tablets that were all Bubba had on board, I was trying to think of anything and everything else. One thing was certain. If I was going to keep running into the demonic, I was going to need to take precautions.
A light tap on the door distracted me. I pulled the lightweight cotton sheet over me for modesty’s sake. A little late for it, all things considered. But hey, we were just going to pretend I hadn’t flashed Creede, Dahlmar, and the entire siren navy as they’d come to the rescue. Apparently, I’d leapt right out of my bra when I went over the demon. Creede swears he didn’t notice.
Not even when he was handing me a towel to cover myself with.
“Come in.”
I rolled over to see who it was and immediately wished that I hadn’t. The burns were healing. But it was slow going. I’d had the last two shakes, to take the edge off of my hunger and make sure the humans didn’t look tasty, but my body apparently needed more. Less food, slower healing. But there wasn’t anything else on the boat I could digest unless I decided to go fully vampire. So until they finished hauling the boat into the harbor and found something I could drink, I was pretty much screwed.
“How are you doing?” Queen Lopaka stuck her head through the doorway. She wasn’t wearing anything ceremonial, just a pair of faded jeans and a white cotton button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. She wore boat shoes, probably a good thing considering the splinters and worse that littered the deck.
“Been better,” I admitted. I probably still looked like one of the lower rungs of hell. When I’d gone into the bathroom to take the aspirin I’d scared myself. Second-degree burns on the face were
Lopaka smiled and I swear it lit up the room. Straight white teeth and dimples to die for. “Yes, well, better late than never. You apparently did well enough all on your own. Although at some cost.” She sighed and lowered herself onto the edge of the bed. “You must be in pain. And my condolences on the loss of—”
I dipped my head and sighed. “Ivan. He was King Dahlmar’s bodyguard.” The king was beside himself, though he wasn’t showing it much. There’s a point at which a bodyguard becomes a member of the family.
“And he died in the line of duty.” She sighed again. “How do you want to handle this?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “It’s a complete clusterfu—” I stopped in mid-syllable, horrified at myself. You don’t use language like that in front of a queen, no matter how appropriate or how casual the situation.
She laughed, hard enough to shake the bed. Wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, she said, “Yes, it is.” She looked thoughtful for a moment. “All right. If you don’t mind, I’ll have my people handle the questioning of the remaining pirate. I’m also going to have them investigate King Dahlmar’s allegations of political tampering in Rusland. We have very stringent laws forbidding political machinations of that type. If indeed that is what’s happening.”
“You don’t think it is?”
She gave me a long look. “It’s a landlocked country.”
I put two and two together. Sirens need oceans. Need them. But just because they couldn’t live in Rusland, that didn’t mean they wouldn’t want to control the power and the gas. I started to open my mouth to say as much, but I didn’t have to. She’d been listening to my thoughts. Which I hated. I tried to stifle that thought before it got me in trouble.
“We have hospital facilities on the island. Your injuries can be tended there.”
I shook my head no. Hospitals had bleeding people. The smell of blood could make me very dangerous— particularly when I was hungry and injured. “I appreciate the offer, but I can’t.” I didn’t explain further, but I didn’t have to. Either she was still eavesdropping on my thoughts or she was bright enough to figure it out on her own. She reached the right conclusion and quickly.
She gave me a horrified look. “It really is that much of a problem? I saw you looking at Adriana’s neck and you left so swiftly, but—”
“Oh, it’s a problem. So far, I’ve been able to deal with it. It’s better, easier, if I have some broth or baby food with meat. Or something with protein that’s run through the blender. But no hospital. That would just be a bad idea right now.”
“I understand.” She gave me a speculative look. “I can arrange for the food. And if you’ll let me, I can help with the pain and let you rest until it’s ready.”
“That would be lovely.”
She reached forward, touching me on the forehead. I heard her voice inside my head.
I slept.
I woke to the smell of food: beef broth, French onion soup, and other, more exotic things that I couldn’t name but that smelled of tropical fruits and banana. Opening my eyes, I discovered it was night. I rolled over . . . and it didn’t hurt. For just a moment I reveled in the fact that I didn’t
The boat wasn’t moving. Well, it was rocking gently, but not like it was out on the ocean. We’d apparently made harbor. Which explained why somebody’d felt secure enough to leave several open food containers on the nightstand next to my bed.
Vampires have terrific night vision. I didn’t even need to turn on the light. I sat up in bed and begin tearing into the food. I was ravenous and most of it tasted wonderful. I skipped the fruit drink, though. I loathe bananas. I was just finishing the last drop of soup when I noticed a slip of folded note paper that had been tucked under one of the bowls.
I unfolded it, to find a note.
I was glad they’d let me sleep. Now that I’d healed up and eaten, I was much safer to be around. But I wanted to clean up before I went out in public. The shower in the head on the boat was tiny but in working order. I dug up some toiletries and made myself presentable. Thankfully, some kind soul had brought my things down from the deck. It would’ve been nice to have some fresh clothes, but unless I wanted to swipe something from Bubba, I’d have to make do. Since the lavalava didn’t have any blood- or food stains, that was what I put on, covering it once more with my jacket to protect my still red and somewhat tender skin.
I sighed as I laid the empty holster on top of the bed. No point in putting it on. The gun was gone. That sucked. One of my knives was gone. That was even worse. But I was alive. Bubba, Creede, and Dahlmar were all injured, but they had made it, too. I was sorry about Ivan. But considering what we were up against, it was practically miraculous we’d only had one casualty.
I glanced at the clock built into the wall. One A.M. Most likely everybody else was in bed by now, but maybe not. Besides, having rested and fed, I was wide awake. So I picked my way through the disaster area where the mess used to be and made my way to the stairs and up top.
It was a beautiful night. Not too hot, with just enough of a breeze to flap the sails on the boats that had them and rustle the leaves of the palm trees on the shore. Water lapped gently against the hull of the boat, and the clear white moonlight made it easy to see but also made the shadows seem that much darker.
As I stepped from the cabin doorway, I saw one of those shadows move ever so slightly. Someone was trying very hard to remain unseen.
I pulled my knife and charged, using vampire strength and speed. Before my opponent knew what was coming, I was on her and she was down, pinned to the deck with the edge of my knife at her throat.
I felt magic building and I pressed down on the knife so that the tip dimpled her skin without drawing blood. “Don’t even think about it.” I hissed and bared my teeth to make the . . . point perfectly clear.
Then my vampire sight kicked in and I suddenly realized she was just a kid. She couldn’t be more than fifteen or sixteen. When I’d hissed at her, she’d let go of her power and lay still, her eyes wide as dinner plates. Her entire
