“Or a trade,” Kye said.
Selene shot her sister a pointed stare. “What do we get in return?"
He swallowed hard, glancing toward the door. He shouldn't have come. "I don't have much to give."
Kye giggled as black smoke rose from the water.
He stood stepping away at once. "Not today." Of all days, he couldn’t allow them to see into his mind. Not when every thought wave centered on Halen.
Selene's tail rolled over her like a scorpion's and he steadied his breath. He couldn’t help but feel she had already peeked inside his brain. "We will fetch her, if you promise to leave with us when we return."
He crossed his arms hiding his clenched fists against his rib cage. "You know I can't leave the fortress."
"Because you have feelings for the siren?" Selene met his gaze.
"No." He glanced away, hoping she didn’t read the lie in his eyes. He cared for Halen, it was true, but not in the way Selene believed. But Selene would interpret his concern and guilt as more. "We need her alive. Even though the curse is broken, you live because of the magick I cast.” He crouched once more, leaning close to the water. He lowered his voice utilizing Quinn's seductive alto tones, "If the portal opened, we would never see each other again." Playing with Selene’s emotions was cruel, but the soul of the girl who sipped his blood so many years ago no longer remained. Black magick tainted the demon’s heart now. "What you're reading is Jae's spell. I'm connected to Natalie and Halen. There's nothing I can do about it."
Selene rose out of the water stopping inches from his nose. Though her breath laced with a putrid sulphur scent, roiling his gut, he didn’t budge. Revealing his repulsion now would only endanger Halen. Selene locked with his gaze. Eye to eye, she attempted to claw her way into his thoughts. His head pulsed as his magick pushed back, fighting the force of Selene as she ripped away at each stitch of his protection spell. Shackled by the force of her powers, he fought for a firm footing in their mental game of tug-of war. But he slipped, for just one second; his mind flooded with a vast poppy field, tall grass swaying in the ocean breeze. On the bluff, a girl with flowing chestnut hair called out his name. As Halen stood before him, his magick ignited.
Selene broke the bond, slipping from the ledge and dived beneath the water, taking the sweet vision with her.
Panic rushed through his veins, pumping his heart with dread. "Wait!" He reached, and her fins slid past his fingers.
Diya laughed. "You never were good at blocking your emotions, Asair." She dived following her sister.
His thoughts filled with dread as he scanned the water, debating whether he too should dive in after Selene.
Kye splashed the water with her tail. "Don't worry, we won't harm the siren. We could have killed her already. We’ve always known where she was." A mischievous grin played on her lips.
"You what? You knew, and you didn't tell me?" He dropped his fists by his sides.
"Does it matter if you don't care about her?" Kye winked.
"It matters because we need to protect her. Or do you want to die too?"
"She's not as innocent as you think. She's a killer. She would be beautiful with a tail.” She bobbed on her back, fanning her silver fins in his face. “We could teach her things. Her magick is so…"
"Kye!"
"Relax." She giggled.
The sound grated his nerves.
"I'm just not into you the way my sister is.” She dipped her fins back underwater. “I'm more interested in the boy—the Guardian.” She swam to the ledge, popping up inches from him. “Promise Dax to me and no harm will come to Halen."
"You can't have him!” He didn’t back away. As much as he hated Dax, he couldn’t let anything happen to Halen’s Guardian. “He's not a toy."
"And what did you think of us when we drank your blood?” She drifted back, spreading the water with her webbed fingers. “My sister still loves you. I will do whatever it takes to make her happy."
"Kye," his voice held warning.
"The boy is mine." She dived beneath the water without waiting for his reply.
He slammed his fist against the concrete, his magick cracking fine fissures along the floor. Regret knotted his stomach, wishing he could take back his request.
HALEN PICKED AT the bindings, which though composed of a woven organic material, where impossible to fray. She wasn’t going to sit there, eating pellets, and wait for Pria to chop her to pieces. She had had enough with shifters, Tari, and Elosians thinking they could do what they wanted with her magick. Despite her throbbing head and each movement stabbing her inside and out, with her back pressed against the wall, she slid up to her feet. The candlelight flickered, blurring her vision. She popped another disk, chewing quickly while she closed her eyes to keep from toppling back to the ground. She ate one more disk before opening her eyes. The chamber steadied in her vision, though she still needed to decide which tunnel to take. Using the wall, to balance, she scooted to the tunnel from which Danik had vanished, hoping this one led to Dax. If Pria found a way to Dax, Halen wondered if she could pull her strings, and unleash the power of the darkness within. Already, a craving tempted Halen to that side of her seam more than she cared to admit. She was ashamed of the wanderlust the dark magick left in her heart after coursing through her veins. She couldn’t allow this part of herself to bloom into a twisted garden for Pria to tend.
The giggle of babbling babies echoed down the tunnel, sending a shiver down her spine. The sound reverberated off the walls bouncing around her. As she continued down the tunnel, the laughter followed. Was she imagining these sounds? Popping another disk in her mouth, she continued into the darkness, guided only by her instinct. Though Dax manipulated her seam, she too could use the connection to find him. He led her from Asair's dimension, and right now, she called to him from deep within, summoning Dax to guide her to him now. Forcing out the chilling laughter, she focused her thoughts on Pria and her intentions, to the emanate danger they both faced if they didn’t escape. Even though Dax craved her magick as his own, he was born to protect her. If he wanted any part of her power, if he truly believed in Tarius, then he wouldn’t let Pria possess her magick. No matter who Dax served, he needed to help, or they would both lose everything.
She scooted along the wall, when the chatter of voices drew her attention. She stopped, turning her ear toward the rushed conversation. Though the connection of Dax led down one tunnel, she couldn’t ignore the strange pull toward the other. The giggling turned to a crying wail, as if a baby had been torn from its mother. As the crying competed with the voices, Halen’s head spun, but she didn’t turn away. Instead, she headed straight for the flickering light ahead. When she stepped into the opening, her chest caved. Her gaze darted between each dark swirl, each triangle and dot of the Elosian birthmarks, and to the desperate gaze of the caged sirens before her. She collapsed to her knees.
“It’s her,” one siren said. She clutched the bars, her knuckled scabbed, her pinky fingers severed.
A baby’s wail echoed from within the walls, and the siren pursed her lips.
Another siren, a boy about Halen’s age, stepped forward, gently taking the girl’s hands from the bars and pulling her away. He had the same copper flecked hair as the girl, his shoulders broad, his left arm amputated. “You should leave,” he spoke to Halen.
She studied the other sirens, each missing some part of their body—a limb, a finger, an ear. A child stepped forward, where a left eye should be, a yellow fish tail poked out. When he turned his head, the tail flopped as if waving. “Did Pria do this to you?” Halen grasped the dirt and the grains spun with her rage. The rise of magick burned in her veins, fueling her sparks.
“It’s her.” The boy with the fish tail eye spoke. “Even without my oracle eye, anyone can see it’s the blue moon siren.”
“Shh. Lower your voice; Pria will hear,” the boy with the copper hair said.
“No one can hear anything over those damn Water Babies crying.�
� A stout man with full white beard studied Halen, as if she were the one in the cage. “What’s wrong with her?”
“She needs medicine,” the boy with the copper hair said.
“Like this?” The boy with the fish tail eye, held up an elixir vial.
Saliva filled Halen’s mouth. “Where did you get that?” She crawled toward them.
“Danik made me drink it. It’s disgusting.” The boy shrugged.
“Toss is to me, please.” She held out her hand.
The boy rolled the bottle along the ground. She unscrewed the lid and tilted the bottle back. When only a drop hit her tongue, she shook the vial, slipping her tongue over and inside the rim. Not near enough to replenish her powers. She clutched the vial in her fist. “Is there more?”
“Danik has the rest.” The boy with the copper hair said.
“Who are you?” Halen asked.
“Can you get us out of here?” The girl stepped to the bars once more.
“Lacelle, no. She needs to get out of here.” The boy shook his head.
“I’m not leaving you here.” Halen fumbled to her feet, swiping the dirt along her jeans.
The girl smiled, revealing bare gums. When she met Halen’s gaze, she covered her mouth with her hand and turned away.
No way in hell was she leaving them behind. She stepped to the cage and faced the boy. Closer, she noticed his eyes were Elosian green with flecks of gold, which sparkled against the candlelight. He had kind eyes, eyes that had seen too much for his age—siren eyes.
“I’m Lacelle, and this is my brother, Luke,” the girl said breaking the silence between them.
Halen glanced away at once and nodded to the girl. “My name is Halen.”
“I’m Orca,” The young boy with the fish eye spoke, “and this is Boris, our Uncle.”
The bearded man nodded.
“Harry and Faisal don’t speak.” Lacelle nodded to two more sirens at the back of the cage. “Pria cut out their tongues.”
They bowed their heads when Halen met their gazes.
“I’m getting you out of here.” She studied the two metal locks binding the cage.
“Where do they keep the keys?”
“Danik has the key,” Luke said, “and our spells are useless in here.”
“You can cast magick?” This shouldn’t surprise her, but then again, Ezra was a siren who didn’t know the first thing about spells.
“We each have our strengths. Pria thought maybe it was part of us.” The girl traced a triangle in the dirt with her toe. “Since she took my teeth, for some reason I can’t remember my spells properly.”
Luke took the girl’s hand in his. “It’s okay, we’ll find another way.”
“How did you get here?” Halen tugged the lock.
Lacelle slipped her hand from Luke’s and dipped her fingers in the pockets of her dress. “We fled to the desert when the fire rings hit San Francisco.” Her voice cracked with tears.
Luke continued. “The Hunters killed our grandfather. We just wanted to get away, so we came to our Uncle in the desert. He too was under attack with Faisal and Harry. Pria offered us all a place to hide. We didn’t know the cost.”
“This is all my fault.” Her sparks stirred with anger once more. Halen closed her eyes. She called deep inside to her waning magick. The sparks ripped at her cells, tugging her worn muscles, but she dragged the force to her flesh. The locks rattled. Her hand shook as she gathered the sparks. She harnessed the dirt at her feet, channeling the strength of the earth to her command, and with her next breath, black smoke passed her lips. She blew, and the smoke curled inside the locks, finding the fit, and they popped open. She grasped the bars to keep from falling.
Luke reached through, removed the locks and the door swung open.
“That was epic.” Orca gaped up at his brother. “You have to admit, Luke, she’s spectacular.”
“Thanks for your vote of confidence, but my magick is not what it should be.” She stumbled, and Luke caught her under his arm.
He wrapped his hand around her waist, pulling her to her feet. "Do you mind?"
“Thank you.” Halen glanced up at him and smiled. “I don’t think I can walk on my own. My legs feel like jelly.”
The babies wailed louder, as if knowing what she had done.
“Let’s get out of here.” Orca took Lacelle’s hand. “Do you remember the way?”
Lacelle nodded. “Of course.”
“You go,” Halen said. “I have to find my Guardian.”
“We’re going with you.” Luke pulled her in closer when her knees buckled.
Boris shot his nephew a warning glance.
“She’s a siren like us. We leave together,” Luke said.
Faisal and Harry shook their heads in agreement.
Halen looked to the sirens before her. She understood now why Tage had pushed Ezra and her away—how her bulletproof attitude protected lives. It was better to be alone than allow others to get hurt. “Get out while you can.”
“Not an option. Sirens stick together.” Luke grinned. “We’re the only ones we can trust.”
“Look, this is dangerous.” She glanced up meeting his determined stare. “I don’t know what’s ahead. Just leave before Pria comes.”
“If Pria cuts you up, none of us will be okay.” Orca tapped the side of his head. “I’ve seen that already.” He faced Boris. “You’re going to die whether you help her or not. So at least do the right thing.”
“Humph. Thanks, kid,” Boris rubbed the top of Orca’s head, “but I’m not dying anytime soon, but I will help.”
“Good.” Luke’s face spread with a wide grin. “So where are they keeping your Guardian?”
She didn’t like this one bit, but they were determined to follow, and she didn’t have the energy to argue. She barely had the strength to stand. “We need to go that way.” Halen pointed. “That’s where Dax is.”
“Faisal and Harry walk ahead.” Luke nodded. “Lacelle and Orca, you go behind us, and Uncle Boris, you pick up the rear.”
“Always the ass.” He rolled his eyes.
“Hee-haw.” Orca let out trill donkey cry.
“Stop it now,” Lacelle tugged his hand, “or the Water Babies will hear you.”
Faisal and Harry headed into the tunnel, and they followed.
The cries grew louder, sending shivers along Halen’s already fevered skin. “Is that the Water Babies? What are they?”
“Demons from the lake,” Lacelle said at her back. “We’re all cursed.”
“Cursed?” Halen asked.
“My sister believes in the legends of Pyramid Lake. If you hear the Water Babies laugh or cry ,then you’ll be cursed with bad luck; if you look one in the eyes, you’ll die. But it’s just a spooky tale.”
“The Water Babies are real.” Lacelle poked his back. “Ask any of the Paiute Tribe. They know.”
“I’ve never seen one,” Orca said. “And I don’t want to.”
They entered the mouth of a cave, and Faisal and Harry stepped away. Halen shuddered. Beyond, a pool of water gurgled with onyx water. Dax floated in the center on a bed of water lilies; the stems bound his wrists and ankles and wrapped his waist and neck. A little hand reached up and pinched his skin. When Halen gasped, the creature turned; its red eyes met with her, and it cried out wailing.
“Don’t look.” Lacelle grabbed her sleeve.
But Halen couldn’t tear her gaze away; beyond the demon infant, a boy stood, his eye twitching when his stare landed with her. She slipped from Luke’s grip, shock sending her to the ground. “Catch?”
CATCH RETRACTED A needle from Dax’s hip. His eyes blinked, twitching in overtime. “Halen, what are you doing here?”
“You’re working with them?” Her mind raced. The last time she saw him, he had been with Dax in Elosia. She thought Catch died, but really, she didn’t know what happened to her friend. She just never expected to find him below the desert, with a needle in her Guardian and wo
rking for the enemy.
“I don’t have a choice.” When he stepped toward her, his leg caught in the gold chain fastened to the wall. A little hand reached up and clawed his leg drawing blood.
“Water Babies,” Lacelle whispered at her back. “We’re all going to die.”
“Stop that.” Catch kicked the hand, unleashing the cry of the babies. “Silence,” he shouted, “or you won’t have any more blood.”
The wailing stopped at once.
“I thought you were safe.” Catch turned his attention back to Halen. “I had no idea you were here. I was trying to figure out how to get the silver out of Dax. So, you could be free. How did this even happen?”
“I screwed up,” Halen said. “When I took the water stone. The bracelets melded under our skin.”
“Water stone magick.” Catch nodded. “That makes sense.”
“What the hell is all this?” Luke walked toward the black water with Halen by his side.
Another hand reached up and pinched Dax’s skin.
“What are they doing?” Halen cringed as a hand pinched his calf.
“It's good for his circulation and heart rate,” Catch explained. “They aren’t hurting him.”
“I wouldn’t trust them," Lacelle said.
Halen didn’t know what to think. Her friends had betrayed her before. The greatest trust broken by the boy floating on the bed of flowers. “How did you get here?”
“When Pepper died, I had to leave Elosia. I didn’t have a reason to stay anyway. Pepper was my best friend.” He bowed his head.
“I’m so sorry,” Halen said. “I tried to help her.”
“I know.” He wrung his hands.
“Why did you come here of all places?” she asked.
“Pyramid Lake has always been a portal for Elosians who enjoy human comforts.”
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