power pulling at the ocean, creating unnatural currents designed to drown the wolves swimming toward the yacht. Isolde pushed back, reaching for control of the waters surrounding them.

"They're fighting for me. For their Luna," she whispered. "Nereus and his pack."

A fierce determination flooded her veins. She wouldn't be a victim anymore, waiting for rescue or apologizing for taking up space. This wasn't just about her anymore. It was about protecting the mate bond that sang in her blood and the pack that had finally rallied for her.

Isolde crept through the yacht's narrow hallway. Shouts echoed from above deck, punctuated by the guttural snarls of wolves and the eerie wailing of Marina's summoned creatures. She followed the sound, climbing the polished steps to the upper back deck.

There stood Marina, her black hair whipping in the violent winds she had conjured. Her hands moved in elegant, practiced motions, commanding the ocean to do her bidding. She hadn't noticed Isolde yet, too focused on maintaining her spells against the approaching wolves.

"You made a very critical error," Isolde called out, stepping fully onto the back deck. "You thought that stealing my power would be enough. That I wouldn't fight back."

Marina whirled around, her perfect features contorting with fury. "You're nothing but a vessel," she spat. "A human accident of nature. This power was never meant for you!"

"But it chose me anyway," Isolde countered, standing taller. "I may be human, but I've respected the ocean my entire life. You only want to control it for your own selfish purposes."

Marina's fingers twisted in the air, sending a spray of saltwater slicing toward Isolde like liquid daggers. Isolde raised her hand instinctively, and the water stopped midair, hovering between them in crystalline beads.

"Impossible," Marina hissed.

Isolde shot Marina with a dangerous smile, feeling the ocean responding to her call more fully now. "You're not listening to it. The water doesn't want to hurt—it wants to nurture. It doesn't want to destroy—it wants to create."

With a flick of her wrist, Isolde sent the suspended water droplets cascading harmlessly to the deck. She could feel Marina's control slipping as the siren witch poured more power into her spells, frantically trying to maintain dominance.

"You'll never master it," Marina snarled, desperation edging her voice. She gestured wildly toward the ocean where one of her summoned monsters—a serpentine creature with multiple heads—rose from the depths. "Kill her!" she commanded.

The creature hesitated, caught between two mistresses. Isolde reached for it with her consciousness, feeling its ancient mind. Not evil—merely enslaved.

"It's okay," Isolde whispered to it. "You're free now."

A tremendous splash erupted from the port side as Nereus leaped onto the yacht's deck. His massive wolf form landed with predatory grace, his muscles rippling beneath his fur and his turquoise eyes blazing with protective fury.

"Perfect timing," Isolde called to him, feeling their bond thrum with shared power.

Nereus padded to her side, his large body pressing protectively against her leg. Marina backed away, her eyes darting between them and her wavering sea monster.

"Two against one?" Marina laughed, though fear tinged her voice. "I've lived centuries longer than both of you combined. I've harvested power from a hundred mermaids and drowned a thousand sailors."

"And yet you never learned to respect what you take," Isolde replied. She extended her hand toward Nereus, who shifted instantly into his human form. Naked and magnificent, he took her hand without hesitation.

The moment their fingers interlocked, their combined power exploded outward. The mate bond completed its circuit, and Isolde gasped as Nereus's strength flowed into her and hers into him, amplifying each other beyond what either could achieve alone.

Marina's sea monster turned its massive heads toward her, intelligent eyes regarding its former master with newfound clarity.

"No!" Marina screamed. "I command you! I am your mistress!"

The creature looked to Isolde instead, waiting.

Isolde felt a moment of doubt. Could she order this creature to kill? Should she?

Nereus squeezed her hand. "It's not murder to end a predator," he rumbled, his deep voice vibrating through her. "She'll never stop hunting you—hunting us and killing others to get what she wants."

The monster lunged forward, jaws opening impossibly wide as it crashed down upon Marina. Her screams cut off abruptly as the creature swallowed her whole, returning to the depths from which it came with its final meal.

"That was..." Isolde breathed, her hand still clasped in Nereus's hand.

"Poetic justice," he finished, pulling her against his naked body. "And you were simply magnificent, Isolde."

"We were," she corrected, looking up into his fierce blue eyes. "I couldn't have done it without you."

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