Daughter of the Siren Queen

I think you love me. I do. I think I love you too. You think? I know.

Your enchantments last long after your song fades.

I may not have been born in the sea, but I was born to rule it. I am the daughter of the siren queen.

How did we turn out the way we did when such horrible men raised us?” I wonder aloud. “Because we are not our fathers. We saw what evil looked like, and we knew we wanted to be different.

I have twenty-eight excellent girls aboard this ship, and their pasts have shaped them. Just as yours has shaped you. And every single one of them, down to little Roslyn, deserves your respect.

Riden is up in the rigging, fiddling with the sails. He’s barefoot, shirtless, and he’s gone a few days without shaving. Holy hell. I’m staring. I know it, but I can’t seem to stop. “I could get used to warm weather,” Niridia says from next to me. “Won’t exactly make everyone smell nice, but the view is vastly improved.” I should have a clever response, but all I can manage is “Aye.

A pirate at sea has a peg leg, a hook for a hand, and an eye patch. One of his companions asks him how he lost his leg.” “Please stop,” Kearan begs. “He answers, ‘A cannonball.’ Then his companion asks how he lost his hand. He answers, ‘A sword.’” “Enwen, I will knock you unconscious,” Kearan threatens, but I can tell he doesn’t have the energy to carry it out. “When the companion asks how he lost his eye, the man says, ‘A spray of the sea.’” Kearan stares at Enwen. “That doesn’t even make any sense.” “It was his first day with the hook.

I braved the ocean for you. Will you brave land for your queen?

Kearan has the emotional depth of a clam.

You are perfect just the way you are,” he continues, “and I wouldn’t change a single thing about you.

It seems the only way to have a conversation alone with you is to ambush you in the halls.” “Most men would take that as a hint and back the hell off.

Riden!” I shout, remembering something. He looks up again. “Go below and shave. You look haggard.”... “Haggard?” Niridia asks. She’s at the helm. Kearan, it would seem, hasn’t arrived yet. I join her. “That man is handsome as hell.

He relaxes considerably. "Thank the stars. I was trying so hard to be supportive and forget what I want most." "And what's that?" Those beautiful brown eyes glint. "You.

She curtsies elegantly before skipping off, probably to weave flowers into crowns or to hug a barnacle, or something.

Three coins into the sea, Captain. One for the stars, one for the sky and one for the ocean" he says. "what need have they for money?" "It's not about need, it's about showing reverence

He holds the canteen out to me, and I take a sniff. It’s water. “She dumped all of my flasks into the sea while I slept,” Kearan says. “Didn’t realize she cared so much.

The changes only make him look more roguish. Dangerous. Almost irresistibly handsome. He'll need to shave first thing when he leaves the room. Otherwise the girls won't be able to focus on their work.

It’s not a question of if you’ll win, I continue. The only question is whether you will choose to fight. Will you fight for your queen? Will you fight for your waters and treasure? Will you fight for your little ones?

If my mother doesn’t want to stick around, fine. I’ll go to her and rob her blind.

You’re beautiful, the most stunning person I’ve ever seen. You’re fearless. You like danger. You like to make your friends laugh and your enemies cower. You have the power to obtain anything you want, yet you’ve worked hard for everything you have. “So, no, Alosa, I cannot promise that I won’t ignore orders again. Like I said, when it comes to you, I have no control over my actions.

It takes him a full minute to find his voice. “You”—deep breath—“you are a monster.” “And you’ve made the monster angry. Start talking.

So he is your intended, then?" He asks it casually enough. A smile still rests on his lips. But one mental switch and I can see he's swirling with a dark green. Jealousy in its deepest rawest form.

My stomach drops at our salvation right ahead of us, our doom right behind us. We cannot have one without the other.

He glares at me. "Sympathy is not what I want from you, Alosa.

Because we are not our fathers. We saw what evil looked like, and we knew we wanted to be different.

That’s twice I’ve been honest with you, Alosa. Twice I’ve made myself vulnerable to you. That’s supposed to go both ways.

My heart leaps as I feel his breath there. “Your enchantments last long after your song fades.

The first step to feeling good is looking good, and I look like the royalty I am.