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“Ah. So, after the war ended. That explains why you aren’t wary of me, like the others.”
“I’m not afraid of you, but I know well enough to be wary around other sirens. I may not have fought in the war, but I’ve heard stories aplenty from the crew.”
He reached into his pocket and withdrew a small white ball.
“Candle wax,” he said, squishing it slightly with his fingers. “We plug our ears with it when we suspect sirens are nearby.”
Riella raised her brows, bemused the pirates had found a way around Sirensong. “Does it work?”
He shrugged. “I’ve never had cause to test it. Hopefully never will. Berolt reckons it stops the worst of the Song, but not all of it.”
A pirate hauled a toolbox past at that moment, glowering at Riella. He paused to mutter something into Drue’s ear before stomping down the stairs.
Drue returned the wax to his pocket, his face flushing. “He’s angry I was telling you our secrets,” he explained. “He thinks it’s traitorous. The crew have been grumbling about you ever since we arrived on the isle.”
Riella looked around uneasily. “But they will obey Jarin’s orders, won’t they? He’s the captain now.”
What if they refused to sail for the Black Cliffs to rescue Seraphine? The crew loathed having Riella on board, let alone sailing the Pandora at her behest. Jarin and Drue liking her obviously meant very little to the rest of them.
Sirens and pirates were still enemies, and they seemed committed to treating her like one. Jarin couldn’t afford dissent in the ranks so soon after becoming captain. And without the Pandora, Riella had nothing. She’d be stuck.
And really, why should the pirates put their lives on the line for her? Naturally, they had no desire or cause to sail around finding magical amulets and rescuing elves. They wanted to plunder and loot and drink mead at port cities.
Riella was dragged from her thoughts by a pirate’s panicked shouts. He stood at the bow, spyglass in hand, looking to sea. He hollered a warning over his shoulder, causing the ship to come alive with activity at once.
“Enemy! Enemy incoming!”
CHAPTER 21
“Sirens attacking! Arm yourselves, lads! Sirens incoming!”
Riella’s stomach dropped. She threw down the sail she’d be working on and ran to the bow.
“No!” she said to the pirate. “They aren’t attacking.”
He pointed at three dark blue shadows hurtling through the water toward the Pandora. “Sure looks like they are.”
Riella snatched the man’s spyglass.
“I said they aren’t attacking,” she hissed. “You’re going to get people killed.”
He scowled at her and drew his cutlass from his belt. “Sirens killed, you mean.”
Her temper flared, and for a moment she forgot about Jarin and Seraphine and the amulet. All she could focus on was the disgusting pirate snarling in her face about killing sirens.
“Not likely,” she spat.
“Positions, lads!” he shouted.
Riella picked him up by the collar and threw him hard against the railing. He howled in pain as he crumpled to the wooden boards.
Before she could slash his face with her talons, Jarin emerged from below deck and ran to the bow. He assessed the situation with a glance at Riella, whose chest heaved with fury, and a look at the fast-approaching blue shadows in the water.
“Stand down!” he shouted at the crew. He hauled the man Riella had thrown to his feet, giving him orders. “Get to the bilge. Finish work on the hull. Now.”
The man glared at Riella, then stomped away.
Jarin turned to her, lowering his voice. “They aren’t attacking, right? They’re here to help you?”
