The Soldier and the Siren: A Wolf Shifter Fantasy Romance (Shifters of Black Isle Book 2)

by Lorelei Moone

  And so he remained there, leaning against the mossy wall of the cave, with Liliwen in his arms. Sharing more kisses, caresses, and conversation.

  He asked her about her home. What she got up to when she wasn't swimming across the Northern Sea, breaking the rules. She asked him about his achievements in battle.

  It was perfect, just like she'd said. Until a good long while later, her demeanor seemed to change a little.

  "What's wrong?" he asked.

  "I'm okay," she said. The strain in her voice suggested she wasn't, though.

  "No, really."

  "It's just… a bit dry." Liliwen leaned back and looked at Teaq with large apologetic eyes. "I would have liked to stay a little longer."

  Teaq smiled at her. "Come, let's get you back into the water."

  Liliwen nodded, with disappointment written all over her face.

  "Now, don't be sad. This isn't the last time we'll see each other." Teaq tried to sound upbeat to cheer her up, even if deep down he didn't want this moment to end either.

  "Promise?" she asked.

  Teaq nodded, and sealed his promise with a kiss.

  Back at the castle, it didn't take long for Teaq to find Rhea.

  "We must talk," he said.

  Rhea nodded darkly. "Our King hasn't heeded my advice."

  Obviously the human, and Broc's instant infatuation with her, was the only thing on Rhea's mind these days. Good. At least he wouldn't have to steer the coming conversation.

  "I think we need to tighten up our surveillance on the human," Teaq said. "There's something I don't trust about her."

  "Why, has she done something? Because if she has, you must tell your brother!" Rhea urged.

  Teaq shook his head. "Nothing concrete, sadly. Call it instinct."

  Rhea scoffed. "I've had that instinct from the very start of this whole mess."

  "Indeed you have. I trust that in time we'll find proof that even my brother cannot overlook."

  Rhea nodded. "How about we approach the Elders? If they look hard enough, they might be able to find something in the old scriptures that could help our cause?"

  Teaq thought for a moment. The Elders had a habit of taking any suggestion and twisting it to their own objectives; or perhaps they were just so old that they merely forgot what they were looking for once they started reading. Still, it was the most innocuous way of getting ahead at this point.

  "Fine. I will speak with Uri in confidence. Meanwhile, you keep an eye on her yourself."

  "How am I supposed to do that?" Rhea complained.

  "You're a woman, so you're allowed in her quarters. Find a reason to spend time with the human. Show her around the island for all I care. Or better yet, give her some combat training."

  "Okay…" Rhea thought for a moment. "I suppose I can work with that. I'll plan something first thing in the morning. If the human can drag herself out of bed on time."

  "Good. I'll find Uri now. We'll convene a Council Meeting once we have something to tell Broc."

  Teaq left Rhea in the hallway he'd found her, and made his way straight to the Library, where the Elders spent most of their days. If now he could get Uri on his side, he might be able to act on the information Liliwen had given him without attracting any suspicions himself. He couldn't very well go around telling people he suspected the human because a Mermaid had shared some secrets from her own people. A prediction made by a mystic, no less.

  Not only would nobody believe it, Teaq would soon find himself locked up for questioning himself.

  And then not only would Kelly be beyond reproach, the entire defense of the Black Isles would be in shambles, just at a time when the Sea Folk planned a large scale invasion.

  Teaq barged straight into the library, and found that Uri was sitting by himself at the large study table in the center of it.

  He looked up. "Fancy seeing you here, commander. Planning to do some light reading?"

  "Uri, I need your help," Teaq said.

  Uri's expression turned serious. "Very well. There is something I have been meaning to discuss with you anyway."

  Teaq's curiosity was piqued instantly. "What's that?"

  "I've been studying these scriptures and I found a passage that concerns me." Uri pointed down at the tattered old scroll in front of him.

  Teaq leaned over and was speechless as he read the words Uri had pointed out.

  During a time of great change,

  Two moons before the summer solstice,

  A stranger arrives,

  Hiding a terrible secret.

  A power that could win or lose wars,

  One that could destroy all or be our salvation,

  Bringing with it the third great age of war,

  As our enemies aim to acquire it for their own gain.

  "Serendipity," Teaq whispered.

  "Sorry?" Uri cupped his hand behind his ear.

  "Thank you for bringing this to me, Uri. We must inform Broc immediately."

  "What of the Reaping Feast? It's about to begin," Uri argued.

  Teaq muttered a few choice words under his breath. The bloody Reaping Feast was becoming the bane of his life. "Fine. First thing tomorrow, then."

  Teaq had never been superstitious. Until now he'd often wondered if the random stuff the Elders found in these old writings was 99% nonsense and only 1% useful. But tonight, his mind was changed.

  In a twist of fate, everything had worked out exactly in Teaq's favor. Rhea would take Kelly out to keep an eye on her in the morning, and in the meanwhile Teaq and Uri would brief Broc with this latest bit of information. A concrete lead to start being a bit more careful with the human.

  Teaq headed for the Great Hall with a spring in his step. Now, he would be unstoppable.

  Chapter Nine

  Just how it had happened, Liliwen wasn't quite sure. But while waiting idly for Teaq to arrive at their designated meeting place, she had found herself swimming off course. At first it had been the birds floating in the sky that caught her eye.

  Then a school of fish weaving their way through the pointy rocks that dotted the coastline of the Eastern Isle.

  Her heart was light, full of excitement at the prospect of seeing him again. The memory of their first kiss in that magical cave was still vivid in her mind. That, of course, was the reason she'd come back so soon. She wanted more.

  He loved her too. She was sure of it. He hadn't said it in so many words, but the way he'd kissed her… Surely that meant something. The way they'd spoken, more intimately than before… It was obvious now. She'd even told Cara about it already.

  Still filled with hope and an energy she hadn't felt before, Liliwen swam on. Her mind was filled with a mishmash of idle thoughts. Cara was to marry Cadfael; the looks they'd shared during the Premonition Ceremony were undeniable.

  And Liliwen was in love with Teaq.

  Further and further she swam, discovering new sights at each turn, and reliving old memories all at the same time.

  Until suddenly, she could go no further. Something constricted her movements, and within moments, a frenzy of activity descended upon her helpless form.

  All the excitement, all the joy Liliwen had felt just moments ago vanished.

  She'd been caught in a net. And to make matters worse, the net had closed around her and she was being dragged to shore against her will. No matter how hard she fought, it was no use.

  When she broke through the surface of the water, she saw not the familiar face she had been waiting for, but a whole lot of new people. Her heart grew heavy as she realized that the worst had happened. The Others had captured her.

  Two of them were hauling her onto dry land.

  "What is it?" Teaq called out in the distance, filling Liliwen briefly with hope again. Would he rescue her?

  Her heart sank when she realized the truth that was written all over his face. The horror. He couldn't acknowledge her; no way.

  If she said anything to suggest she knew him, it would only escalate t
hings. For the both of them.

  Struggling also seemed to make matters worse. The net was rough, painfully so. It rubbed her skin raw almost to the point of causing real damage. That was nothing compared to what these soldiers would do to her later, though.

  "Well, let's see it," another man shouted.

  Liliwen was quickly overpowered by the two men who had previously hauled in the net. One had wrapped his arm around her neck to keep her still, while the other took yet more of the hideous rough material from the netting and tied it around her wrists. It stung and burned against her skin, but she didn't let her discomfort show.

  Instead, she took a moment to size up her captors.

  The two soldiers looked rather unimpressive. One was a wolf, like Teaq, but actually he was nothing like Teaq at all. The other was something else, a bigger, furrier sort of creature. A bear, probably. Two more stood by a little further up the wall, with yet more of them overlooking the entire spectacle from the highest point of the fortifications.

  Liliwen could barely stand to look at Teaq anymore, whose expression was one of pure horror, so she quickly skipped past him and looked at his companion. This man had the same animal form as one of the foot soldiers holding her, but he was more sizeable and wore fancier attire.

  "Well, you don't see that every day," the stranger beside Teaq said.

  From his armor, as well as the tone in which he addressed the others, Liliwen could make out that he was in charge.

  "There's your intruder," the same man said, while turning to face Teaq, who continued to stare at Liliwen. "Seems like the Elders might have been onto something with all their talk of prophecies."

  Liliwen frowned. Intruder; that obviously referred to her, but what Elders? What prophecies?

  The soldiers meanwhile tried to drag her up the stone steps to reach the wall level where the others were waiting. Liliwen wasn't sure how to react to all these strangers manhandling her, so she followed her instincts and spat at one of them.

  This only enraged him further and earned her a firm hand to the throat.

  "Don't lay a hand on me, wolf!" she threatened. Her anger had made her legs come out again, allowing her to stand strong on two feet.

  Just exactly what she would do if he didn't let go, she wasn't sure of. But this wasn't a situation she'd ever found herself in, obviously. And the treatment she was receiving so far was unbecoming of how a princess of the Deep deserved to be treated.

  If they knew her true identity, matters would undoubtedly get worse, though, so she stopped herself from berating them on royal etiquette and decided to cooperate. For now.

  Just for a second, she dared to look into Teaq's eyes again. There was nothing but sadness there.

  She couldn't let that affect her, though. She had to be calm and calculating.

  This romance of theirs had been doomed from the start. Just a fantasy.

  But this right here, this was the cold, hard reality.

  The worst had happened.

  It had been a risk from the first moment she'd slipped out of her father's palace and come to these Isles. She had evaded it all this time simply because it was Teaq who had found her initially. And against all odds, they had connected. They had even fallen in love.

  Now, all that was over.

  She wouldn't be able to charm her way out of this situation.

  Princess or not, she was a prisoner of war now.

  "Lock her up underneath the deck so she doesn't dry out, then transfer her to a nice, cozy puddle in the castle dungeons at the earliest," the man in charge ordered.

  Teaq didn't say a word.

  "Brother?" the man spoke up again. "Will you accompany the prisoner transport?"

  That last statement activated Teaq, whose one sentence response summed up the entire situation much more succinctly than Liliwen would have been able to.

  "Dark days are upon us."

  Indeed, they were. Brother. Teaq and the other man were siblings. The similarities were there, clear as day. Still, this revelation shocked Liliwen to her core. And although Teaq didn't show it right now, he looked to be higher up in the hierarchy as well. He wasn't just an ordinary soldier, but a commander, much like Cadfael.

  Right now, he didn't look in charge of much, least of all himself.

  Liliwen wished she could have a moment with him. To tell him that it was alright. That she was ready.

  She was a prisoner, to be taken away and locked in the enemy's dungeon. She had known about this risk from the start and taken it anyway, just to steal a few more moments with Teaq.

  Now, she would die for her indiscretions.

  And once her father and Cadfael found her missing, and got Cara to spill all her secrets, all these people would probably die as well. Her family's vengeance would be swift as well as cruel.

  And for what? For a choice she had made. A stupid decision, which had led her here again and again. She didn't even regret any of it, except to see Teaq so distraught. To know that her recklessness had hurt him, and would hurt so many of his people as well.

  But she didn't get a moment with him and she could tell him nothing.

  She was hauled across the wall, towards a large wooden vessel, where she was roughly deposited in the lowermost compartment, along with the same two guards who were meant to keep an eye on her.

  As disorienting as it was, travelling like this, she still knew roughly where she was. Her sense of direction was still strong. She closed her eyes for the duration of the boat ride, keeping track of each minute change of course.

  If she managed to escape, it wouldn't be a problem to find her way home.

  Of course, these people had no intention of letting her go, so these were just idle dreams.

  She curled up on the floor, and rested her head on a pile of rope and just lay there, staring at the two dark outlines of the soldiers guarding her. The entire ordeal was a shock to her senses. She had been out of the water for all of one hour in her entire life, when she had spent those precious moments with Teaq in the cave only a couple of days ago. This was going to be a lot longer than just an hour. Staying on dry land for long wasn't just going to be unpleasant, it was also potentially dangerous for her.

  Teaq's brother's order to prepare a puddle for her in the dungeons had sounded patronizing, but now she was yearning for even just a sip of water to soothe her burning skin.

  She hoped beyond hope that they would show her this little kindness, even though she was their enemy, technically. And if not, she hoped that her end would be swift.

  The boat rocked back and forth in the choppy waters of the Northern Sea. It was an odd movement, which threatened to turn her stomach upside-down.

  Thankfully the journey didn't take too long. Unfortunately it ended with her in a prickly sack of sorts, being hauled unceremoniously to her final destination.

  Before long, she found herself deposited in a cold, damp room. The so-called dungeon.

  There wasn't much light. Neither was there much water, much to Liliwen's chagrin.

  The soldiers who accompanied her said their goodbyes by spitting on her, and slamming the door shut behind them. Finally, she was alone.

  As desperate as her situation was, Liliwen couldn't stop thinking about Teaq. Where was he, and what was he doing?

  Would she ever see him again? Or would he deny their connection and avoid her until she was eventually put to death. Part of her hoped that he would. She didn't want him to see her this way, covered in mud and filth, withered and mistreated.

  It was unbecoming of her position. She didn't want to be remembered this way.

  No, it would be best if he steered clear and never came down into this forsaken place.

  Soon enough, it would all be over. She'd be dead and he might get on with his life.

  Strange, these thoughts whizzing around in her head. How calmly she considered the benefits of her own demise. This was why her people were such formidable fighters. She'd never thought about it before, even during her l
engthy conversations with Teaq.

  It wasn't that Merfolk didn't consider their own mortality. They did. It was just that they—herself included—did so with a rationale that left little room for emotions and despair.

  Death wasn't something to be feared.

  After all, everyone was born, and everyone must eventually die.

  Liliwen was ready to accept that her time had come.

  Chapter Ten

  The entire spectacle was horrific. Teaq could barely watch. None of the gore and violence of war could compare to the moment when his very own underlings hauled his Liliwen out of the water and took her prisoner.

  She'd fought back initially, and valiantly so. But she was outnumbered, so it was a lost cause from the start. He had known that she was feisty and impulsive, so he half expected her to scream and shout at her captors, and call on him for help.

  But she had done nothing of the sort. They had exchanged a couple of painful looks in silence, and that was that. She showed the sort of quiet resignation Sea Folk soldiers did in the rare occasions they were caught during battle. Like she had given up.

  That was the most painful part, seeing the change in her. From defiant and proud to meek and helpless. As though her spirit was already broken, a mere ten minutes after her capture.

  Teaq followed the patrol soldiers and Liliwen onto the longship. It felt as though they were taking him away with them as a prisoner as well. Or a part of him at least.

  Just how she had ended up on this side of the island, and swam right into one of the islanders’ nets, was unclear to him. She had been careless, but he could not blame her. She was not as worldly wise as she pretended to be. She did not know any better.

  He should have protected her from all this.

  Instead, he'd let her down. If only he'd scared her away after the first meeting. Or if he'd been clearer about which areas around these islands to stay away from.

  Teaq had not been a stranger to disappointment in his life. Most notably when he lost the chance to become king to his little brother. That crushing defeat paled in comparison to what had happened today. Seeing Liliwen being hauled away in restraints was an image that would haunt him for the rest of his life.