Chapter 3

Chapter

Three

WILL

“ W hat the fuck were you thinking? You put the entire shoal at risk.” I ranted. “We never change in front of humans. It’s our most sacred law!”

My brother Beck just grinned over at me. The dipshit. “There was no choice.” He kicked the leg of the man on the ground. “This one was about to rape her. I couldn’t just stand by and let it happen.”

My hand ran from the top of my face down while I let out a frustrated groan. “We can’t trust her. The whole yacht is full of criminals and low life’s.”

“Hey asshole,” the female shouted. “I’m not here by choice.”

Will placed a hand on my shoulder, squeezing. “This is Nova. She’s Trent’s stepdaughter, and she’s being held captive.”

“Why would he hold his stepdaughter captive?” Kato glanced around the opulent bedroom. “Pretty swanky digs for a kidnappee. All marble countertops, glass chandeliers. For fuck sakes, there’s an elevator. Who has an elevator on a yacht?”

The woman huffed. “It’s not like I get to choose where they lock me up.”

My head tilted to the side as my gaze roamed over the woman in suspicion. “Why would he lock up his own stepdaughter?”

Her arms crossed over her ample chest. “I’m not telling you dick until you explain how you were fish.”

I took a step toward the bed, and she jerked back in fear. My hands went up in the universal sign of I’m not going to harm you .

“Whoa. It’s alright,” Beck attempted to reassure her, then glared at me. “Stop scaring her.”

Kato took a step closer to the bed. “We’re shape shifters. Our other form is that of a mudskipper.”

Nova busted into laughter, shaking her head. “You expect me to believe that shape shifters are real? And that you large, intimidating men got stuck changing into cute little fish?” More laughter. “Boy, that’s gotta suck!”

“Hey, judgey much?” Kato snapped. “We didn’t get to choose our forms.”

Beck smirked at her. “You didn’t seem to mind me when I was a cute little fish . And mudskippers are awesome. Don’t be a snob,” he rebuffed the woman.

Nova’s lips turned down and she bit into her bottom lip. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to insult you guys. It’s just?—”

Kato, who’d been pacing from the bed to the large window, threw his hands up in the air. “We know! Fiction books and movies show shifters as wolves, bears, cougars. All predatory animals that are big and strong. Boy, did they get it wrong!”

“We need to get back on topic before that one wakes up,” I pointed to the man on the floor. “You must have really clocked him since he’s still out.” Turning, I glared at Nova. “Now, why is your stepfather holding you hostage?”

“It’s a long story. Can we just get back to the whole shifter thing? How does it work? Can you change?—”

“No. We need to figure this shit out.” I let loose a growl, frustrated by the entire situation.

“We can fill you in later about shifters. Do you need us to get you out of here?” Beck, ever the softie, offered our help without stopping to consider if we were okay with it.

“Actually, it’s my yacht.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Trent just likes to pretend it’s his. So really, they should be the ones to leave, not me.”

Kato whistled. “Holy shit girl. This is yours?”

“Yep,” she said, popping the p. “Trent talked my mother into buying this monstrosity before she passed away. But she left everything to me, which is why Trent is holding me captive. He wants my money and in order to get it, his plan is to force me to marry him.”

Blinking, I gaped at the woman. “Well, that’s fucked up.”

Kato cracked his knuckles.

“Over my dead body,” Beck said. “We will not let that happen.”

The man on the ground moaned before raising his hand to his head. Nova grabbed a book off her bedside table and rushed toward the man. My jaw dropped when she hauled back and smacked the ever-living piss out of the man before he had the chance to stand up. Over and over she whomped him with the thick hardcover book.

“Suck your own dick, motherfucker!” Nova yelled as she smacked him over the head once more.

Kato was the first one to unfreeze. He grabbed Nova around the waist and hauled her away from the again unconscious male. “Whoa, pretty lady. Think he’s down for the count again.”

Nova went limp in his hold, her chest rising and falling rapidly. “He deserved it,” she huffed out. “He told me earlier him and the other guards raped my mother. I thought she’d died of cancer, but he said Trent murdered her.”

This mess was getting more complicated. We couldn’t leave the woman here. Rubbing my hand down my face again, I blew out a frustrated breath.

“Okay, here’s what we’re going to do. We can’t bring Nova home to the island until we check out her story.” My hand went up to silence my brothers when they looked ready to object. “I’m not saying I don’t believe you, Nova. It’s a matter of safety for all of us. We’ll need to bring a crew onboard and check for trackers, too. We were told Trent wouldn’t be back till tomorrow. Is that accurate?”

Nova nodded her head. “Yeah, but you never know with him. He’s been more erratic than usual, so I can’t guarantee it.”

“Okay. Nova, you’ll stay here while we take care of the guards. Let’s knock all their asses out, tie them up, and toss them overboard in a dinghy.”

Nova’s lips turned down in a scowl. “I can help.” She stepped toward the knocked-out guard and grabbed the gun from his holster.

“Hey, give me that.” Kato held out his hand. “We aren’t shooting anyone, even if they deserve it.”

After giving it a bit of thought, I disagreed. “It would be a good idea for her to have some protection just in case one of them gets by us. Have you ever shot a gun before?”

Nova gave a tight nod. “My dad was a big gun nut. We used to go to shooting competitions all the time. I held my own.”

“Shooting someone is much different from a target. Don’t hesitate if you feel threatened,” Beck said.

“Trust me, I know these guys won’t hesitate to hurt me.” Nova tilted her head to the side. “Wait. What are you guys doing here? I mean, you didn’t come to rescue me, so what’s going on?”

“We’ll explain once we’ve dealt with the guards and are underway,” I replied.

“Just know that we’re the good guys.” Beck gave her one of his megawatt smiles that women couldn’t resist. “Stay safe. Aquaman and his sidekicks will have this place cleared out in no time.”