Page 71 of Siren's Kiss & Feral Beasts
It’s hard, but I fight back the urge to cringe at the pet name. Just no.
Kai is the only man I will ever accept any term of endearment from.
Turning around, I pretend to touch up my lipstick a final time, fluff my soft, dark waves…
I’m stopped by the words etched into the bottom right-hand corner of the mirror. I didn’t see it until now, the light letters hidden by vain distractions, as my great-grandfather used to say, but the message hits home—today more than ever:
What your heart desires is
never truly lost.
You fight for it. You take it.
They escort me to the top deck, my grandmother sending me a wink no one catches.
There’s red and gold everywhere. Even the sails are crimson, catching the moonlight through breaks in the fog. An archway is near the helm, like a raised dais where those here to witness will watch a woman demean herself in the name of tradition and sexism—the sale of her self-worth in the name of egotistical pride.
This will be a crimson union; I will make sure of it.
The small dagger feels cool against my skin as we pause long enough that all heads turn in my direction. The mermen have changed into human skin and stand with the vampires, appraising the future queen as if she were an object and not someone’s little treasure.
Then I find Naia. On her knees, Orion has his hand on her head, patting it. She’s in tears, while he smiles at those in attendance. Exchanges a few words with the man officiating the ceremony.
“This is unbelievable,” I mutter under my breath, but Severus catches it. His hand pats mine in the crook of his elbow. Planning to give me away as if we were family.
“Looks exquisite, doesn't it?”
“Sure does.”
“We wanted the best for you, Nerissa. To make this as pleasant as possible.” Somehow, I think that’s more to do with him than the other two. They’d be happy to force me to sign and then bite me so hard, I’m in pain for days after. I don’t say any of this, of course. Instead, I force a small smile onto my face thatcould be confused with gratitude. “Now, let’s get you down the aisle.”
From somewhere, an organ starts to play, and we take the first step.
It feels like stepping into a trap. Orion’s grin turns cocky, as if he won. My grandfather beams with pride, his arms around my grandmother, whose eyes are on something in the distance. Reflective and small. The vampire walking beside me tilts his head, eyebrows furrowing a second too late.
Guards collapse under the first strike.
Wolves hidden by the fog leap onto the ship. They surround the deck from both sides, scaling the sides in human form before transforming into beasts, and large paws hit the wood. Some of the older pieces crack under the weight, but that only spurs these killers into taking down anybody deemed an enemy with them. A few vampires are the first victims, falling on the large wooden pieces sticking up in the air.
Their cries are short-lived, while the panicked song of sirens rends the air.
They’re trying to call out to anyone nearby for reinforcements, but that’s their second mistake. My father is the first one on the ship, followed closely by my uncles and cousins—every member of the Azure pod is here, and they are brutal. Some have swords, others use spears, driving the blades in deep without a single ounce of remorse.
In the chaos and screaming, Orion reaches me as Lord Severus runs inside. I lose sight of him the same way the merman general has forgotten his mate on the dais; she screams and cries, but those crazed eyes are on me. “Did you call them here?” I don’t answer him. Instead, I take two steps back. “Answer me, you bitch.”
We follow this game until I’m back by the entrance to the captain’s quarters, and his hand shoots out to slap me. It nevermakes contact as a large clawed hand grips and catches his hand, snapping the bone in two before reaching back and patting my thigh.
Orion screams, stumbling back in pain while Kai, in his half-shift form, removes the blade from its makeshift holster. “Do you want the honors, little treasure?” he asks, the garbled voice deep and powerful; it runs through me, and I shiver in both lust and excitement. One, because he came for me, and two, because it’s a true honor when a predator offers you his kill. “Or do you want me to handle it?”
It.Not a man. Not worthy of having a name.
“Can I have first strike?”
“You can have anything you want.” Alpha Daire lunges after the general, who’s trying to slink away toward the banister. He almost makes it, too, but is then dragged back for me. Orion’s kicked in the back of the knee and made to kneel, looking at me as I grip the dagger and drive it straight into his eye, twisting it. The sound it makes is wet, then a pop, and drops him with a sickening thud. Did I kill him? Possibly, but I’m not given the chance as my mate lifts me, wraps an arm under my bottom, and stomps a foot through his chest on his way to the other side of the ship.
“I’ll kill her. Stand back,” a voice I’m all too familiar with booms, and every merman stalks forward, closing in on my grandfather when a loud, angry growl fills the night. Another black wolf jumps onto the ship; its animal has a few streaks of grey along its ears, and its eyes are set on my grandmother.
Her eyes become glassy, a few tears falling at the sight of him, and the stone I’d carried around my neck comes alive. Blue and bright, and it vibrates as my mate nuzzles the side of my head.
