“Liv?” Harper asked once she found her voice. “What are you doing here?”
“Just coming to see the play with Penn,” Liv told her in a voice that was all peaches and cream. “How are you doing?”
“Who the hell cares how I’m doing?” Harper hissed. “What are you doing here?”
“Notice anything different about me?” Liv asked, then twirled around for her.
Harper gaped at Liv, and the color drained from her face. “You’re the new siren. ”
“Sorry, Harper, I was gonna tell you,” Gemma offered lamely.
Harper stepped into the dressing room, deliberately leaving Liv alone in the hall before slamming the door shut behind her. Harper crossed her arms over her chest and glared down at Gemma, making her feel small and guilty.
“How long has my college roommate been a siren?” Harper asked, her tone harsh.
“Former roommate,” Thea corrected her. “She dropped out because she sucks. ”
Gemma shrugged, trying to seem calm and nonchalant. “I don’t know when she became a siren. A few days ago?”
“It was on Friday,” Thea supplied.
“Harper. ” Gemma took a deep breath and looked at her apologetically. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Liv being a siren sooner. But I have to be onstage in like ten minutes, so can we talk about this later?”
“Whatever. Fine. ” Harper sighed.
“As soon as the after-party wraps up. ”
“An after-party?” Harper raised an eyebrow.
Gemma waved her hands, trying to emphasize that it was no big thing. “Yeah, the mayor’s putting on this whole big thing because his son is in the play, and I’m going. ”
“You can come, too, if you want,” Thea said. “Friends and family of the cast are invited. ”
“Thanks, Thea,” Harper said, giving Gemma a hard look since she hadn’t bothered to extend the invitation.
Gemma looked up at her, her eyes pleading with her. “Can you please go find your seat, and we’ll talk about this later?”
“Okay. Fine. ” Harper tried to put aside her anger and took a deep breath. “You look nice. And good luck. ”
“Thank you. ” Gemma smiled up at her, and Harper left her to finish getting ready.
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TEN
Revelry
This was the last place Gemma wanted to be. She should be at home, going through Thalia’s journal or trying to decipher the scroll. But even if there weren’t far more pressing matters waiting for her elsewhere, she still wouldn’t have wanted to come to the after-party.
“They have an ice sculpture?” Marcy asked, eyeing the frozen swan on the center of the hors d’oeuvres table. “Who has an ice sculpture at a summer event?”
“I don’t know,” Gemma said. “But you know the deal—we just have to stay here long enough for Penn to see us, so I look like I’m acting normal and having a good time. Then we can bail. ”
Once the play had finished, and Gemma had gotten changed into her regular clothes, she and Marcy walked over to the hotel while Harper stayed behind to wait for Daniel. Mayor Crawford had rented out the ballroom and had it all done up for the party. It had been decorated with twinkling lights and bouquets of flowers on each table, along with the ice swan.
“Where is she anyway?” Marcy asked. “Or Thea or Liv, for that matter?”
“I don’t know,” Gemma admitted, and made her way toward the appetizer table, smiling politely at an older woman who told her she’d done a great job in the play. “With my luck, they’re probably not even coming, and I showed up for no reason. Maybe we should just bail. ”
“No way. I just got a plateful of shrimp. ” She held up her plate to show Gemma. “I’m staying. Do you think the drinks are free?”
“No clue. ” Gemma’d picked up a plate, so she grabbed a couple crab puffs.
As she was leaving the table, a couple other people came up to congratulate her on her performance. She thanked them, but as soon as they were gone, she made a beeline for the edge of the room, where she could linger in the dim light without having to make small talk, and Marcy followed her, probably also equally happy to avoid it.
“Oh well,” Marcy said through a mouthful of shrimp. “I shouldn’t drink anyway. It’ll probably end up just like my prom, which would be fitting since this looks exactly like my prom. It was even held here. ”
“You went to prom?” Gemma asked in surprise.
Marcy shrugged. “It was a different time back then. ”
“That was like seven years ago. ”
“Eight,” Marcy corrected her.
“It can’t be that different,” Gemma insisted.
“Oh, look, there are your friends. ” Marcy pointed as they arrived.
Even though Thea was technically a guest of honor at the party, Penn led the way, striding into the room like she was a model on the runway. Thea and Liv flanked her on either side, and Thea looked as unhappy to be there as Gemma felt.
“Do you want me to pretend to laugh, so it looks like we’re having fun?” Marcy asked when Penn looked over, winking at Gemma.
Gemma shook her head. “No, I think I’m okay. ”
In the center of the room, there was a small platform set up, sitting about a foot off the ground. When Gemma had gone to a homecoming dance here, that’s where the band had played. There wasn’t one playing now, though Sting was wafting out of speakers around the room.
Mayor Adam Crawford climbed onto the platform, holding a flute of champagne in one hand, and his son offered a hand to help steady him as he stepped up. The mayor wasn’t particularly overweight, but he had enough of a waddle to his step that it made it hard for him to step up that high.
He clinked his glass, using his wedding band, and the music overhead fell silent.
“It seems like everyone’s here, so I just wanted to say a few words before the party really gets under way,” Mayor Crawford said, his booming voice carrying easily through the ballroom. “As most of you know, I’m the mayor of this fine town, and this handsome young man is my son, Aiden. You may recognize him from tonight’s performance as Petruchio. ”
He gestured down to Aiden, who stood at the side of the platform. Aiden was actually very attractive, with sandy blond hair and a stunning smile, although his smile wasn’t quite what it used to be. He’d had a nasty cut above his lip and a black eye, and while they’d healed up for the most part, there was still a small scar just above his lip.
For a brief moment, Gemma had taken a liking to Aiden, and they’d gone on a date nearly two weeks ago. Afterward, Aiden had assaulted her. Gemma had been ready to let the monster inside her out, but thankfully, before she had, Alex intervened, punching Aiden several times.
“Thanks,” Aiden said, smiling his new, slightly crooked smile and waving at the audience as his father talked about him.
“It was a wonderful production, but it wasn’t all thanks to my son, of course,” Mayor Crawford went on. “Praise goes to the capable director, Tom Wagner, and to the rest of the cast, particularly his costar Thea Triton, who played the contrary Katherine. ”
He motioned to Thea, and she waved demurely when people clapped for her. She smiled, and it was one of the few genuine smiles Gemma had seen her give. Thea loved performing, and Gemma suspected that the only time she was truly happy was when she was on the stage.
Even as the applause died down, the mayor let his gaze linger on Thea, so long, in fact, that his wife loudly cleared her throat.
“And all of his costars were phenomenal. ” Mayor Crawford finally pulled his eyes away from Thea and scanned the crowd. “Are you all here? Why don’t you all come up?”
Thea and Aiden climbed onto the platform first since they were the closest, but the rest of the cast and even the crew started making their way up, crowding around the mayor. But Gemma stayed where she was, picking at her crab puffs.
“I thin
k you’re supposed to go up there,” Marcy told her.
“I’m fine here. ”
“You should go up there,” Marcy persisted. “You want to look normal, don’t you?”
Gemma sighed and handed her plate over to Marcy. “Fine. ”
She slid through the crowd until she made her way to the platform. There was hardly enough room on it, so she stayed on the floor, standing next to the platform even though Thea motioned for her to join them onstage.
“Isn’t this a wonderful cast we’ve got here?” Mayor Crawford asked, alternating between beaming at his son and staring at Thea. “I hope all of you enjoyed tonight’s performance of The Taming of the Shrew, and if you did, you can tell your friends, because there are three more shows this weekend. ”
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The mayor looped one arm around Aiden’s shoulders and his other arm around Thea’s waist as he continued, “Not to mention that At Summer’s End is kicking off. Tomorrow, in addition to more performances of the play, there’s a fish fry at noon at the Bayside Park Pavilion and a regatta at Anthemusa Bay at four. ”
He continued to list all the events going on this week, trying to get everyone pumped up for the At Summer’s End Festival. As he talked, Gemma kept her eyes on Penn and Liv. Penn was doing something on her phone, and Liv stared up at the stage with rapt interest. Her lips were pulled back in a wide smile, and as Gemma watched, her teeth lengthened and grew.
At first, Gemma thought Liv’s gaze was fixed on the mayor, which seemed kinda gross to her. But as soon as the mayor had finished, and the music came back on the speakers, Liv rushed toward Aiden.
Seeing her fangs out, Gemma feared the worst—that Liv’s new siren appetite had gotten the best of her, and she was about to devour Aiden right in front of everyone.
Gemma was just about to dive between them to stop that from happening, but a split second before she did, she saw that Liv’s teeth were back to normal. When she smiled up at Aiden as she put her hand on his arm, she looked human.
Even with his new scars, Aiden was still gorgeous. Not to mention that he was the son of the most powerful family in Capri. And he didn’t seem to mind being cornered. Liv had a siren’s charms now, and he smiled radiantly at her as she laughed and batted her eyes. Maybe it was her appetite for affection and power that needed to be whetted.
At least for now. Gemma knew exactly the kind of monstrous hunger that lurked just beneath the surface, and Liv didn’t seem like the type to go long without being satiated.
“This is some party, huh?” Thea asked as she climbed off the platform, and Gemma turned away from Liv and Aiden to look back at her.
“Yeah, it’s something, all right. ” Gemma walked a few feet away to where it was less crowded, then stopped with Thea to talk. “So are you bringing Liv with you everywhere now?”
“It seems that way. ” Thea sighed.
“You don’t trust her enough to leave her by herself?”
Thea gave her a sidelong glance. “You know how new sirens are. ”
“I do. ” Gemma turned to face Thea fully and crossed her arms over her chest. “Which is why I don’t understand why she was Harper’s roommate. ”
“That was Penn’s idea. ”
“So Liv was supposed to be some kind of spy?” Gemma pressed.
“Not originally. ” Thea ran a hand through her long, scarlet hair and refused to meet Gemma’s eyes. “Before Penn killed Lexi, Liv was supposed to be your replacement. But after Lexi died and you were still part of the circle, Penn thought it’d be good to have someone on the inside gathering dirt on you. ”
“And you didn’t think that was a bad idea?” Gemma asked, then lowered her voice, trying to make it sound slightly menacing. “I mean, she could gather some dirt on you, too. ”
Thea finally let her eyes meet Gemma’s. “What was I supposed to tell her? ‘No, you can’t spy on Harper because you’ll find out my dirty secrets’?” She shook her head. “I just went with it and hoped the two of you weren’t stupid enough to say anything in front of Liv. ”
“Why wouldn’t you just tell me about this?” Gemma asked.
“Penn didn’t want me to, and I’m already putting myself at enough risk helping you, all right?” A flicker of fear shot through Thea’s emerald eyes. “I’ve put my neck out for you much farther than I ever should have, and if this all goes to hell—which I’m certain it will—I need to have my back covered. ”
“You don’t think I can break the curse?” Gemma asked.
Thea looked over to where Penn was still busy on her phone, too distracted and too far away to hear anything they were saying. “As far as I know, the curse is unbreakable. ”
“Then why’d you even bother to give me the scroll?” Gemma asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
“Honestly? I don’t know. I think I was just sick of Penn destroying everything. ”
“Do you regret giving it to me?” Gemma asked.
“Not yet. ” Thea paused, then said, “If I live long enough, I might. But soon, it’ll be a moot point. ”
“What do you mean?”
“If that curse isn’t broken soon, Liv will destroy us all. But either way, there aren’t going to be any sirens around for much longer. ” Her lips pursed together in a thin smile.
Marcy had been standing on the other side of the room, but she’d refilled her plate with shrimp and made her way over to where Thea and Gemma were talking.
“What are you guys talking about?” Marcy asked through a mouthful of food.
“How much fun this is!” Thea said with far too much exuberance. Then she rolled her eyes and walked away.
Marcy wiped her mouth on the back of her arm. “What was that about?”
“I don’t know. ” Gemma shook her head and sighed. “Everything just kind of sucks right now. And Liv is horrible. ”
“Duh. She’s an evil, murderous sea wench. If she isn’t being horrible, then she isn’t doing her job. ”
Gemma knew she was right, and that was the worst part of it.
“So anyway, who’s that foxy guy?” Marcy asked and pointed vaguely to the middle of the room.
“What guy?” Gemma asked, glancing in the general direction that Marcy had pointed. “Aiden?”
Marcy scoffed. “No, that guy’s a dick. That cute one with the nice butt. ” She pointed again, and this time it was directly at Kirby Logan. He was at the appetizer table, and he sniffed a cracker before putting it back down.
“Kirby?” Gemma asked.
Marcy nodded. “Yeah, him. ”
“You’re into Kirby?”
“No. Maybe. Why? What’s it to you?” Marcy narrowed her eyes at Gemma.
Kirby was cute, so that’s not what surprised her about Marcy’s liking him. It was mostly just the fact that Marcy liked anybody that shocked her. Plus, he was only nineteen, and Marcy was twenty-five. Not that she acted like it.
“Nothing,” Gemma said. “He’s just like a lot younger than you. ”
“So? I’ve always fancied myself a cougar,” Marcy declared. “Is he nice?”
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“Yeah, he’s really sweet. ” She paused before adding, “He’s a pretty good kisser, too. ”
Marcy wrinkled her nose in disgust. “Gross. You kissed him?”
“We dated for like a minute. ” Gemma waved it off. “It doesn’t count at all. If you’re into him, then by all means, have at him. ”
“Saliva stays in your mouth for three months after you kiss someone, so his mouth is all full of your germs,” Marcy said.
“I’m pretty sure that’s not true. And even if it is, I’m not all that germy. I promise. ”
“Whatever. ” Marcy handed her plate to Gemma, then wiped her hands on her jeans. “I’m going in. ”
Gemma picked at what little food Marcy had left on her plate and watched as Marcy went up to Kirby. She considered moving closer
so she could overhear them because she couldn’t imagine how Marcy flirted. But Kirby was a nice enough guy, so it hopefully wouldn’t be a total disaster.
ELEVEN
Flirtations
“Hey, Gemma,” Harper said, and Gemma glanced over to see Harper and Daniel approaching her, hand in hand. “Sorry it took so long for us to get here. Daniel had to clean up and get the set ready for tomorrow. ”
That’s what Harper said, but she lowered her eyes when she said it, and her dark hair looked a little mussed. Daniel’s shirt was also buttoned crooked. If Gemma had to guess, she would’ve said they’d stayed behind a little longer to get in a quick makeout session.
Not that she blamed them. They were new to this long-distance thing, and as much as they both insisted it was fine, being away from each other had to be hard. So it was good when they could get a moment alone together.
“I understand,” Gemma said, smiling to herself.
“You were great in the play tonight, by the way,” Daniel said. “Or at least you looked that way from backstage. ”
“Thanks,” Gemma said. “The set looked amazing. ”
“It really did,” Penn chimed in, and Gemma had to fight back a groan as Penn smiled up at Daniel. “You are quite the handyman. ”
Daniel had been here for all of a minute before Penn found him. Gemma didn’t completely understand what was going on between the two of them, but whatever it was, it couldn’t be good. She trusted Daniel not to do anything to hurt Harper, but Penn’s interest in him was definitely getting more intense.
“Hello, Penn,” Harper said, smiling tightly at her. She’d been holding Daniel’s hand, but he let go and moved away from her slightly. “I didn’t know you were coming to this party. ”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. ” Penn winked at Daniel, who shifted uncomfortably. “So how are your studies going, Harper?”
“Better, now that you’ve taken my roommate off my hands. It’s much quieter. ” Harper kept smiling at her. “So thanks for the favor. ”
“You know me. ” Penn’s tone got even more seductive than normal. “I love to serve. ”
“I think I’m gonna go get a soda,” Daniel said, taking a step away. “Do you want anything, Harper?”
“A bottled water, please,” she said.
“I’d like a glass of wine,” Penn told him before he’d escaped.
He hesitated, glancing between Harper and Penn, then asked, “What kind?”
Penn smiled broadly. “Red. Merlot. ”
“I’m not sure if the bartender will serve me without ID, but I’ll see what I can come up with,” Daniel said, and hurried away to the bar.
“Your boyfriend is very eager to please,” Penn told Harper as she stared after Daniel.
“Liv seems eager, too,” Gemma interjected, and pointed to Liv. “She’s coming on pretty strong, actually. ”
She was mostly just trying to change the subject because the tension between Penn, Harper, and Daniel was almost painful. But Liv had gone beyond flirting. She and Aiden were all over each other, and they were still standing right in the middle of the room.
Penn glanced over at Liv. “She can handle herself. ”