Kings and Sirens (The Blood Falls Book 2)

Leena

Oh shit. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.

I fucked up.

Big time.

I paced outside the main tent. The tent where all the bodies lay, bloody and dismembered. All the Heida and Salishan who died because I was curious. I knew it was true. I didn’t need evidence or proof. I used the Plane to learn more about them. I shifted right up to their hut.

And then they came for us.

That wasn’t a coincidence. It was my fault. I led them right to the Line. My shame overwhelmed me but more importantly, the realization that my naivety and arrogance caused this. I thought I was smart. I thought it would be easy. I didn’t think about the cost.

I came here to help. To educate the Heida and Queen Layla in particular about the coming war. I was here to help and instead I insisted that my needs and feelings were more important than theirs. That their war with the Salishan needed to be put aside or some ridiculous idea like that. That they could simply cast off their troubles and focus on mine.

Well, ours.

But still, one war can’t be ended simply because another might start. And I steamrolled right over that, thinking I could swoop in with new abilities and answers and solve all their problems with the snap of my fingers.

Arrogant.

So very, very arrogant.

“Leena,” Layla called from the tent entrance. “Can you please come inside?”

I wanted to throw up but I followed the Queen instead. My stomach churned as we passed through the darkened benches and then into the better lit dirt floor where the bodies of the slain Salishan lay.

The Doctor had returned and was now examining each carcass one by one. Layla paused near the edge of the light and folded her hands together. “The Doctor doesn’t have all the results he wants just yet, but his initial reports are…fascinating. He’s having your sister look over the DNA samples. I was wondering, would you be able to speak with Georgiahana and get a more…personal update?”

My sister was a genetic specialist. Partly because she loved learning and essentially wanted to live at a university forever, but mostly because she was fascinated by the evolution of our species and all the things that made us different from humans. “Of course.”

“Now?”

I swallowed down the guilt and relief from being asked to leave. “Of course.”

“I’ll escort you to the edge myself.” She took in a deep breath as she looked over her shoulder at the Doctor and the dead one last time, then followed me out of the tent. “Midnight Dreams won’t be the same this year.”

“No,” I agreed.

We walked in silence down the dirt path, through the woods, and out to the edge of the Heida land, all under the nearly full moon. “I appreciate all the help the House of Wren has provided us.”

I turned to face her when we stopped at the invisible exit. “This is what I’ve been trying to explain all along, Layla. We’re all Samhain. We’re one. There isn’t a you and a me, an insider and an outsider. If you feel that way, it’s because you’ve chosen to, not because of anything we did.”

She gave me a very small smile like she knew something I didn’t.

Perhaps we did do something that made them pull away and I simply didn’t know about it.

“Well, regardless, the friendship between our Houses has been renewed.”

I looked around at the forest I’d quietly fallen in love with. “Thank you for treating me so well.”

“How are you and Atsila getting along? Daisy tells me you’ve grown closer.”

Layla showed no emotions one way or the other, so I wasn’t sure if she was simply curious or if she was upset that Atsila might break his promise. “We’ve…reached an understanding.”

“Hmmm.”

Well that wasn’t helpful. I fidgeted under her gaze, wishing I wasn’t so damn easy to read. “I respect his promise. It makes me like him even more, actually. I won’t stand in the way of that, if that’s what you’re asking.”

Layla cocked her head and looked me up and down. “It wasn’t, but it’s good to know. Return when you have answers, Leena of the House of Wren. I have a House to save.”

“The amino acid racemization went well, which was surprising but also not,” Georgiahana—Gigi for short—babbled as she moved around her lab table, going from the high-powered microscope thingamabob to the mass spectrometer thingydo.

I wasn’t a scientist and I didn’t want to be. But I sort of followed along as my sister explained what she was doing. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a surprisingly fashionable bun and despite the fact that she’d been working for hours, she still had on the perfect touch of makeup.

Gigi always looked perfect. It irritated the hell out of me because it was effortless. It’s like she was born this way. Whether she was at home in jeans and a sweater banging around the kitchen, or here in her white lab coat and glasses, she was effortlessly perfect.

And endlessly sweet. It was the icing on the cake. I was pretty sure if she were some girl I met on the street I’d instantly hate her, but then she’d smile and offer me the shirt off her back and I’d fall into the same trap as everyone else—falling in love with her.

But she was my sister so I was born loving her. The irritation was just part of my personality.

“Yeah, I don’t really care about what process you’re using to sequence the DNA. Just give me the results.”

Her head popped up from the microscope. “Well it’s not results so much as it is information. But I suppose results is a reasonable vocabulary choice.” And then her head was back down.

I sighed. Maybe Gigi wasn’t irritating so much as I was mad at myself. I should have known better than to do something on my own. I should have thought of all the possible repercussions of my actions.

I couldn’t face Atsila again.

I just couldn’t.

I needed to tell him what I did and explain that the attack was my fault, but the guilt. Damn the guilt. It would probably be the end of us. Sure our connection was bone deep and electrifying, but I was an outsider and I betrayed him. I flew right in the face of his wishes.

Because I knew better.

“Lee?”

I blinked, realizing Gigi had been talking and now stood right in front of me. “Sorry.”

“No. You’re upset. I can feel it. I can see it. Your aura is a mess. What’s wrong?”

It poured out of me. “I fucked up. I killed them!” The next thing I knew I was sobbing on Gigi’s shoulder. My family was close. And strange. Samhain typically only had one or two children per couple, but I had eight siblings, all very close in age. Sometimes it felt like we were all one being. I could never hide anything from my brothers and sisters and I didn’t want to now. If anyone would understand me and know what I should do, it was them.

Gigi said a lot of calming things and at some point my brother’s significant other, Rhysa, appeared, taking me home to the House of Wren where I cried in the empty bedroom of the Princess Tower for what felt like hours but was probably only one. Two tops.

When I was all cried out, Rhysa still sat beside me on the bed, another box of tissues in her lap. There was already a mountain of white beside me. My sisters Aethel and Bridge sat at the end of the bed, and my brother Bo slept in the chair in the corner. His long legs spread out and his one long arm propped up under his chin, holding his head up.

“Wow, an audience for my misery.”

Bo sat straight up, blinking. My sisters shrugged. “We’re worried about you.”

“I’m just a horrible samhain is all.”

Aethel touched my ankle while Rhysa rubbed my back. “You’re not horrible. We all make mistakes.”

Bo, always my favorite, leaned forward on his knees. “Buck up, Buttercup. Tell me what happened.”

I told him about the Salishan. I told him about all the things the Heida had done to protect themselves. I explained what I thought and what I learned. And then I told them about the attack and the deaths.

Everyone was silent for a while and strangely, my stomach growled. “I’ll get some food,” Rhysa offered, shifting away like a scared little mouse. She was still new to this life, so I didn’t blame her for wanting to escape.

Bo sat quietly in the corner. He was a brilliant strategist. Great with battle strategy, amazing with planning family picnics. I wondered what he was thinking of my impulsivity. He probably hated it.

So I said so. “You hate that I just went, don’t you?”

“Of course. But what’s done is done.”

“No, don’t brush it aside. Tell me what I should have done differently. I need to hear it.”

He cocked his head, some of the dark locks falling forward. His hair had gotten longer than usual. “Why? You can’t change it.”

“I can change what I do next time.”

He nodded slowly, then took a deep cleansing breath and let it out slowly. Something someone did when they wanted to say something critical but not mean. “Next time, don’t dismiss the experience of those who’ve been living it.”

I cringed, but nodded for him to continue.

“Yes, you had a fresh perspective, and I agree your gift was helpful in exploring the abilities of the Salishan, but when encountering a new situation, it’s always best to be prepared. To have backup. To have a plan for what to do if everything goes wrong. You didn’t trust the Heida. And that’s the real problem, because now…maybe they won’t trust you.”

My heart sank. No, my soul sank. I didn’t just throw away my chance at love with Atsila. I ruined the opportunity to reunite the Heida with the rest of the Houses.

Rhysa shifted back with a plate of bread, cheese, and fruit. Food easy to nibble at while contemplating my guilt.

“But all that aside,” Bo continued, “you did learn some valuable things.”

“Like what?” I forced some bread down my throat while I laughed at my own stupidity.

“The smell for one. That means something. You said they vocalized as well. Based on the way you said they worked together at the fire, I’d assume they are communicating. But what’s really interesting is the bubble you described surrounding them. The psychic vibrations. That’s definitely important. You need to tell them.”

Telling them would mean confessing and confessing would mean owning up to my mistake and all the consequences that came with it. “I will. After Gigi is done…I’ll report back on everything.”

While I was home I enjoyed a big family meal with everyone who was available. Dray and Cass were in the Black Forest and of course Gigi was at the lab, Bethany and even her twin Belynda ate with us. I distracted myself with my aunt and all her excitement that Sun—the current Doctor—would soon be free to be with her again.

“We’re going away. You know, while we can. Before things…change again. I’m already packed even though I know it might be a while still.” She looked years younger and her eyes were brighter than I’d ever seen. Life had been hard for Bethany. First losing Sun when he became the Doctor, then of course my parents died. She lost her brother and her best friend, Lorelei, all while taking on a pack of kids to raise.

Now, after all these years, she finally had something for herself. Another chance with Sun.

“And then we’ll have to decide where we’ll live.”

“You’re welcome to live here,” Bo said between sips of his soup. “Always.”

She blushed—actually blushed! “It’s a bit crowded here, but I’ll keep that in mind.”

“You could always build a treehouse and hide away like Dray and Rhysa,” Aethel teased.

Rhysa scowled at her and tossed a hunk of bread at her head. Aethel ducked away, laughing.

“I think Sun has his heart set on a piece of Sato land near the river. I think that sounds nice.”

Her twin took her hand. “And near me. So it’s even better.”

“Wait, so you’re abandoning us?” Bo teased.

“Never. But I am looking for a little distance.” She winked and tucked back into her soup.