Page 152 of A Mysterious Slave for the Lycan Prince

We need to get to our mate fast,I point out.There is no time to swim back to the shore and run to the pack.

I see where you are coming from,Sereia muses.Just how exactly are you going to shift?

I admit I haven’t thought my plan through yet, but I’m sure it has to be in my nature to shift, like an instinct. I’m so lost in my thoughts that I don’t notice a new presence approaching me until I hear them clearing their throats.

I spin around, looking at the intruder, ready to fight—as well as I can fight in the water anyway. What I see, though, makes my eyes widen. A young man is swimming next to me. He has long, silky, black hair. His upper body is naked, but tattoos cover his arms, and he is wearing bracelets that cover his lower arms completely. “Hello,” he says, beaming at me.

Before I can even open my mouth to answer, a second figure pops up. Another man, his hair is lighter and tied into a ponytail. He smacks the other guy roughly. “You’re an idiot, Nen,” he scolds. “I told you, you shouldn’t approach her like that. You’ll give her a heart attack!”

“I’m sorry.” Nen rubs his head, a pitiful expression gracing his young face.

“I apologize for my younger brother,” the older man tells me. In the water, I can see the silhouettes of their fins. Fascination starts to outweigh my fear. “I’m Aenon. We have felt your presence since you turned eighteen, and we’ve been waiting for you to approach the water.”

“I can’t believe you’re a hybrid.” Nen beams. “And Goddess Amphitrite allowed you to remain one. Will you shift into a fish with a wolf’s head?”

His older brother smacks him again with a glare while images that could be out of a horror movie fill my mind: half fish, half wolf.

Would you stop it please?Sereia grimaces.Creepy.

“No,” I tell them. “I can’t shift into a wolf, although I have a wolf spirit. But the Goddess said I can shift into a siren, I guess?”

I have no idea who these two men are. And it obviously should feel weirder than it is to be chatting with two strangers while floating around like dead weight in the water. Aenon seems to have guessed my thoughts. “We knew your deceased father,” he says.

“What?” I exclaim. “You knew my father? How… when…” I frown, deciding to test them. “If you know who I am, do you know my last name?”

“Of course. Your name is Farley. Freya Farley.” Aenon smiles at me. “I can tell you everything. We have been waiting for you for quite some time.”

I… I suddenly have a surname… an identity… Is this even possible? I don’t even dare to feel hopeful and find myself reaching out to my wolf. Sereia’s eyes are wide open. She truly is having a hard time grasping everything.They are family,she breathes out.They are not lying. Freya, they are family. I can feel it!

I beam at the two guys. Finally, a connection to my deceased parents and my past. Finally, some answers. However, my mate comes first. “Before we can chat, I need to get up there.” I point towards the pack. “My mate is fighting there for my sake and the sake of my old pack.”

“Is someone finally getting rid of that asshole, alpha?” Nen wants to know.

This time, he isn’t getting smacked. Apparently, his brother agrees.

“Yes.” I blink. “You know them?”

“Of course. Your father was our father’s brother, and he was at this asshole’s mercy, as they wouldn’t let his mate go,” Aenon spats. “And unlike him, she couldn’t just turn into a siren and swim away.”

“Can you show me the way to the lake on the pack grounds?” I ask them.

Nen nods tentatively. “It’s against our laws to approach werewolf territories though and to mingle with other species.”

“Well, it’s happened already.” I smile.

Aenon takes my hand. “Alright, Freya. We failed your father, but we won’t fail you.” I feel warmth filling me, it’s like a bond that’s connecting me to these two men. It’s not like my bond to Finn, it’s different. It’s a family bond.

“You need to shift,” Nen tells me excitedly.

Aenon nods at me. “It’s an instinct, not so much different from shifting into a wolf. Try to feel yourself, feel your body, every muscle, the blood running through your veins. And then picture it, how your lungs open up to the water, how your legs elongate and turn into a fin. Try to see it, feel it.”

I nod, closing my eyes.

He is right.Sereia’s soft voice encourages me.It’s like shifting into a wolf. Just feel it. You can do it; it’s your second nature. Try to think of something positive first.

I will all my fears and anxiety away. I try to think of positive things only, of my mate, my in-laws, who are my family now, Ryllis, the new friends I made, but also my friends in Blood Snow. I smile slightly as warmth keeps filling me. I cling to the feeling, to the spark, allowing it to spread through my body. I imagine my legs turning into a large and beautiful fin, gills appearing on my neck to make it possible to breathe underwater. My teeth are getting sharper, and my nails longer.

When I’m finished, I open my eyes, noting how Aenon and Nen look at me in awe. I can see and hear so much clearer now. And when I look down at my body, I can see a large and beautiful fishtail sparkling in rich green colors. Seaweed, shells and scales cover my breasts.

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