Kai clenched her jaw, and his fingers pressed tighter into her cheek. His hold on her mind was too strong—she couldn’t fight it, no matter how desperately she wanted to. He wastoyingwith her like she was some puppet to use and discard, and she was helpless. Panic and fury flooded her chest, a scream building and building, unable to release.
“Do you want to see what I can do?” he whispered in her ear before drawing back and meeting her eyes once more. The wicked, taunting grin on his lips turned all the water inside her to ice. Kai sucked in a breath as his single command filtered through her mind.
A command she had no choice but to obey.
With a thrust of her arm, she began churning the water surrounding their ship. It grew stronger, responding passionately to her will. Calling it to her was effortless—as simple as breathing. She raised a hand and a large wave rose thirty feet from the dark depths, its shadow blanketing the deck. With a loud crash, it rammed into the front of the ship, drenching her and everything aboard.
Shouts came from the crew as the captain gave instructions. Men struggled to get to their assigned posts with only the fading lanterns to light their path. But Kai didn’t care; the only thing that mattered to her was his command.
Drown them.
“Get up to the yard! We’ve gotta repair the sail!” someone yelled, and a couple of men began climbing the foremast.
It was no use. Kai’s power was too strong, and the mysterious man’s control over her too potent. She sent wave after wave into the ship, relishing the surge she felt in her veins and the cries coming from the men on board. Throwing her head back, she welcomed the rivulets of water running down her face.
The ship creaked loudly, as if the wood was being torn apart by the force of the waves. It teetered from side to side so violently that she had to grab the railings to keep from flying into the water.
“Kai!” A warm hand circled her arm and yanked her away from the edge of the ship. “Kai! What are you doing? Stop!” The voice tried to break through the barrier in her mind. It sent flames through her body, but she couldn’t figure out why.
The same hands moved up, one grasping the back of her neck and the other caressing her cheek. “Kai, you’ve got to stop this. You’re going to kill everyone,” the voice urged.
She faltered. She knew that voice, knew these hands. He was telling her to stop. Who was she supposed to listen to?
Heat emanated from the hands on her skin, warming her entire body.
“Look at me, sweetheart.”
She did. Staring back was a pair of familiar eyes. Dark brown and wide, with a hint of fire that ignited her blood.
Aidan.
Her mind snapped back under her control. She gasped and fell to her knees. “What have I done?” A frantic search of the deck revealed the mysterious man was nowhere to be found.
“I don’t know, but you can still fix this. Come on.” Aidan gently but strongly pulled her to her feet, supporting her.
Kai froze as she assessed the damage around her. Debris flew everywhere, pieces of the railing around the side of the ship splintering and breaking off. The sail was ripped in half, and men dangled off of the yard, trying to fix it. The black fog of night and the wind whipping water in their eyes made it nearly impossible to see. A couple of men floated in the wreckage beside them. They were injured, but Kai thought she could still see them moving.
And the water kept coming.
Her actions had roused the storm even more, and it was truly breathtaking in its ferocity. She had to do something before they capsized.
Closing her eyes, she reached for the power that thrummed in every inch of her body. She felt each wave, each current, each drop of water, as if it lived within her, flowing through her very soul. Lifting her arms, she threw all of her strength into commanding it tostill.
With a tug on her core, the water within several miles of the ship instantly halted. The waves dissipated midair, and all the pools and puddles on the deck trickled back over the sides and into the ocean.
Beside her, Aidan breathed heavily. “What just happened, Kai?”
She shook her head, her heart racing. “I—I don’t know.” Guilt and hopelessness crashed through her, settling like a stone on her chest and stealing the breath from her lungs.
“Kai! Aidan! What is—” Jade stopped mid-sentence when she approached them. “What’s going on?”
“I don’tknow, I can’t explain it. There was this man, and it was like…like he was controlling me or forcing me…and I couldn’t fight it.” Kai struggled to keep herself steady and put her thoughts together. It had taken a great amount of power to quell the waters, and her mind and body were sluggish.
“A man? There was no man here with you, Kai.” Aidan wrapped his arms around her when her teeth started to chatter. His closeness brought a small amount of comfort, her shoulders relaxing an inch.
“He only appeared to me—at least, that’s what he said.” Kai swallowed and quickly recounted as much of the incident as she could remember.
There were some hazy spots in her memory, where all she had was afeelingbut couldn’t recall exactly what had happened. The man had told her that their reign was over and that he wanted to show her what he could do, and she remembered feeling so weightless, so powerful, like she could tear the seas apart. It was exhilarating.
