TWENTY-EIGHT

Pact

Penn stepped back from Gemma, and for one brief second Gemma felt some relief. Then Penn turned around, putting her back to Gemma. Her wings almost eclipsed Gemma’s view. Gemma was crouched on the floor, and she could see Alex lying across the room from her, completely unconscious.

“Leave him alone!” Gemma scrambled to her feet.

She charged at Penn, but Penn unfurled a wing. It swung back, smacking into Gemma with such force that she went flying and crashed into a wall. Seemingly without even trying, Penn had tossed her aside. She was too powerful for Gemma to fight, at least as a human.

Gemma tried to will herself to turn into the same bird monster as Penn was, but she couldn’t. No matter how hard she clenched her fists or strained herself, her form remained the same.

“You have to leave behind your mortal life,” Penn said, turning back to look at her. She tilted her head to the side, and her fangs didn’t completely come together when she spoke. They were too jagged to ever truly close.

“I’ll leave behind anything you want,” Gemma said. “Just don’t hurt him.”

“This is what we do, though. This is part of being a siren.” Using one of her long talons, Penn pointed to Alex. “And since you refuse to give him up, what better way to teach you how to be a siren than by eating him?”

“It’s really not so bad,” Lexi chimed in. She and Thea were standing off to the side of the room, still in their normal human shapes. “It sounds disgusting at first, but it’s really amazing once you start.”

“It’s not about being gross. He’s a person,” Gemma said, trying to remain calm. “You can’t just kill him.”

“Yeah, actually, we can,” Thea said drily. “We have to, in fact.”

“I know, I know.” Lexi made a sad face, like she was empathizing with Gemma about a bad haircut instead of how morally reprehensible murder was. “But people die all the time. They’re so fragile that we’re really doing them a favor. When we kill them, they don’t suffer. They welcome death. And Penn’s right. Most guys are assholes, and they’re asking for it anyway.”

“Alex isn’t asking for it! He never hurt anybody!” Gemma fought back tears, but she was beginning to realize how futile it was to try reasoning with them. “Okay, you win!”

Penn exchanged a look with Thea, then looked curiously at Gemma.

“We’ve already won, Gemma,” Penn said.

“You’re right.” Gemma stepped toward her, staring straight up into her reptilian eyes. “I don’t know how to kill myself. Or you. Not yet. But if you hurt him, if you lay one claw on his head, I will make it my life’s mission to destroy us all.”

Penn narrowed her eyes and made a throaty growl.

“But if you leave him alone, I will go with you willingly,” Gemma promised. “I’ll do whatever you ask, whenever you ask, until the end of time. I will join you, and I will be your slave. Just please, leave him.”

Penn seemed to consider this for a moment, then turned to Thea and Lexi.

“It would be nice to have a slave.” Thea shrugged. “And we just ate, so I’m not that hungry.”

Penn let out a deep breath and closed her eyes. “Very well.”

“Holy shit!” Harper shouted, and Gemma turned to see her sister standing in the doorway of the cabin.

She had a pitchfork in her hand, as if meaning to stab anyone who stood between her and her sister, but she froze when she saw the monster standing there. Daniel was right behind her, and he stood there gaping until Penn turned toward them.

Penn opened her mouth, letting out a loud squawk, and that spurred Daniel into action. He grabbed the pitchfork from Harper and ran around her. Lexi rushed at him. Before she could tackle him, Daniel hit her in the stomach with the handle of the pitchfork, and she stumbled back.

He charged at Penn, but she was lightning-fast. In the blink of eye, she’d grabbed the pitchfork, ripping it from his hands. With her other hand, she backhanded Daniel, leaving three nasty gashes on his cheek.

Daniel fell backward, and Penn lifted the pitchfork, looking as if she would impale him.

“Penn, don’t!” Gemma yelled. She ran in front of her, standing between Daniel and the pitchfork. “I’m going with you! Let’s just get out of here! Okay? You’ve already got everything you wanted from this town. Let’s just leave.”

“Gemma, no!” Harper tried to run to her sister, but Thea elbowed her in the stomach as she approached. Harper collapsed to the floor, holding her belly and coughing.

“She’s right,” Thea told Penn. “We’re just wasting time. The sun’s coming up, and the police are already scouring the bay for more bodies. We should just get out of here.”

Lexi had gotten back up, and she kicked Daniel in the arm. “Jerk.”

“Lexi, come on.” Thea started backing out of the cabin, and Lexi gave Daniel one more disparaging look before she went after Thea. They didn’t move past the front porch, where they waited for Penn and Gemma to follow.

Penn rolled her eyes, then snapped the pitchfork in half with her hands. With her considerable strength, she threw both halves through a window, causing the glass to shatter and rain down on the floor.

With that, she started shifting back into her human form. Her wings first, folding into her back, then her legs and arms shortening, and finally her face, until she looked as stunningly gorgeous as she always did.