Page 54

54

Leander

I t had been two days since a damn shark dropped Kai off with us, and he still hadn’t woken up.

I’d recognized the shark bastard the second I saw him—the same one that had bitten into Claira’s tail back in the Atlantic. If Barren had let me, I would’ve punched the fucker on the spot. But no, he’d said the shark was her friend now. And honestly? That sounded exactly like something Claira would do.

She had this ridiculous way of seeing something broken or dangerous and deciding it was hers to keep. It made me want to tear my hair out. It was also one of the reasons I loved her.

I just wished Kai would wake up already. The guy looked too damn fragile lying there. I hated seeing him like that—especially when I felt just as fragile after having failed to save our mate.

Fucking dark spawn.

The thought alone sent a low rumble of thunder rolling in the distance. We’d been so close, only to have everything slip right through our fingers. Now, all I could do was sit here, watching over Kai. Waiting . Because if I couldn’t protect Claira, I’d be damned if I failed him, too.

Come on, Kaius. Open your damn eyes already .

Laverne was worried, and if I was being honest, so was I.

Barren’s furry creature hopped onto the bed, and I shot to my feet. “The hell do you think you’re doing?” I tried to wave it off before it could make it to where Kai was lying, but the damned thing only blinked at me, completely unfazed.

Earlier, I’d gone to grab something to eat and came back to find it perched right on top of his sleeping body, for fuck’s sake. I wasn’t about to let that happen again.

“Off! Now, go on!” I growled, my teeth grinding as it took a step onto Kai’s chest. “Dammit, he can’t breathe when you do that.”

The little land dweller didn’t so much as twitch.

Why the hell was I so useless when it came to protecting the ones I cared about?

“Is Big Brother awake?” Laverne chirped, poking her head through the door to Barren’s bedchamber. “Bradley heard you talking and—oh!” She gasped, her eyes lighting with excitement. “It’s back!”

The creature’s fur bristled, its ears flicking at the sound of Laverne’s voice. It pushed off Kai and took off, squeezing through a crack at the bottom of the window. Smart move.

“Nice one, Laverne,” I said, shifting to the other side of the bed to plant myself between Kai and the window. With the newfound knowledge of how the creature was getting in, I wasn’t moving from this spot. “I keep waiting, but… nothing. He still hasn’t woken up.”

The spark in Laverne’s eyes flickered out.

Archernar loomed behind her, scowling at her back the way he always did when she got his name wrong—which was every time. “You know, you might want to check on Barrentos,” he muttered, glancing my way while pinching the bridge of his nose. “He keeps groaning, and the noise is starting to grate.”

Another growl rumbled through me. “It’s Barren .” Would it kill either of them to get a damn name right?

“Yes, whatever.” With a weary sigh, he folded his arms and leaned against the doorframe. “Can you blame me for mixing him up with his father? Hard to tell them apart when they’re practically the same person.”

“Bradley!” Laverne smacked his arm with a sharp thwack . “Don’t be rude!”

He bared his teeth at her, more petulant than threatening, but before he could snap back, she barreled into the room.

I bit down a grin as she slammed the door behind her, sending him stumbling back with a startled yelp.

Ignoring Archernar’s curses, Laverne strode over to the bed. The sharp edges of her usual brashness dulled as she gazed down at her brother, her fingers brushing the sheets beside him. “I’ll stay with him if you want to check on Ren,” she offered, her voice unexpectedly tender.

I glanced at the window, half-expecting that furry creature to pop its head back through the crack. Thankfully, it had enough sense to steer clear of Laverne. At least with her here, Kai didn’t need me standing guard.

“Yeah… all right. Thanks.” I squeezed Kai’s shoulder, the warmth of his skin a small reassurance beneath my calloused palm. He was only asleep. A magical sleep—whatever the fuck that meant—but I had to believe the magic would run out soon.

When I stepped out, Archernar was still lurking on the other side of the door, seething.

I arched an eyebrow. “Care to move?”

His gaze bore into me like a spear through stone. “Why should I move out of your way?” Fuck, he was annoyed—but not with me. No, his precious wife was doting on her brother instead of him, and that bruised his ego more than anything I could’ve said.

That orca-toothed bastard was so smitten that I didn’t know whether to laugh at him or show some pity.

I clapped a hand on his shoulder—the one not bearing Laverne’s coat—and he jolted back.

“What are you doing?” he snapped, disgust flashing in his eyes as he wrenched himself out from under my grip.

I shook my head with a sigh. “Nothing.” Then, because someone had to say it—“Poor bastard.”

“Hey!” He sputtered behind me as I walked away. “I am a king.”

“Keep telling yourself that.”

Out in the main room, Barren was standing by the window. The faint light carved shadows along his face as he looked at the water outside, his brow furrowed in that same distant way he’d worn ever since we’d failed to save Claira.

He didn’t turn as I walked in. Not even a glance.

That was another thing—he’d been quieter, more locked in his own head since our rescue mission had failed.

But what really got under my skin was the way he’d say things like, “For now, Claira’s safe in the Undersea” and “Kai’s under a sleeping spell.” Like every answer I needed was already buried in that head of his, and he was only giving me the pieces he thought I could handle.

It never used to bother me. Barren always held other people’s thoughts and feelings close to his chest. But right now? The helplessness of not knowing every detail of what was going on was fucking killing me.

Still, he was Barren. He cared more than he let on—he always had. Even if he was content to let everyone else believe he was made of stone, I knew the heart buried beneath.

He’d always shouldered more than his fair share of burdens, but that didn’t mean he had to bear them alone.

“You’re not doing yourself any favors keeping quiet.” I crossed the room, folding my arms tightly over my chest. “Come on, man. If something’s bothering you, now’s the time to let it out.”

I could think of a hundred reasons for him to grit his teeth like that. Hell, I was gritting my own.

His gaze flicked toward me—just for a second—then back to the window. His jaw tightened, but he didn’t say a word.

Typical.

I exhaled through my nose, leaning against the window beside him. The silence stretched, settling heavily behind my ribs.

At last, his jaw opened, his voice low and rough. “I’m afraid.”

My throat bobbed. Barren, afraid?

He turned down to his hand, staring at his open palm like he hated what he’d just admitted.

“Yeah,” I muttered as the knot in my chest twisted tighter. “Me, too. But we’ll get her back.”

Barren’s head dipped. Then he shook it once, slowly. “Things are different now,” he murmured, his fingers curled into a fist. He still wouldn’t look at me. “Kai and I… we hurt her.”

That threw me.

They hurt her?

“The fuck are you talking about?” The words snapped out of me, and Barren’s fist clenched tighter.

“Leander. There’s something you need to know about Claira.” His gaze finally slid over to me, dark and tired. “I can tell you now… or you can wait for Kai to wake up and hear it from him. Your choice.”

Something I should know?

I’d known Claira before either of them ever laid eyes on her. I’d loved her long before they even had the chance.

They’d spent weeks watching her, thinking of her, getting closer, but I’d spent years .

How the hell could Barren and Kai know something about her that I didn’t?

“Tell me,” I said, the words scraping out. “What is it?”

Barren didn’t answer right away—just searched for the words, giving my mind too much time to spin.

Sure, she’d changed in some ways during the years we were apart, but she was still her . Still my Nera. My first friend. My first and only love. The mermaid who’d unknowingly carved a place for herself in my heart.

They couldn’t know her better than me. They’d lost her this time, but I’d lost her before—back when we were just merfry.

It had hollowed me out and left me carrying around the memories of her like broken glass under my skin. I’d spent years learning how to live without her. And then she came back to me.

Not a ghost. Not some cruel dream.

Real.

Alive.

Mine.

Ours.

I’d let myself sink back into that old despair when the cecaelia first took her, but Kai had helped haul me back. Laverne, too, though I’d never admit it out loud.

With them behind me, I was stronger. I wouldn’t let the damned Undersea steal my second chance with Claira away.

Barren’s low voice finally broke through, as if he’d been listening to the current of my thoughts, waiting for the right moment to speak. “She was always meant to be in the Undersea.”

I blinked, not sure I’d heard him right.

“Fuck no,” I shot back, heat rising to my face. “She’s meant to be with us .”

Barren closed his eyes for a breath. When he opened them, he looked even more tired. Resigned.

“She’s a cecaelia, Leander.”

The air in my lungs froze solid.

What?

“More than that, she’s a sea witch.” His teeth grit like he was forcing the words to form. “She may be our mate, but now that she’s changed, we can’t be trusted not to hurt her.” His chest rose and fell in sharp, uneven breaths. “We… can’t even look at her.”

No. Fuck no. “That’s whaleshit, Barren.”

“Is it?” His gaze remained steady even while his breathing wasn’t, as if he’d already accepted it. As if it were a truth he’d known for far too long.

Fuck.

My throat locked up. I couldn’t breathe, could barely think.

All I could picture was Claira’s smile. Her laugh, bright and familiar?—

She was… a cecaelia?

A sea witch?

How the fuck had I not known?