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body language. Three babies came by to investigate her tail, and Lorai moved it to let them chase it like aquatic kittens.
    When they all had a chance to head to the surface and breathe deep, they turned with her toward the ship.
    She wanted them as a distraction, but she wanted them safe from the guns. She showed them where she wanted them to be, and they began to cavort as requested.
    Lorai poured on the speed and swam under the boat on the far side of the divers. A quick elevation above the surface to the hips and she confirmed that the men had gone to the port side to watch the dolphins. They were pointing and laughing. It almost made her sorry for what she had to do next.
    She had only done this manoeuver once in all her years, but it had worked on the Spanish ship, so she was sure it would work on this vessel.
    Lorai cruised back nearly a kilometre, turned and moved toward the ship at speed, uncaring if anyone saw her. Twenty feet from the ship, she came out of the water and flew through the air, across the deck, to slam into the pirates and haul them over the side and into the water.
    Once they were in, she turned and flashed toward the two guards on the divers, barrelling to them and divesting them of their regulators and their spear guns.
    The treasure seekers saw her and saw the men struggling for air. She pointed toward the boat, and they didn’t hesitate. They swam past the floundering pirates struggling to shake off their tanks and moved to take over their ship.
    Lorai was one step ahead of them. A flick of her tail and she was out of the water and soaring to the deck. She landed on her feet and went looking for her mate.
    The grunt was a sound she was familiar with, but she had never heard him in pain before. She followed the voice and heard two men speaking softly.
    The common space smelled of blood and infection. A man was sitting next to Adam and making him smile.
    The smile froze when Adam saw her. “Lorai.”
    “I leave you alone for a few months and this is what happens?” She tsked and knelt at his side.
    The other man was staring with his mouth open. “Adam, why is there a naked woman dripping all over you?”
    Lorai eased a hand under his back and another under his thighs. “It’s an illusion.”
    Adam grunted. “You can’t carry me.”
    She stood up easily. “I can. Now, watch your elbows. We are going to finish what we started.”
    The other man scrambled to his feet. “Where are you taking him?”
    Lorai smiled and spouted the cover story that they had selected. “Adam here has latent fey genes. We are about to activate them, and then, he will be able to dive as long as he likes.”
    It should have been difficult to haul him up and out onto the deck, but it was the curse of those who lived under water. She was far stronger than she looked.
    Adam’s lips were white, his skin was hot and his complexion was chalky. There was a glaze to his eyes, and she was more worried than she had ever been.
    Adam smiled. “Do you want to do it on the deck or in the ocean?”
    “I think we will jump into the water for this. I will need to get you away from the boat. We don’t want to sink your ship.” She smiled.
    His men were back on the boat, and the pirate vessel had been cut loose.
    The men looked at her warily. A blond asked, “What are you doing with him?”
    She smiled and showed a mouthful of pointed teeth. “He is tribute.”
    Adam laughed and then gasped. “She is my fiancée. I did tell you that she swam like a fish.”
    The two held the gate for her and assisted her onto the floating dock.
    Lorai looked at Adam. “Ready?”
    “I have waited nearly a year. I am ready.”
    She smiled and took a step into the ocean, holding him as the salt water struck the hole in his body.
    She supported him with his head above water and pulled at her hair to free the vial. She shifted her feet into fins and pushed them nearly a kilometre from the ship. “Ready?”
    He nodded and his head lolled on his