They could be lying to her. That sounded like something Penn would do. But Thea had seemed convinced it was impossible for sirens to be truly loved, too, and Gemma had come to trust Thea. She doubted that Thea would lie to her for the hell of it.
So Gemma was inclined to believe that they were wrong. And if they were wrong about this, about something they considered to be a major part of the curse, what else were they wrong about?
Gemma’d wanted to discuss this with Harper, but she hadn’t gotten the time. Once Gemma was back from visiting Nathalie, Brian had spent the rest of the day with her, so she couldn’t talk to Harper about it.
And today Harper had been so busy getting ready for her date that Gemma didn’t want to spoil it. She could talk to her about it tomorrow. And besides, it would probably do Gemma some good to relax and not worry about curses or sirens for a while.
She stole Harper’s e-reader and decided to crash out on her bed. Harper and Gemma’s reading tastes were vastly different, so Gemma spent most of the time just scanning through the reader and rejecting the choices.
Harper did have a subscription to Spin magazine, though, and Gemma read through that. She lay on her back with one leg crossed over her knee, humming to herself and reading about Florence + the Machine.
Then suddenly it hit her. It was like somebody had punched her in the gut and knocked all the air from her lungs.
She sat up in bed, and with absolute certainty she said, “They’re here.”
She jumped off of her bed and her mind raced, trying to figure out what to do. The sirens weren’t here, as in at her house, but she knew they were back in Capri. And it wasn’t because of her connection with the sirens, although that strengthened her conviction and knowledge.
It was because Harper knew. There wasn’t any other way she could explain it. When Harper was in serious trouble, she would just feel it. The same way Harper knew when Gemma was in real trouble. That was probably how Harper had been able to figure out that Gemma had been staying in Sawyer’s beach house.
There was some kind of bond between the two of them, and it had been there as long as Gemma could remember. Whether it was an intense intuition or some kind of psychic link, Gemma didn’t know or care. But she felt it stronger than she ever had before, maybe because she was a siren now and it heightened any supernatural connection she already had. She just knew that she trusted this feeling, and right now it was telling her that Harper had discovered the sirens. If she wasn’t in danger right now, she would be very shortly.
When Gemma ran away from home, she’d left her cell phone here, and Brian had threatened to shut it off when she got back. Fortunately, he hadn’t yet, and Gemma grabbed it. She called Harper, but the phone went straight to voice mail.
That didn’t necessarily mean anything. It was getting dark, and the fireworks were about to start. It was probably so loud down at the beach that Harper wouldn’t be able to hear her phone.
But Gemma had to do something. She had to sneak out of the house without Brian stopping her.
That ended up being easier than she thought. He’d had a couple of beers today, and he was nodding off in his chair in the living room in front of the TV. He’d probably wake up once the fireworks started going off, and then he’d notice that Gemma wasn’t there.
But really, that wasn’t her concern right now. She just had to get out of here.
She walked quietly down the stairs, then hurried through the kitchen and out the back door. She’d barely made it outside when Alex came rushing out the back door of his house, and Gemma swore under her breath.
“What are you doing?” Alex asked. “Where are you going?”
“The sirens are here,” Gemma told him.
“Where?” He turned around in a circle, as if he expected them to be lurking behind him.
“I don’t know. I think maybe down at the bay,” Gemma said. “Harper’s there with Daniel watching the fireworks, and I have to go get her.”
“Wait. What?” Alex asked. “Shouldn’t we be running away from the sirens, not getting closer to them? It’s dangerous for you to be around them.”
“No, I need to face them,” Gemma said. “But first I have to find Harper.”
“So what’s going to happen when you do run into the sirens?” Alex asked.
“I have to stop them,” Gemma said. “I can’t let them hurt anyone anymore. I’ll find Harper, then I’ll find a way to chase them off.”
Gemma wasn’t completely certain that she could pull that off, but she’d do everything she could. She was going to fight the sirens and get them to leave her and her family alone, or she would die trying.
“Okay,” Alex said. “But I’m going with you.”
“Alex.” Gemma groaned. “You can’t—”