Page 30 of Siren's Gift

A bubble escaped my open mouth. I stared at her, hoping for more of an explanation, but her focus was solely on the approaching sirens.

I gulped down a wave of fear. If Calypso wasn’t afraid, then maybe she was more than capable of protecting us against three trained warriors. I had already underestimated her at least twice.

Unless she only planned on protecting herself, of course. Which was entirely plausible. Without my magic, I was nearly incapable of defending myself. Fists and fins could only do so much damage against trained guards.

The three males swam up to us. They wore whale-bone armor that marked their allegiance to King Ateleíotes, and all three had long, nearly white hair that was a common characteristic in their kingdom. Their tails and scales ranged in shades of orange and yellow.

While the two unfamiliar sirens shared a light blue eye color, Sidon’s were more of a light yellow like his tail and the scales running up his arms. A striking contrast to his darker bronze skin color.

Calypso spread her arms in a greeting that was as false as her generosity. "Ah, Sidon, how wonderful to see you again."

He nodded brusquely and glanced at me. "I see you’ve retrieved the princess. Well done." Despite the praise, his tone was flat and bored.

I drew my eyebrows together in confusion. What was he talking about,retrievingme? I came to the witch for help. It wasn’t like she had sent for me.

He gestured to one of the others, who carried a seaweed bag slung over his shoulder. The siren removed the bag and handed it to Calypso.

"As promised," Sidon said.

The witch peeked inside the bag. A wide grin crossed her face. "Perfect. Give Ateleíotes my regards. She’s all yours."

Wait, what?

Stunned, I did little more than float there as the two guards surged forward with a flip of their tails and grabbed my arms. Before I could process what was happening, they’d secured my wrists with thick sailing ropes.

I shook my head in disbelief and looked at Calypso for answers. I hadn’t thought she would get rid of me. She’d made it seem like I was too valuable.

Nothing but dark cruelty stared back at me as the witch smirked. "You truly think a talisman created by a witch as powerful asmewould fail of its own accord? What a fool he raised. You should have listened to your father when he warned you away from me."

Oh…

Oh no.

Tears formed in my eyes as I realized how right she was. I was only valuable to her as a commodity, a trade for whatever they’d given her in that bag. I’d been such a fool and now I was paying a worse price than I’d ever thought possible.

It all made sense now. Calypsohadretrieved me, just as Sidon said. It wasn’t my careless mistake. She had caused the talismans to fail somehow. Her magic was more powerful than I realized—far more powerful.

What an idiot I’d been. A stubborn, naïve idiot who never asked for help before things took a turn for the worse. One who never seemed to learn. My shoulders slumped in defeat, mirroring the empty feeling in my chest.

Sidon’s gaze remained on Calypso.

The witch looked him up and down with disdain. "Well? What are you waiting for? Be gone."

"The shell."

She laughed, though it was a forced sound. "Ah, of course. How silly of me to forget." She untied the shell containing my magic from her waist and handed it to Sidon, effectively transferring my ownership from one nightmare to another. "As long as the shell remains intact, she’s yours to control. Break it, and I can promise you’ll regret it."

As Sidon turned away from her, Calypso caught my eye over his shoulder and winked. It took a moment for my brain to catch up with her words.

Had the witch just given me a clue to escape?

My gaze snapped to the shell. If that broke, I would get my magic back, and I would be free. I hadn’t signed any contract with King Ateleíotes. Maybe I could even take care of this problem before making it to the Thalasses kingdom.

Sidon nodded to his guards, who prodded me with their spears.

I struggled to free my arms, but they were bound tight within the ropes. Shame filled every fiber of my body, and I resigned myself to my fate. At least for now. I swam forward, following Sidon.

There was no point in trying to get away without breaking that shell. And without the use of my arms, I had no chance of getting my hands on it.

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