Dirty Lying Sirens

Chapter Twelve

Madeline

I vaguely registered the rocking of my bed.

Gently. Up and down, swaying with the caress of water.

My eyes opened slowly, the room I was in was almost completely dark. Only a few narrow blue lines were illuminated around the floor to prevent someone from tripping or running into the wall, but they didn't do more than that.

The bed or otherwise soft surface I sat on was solid enough, but I still felt a rocking sensation. And then it hit me.

I was on a boat. Their boat. I'd never fallen asleep over water like this before. I'd never had the chance.

Sitting up slowly, I assessed my physical state. My head hurt like hell, I probably needed water. My neck was less sore now that I had a proper bed to sleep in than crammed in my car but it would still probably ache for a couple of days. I was starving, but half a bagel then an emotional breakdown would do that to a girl. I ran my fingers through my hair, pushing it out of my face and hopefully not looking like the mess I suspected I was.

"-going to be more complicated than you think."

I froze. Soft conversation seeped through the walls.

"The senate would want to know why we didn't bring her back."

"Because she's her own person! You can't just force someone to move their life and start anew in a foreign land."

Oh. That was definitely about me.

"It's not a foreign land, it's where she belongs. When are you going to tell her what she really is?"

What I really am?

"Now isn't the time, she has too much on her shoulders as it is. Besides, you're the one who said it, Nikkos. You can't force a siren to do anything, and I'm not forcing a truth on her when she's distressed."

Siren. There it was again. For some reason, the word made me uncomfortable, and I backed up on the bed.

Caspian and Nikkos were arguing about me. My stomach sank. I never wanted to be the cause of a fight between them. My presence was already becoming a burden and I'd only been here long enough to sleep.

"I'm going to go check on her," Caspian said. "She should be a part of this conversation."

Alarm struck my heart and I quickly laid back down, shutting my eyes just as the door opened and light from behind it filtered in.

I stirred, probably reacting to the sudden light more than anything else.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Caspian asked softly.

Shaking my head, I sat up and rubbed my face. Hopefully, it just looked like I was rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, but really I was trying to ease the shock. Senate? Siren? What I really am?

"I was just coming to see if you were still resting or if you needed anything." Caspian closed the door behind him and fiddled with a nob on the wall, blocking the bright light out and turning some low lights on in the room. 

I got my first view of the cabin while he adjusted the lights. The bed took up most of the space, but there was definitely room to stand and get dressed. Cabinets lined the wall, I guess storage was important in such a small space. There was a tiny window above the bed, but the cover was slid shut right now.

"I bet you're hungry. We have some bread if you want a sandwich, or Nikkos made hummus yesterday if you'd like that." Caspian turned to face me, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at me with concern.