Siren

by Tricia Rayburn

  She sat back and offered a shaky smile. “Awful.”

  I paused, not wanting to ask my next question. “Has Jonathan been by to see you?”

  “Not lately,” she said, looking down. “Raina told him I wasn’t feeling up for phone calls or company.”

  She didn’t know. “Paige,” I said gently, “how far along are you?”

  She tried to smile. “Five weeks. And I know—I’m enormous. Raina says it’s from all the salt water I’ve been drinking. She was the same way—”

  “When she was pregnant?” I eyed her stomach, which was as round as a cantaloupe. “Have you been to a doctor?”

  “No. Raina had us at home with Betty’s help, and I’ll have my baby at home with her help.”

  “But you’re five weeks pregnant and look five months pregnant. Don’t you think it’s strange that your mother hasn’t taken you to make sure everything’s okay?”

  “A little,” she admitted. “I’d take myself if I could, but Raina and Zara have had me under house arrest. And I’m so tired. I can’t even walk downstairs by myself to use the phone.”

  I was tempted to snatch her up and take her to the hospital immediately but forced myself to sit there. “Will you please look at these?”

  Her hand shook as she took the papers I’d pulled from my purse. “What is all this?” she asked, turning slowly through the pages of photos and newspaper articles.

  “Xavier Cooper, Max Hawkins, John Martinson,” I recited as she turned past pictures of each one.

  She looked up. “Zara’s boyfriends.”

  “Not exactly,” I said, pulling out another stack of papers.

  She took them and flipped through photos of and articles about the men in Raina’s scrapbook. “I don’t know any of these people.”

  “No, but your mom did. Friends of hers did.”

  As she continued flipping, I looked over my shoulder at the front windows. The rain was falling faster, and people huddled under coats and umbrellas. Some were already beginning to hurry back to their cars, most likely nervous to be so close to water with the weather getting worse.

  “Paige,” I said, turning back, “I know it’s hard to hear, and you certainly have enough to worry about … but you’re going to have way more to worry about if I don’t tell you everything now. We all are.” Through the window facing the harbor, I could see the sky turning black, the water growing rough. Tiny gold pockets bounced around like lightning bugs in a glass jar as boats moved toward their docks.

  Her breaths were coming faster. “Whatever you have to tell me, tell me fast. Z’ll be back any minute.”

  “Paige … Zara’s not coming back. She’s with Caleb Carmichael.”

  “What?” She shook her head. “But she told me—”

  “There are a lot of things Raina and Zara have told you that aren’t true, and a lot of things they haven’t told you at all.”

  The first bolt of lightning shot down from the sky. She grabbed her stomach and winced.

  “After Betty had her accident,” I said, talking quickly, “your mom kept Betty locked up because she didn’t want her to recover. Not fully. She wanted her weak so Betty wouldn’t try to stop her.”

  “Stop her?” She gripped her stomach and winced. “From what?”

  “From Xavier Cooper. Max Hawkins. Alex Smith.”

  She opened her mouth to protest.

  “You said Zara started ‘dating’ two years ago,” I said quickly. “Betty’s accident was two years ago. I bet Betty’s accident happened first.”

  She closed her mouth without disagreeing.

  “They had to wait for Betty to be out of the picture. After the accident, when she was no longer strong enough to care for herself, they could control her and finally do what they were … born … to do.”

  “What they were born to do? Like, run a restaurant and wait on tourists? Because that’s what they do.”

  “They also make men love them. Or make men think they love them.”

  “Vanessa,” she said, taking a shaky breath, “I know Z’s had a lot of boyfriends, but she’s gorgeous. Of course men love her.”

  “It’s not just about what she looks like. It’s about who—what—she is. About what they are.” I paused. “About what you are.”

  She looked at me. “I should find Raina,” she said, starting to stand.

  “They’re sirens,” I said, my voice rising. “Like the ones we read about in school—but real. They get inside their targets’ heads until the guys can’t think straight, and then they drag them out to sea to kill them. That’s what happened to all of Zara’s boyfriends—they didn’t just leave Winter Harbor for home after having their hearts broken. That’s what happened to all of the men who died this summer. And that’s what will happen again tonight, if we don’t stop them.”

  “Vanessa, Z might be mean, but that doesn’t make her a—”

  “It sounds crazy—insane, actually—but think about it.” I glanced behind me as thunder rattled the glass vases on the tables. “Before the accident, Betty went swimming for hours every day. Raina’s in the water several times a day. In the past two years, Zara’s been swimming more and more. You all bathe in salt water.”

  “You’ve been to our house. It’s old and practically sits in the ocean. That’s just how the ancient plumbing works.”

  I leaned toward her. “In the past few weeks, whenever you didn’t feel well, Raina made you drink ocean water. And it helped, right? You felt better afterward?”

  She hesitated, then nodded.

  “There’s a process that sirens go through at a certain point—usually once they reach child-bearing years. It happened later with Zara because of Betty.”

  “What about me?” she asked, lowering her eyes to her stomach.

  “You got pregnant,” I said. “Your body isn’t completely ready for that. That’s why you’re sick.”

  She looked at me, then toward the harbor.

  I chose my next words carefully. “There’s one more thing you should know.”

  Her white-flecked eyes met mine, then fell to the newspaper I held toward her. “Jonathan?” she whispered, reading the headline.

  “I’m so sorry, Paige,” I said gently.

  “Don’t be,” she said, her voice louder, firmer. “It’s not him. That’s not my Jonathan.”

  I paused. “Yes, it is. Raina knew how strongly you felt about him, and she didn’t want those feelings getting in the way of—”

  “Vanessa, stop it!” she exclaimed, her voice cracking. She shoved the paper away and clutched her stomach. “Okay? Just stop it. Please. I can’t hear any more.”

  My heart lunged against my chest as she started to cry softly. I looked up at Simon, who nodded once. Knowing we had to keep moving, I leaned forward, placed one hand over hers, and tried again. “I’m sorry. Really. I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s all true. Between Betty and Zara’s diary—”

  “Zara’s diary?” Her eyes flashed as her head snapped toward me. “What are you doing—”

  “Paige, Justine Sands was my sister.”

  Her face fell. She knew who I was talking about.

  “She died because she dove in the wrong place at the wrong time. She died because the sirens eventually dragged her under. So, yes—I read Zara’s diary to try to learn more.” I took it from my purse and held it toward her. “My sister didn’t get to tell me everything she might’ve wanted to before she no longer could. Everything your sister should tell you—and would, if she really cared about you—is in here.”

  She took the book. It was thicker than the last time she’d seen it, as it now held Caleb’s translated pages.

  She’d just started to turn the cover when the dining room went dark.

  I spun toward Simon but couldn’t see him. I couldn’t see anything. In years past, this was when electric lights throughout town were replaced by candles and lanterns. But now, the sky remained black.

  “It’s okay,” he whispered, putting hi
s hands on my shoulders. “I’m here.”

  Rain and wind rattled the glass in the windows around us. The window behind Paige cracked as a large piece of ice flew into it.

  The rain was turning to hail. And we were running out of time.

  I fumbled for my phone. My fingers shook and the cell phone slipped from my grasp twice before I finally pulled it out and snapped it open.

  It provided just enough light for me to see Paige in front of the windows facing the harbor, standing perfectly still.

  I didn’t say anything as I stood next to her.

  Bolts of lightning burst through the darkness like fireworks. Silver shards of light separated the sky into tall, black columns. Unlike the lightning, the silver shards didn’t fire down from the clouds above.

  They shot up from the water.

  The shimmering pillars began to take shape. Feeling the warmth of Simon’s body standing just behind mine, I was calmer than I should’ve been as the female figures emerged and more beams of light broke through the harbor’s choppy surface. There were eight of them now. Judging by the patches of light growing brighter underwater, more would follow.

  Christabel.

  My breath caught. The voice inside my head wasn’t Justine’s.

  “Christabel.”

  Paige’s head snapped toward me. “What did you say?”

  I looked at her. “Christabel.”

  Her face was white. “I didn’t tell anyone my baby’s name. Not one person.”

  “You didn’t have to.” I gave her a small, sad smile. “Betty heard it in your thoughts.”

  CHAPTER 24

  A HALF HOUR later, we drove into the mountains outside town.

  I looked at Simon, who leaned so close to the windshield his chin reached past the steering wheel, then at the speedometer needle. The Volvo was pushing seventy and vibrating from the exertion. “Maybe we should slow down a little,” I suggested. “Visibility’s terrible and the roads are slippery.”

  “It’s fine,” Simon said. “It’s just like driving in the winter.”

  “Except it’s summer,” Paige reminded us from the backseat. “It’s the middle of summer, and it’s hailing.”

  I peered between the seats. Paige couldn’t seem to inhale and exhale fast enough. Between breaths, Betty held an open bottle of murky ocean water to her trembling lips.

  “I don’t understand,” Paige gasped lightly a moment later. “Why now? If everything you’re saying is true, why is this happening now? Why not a year ago, or two years, or five years?”

  As we’d been driving, Betty had told Paige everything she’d told us earlier. But Paige’s question was one we hadn’t had a chance to ask, and I listened anxiously for Betty’s response.

  “Your mother’s heart is colder than most,” Betty said, stroking Paige’s forehead, “but it’s not immune to warmth. She was at the restaurant the first time Paul Carsons stopped by and was immediately taken by him.”

  “Paul Carsons?” Paige said. “The first man who died? What happened?”

  “He didn’t return her feelings. He was married with small children. He was still drawn to her—no man she sets her sights on isn’t—but he loved his family more.” Betty turned toward the front seat. “Please forgive my bluntness, but I’m afraid there’s no other way of putting it.”

  “Putting what?” Paige breathed.

  Betty turned back to Paige and lightly rubbed her belly as if to calm the turmoil inside. “When Raina couldn’t have Paul Carsons … she made sure no one else ever could.”

  Paige groaned, but it was hard to tell if it was because of Betty’s story, or her growing physical pain. “But what about the others? After he was gone, why did more men have to die?”

  “Just as your mother’s heart isn’t immune to warmth, it isn’t immune to what follows when it’s broken. She was hurt. And angry. She wanted to teach other men like Paul Carsons—handsome, wealthy, successful men—a lesson they wouldn’t forget.”

  I looked away from the side-view mirror as Betty kissed Paige’s cheek and held her close. I couldn’t help but wonder who would soothe me whenever I was scared or hurt or confused after tomorrow.

  “So what are we doing?” Paige whimpered after a few minutes. “How are we stopping them?”

  Betty looked toward me, and I looked at Simon. When he didn’t respond, I lifted the duffel bag from the floor by my feet.

  Paige’s eyes widened at the sight of the silver tank.

  “It’s a highly potent combination of dry ice, liquid nitrogen, and chemical catalysts,” I said. “Kind of like a winterized bomb. One of Simon’s professors had been experimenting with a similar prototype as part of his climate-change research, and when Simon explained what was happening and asked for help, Dr. Beakman built this. According to his calculations, once we get it where it needs to go, Simon will activate it … and Winter Harbor will freeze for the first time, locking in place everything—and everyone—beneath its surface.”

  She looked at me. “But will Raina and Zara be …?”

  I opened my mouth to explain why it was necessary that they both be in the water when the bomb went off. But then she shot back, and her shoulders slammed hard against the seat.

  I grabbed another plastic bottle of ocean water from the duffel bag and handed it to Betty. Paige had already gone through five bottles. The water seemed to ease the pain, but for a shorter amount of time with each one she consumed. We’d thought ten would last her until after everything was done and we took her to the hospital, but we had only five left. At this rate, we needed to get to the ocean as fast as possible, if only to keep her drinking—and alive.

  “It’s okay,” I said when Simon let up on the gas. “You’re right—we need to move as fast as possible. Don’t slow down.”

  “I’m not.”

  I followed his eyes to the speedometer. The needle was falling even as he pushed the gas pedal to the floor and the engine groaned.

  “It’s the hail,” he said. “It’s falling so fast it’s sticking to the road. The tires can’t get traction.”

  My heart raced as I watched the speedometer needle fall from forty, to twenty, and all the way to zero.

  Less than two miles from the trail leading to the top of Chione Cliffs, the Volvo let loose one final squeal before rolling backward. Simon guided her to a stop on the side of the road.

  “Can we walk it?” I asked.

  He didn’t answer. Because of course we couldn’t walk it—it was already after eleven. Climbing two miles up the steep road on foot would take at least thirty minutes in perfect weather. And once we reached the trail, we still had to hike the mountain.

  “What about Caleb?” I asked. “The Subaru has all-wheel drive. Maybe he can leave her for a few minutes and—”

  He grabbed his cell phone from the cup holder and dialed. After a few seconds, he hung up. “No answer.”

  “Oliver? Beaker?”

  He tried both, unsuccessfully.

  “Oh no … oh, God …” Paige fell back against the seat.

  Like any geezer in good health, she gets tired—especially on hills.

  “Can I try?” I asked suddenly, my stomach flip-flopping at the sound of Big Poppa’s voice in my head. “Driving, I mean?”

  “Why?” Simon asked. “The hail’s falling even faster now. There’s no way—”

  “I have an idea. Something Dad told me about the car before leaving Boston. It might not work, but it’s worth a shot.”

  Simon looked at me, his expression a combination of confused, frustrated, and concerned. I thought he might protest, but then he grabbed the handle and pushed open the door. I climbed over the center console and landed in the seat just as he opened the passenger-side door. I waited for him to buckle his seat belt, then started the car and put it into drive.

  “Backward,” Paige gasped. “We’re rolling backward.”

  I hit the brake. The car skidded to a stop.

  “Vanessa,” Simon said tentative
ly, “are you sure—”

  I punched the gas once and the car lunged forward, its tires crunching through the road’s icy coating. Almost immediately, the car started rolling backward.

  She’ll get you where you need to go….

  I tightened my grip on the steering wheel and resisted the urge to slam on the brakes. I let the car roll for a few seconds, then punched the gas again—lighter this time. The tires swerved slightly before inching forward. As soon as they slowed, I tapped the gas again. Already moving in the right direction, the tires rolled ahead several inches. Anytime they began to lose momentum, I tapped the gas.

  This was how—inch by inch, with Dad’s voice reassuring me the whole time—we made it to the Chione Cliffs trailhead.

  “Paige, dear, you must wait for us here,” Betty said once we were parked.

  “Wait for you?” Paige gasped. “What do you mean? Where are you going?”

  “They’re gathering on the ocean floor,” Betty explained gently. “The tank won’t sink that far that fast on its own. Someone needs to take it. I’d planned for you to come with us, to wait with Simon by the water, but your condition is worse than I feared. You’ll be okay, but you need to stay in the car and continue drinking. I’ll come for you as soon as I can. I promise.”

  “Grandma.” Paige’s voice was stern through her fast breaths. “You can’t be serious. Do I have to remind you that you can’t see? How are you even going to find them?”

  As Betty spoke softly near her ear, I looked at Simon. He stared through the icy windshield, his jaw clenched and his lips pressed tightly together.

  “I don’t want you to go,” he said a moment later.

  My chest tightened. He referred to tonight, but I thought of tomorrow. “We agreed someone should go with Betty. And Caleb’s with Zara, and you have to monitor conditions at the base.”

  “I know that’s what we agreed … but Vanessa, if anything happens to you—”

  “Here.” I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out a small tape recorder.

  He looked at me, then at the recorder.

  “It’s my dad’s. I found it in the lake house and taped myself saying your name about a thousand times. I thought it wouldn’t hurt to have … just in case.”