Page 3

TWO

NEREUS

N ereus cut through the Atlantic waters with powerful strokes.

His white-and-gray fur streamed behind him as he swam parallel to the shore in his wolf form.

The midnight ocean had called to him as it often did during the full moon—a primordial connection that ran deeper than blood.

His turquoise wolf eyes pierced the darkness, tracking the silvery path the moon laid across the water.

Then it hit him.

A sensation unlike anything he had felt in centuries of his existence. Not pain, not pleasure, but a sudden awareness that vibrated through every fiber of his being. The ocean around him shifted, the currents changing direction as water began to recede from the shore in an unnatural rhythm.

Nereus knew what this meant. He had felt a shadow of this once, centuries ago, when his father had described the awakening of his mother's powers. The Luna mate bond. But this seemed almost unreal—he had searched for his mate for over three hundred years to no avail.

He growled inwardly as he changed course, his powerful muscles propelling him toward the beach at supernatural speed.

The shore appeared eerily extended, water pulling back farther than it should.

Something was drawing it out—something very powerful.

The moonlight revealed wet sand where waves should be breaking.

He dragged himself onto the beach, shaking water from his massive wolf form before shifting.

His bones cracked and reformed, his fur receded into human skin, and within seconds, a tall, muscular man stood where the wolf had been.

Nereus strode to the pile of clothes he'd left on higher ground, pulling on his dark jeans and black T-shirt with efficient movements.

The vibration inside him intensified, a compass needle pointing toward danger and destiny simultaneously. About a mile down the beach, near the marine research station, darkness gathered on the horizon—a wall of water building, feeding on the retreating ocean.

"Son of a bitch," he muttered, raking a hand through his short black hair as his eyes narrowed. "Tonight of all nights."

His truck was parked at the beach access point. He sprinted across the sand, his bare feet finding purchase where others would slip. The F350's black frame gleamed under the moonlight like a waiting beast. He slid into the driver's seat, the engine roaring to life beneath his touch.

His hands tightened on the steering wheel as the tugging sensation pulsed stronger, more insistent by the second. This was no ordinary natural disaster. The ocean itself, the very element his pack had shared a bond with for millennia, was responding to something—someone.

A Luna. His Luna.

The realization slammed into him with a powerful force, much like the gathering tidal wave was surely about to do down the shore. After centuries of waiting, his mate's powers were finally awakening, and she was directly in harm's way.

"Not how I planned to meet you," he growled, throwing the truck into gear.

The massive tires bit into the sand as he turned the vehicle toward the research station instead of away from the danger. Every instinct in his human form told him to drive to safety, but the wolf—the alpha—knew better. Something more precious than his territory was at stake.

For the first time in decades, Nereus felt fear creep along his spine as he watched the monstrous wave gather height offshore, a dark silhouette against the starlit sky.

Nereus gunned the engine as he sped down the empty coastal road, his truck eating up the pavement toward the northern tip of the island. The pull in his chest intensified the closer he got to the tidal wave, a sensation both foreign and primal.

No lights from passing cars, no signs of evacuation—just as well. This remote stretch near the edge of his territory housed nothing but the marine research station, a fact that normally pleased him. Privacy from humans was a luxury he valued as alpha and Prince of the Seafang pack.

The road curved sharply ahead, offering the first unobstructed view of the shore.

Nereus's jaw clenched as he witnessed the tidal wave make landfall—a mountain of water that seemed to defy nature itself.

The massive wall crashed over the research station with terrifying precision as if the ocean had marked the building for execution.

"Fuck," he growled, hitting the steering wheel. Even with all his power as the alpha waterwolf, this destruction was beyond his ability to prevent. The ocean answered to no one, not even him.

His truck skidded to a halt at the beach access point nearest the research station, and he threw open his door before the engine had fully died. The tidal wave had already receded, dragging portions of the building back into its depths like a predator with its kill.

Nereus stood motionless for a moment, his eyes taking in the devastation.

Where the two-story research facility had stood now lay a jumble of twisted metal, shattered glass, and splintered wood.

Water still poured from the wreckage, seeking its way back to the ocean in rivulets that carved paths through the sand.

"This definitely wasn't natural," he muttered to himself, stalking forward across wet sand.

His bare feet registered the temperature drop—the water was unnaturally cold.

The scent of salt and destruction filled his nostrils, but underneath was something else.

Something that made his wolf stir with recognition.

Magic. Awakening water magic.

The pull in his chest yanked harder like an invisible hook lodged beneath his sternum. His mate was here, somewhere amidst this chaos, and she had somehow—perhaps unwittingly—summoned the wave that destroyed the building.

Nereus waded into the knee-deep water surrounding what remained of the structure. Concrete slabs tilted at precarious angles. A laboratory door, still intact with its window, floated past him. Scientific equipment worth millions lay ruined and scattered across what had once been a parking lot.

"Impressive first display of power," he said dryly, appreciating the sheer force of the destruction despite himself. "A bit dramatic for my taste, but I can't fault the execution."

The water lapped at his jeans as he moved deeper into the wreckage, his senses extending beyond human capacity.

He could feel the currents shifting, responding to his presence as Alpha of the Seafang pack.

The moon overhead illuminated the scene in silver light, casting long shadows across the devastation.

As Nereus scanned the area, uncertainty crept into his mind. His mate was powerful—dangerously so. And from the looks of this destruction, completely untrained. A lethal combination.

He suddenly froze as the moonlight revealed several dark shapes bobbing out in the churning ocean water.

His enhanced vision pierced the darkness—five humans clinging desperately to what appeared to be parts of a lab table, a filing cabinet, and what might have once been a door.

Their panicked voices soon carried across the water.

"Dammit," he growled under his breath. Humans. The last creatures he wanted to deal with tonight when he should be searching for his Luna. But the pull in his body intensified sharply as if his wolf recognized that saving these people was somehow connected to finding his mate.

He shed his T-shirt with one fluid motion, tossing it onto a relatively dry section of debris.

The moonlight played across the defined muscles of his chest and abs—a body honed by centuries of swimming the Atlantic's depths.

Humans had their uses to his pack over the years.

They kept the areas near his territory clean, respected the ocean, and provided valuable research.

These particular humans might even know his mate.

"Hold on!" he shouted, his voice carrying across the water with commanding authority that seemingly calmed the panicking scientists. "Stay with your floating objects!"

Without hesitation, he dove into the swirling currents, his powerful body cutting through the water with a grace no ordinary human could match.

The wolf in him wanted to shift, to harness his full power in the water, but he maintained his human form.

Centuries of keeping his pack secret in this area demanded discretion even in emergencies.

He reached the first victim in seconds—a middle-aged man clutching a piece of insulation foam. The human's eyes widened at Nereus's approach.

"Just let me—" Nereus began.

"I can't swim well! The current's too strong!" The scientist's voice cracked with panic.

Nereus resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "That's why I'm here. Hold onto my shoulder and keep calm."

He positioned the man across his back, feeling the human's fingers dig into his shoulder. The added weight meant nothing to him—he could have carried ten humans if needed. With powerful strokes, he swam through the water back to shore, depositing the shivering man on the beach.

"Stay there," he ordered, not waiting for acknowledgement before plunging back into the water.

The next victim was a young woman with a gash across her forehead, blood mixing with seawater. She clung weakly to a plastic equipment case.

"You're bleeding," Nereus observed, treading water beside her.

"Brilliant observation," she managed through chattering teeth. "Are you my rescue or just making conversation out here?"

Despite himself, Nereus's mouth twitched with amusement. "Both, apparently." He slipped an arm around her waist, noticing immediately how her breath hitched at his touch. Humans were so predictable. "Hold tight."

He swam her to shore with practiced efficiency, placing her beside the first survivor. "Apply pressure to that cut."

The third and fourth victims were clinging to the same piece of debris—a lab door that had somehow remained intact. The young man looked on the verge of hypothermia while the older woman seemed more collected.

"Thank god," the woman called as Nereus approached. "I was sure we would die."

"I've got you now," Nereus assured them, moving with efficient authority. "Ma'am, hold onto my right shoulder. You, on my left. Don't fight the water, let me do the work."

"Who are you?" the young man asked through chattering teeth as they made their way toward shore.

"The guy saving your asses right now," Nereus replied bluntly. "Questions later."

After depositing them on shore, he turned back to the water, scanning for the fifth victim. His enhanced senses detected a faint splashing nearly fifty yards farther out than the others had been. Someone was being pulled out by the retreating currents.

With a muttered curse, Nereus sprinted back into the surf, his powerful legs propelling him through the breaking waves. The pull tugged him in the same direction—an interesting coincidence he filed away until he saved this last person.

He finally spotted the last survivor—a man in his sixties struggling to keep his head above water, having lost whatever makeshift flotation device he'd been clinging to. The man's strength was clearly flagging.

Nereus doubled his speed, his muscles burning pleasantly with the exertion. "Stop fighting!" he commanded as he approached. "Float on your back!"

The older scientist complied instantly, responding to the natural authority in Nereus's voice. Nereus reached him in moments, turning him into a rescue position.

"I thought... I was gone," the man gasped as Nereus began towing him toward shore.

"Not on my watch," Nereus replied firmly. "My territory, my responsibility."

The scientist gave him an odd look. "Your territory?"

"Figure of speech," Nereus corrected smoothly. "Hold still, we're almost there."

Nereus hauled the older scientist onto the shore, his muscles barely registering the weight.

The man collapsed onto the sand beside the other survivors, coughing up seawater and trembling.

Nereus stepped back, scanning the huddled group with critical eyes.

Five scientists, all looking shell-shocked but very much alive.

The emergency in front of him was handled, but the urgent pull within him remained unsatisfied.

He clenched his jaw. The pulsation hadn't intensified in their presence. His Luna wasn't among them.

"Is there anyone else?" he demanded, his tone holding the natural command of centuries of leadership. "Anyone missing from your facility?"

A sudden dread flooded through him. Where was she?