“I needed time to adjust. To fit together all the pieces of you. It took me a while, but I see you as you. I love you.” He pushed off the wall and stepped toward her.

  Shasta shook her head. He didn’t get it, and until he did, they didn’t have a chance of working out as a couple. “You came here without invitation. That was an invasion, not a declaration of love. I told you before: I can live without you. I will live without you if you can’t give me the love I deserve.”

  “What if—”

  “No!” Maybe if she said it loud enough he would understand her. She could feel the tears gathering, the ones she didn’t want him to see. “Don’t you understand? I deserve better than a what-if.”

  Chapter Seven

  As they stared at each other from opposite sides of the room, Shasta could feel the gulf opening up between them. It wasn’t just a matter of love but of who they would be in the relationship. Cord had been, and hopefully always would be, a friend she could depend on no matter what. The same could not be said for their interactions as romantic partners. She had her own fears, her own faults that had led them to this point.

  The silence was shattered by the shrill ring of her phone. Shasta huffed out a breath and flopped her hand in the general direction of her day pack. “Take pictures, collect evidence, you know the drill. The sirens will be here soon to move it to a safe location for storage.”

  Cord hesitated but then nodded.

  Shasta dug the phone out of her pocket. The screen cheerfully informed her that her mom was calling. She was going to need some privacy. “I’ll be nearby.”

  She was a short distance from the house and walking farther away when she answered the phone. “Hi, Mom.”

  “Oh, good. I was worried I wouldn’t catch you.” The connection crackled. “There’s been a bit of a complication to our plan.”

  She closed her eyes, already seeing where this was headed. “Cord is here.”

  For a long moment Michelle didn’t say anything. Then Shasta heard some moderate cursing, clearly not directed at her. “How are the sirens handling it?”

  “They haven’t killed him yet.” Shasta scuffed her foot across the dirt path. No matter what her plan was when she’d come here, this was now the reality of the situation. “Agatha is allowing him to stay for the length of my contract.”

  “Well, no matter what Agatha says, you can send him home.” Michelle muttered something too low for her to hear, but then Shasta clearly understood. “Men.”

  Shasta looked back at the house where Cord was using a multitool to remove the needles from the mannequin and stick them in evidence bags. Considering he’d already put his job in jeopardy just to come out here, she rather doubted he’d leave just because she said so. “As much as I’d like to send him home, I think he could be useful.”

  “If you’re sure.” Michelle sounded doubtful. “I’d fire him for disobeying orders, but Elron said something that gave him this idea. Though he won’t tell me what he said.”

  “He talked to Dad?” What on earth could Dad have said that would make Cord willingly travel to the island of sirens who’d specifically banned men? “Did Dad give him some defense against their song?”

  “They talked last night, and hardly an hour later he was gone. All I’ve gotten out of Elron is something about honor.” Michelle snorted. “Did one of the sirens try to enchant him? I’ve never heard anything about elves being immune to siren songs or having any ability that would give them immunity, but I can ask. Maybe your father will actually answer that question.”

  “Yes, but the song didn’t seem to bother him. He watched me the entire time.” She glanced over at the house. Charis and Hagne were carrying away the mannequin. “A local said true love made people immune. Do you know if that’s true?”

  Her mom didn’t say anything for a moment. “I never heard anything like that before, but I know very little about the sirens. I’ll do some research.”

  “Thanks, Mom.” Part of that thanks was for not asking the obvious question. Maybe Cord loved her, or maybe the siren hadn’t been trying very hard. Their problem had never been love anyway. Their problems were a lack of trust, partnership, or understanding. Not love.

  Her mom’s voice lost the edge of anger. “How are you handling it?”

  “I’d hardly gotten time to breathe without him being nearby, and then here he was again, and he was in danger, and… I don’t know.” The breeze darted through the trees, rustling the leaves, and played with the strands of hair that had escaped her braid. It would take more than that to cheer her up.

  “Nothing I can do from here will make this easier. Though I’m going work on prying the truth out of your father.” There was an edge to her mother’s voice. “If I learn anything helpful, I’ll pass that along.”

  Having been on the receiving end of her mom when she was in one of these moods, Shasta almost felt bad for her father. Almost. “Let me know what you find out. Cord hasn’t really been volunteering information.”

  “I will.” A voice in the background called for Michelle. “I need to go. Call me if you need anything, even if it’s just someone to vent to and yell about how strange men are.”

  Shasta found herself smiling slightly. It was always nice to have her mom in her corner. “Thank you, Mom. I love you.”

  “I love you too. Be strong.” Michelle hung up the phone.

  Shasta stood there, wishing that she had answers, not only to her own questions but also to the mystery of what was happening on this island. She forcefully put all her problems with Cord and their relationship out of her mind. Something didn’t add up about all the attacks. Maybe if she went through the events and evidence with Cord, he’d be able to help her figure out what she was missing.

  She squared her shoulders and turned to go back to the house. Cord was sitting on the grass, hands pressed into the earth, his brows pulled together. Ignoring the twinge of her heart, she walked over to him.

  He must’ve heard her footsteps, because when she was only a few feet away he looked up. “Have you tried communicating with the earth?”

  “It hasn’t been very open with me.”

  “When I first stepped off the dock, it seemed interested in me, somewhat perplexed by our similarities and differences, but now it’s closed off.” He frowned. “It’s very odd.”

  Shasta knelt next him and pressed her hand against the ground. It was earth. She poked at it with a bit of elven power but didn’t get a response. “Nothing.” She looked at Cord. “The sirens believe a volcano created the island specifically for them.”

  “A volcano gave them an island?” He said the words very carefully, without a hint of derision.

  “That’s what they told me.” Shasta shrugged.

  “That would make this…” His voice trailed off as he soaked in the caldera and the sea all around the island.

  “A bit different than most landmasses,” Shasta finished for him.

  His eyes met hers, understanding slowly filling them. “Perhaps not as connected to elves as what we are used to.”

  Shasta nodded. “Perhaps.” And that could be a very dangerous thing. Both of them had grown used to how the earth would aid them and how much information they could gather from it. She hadn’t gotten much of that since she arrived.

  “Are there any other siren tales I should hear?” Cord stood up, dusted off his hands, and offered one to her. “Perhaps we could go over the evidence together?”

  “My notes are inside.” She set her hand in his, letting him draw her to her feet. “I haven’t heard much of their history. This group moved here because they wanted to find a way to live peacefully with other races. They vowed not to use some of their more objectionable abilities.”

  “They aren’t the only group to make that decision. Many races have had to moderate their behavior to further more amicable relationships.” Cord followed her in the house.

  “True.” Shasta hefted the box of evidence with her notebook resting on top off the ground and set it on the table. She picked up the notebook, flipped to the list of attacks, and read them off to Cord along with her notes about the locations and potential effects of the attacks. “The most recent incident was a bottle of vinegar left near a cave on the other side of town. I have yet to figure out the significance.”

  “Vinegar?” Cord shook his head. “I don’t understand how that’s even an attack. How upset were they?”

  “Very. Perhaps more upset than they were by the murder.”

  “Are you serious? A bottle of vinegar was worse than one of their own dying?” Cord leaned over to look at the list. “Are you sure you didn’t mix up your notes?”

  “I talked to some of them about it. They were outraged by the vinegar.” Shasta set the notebook down. Since it had been the first thing she’d been shown, just how upset they were had somewhat faded in comparison to the other incidents. “Considering how much it affected them, I don’t understand why Agatha didn’t mention it the first day. I had time to look at it, but instead she told me about their clutch and we had a feast.”

  Cord stilled. “Clutch? As in eggs? Vinegar dissolves egg shells.”

  “Yes.” Shasta felt the blood drain from her face. “I got it wrong. It wasn’t an attack. It was a threat. This is their first clutch. They’ve been incubating the eggs since they got here. This would be their first set of young since breaking with the rest of the sirens.”

  Cord swore and pushed back from the table to pace the room. “Whoever’s doing these attacks knows how to hurt them the most. This person not only knows where the eggs are but also just how important they are to the sirens.”

  “At least one of the people behind this is a siren.” Shasta felt sick. All this time Agatha had been trying to figure out who was targeting the sirens, and the attack was coming from within.

  “But how would a siren get the mannequin? Or the needles? Or the larkspur?” He shook his head. “They have to have someone off island helping them.”

  Shasta shuffled through the papers until she found the rough drawing she’d made of the various attacks. “There are two rings of activity.”

  He snatched the paper from her. “One siren and at least one person from off the island. But I don’t understand their goal. What will destroying the eggs give the siren?”

  “Does it matter? We need to warn Agatha.” Shasta started to the door.

  Cord was hardly a step behind her. “We don’t have a suspect. If we tell her now, she could have the very person responsible for this guarding the eggs.”

  Shasta spun on her heel. “What should we do? Do you feel the sparks of life? Those eggs are close to hatching. I would never forgive myself if something happened to those children because I hesitated out of fear.”

  Cord stepped closer, leaving only inches of space between them. “Can you live with yourself if you put this monster in a position to hurt all those eggs? Because that’s the reality, Shasta. It could be one siren or could be ten who want to destroy those eggs. Are you willing to risk giving them a better opportunity because we didn’t take time to plan?”

  “Dammit.” She closed her eyes. “Damn you.”

  “Curse me all you like, but let’s figure out how we save those eggs. Then we go to Agatha.”

  Shasta opened her eyes. “What do we do from here?”

  “We go back to the evidence. We figure out how many sirens are involved and what outside help they had, then we can give Agatha enough information to properly protect the eggs.” Cord stepped over to the table, where he started laying out the evidence.

  She hated that he was right. She hated that she couldn’t just go stand in front of those eggs herself to stop any sirens from hurting them. Mostly she hated the thought of any one of those eggs being hurt because they delayed.

  “So it started with the water being chummed?” He pointed to her list.

  Swallowing back her anger, she answered the question. “That’s what I was told.”

  Cord went down the list twice. “The murder doesn’t fit the pattern.”

  “I know. Sappho said Doris was probably murdered because of something she knew.” Shasta pushed away from the door. “The murderer is probably the same person who put the vinegar in the cave. What other information could be valuable enough to kill?”

  “Do they still have the body?” Cord glanced at her.

  “No. They gave her a sea burial.” Shasta grimaced. They could’ve sent the body for an autopsy, which might have given them enough evidence to identify the killer. Now all that evidence had been washed away by the ocean.

  “Of course. What else would sirens do?” Cord mumbled, more to himself than her.

  Shasta thought back to what Melissa had told her. “The bottle of vinegar was found inside the cave. If a siren wanted to hurt the eggs, why leave the bottle rather than dump it on them?”

  Cord opened his mouth, but any answer he made was lost in the deafening boom that Shasta felt as much as heard. The walls of her small home vibrated, and the shock wave pulsed through her flesh. She lost all track of time and space. When she came to herself, she was leaning heavily against the wall, one leg taking all her weight.

  Silence surrounded her. She couldn’t hear anything, not even her own ragged breaths. Her right shoulder throbbed, and her hip felt bruised. She carefully rotated her right ankle, which moved just fine and didn’t hurt at all. She set it on the ground, slowly transferring some of her weight. Her hip ached, but the rest of her leg worked just fine. She pushed off the wall and stood on her own two feet.

  Without any warning, Cord was in front of her. She jerked back, knocking her elbow into the wall. She muttered rude words as she rubbed her elbow.

  Cord tipped her chin up and looked into her eyes. He mouthed something, but she couldn’t hear that any more than she heard her own words. He pursed his lips and crossed the room, digging through his pack before coming back with two minor healing charms.

  Shasta shoved a little magic into each of them, activating them. Then she took one from him and stuffed it in her pocket. Hopefully it would take care of the hearing loss and the bruises. With that done, she jerked the door open and bolted outside.

  Leaves and fruit had had fallen from the trees around the house. A plume of smoke drifted on the breeze. With Cord by her side, Shasta jogged around the building.

  At first her eyes didn’t want to make sense of the scene. This morning there’d been a storage building here. Now there was rubble, broken bodies, and the mannequin’s arm.

  This was an island. The explosives had to have gotten here from somewhere. The mannequin had been heavy. Very heavy for something that was supposed to be easy to move around a store. Odds were the explosives had been in the mannequin and she and Cord had missed it.

  Shasta bolted forward, falling to her knees next to Hagne. She brushed her hair aside, pushing her fingers against the siren’s neck. There was no pulse. Hagne was gone.

  Shasta scrambled to her feet, searching for another guard. Guards were usually in pairs. There had to be another siren here. Maybe she had survived.

  Spotting red curls under the remains of the door, Shasta scrambled over rock and wood fragments. That color hair could only belong to Charis. Shasta pulled the door off her, tossing it to the side. Maybe she could save Charis.

  At first her eyes didn’t want to focus, but she kept staring until her mind made sense of the broken remains of Charis. Her knees buckled. Suddenly Cord was there, holding her up. Charis—sweet, playful Charis—was well and truly dead. No one could survive having their neck bent at that angle. Or the way her rib cage was flattened, bones sticking out on both sides. Or the amount of blood that had drained into the indention around her.

  As the sirens descended on the blast site, Shasta wept for Charis and Hagne. Her hearing slowly returned, filled with the pained cries of the sirens as they discovered their dead. She had failed. She had failed Charis, Hagne, and every other member of this community.

  She didn’t protest as Cord guided her away from the sirens and turned her to face him. His blue eyes were dark and intense. “It’s not your fault. It’s not mine either.”

  It hurt to force the words out. “It was too heavy. And the smell. I should’ve known.”

  “How many mannequins have you moved? How were you to know, how were either of us to know, that someone would go from chumming water to setting off explosives? We aren’t infallible, Shasta. We try our hardest, and then we live with the consequences. I thought you learned that in the Dragon Lands.” There was a hard edge to his voice, and his fingers dug into her arms.

  “It was different there.” At least it felt different at the time. “We didn’t know. No one did. But here, I knew there was a problem. I knew, and I didn’t stop this.” She had missed clues, and the result was two lives lost. Had she been too distracted by her own emotions and Cord?

  “Did you do your best?”

  Had she? Was she sure she’d done everything she could to prevent this from happening? She looked down at her feet. “Please don’t make me answer that.”

  “Look at me, Shasta.”

  She kept her eyes down.

  “Look at me,” he barked.

  She forced herself to meet his gaze. She expected anger, something fierce to match his voice. Instead she found understanding.

  “You have to answer these questions. Did you do your best?”

  “I did what I thought was right for the situation. I don’t know if that’s my best. But it’s what I did.” She felt tears drip down her cheeks. “I don’t think I’ll ever forgive myself for what happened here, but I don’t actually know what I would’ve done differently.” The next time she wouldn’t let her heart be so distracting. She wouldn’t ignore the fleeting scent of oil.

  He glanced past her shoulder and then locked eyes with her again. “I’ve been in situations where we discovered explosives and where we thought we would discover explosives. I knew what to look for. And yet I helped you collect the evidence off the mannequin and never thought we needed to be looking for explosives.”