Page 53 of In Violent Waves

Lyra squinted as she thought and then nodded.

“Mhm. The night Wilder rescued me from the human attackers.”

Wilder lurched to his feet and stalked into the rain. With his sword gripped in his fist, he paced along the entrance of the cave. Daring anyone or anything out there to come close.

That’s when he felt them—out there in the distance, watching. There were at least two from Igneous’ clan and three from Matthias’.

It was highly unusual for wulver clans to work together. They had a history of violence that stretched back further than the Wilds and the Mannereds. But if they were smart, they would cut their losses now and flee.

Wilder had a reputation as one of the best swordsmen in their realm and had been cutting down monsters and men alike since he could hold a sword on his own. It was like breathing to him.

The sword in his grip had been passed down through his ancestors for millennia. It was as legendary as he was. The blade was composed of layered steel, forged in the volcanoes of a long-forgotten place that didn’t exist on any map. The pommel was unremarkable, a series of silver runes carved into an ancient ash wood.

There wasn’t a creature the blade could not cut down, magical and human alike. It glowed in the watery light streaming through the rain-leaden clouds as he paced.

Even if they weren’t stupid enough to fear him, they would fear that sword.

Lyra watched Wilder prowl back and forth in front of the cave. The pouring rain slid down his face and soaked his tunic, highlighting the outline of his muscled physique. His boots thundered with each step. And if it wasn’t such a menacing sight, she might have laughed at his obvious discomfort, but then she remembered he was on her side, protecting her from whatever was out there. Lyra could look at the snarling mass of muscle in front of her and smile.

So she did.

“What?” Maelys asked, looking from her to Wilder.

“It’s kind of funny,” Lyra replied, a bright twinkle in her emerald eyes.

“How so?” Maelys cocked her head to the side, and her wet braid slid over her shoulder.

“Well, it’s nice and dry in here. And he’s out there in the cold rain to protect me,the person he hates, from unforeseen danger.” Lyra pointed from Wilder to herself and grinned.

“Oh, that’s diabolical,” Maelys replied, but a smile tugged her lips up.

Ridge shoulder-bumped Maelys, and her smile dropped away. Battle lines had been drawn. Wilder must have told them not to speak to her or be nice. That was fine—just fine. It’s not like she had a choice in being here.

It’s not like this was her grand idea to leave everything she’d ever known and be whisked away to an enemy kingdom.

If she could grow her tail back, she would be gone immediately. Lyra paused at that thought.Would she?Her father would no doubt be furious with her for being captured. And Drystan, well, he had made it perfectly clear how he felt about her staying topside.

But everything she had read about the elves told her going back to Atlantis was the lesser of two evils. Yet, she didn’t know if that was the truth anymore. These elves hadn’t displayed the violence she had read about, and she was stuck here. She couldn’t grow her tail back. Lyra decided she would not be miserable because of choices that were not her own.

No, she was going to win them over. But she didn’t know how. Merfolk weren’t known for their social skills. Marina and Seraphina had grown on her much the same way a barnacle did to a ship. Was that what she needed to do? Entrench herself so deeply in their lives that the only way they could be rid of her was to scrape her off?

Lyra frowned to herself.

She had nevertriedto make friends. If anything, her violent tendencies drove everyone else away except for Marina and Seraphina. But that wouldn’t help her survive now—and she didn’t know where that left her. Lyra hated this journey. It was making her confront things she never had the time to analyze before.

Otto cleared his throat and called to Wilder. “The rain will be stopping soon, and we need to move.Quickly.”

“I can take them,” Wilder growled back.

“You can. But they will take her,” Otto nodded to Lyra.

“I would like to see them try.”

Otto stood, crossing his arms over his chest. “I have seen it, andwe fail. Unless we move.”

Wilder heaved a breath, squeezing his eyes shut, he tipped his head back to the sky. Lyra watched as the rain pelted his face and ran down his high cheekbones. She couldn’t stop herself from watching.

“Fine. Let’s move.”