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Flipping around in an instant, Kyree followed her intuition. She pushed harder, hoping Hudson’s trail hadn’t yet gone cold.

Hudson’s words rang in her head. Was that another ulterior motive, one of those agendas Hudson had been talking about?

Maybe.

Probably.

But Kyree had no intention of hidingthisagenda.

“Hudson!” Kyree called out the moment she became positive that the cluster of mers in front of her were indeed Hudson and her men. “Damn it, Hudson. Stop.”

Hudson turned around, her men following suit as they continued to flank her. “What the hell are you doing?”

“We can fix it.” Kyree’s lungs burned. She had forced herself to keep up her speed, keep her pace going even as pain radiated through her side.

“What the hell?” Hudson shook her head, confusion and skepticism marring her features. “I assumed you’d gone off back to Reine, chasing Honour.”

“We can fix it, Hudson.” Gaining back her ability to speak more easily, Kyree pinned Hudson with a knowing look.

“I heard you the first time. But what makes you think so? Or makes you think I want to?” Hudson’s shoulders pushed back, and the men surrounding her leaned in, taking in every word.

“Because I know when the next attack is going to be. And the humans are throwing everything they have at it.” Kyree opened her eyes wide, hoping that Hudson would see the truth in her words.

“Hudson, we’ve gotta be in on that one.” A mer at Hudson’s right shoulder became animated as he spoke.

“And since when did you give the orders?” Hudson turned toward him. Kyree caught the raised eyebrows before Hudson’s face moved out of view.

The man shrank back and lowered his head.

Despite the pain and twists within her at the last confrontation with Honour, Kyree couldn’t stop her body reacting to this show of power and dominance. Her core warmed and her slit fluttered. Ignoring the heat in her cheeks, she moved closer to Hudson, using the other mer’s body to shield her arousal from the men who had all shifted back a little.

“Men.” Hudson’s eyes locked with Kyree though she continued to speak to the mers hovering behind her. “We’re leaving.”

Shuffling and mutters came from behind them.

Hudson turned with a sharp twist of her body.

“I said…” She growled and pushed away from Kyree but didn’t shift to allow the men a better or closer look at her. “Get your shit together. We’re leaving. Whoever choses to remain when the next wave comes won’t just be left behind, but will be left with a gash for the krill to feast on.”

The men moved without another word of protest. Hudson didn’t turn around.

Kyree expected she would watch the men as they swam out of sight. But she couldn’t take her eyes off of Hudson.

It made her shiver, the pleasure that filled her body at seeing this warrior floating tall and in charge. She’d always been a pacifist. She would prefer to live in harmony, and yet here she was flooded with arousal over one warrior and eager to go win back the trust of another. And here she was, passing along information that would get hundreds of mer and humans killed.

She had lied to herself the entire time.

She’d never be welcomed home.

She was the deep sounding sacrifice.

Eventually Hudson turned toward her, her face soft and her eyes filled with a sadness that threatened to break Kyree’s heart all over again.

“Please, we can show her.” Kyree’s voice was soft and gentle. Not for any kind of manipulation but because she wanted this. She wanted Hudson and Honour, and she wanted her own life to finally begin.

“Why are you so sure I want to? What makes you think I even care?” Hudson’s face belied the words. She scowled as though reading the truth in Kyree’s face.

“Because I can see it.” Kyree lifted one palm and traced lightly along Hudson’s sharp cheek bone. For the briefest of moments, Hudson’s eye lids fluttered down and the scowl on her face dropped away. As though she forgot to be the warrior and the leader of those men. And remembered what it was like to just be Hudson. “You care. You don’t want to lose, but you do care.”