Chapter  26

A lightning bolt tore through the sky. Thunder roared. Everyone but Natalie and me jumped.

‘Listen,’ she said casually, waving her glass around, ‘I’m not knocking centuries of hard work. The ladies who came before us did well enough with what they had. We wouldn’t be here otherwise. But their focus was narrow, their scope limited. Their primary concern was, and for the most part remains, survival.’ Her mouth lifted in a slow smile. ‘But we’re capable of so much more than that.’

I yearned to look at Simon. I wanted him to focus on me, to ignore everything Natalie was saying. But I was afraid she’d mistake the gesture for something more and hurt him in response, so I kept my gaze level as she continued.

‘Raina’s attempt last summer was impressive, if flawed. That said, she was the first one, at least that I know of, to use her powers to try to make a larger statement. It was a bold move, and if it had worked, I can only imagine what else she’d have accomplished.’

Now I wanted to look at Paige, but didn’t.

‘I’d been monitoring the activity of the more powerful communities for years, and when word of Raina’s successes reached me – in northern California, by the way, not landlocked Vermont – I started paying closer attention. Then, when it became clear what – or who – had gotten in her way, I was hooked. So I decided to spend this summer on the East Coast.’ She grinned. ‘Great lobster, by the way.’

‘I don’t understand,’ I said. ‘What does that have to do with the e-mails? The pictures? The girls?’

‘You were reluctant. You didn’t want the gift you’d been given. I had to get your attention and make you see how valuable it is, how special you really are. It was the only way you might join me.’

‘But if last summer didn’t convince me, why would all this?’ I asked.

‘Because this summer’s victims were young women – not men. And up until a few minutes ago, you thought their attacker was male, yes? And deserved to be punished accordingly?’

‘So you did it?’ I asked. ‘You killed the girls? To try to get me to see something I never will?’

Natalie frowned. ‘You’ll have to learn not to leap to such conclusions if we’re going to have a successful partnership.’

‘We’re not going to –’

The note sounded again. I saw white. My thoughts vanished.

‘I didn’t kill anyone,’ Natalie said, when the light faded. ‘Not this time. I didn’t have to.’

She was still by the railing and motioned for me to join her. As I did, I thought of the police. Where were they?

‘All I did’, Natalie said, when I reached her, lowering her voice, ‘was orchestrate.’

She looked over the railing, to the beach. I did, too, and saw all of the guests from downstairs trickling towards the harbour. The female guests, I now knew, weren’t ordinary women.

‘I controlled them all,’ she said softly, happily, like we were two friends sharing secrets. ‘I had young sirens from both coasts send the e-mails so they couldn’t be tracked to anyone here. A select group joined me and was put in charge of the camera you found, which was purposefully loaded with pictures significant to last summer’s events and left for you to find. You recognised those clues as I hoped you would, and were instantly suspicious of the crazed siren stalkers.’

‘What about the people I overheard at the lake house?’ I asked.

‘Happy accident. Colin was sent an anonymous tip about the truth behind last summer because I knew you’d be in contact with him and hoped he could serve as a distraction while I worked with the other men. That his friends were around and excited was a pleasant coincidence.’

‘And the other men were the fishermen?’ I guessed.

‘Indeed. Colin’s involvement was to have been minimal, but the fishermen, under the spells of talented though slightly inexperienced young sirens, were more aggressive than I liked. They knew you were the ultimate target and couldn’t resist teasing you when the opportunity presented itself. Unfortunately, one gentleman took it too far in the restaurant basement, and I had to increase Colin’s participation to curb your suspicion. It was too soon for you to put it all together. I needed more time.’

‘That’s why you had him deliver Raina’s necklace.’

‘Exactly. Those security cameras were a brilliant addition, I must say.’

I watched the men and sirens below. Despite the elements hammering them from all angles, they talked and laughed like they were having a great time.

‘So the goal’, I said, ‘was to show me how evil men could be by making them kill innocent women? So that I’d find our ability to stop them more noble?’

‘That was part of it. The other part was to get you to do what you did this morning. Paige, who turned out to be quite helpful in rallying the troops, even if she didn’t know why, was the ultimate game piece. I assumed, correctly, that you’d do anything to save her. The chain of events wasn’t quite what I planned, but no matter.’ She paused. ‘The end result was the same.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I knew you’d follow Colin, which gave me time to secure Paige without you around. But I needed you back here to fight valiantly on Paige’s behalf, so I sent Sam to get you. I assumed when Jaime went after your best friend, that he’d be the one you eventually . . . you know.’ She peered past me to Simon, then looked at me and leaned closer. ‘Don’t worry. He’ll get used to the idea eventually. They all do.’

I forced my mind past this last part and glanced over my shoulder. Sam still sat at the table, soaking wet. The deck was covered, and unlike the Jeep, whose top had been down while I drove, the truck had a cab.

‘He was in the water?’ I asked quietly. ‘With Colin and me?’

Natalie followed my gaze. ‘Considering the seaweed in his hair, I’d say so. A few minutes ago, when I saw how striking you were and knew what you must’ve done, I thought he was the one you’d done it to. That’s why I was surprised when he showed up. But again, these are details – and small ones at that.’

I turned back towards the harbour, gripping the railing so tight, small, jagged splinters pierced my palms.

Colin hadn’t murdered anyone. He hadn’t tried to strangle me in the ocean. Sam had. Which meant a completely innocent person had been killed . . . by me.

I was a monster. Just like the rest of them.

‘You have to admit,’ Natalie whispered, ‘it feels amazing, doesn’t it? The rush? The charge of life? And it never has to end. Just think of the possibilities!’

‘Natalie,’ I said evenly, hoping to buy more time for the police, ‘what exactly do you want me to do?’

‘Join me.’ Her voice was excited. ‘Help me find and train young, talented sirens who can then train others.’

‘To kill?’

She shrugged. ‘On occasion. That goes with the territory. But together we can expand the territory – geographically and ideologically. Ours can be the first siren community to cross state lines and control more members of the opposite sex than any group has before. We don’t have to kill them all . . . we can simply mess with them, make them do our bidding, whatever that may be. Men have had the upper hand for centuries, and it’s time they were put in their place.’

I wanted to ask another question to keep her talking, but I was too stunned by what she was suggesting to form the words. For better or worse, she continued anyway.

‘This isn’t simply a request, Vanessa. It’s an offer. An opportunity. If you agree, you’ll become stronger and more powerful in ways you can’t even imagine now – and your friends will live. I chose you because of your impressive lineage and abilities, but Paige can join us. You and Simon can be together. You’ll have the life you thought was lost upon your transformation last summer, only better.’

‘And if I don’t accept?’ I asked.

She laughed. When she realised I wasn’t joking, her expression turned serious. ‘Then you’re not as smart as I thought. And . . .’

Her head turned slowly towards the scene below us.

The party had moved closer to the water. And the group had grown.

‘Simon.’ My heart stopped. Still bound and gagged, he struggled to break free of Sam’s grip as Sam dragged him across the beach. Natalie’s husband followed behind with Caleb, and Jaime with Paige. They’d moved them while Natalie and I talked.

‘This can be easy or not,’ she said pleasantly. ‘The choice is yours. The party, which is in honour of you, will go on either way.’

With that, she put down her empty champagne glass, placed both palms on the railing, and launched herself off the deck. Her red skirt billowed around her as she fell to the ground, where she landed feet-first with a soft thud. She strolled towards the men and sirens, who continued to talk and laugh even as they entered the water.

The sirens were luring the men into the harbour. They were going to do what Raina couldn’t, last summer. And if I didn’t play along, they were going to take Simon, Caleb and Paige with them.

Vanessa, what’s going on? What do we do?

Paige’s voice was an alarm in my head. For a second, I didn’t know whether I should answer. If Natalie was right, if Paige had known her newest hire was a siren . . . had she known everything else, too?

Sing, Paige. To Jaime. So he’ll let you go.

I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Natalie fired back. Until we join forces, you’re greatly outnumbered. On my signal, the ladies will switch targets instantly.

That was all the answer I needed. Paige and Natalie weren’t allies; Natalie had simply used Paige for her purposes. Not wanting to lose sight of them for even a moment, I put both hands on the railing and leapt from the deck. I landed surprisingly easily and ran.

As I headed towards them, I didn’t notice I wasn’t the only one in hot pursuit. Chief Green and another police officer had finally arrived and were bolting across the sand, too . . . as it turned out, in hot pursuit of me.

‘Vanessa Sands!’ a deep male voice shouted behind me.

I slowed, but didn’t stop.

‘You’re under arrest! Anything you say can –’

‘Under arrest?’ Reaching the water’s edge, Natalie turned towards us, one hand on her chest. ‘Whatever for?’

I scanned the water behind her. The sirens and men were getting deeper. A few men were already kicking to keep their heads above the surface.

‘For the murder of Colin Robbins.’

Now I stopped. But I didn’t face the police.

I faced Simon. He stood with Sam, two feet from the water. At Chief Green’s declaration, he shook his head and looked at me, eyes wide, confused.

‘There must be some mistake,’ Natalie said. ‘Pretty, sweet, wouldn’t-hurt-a-fly Vanessa Sands . . . a murderer?’

‘I wish it was a mistake,’ Chief Green said, stopping before us. ‘Believe me. But we have the confession right here.’

My heart sank when he pulled out a digital voice recorder – my digital voice recorder, the one I’d taken out kayaking – from his shirt pocket. With everything that had happened, I’d forgotten all about it.

‘We found it in the denim jacket she left with the victim.’ Chief Green looked at me. ‘It has everything – the underwater scuffle, the dragging of the body on the beach, your subsequent apology. Everything.’

Natalie clucked her tongue. ‘Well. That was sloppy.’

For the first time, Chief Green looked past her. ‘What’s going on here? What are all those folks doing in the water?’

‘Just a few friends having a small beach party,’ Natalie said.

‘In the middle of a storm?’ Chief Green asked.

‘We’re very good swimmers.’ Natalie smiled.

The other police officer – Sergeant Tompkins, according to his badge – came up behind me, took my wrist. Chief Green stepped towards the water just as a lightning bolt illuminated the sky – and the captives still onshore.

‘Paige Marchand?’ he asked. ‘Is that you? What –’

He was cut off by an ear-splitting shriek. Once again, the world went white. My head went blank. But this single note lasted longer than the others had up on the employee deck, and after several seconds, my body seemed to adjust to the noise. My sight returned partially – I could make out the people and place before me, but they were soft, fuzzy, like I was viewing them through a grey screen.

It was enough. Chief Green stood perfectly still, his mouth frozen open in a startled O and both hands on his head. Simon, Caleb, Paige and their captors were also still. So were the sirens and men in the harbour, though the water continued to lap against them. Behind me, Sergeant Tompkins didn’t move.

The only one who did was Natalie. She strode towards Chief Green, still singing. If she knew I could see her, she didn’t let on. Certain this was the only chance I was going to get, I started to pull away from the officer – but was stopped by something cold and hard.

Handcuffs. He had one latched on to my wrist and held the other open in his right hand.

I know you’re strong . . . now you just need to decide what it really means to be brave.

Charlotte’s last words ran through my head.

And I knew what I had to do.

I tugged my arm until the other handcuff popped free from Sergeant Tompkins’s fingers. Keeping one eye on Natalie, whose back was to me as she reached towards Chief Green’s chest, I dashed across the sand to Caleb. He didn’t seem to feel a thing as I untied his hands and ripped the tape from his mouth. I blinked back tears as I gave him a quick hug and moved on to Paige. I released her, too, and gave her a tighter, slightly longer squeeze. I considered shoving their captors away to give them a bigger head start, but I didn’t know if the force would wake the men or alert Natalie. I could only hope Caleb and Paige moved fast enough once the spell faded.

And then I went to Simon. His eyes were still aimed towards Sergeant Tompkins, since that’s where I’d been when Natalie had started singing. I couldn’t keep the tears from rolling down my face as I undid his ties and peeled the tape from his mouth. I worked quickly, knowing I didn’t have much time – and that I’d stop if I let myself think about how unfair this all was.

But then, wasn’t this how it would’ve ended anyway? With us apart? And me as good as dead if not actually dead? Wasn’t it better that it happened sooner rather than later, regardless of how, just as Charlotte had said?

I glanced behind me. Natalie was pressing her hands into the chief’s chest, her eyes locked on his, her lips moving almost imperceptibly.

I turned back to Simon and pressed my lips to his one last time. They were still soft and warm, which made the tears fall faster.

‘I love you,’ I mouthed, careful not to say the words out loud or in my head. ‘And I’m so sorry.’

I stood, gently brushed his hair away from his forehead, and then started towards Natalie. My feet quickened beneath me, until I was sprinting. I slowed just enough to keep from ramming into her, slammed the other handcuff on to her wrist, and locked it shut.

‘Vanessa!’ she exclaimed, her spell instantly broken. ‘What –’

She was cut off as I jerked her backwards, dragged her through the sand. Everyone around us came to, but slowly, as if they were waking from a long nap. I used their temporary, groggy confusion to my advantage; by the time they could remember where they were and what was happening, Natalie and I were already in the water.

This is touching but pointless, she screamed in my head. You have no idea how strong I am.

I guess I’ll just have to find out.

As she kicked and squirmed, I tightened my hold around her shoulders. She wriggled from my grasp once, but I turned and was above her instantly, blocking her route to the surface. She tried to shoot past me, but I pulled her back and under my arm again in one swift motion.

Natalie was strong. But I’d just taken a life . . . and so was I.

What are you going to do? she demanded as we swam deeper. Bury me in the sand at the bottom of the ocean?

That’s not a bad idea.

If you wanted to kill me, why didn’t you just take the cop’s gun and shoot me?

Because I didn’t want to kill her. I didn’t want to kill anyone, ever. But since that was the only way to stop her and save countless more people from dying under her command . . . I, at least, didn’t want to live with having killed her. I supposed I could’ve shot myself, too, but I couldn’t do that to Simon or my friends. Plus, this way seemed only appropriate.

We were going to swim. Drift. Surrender ourselves to the ocean without coming up for air. For hours, days or weeks. However long it took for our bodies to shut down from lack of oxygen, which we needed to survive as much as we needed salt water.

You’re being foolish. How is this better than the life I offered?

That wasn’t a life, I shot back. And this way, no one else gets hurt.

She laughed. Maybe I was wrong about you after all, Vanessa Sands. Because if you think this ends with me, you’re sorely mistaken.

I kicked harder, dived deeper. She screeched, and the long, shrill note was temporarily blinding. Without thinking, I mimicked the sound, giving it my all in hopes of drowning her out.

Seconds later, we were surrounded by silver light.

You see? She patted my arm, which was still around her shoulders. Look at how well I’ve taught them.

The sirens. Her sirens. The same ones who’d just been luring in the fishermen now surrounded us, silver eyes gleaming. They formed a tight sphere, making it impossible to swim away. One by one they reached for us, grabbing our hair, our arms, our necks. At first, I tried to resist, to pull out of their holds . . . but there was no point.

So I stopped struggling. I relaxed my grip on Natalie and felt her float as far away as the handcuffs would allow. I closed my eyes.

And then, singing so softly only I could hear, I pictured Justine, told her I’d see her soon . . . and gave in to the light.