Page 204 of A Mysterious Slave for the Lycan Prince

By now, we are all on our own. Our allied warriors have returned to their packs, as our warriors are finally ready to guard our pack properly.

We are approaching the summer months now, and while Ocean Snow is usually covered in thick snow through most of the year, we do have a short span of one or two months where the snow melts, and we see some green, at least in the lower regions of the land. The mountains are still always covered in snow.

Finn and I decided to start a tradition and hold an annual festival when the snow begins to melt, a summer party for the whole pack.

That’s not what everyone got excited about, though.

“I want to see it too,” a little girl cries. Her dad lifts her on his shoulder so she can tower over the people in front of her.

“Fish Luna,” Isaac says calmly while he holds a blanket for me, although I told him that I wouldn’t need it once I get out of the water again.

“Siren,” Ludovica says patiently. “She isn’t a fish.”

Isaac shrugs. He is still not back to talking fully, but he is such a nice guy. He has started helping with the lumberjack work—fuel is one of our most important resources to sell. And ever since Isaac organized the pack members who work outdoors, everything runs so much smoother now. He takes Ludovica’s hand. “Butterfly,” he says with a smile. “My butterfly.”

Ludovica blushes, a look of relief crossing her features when she eyes Odette. “Gamma Odette,” she greets my friend with a warm smile while Odette maneuvers through the crowd.

“My Luna went off without me.” Odette grins.

“I can’t wait forever for my gamma to be ready,” I grin. Since the rogues returned to the pack, Odette has been a great help. Once she managed to break the ties to her chosen mate, she flourished further and started participating in the warrior training sessions.

I’m so proud of her.

“I thought holding the send-off party at the beach would mean less spectators,” I mutter. “I’m just leaving for a day or two, maximum!”

“Are you for real?” Odette grins. “No way anyone wants to miss this.”

Finn makes it through the crowd too, easily so, as they make room for him to walk through. Some pack members are still a little scared of him, but he is proving to them every day that he isn’t Colton, and his efforts are slowly paying off. He hugs me. “The beach was a great idea,” he mutters.

“Until now, I thought the same.” I chuckle. We found a safe path to the ocean a while ago, belonging to our pack grounds, and I decided to make it a beach for everyone daring enough to go into the water. The waves are much calmer there, but the water is always cold. Needless to say, some teenagers made it a regular daily dare to go into the water, no matter how cold it is.

“Have fun,” Finn says and kisses me again.

I nod, smiling brightly at him, happiness filling my heart at feeling so free and so loved. I climb on one of the rocks easily, and then, with a graceful jump, I shift and dive into the water. I can hear gasps of surprise and squeals from my pack. Once underwater, my eyes meet Aenon and Nen, who have been hiding here to avoid all the fuss.

“Cowards.” I grin.

Aenon smiles. “They made us feel like we were in a circus.”

“He is right.” Nen giggles. He is working hard as my beta, but he hates when the pack fusses about him because he is a siren.

I grin, deciding to give the pack the show they want by diving upwards again, making a loop in the air, and splashing some water onto the crowd with my fin. I can see Finn laugh, and his eyes are gleaming with pride.

Before diving into the depths of the ocean, I can hear Frankie’s voice. “I wish I were a siren.”

“Thank Goddess, you’re not,” Anders replies. “You’re so lively and bubbly already. As a fish, you’d be like a tadpole. Impossible to catch. Now, at least, I have a chance.”

I laugh.

Enjoy your day, love,Finn links me.

Thank you for letting me do this,I say, before following Aenon and Nen into the deep blue of the ocean, deeper and deeper down. Through these last months, Sereia and I have been practicing a lot, and we managed to deepen our connection to Finn; our mind link is stronger now. Marking him so that he is connected to our siren side helped further.

I know for Finn, it’s weird to let me go off on my own, but I appreciate it so much that he trusts me and allows me to do what I need to do. To go where he can’t follow me.

Aenon, Nen, and I pass by a group of orcas. I brush my hand over their skin. They are predators, but no danger to us.

This time, Aenon leads me further into the depths of the ocean, until we swim through the opening of a cave, and my eyes widen at the sight in front of me. Hidden beneath a giant bubble, there seems to be a town. However, calling it a town might be a stretch, more like a settlement.

“Outsiders can’t see it,” Nen says proudly. “Just us.”

“Come.” Aenon nudges me.

Once we swim through the bubble, it’s like the world turns upside down. We are popping up in a lake instead of coming from above. I follow Aenon’s lead and jump out of the lake, shifting while doing so. I feel wobbly on my legs; it’s almost too light to walk here.

Aenon takes my arm. “Careful.” He smiles. “The pressure is different here. The air is… lighter.” He carefully and slowly leads me along the path to the town. All the buildings are of stone; some are carved into the cave walls. There are no streets, just narrow paths leading toward something that looks like the town center. The light, illuminating everything, is blue, indicating we truly are underwater. There are shells, little crabs, and other animals that live on both land and sea, and the vegetation is mossy; seaweed and aquatic plants are everywhere. Outside the bubble, I can see a school of fish passing us. At the furthest point from us is a beautiful building that looks like a small castle.

Nen smiles at me. “Welcome home, Freya.”

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