“We’ll leave them behind,” she told him simply. “We’ll go far, far away, and we’ll never return to Capri. You’ll never see Harper or your family again, but that means neither will I. I’ll never hurt any of them, and they’ll live long, happy, little human lives. I will spare everyone, for you.”
As horrible as the offer was, it still sounded too good to be true. He would have to spend the rest of eternity in emotional, physical, and sexual servitude to Penn, but he could save everyone. Everything he’d been trying for would come true. He might not be able to break the curse—at least not right away—but he’d be there with Gemma, to help her and watch out for her.
His mind raced, trying to find the flaw in Penn’s plan or what other devious thing she might be scheming at.
“With me, there would be five sirens,” he realized. “I thought you could only have four.”
“We can only have four,” Penn confirmed.
And that would be the flaw. “So who are you getting rid of?”
Penn tilted her head, like she was considering, but she considered rather quickly. “I was thinking Thea.”
“Thea?” Daniel asked, startled by her choice.
She laughed. “You look surprised.”
“I thought you’d say Gemma.”
“I’m not stupid, Daniel. If I killed her, you wouldn’t go along. I know that.”
“But Thea is your sister, and she’s not totally insane and out of control like Liv,” Daniel countered.
He wasn’t entirely sure what Thea’s deal was or if he could trust her, but from what he knew of the sirens, she seemed to be the most sane and reasonable. If he had to a pick a siren to have on his side, other than Gemma, Thea was his top choice.
“She’s annoying and bossy, though.” Penn wrinkled her nose in irritation when she talked about Thea.
“I don’t think I can spend the next hundred years or so dealing with Liv,” he admitted, though he failed to add that he didn’t think he could spend that long dealing with Penn, either. “If you want me to do this, then she’s the one.”
“You want me to kill Liv?” Penn nearly squealed in her delight, and she licked her full lips. “You’re so deliciously wicked, Daniel. I thought for sure you’d have some kind of moral argument about it.”
“I’m fairly certain that Liv has already killed a lot of people, and if she hasn’t yet, then she will soon,” he reasoned. “She’s much more of a monster than Gemma or Thea, and maybe even you. I don’t have any qualms with getting rid of evil.”
Penn had been sitting on her knees, but she moved so she was leaning back on the bed, propping herself up with her elbows. One of her long legs dangled over the edge, but her other foot was still on the bed, so when she moved her knee, Daniel would get a peek up her dress if he was looking.
“I’ve never seen this side of you before, and I like it,” she purred. “So as your reward, I’ll do it. I’ll kill Liv because you asked me to. And you can replace her.”
“When?”
“Assuming all goes well tonight, then tomorrow. The next full moon is on Monday, so we should get started with the process, just in case you don’t take.”
“Tomorrow? Like, in twenty-four hours?” Daniel asked. The thought of becoming an immortal monster in a day didn’t seem like enough time to prepare.
“Yes. I’ll kill Liv in the afternoon, you come over, drink some blood, and by the next morning, we should be all set to go,” Penn said.
“Unless I die, of course,” he reminded her. “You’re not even sure this will work on me, since I’m a guy, and I know that it nearly killed Gemma.”
“Well, yes, that is a possibility.”
“What then?”
“What if you die?” Penn shrugged. “You’ll be dead.”
“And you’re fine with that? You’re so obsessed with me, but you’re cool with my being dead and gone in a day or two?” he asked.
“I’m not ‘cool’ with it, but it’s the price I have to pay. And if you say no, I’ll kill you anyway.”
“You know that doesn’t make any sense, right? You are a sociopath,” he told her as reasonably as he could. “You cannot love something and then just kill it. That’s not love.”
“I never said it was love, Daniel,” Penn corrected him. “It’s something, and I’m being very generous with you, so take it for what it is. I’m giving you the most I can give, and this is it.”
It was true, and he knew it. This was the best he would get from her, and this would be his best chance at protecting Harper and Gemma and everyone else in Capri. He’d have to become a monster and kill strangers to survive, but that had to be better than letting everyone he loved die.
And if he was one of them, it would be easier to try to figure out the curse or at least how to stop the sirens. He’d have their superstrength, so he’d be evenly matched in a fight against Penn. This could be the way out.
“So this is it then?” he asked finally.
“What?”
“I sleep with you now, and tomorrow I become a siren.” He swallowed the lump in his throat and hoped he didn’t look as nauseated as he felt. “And then I’ll leave this life forever and run away with you.”