Page 353 of Kingdoms of Night

I took two steps forward and saw the internal organs of the siren were visible beneath her skin. I couldn’t see any further than that.

Kaimana could, though.

She did the same technique to the sailor.

“This one has been killed by dark magic. His soul was stolen from his body while still living and breathing.”

It was confirmed. He was more than a myth. Elian Westin was truly despicable and capable of horrors unlike anything we’ve seen in the sea kingdom.

After a few moments, the glow of her hands vanished and she stood to her full height.

A chill seemed to enter the room as Kaimana’s eyes lifted to meet mine. It was as if she’d seen a ghost, and I found myself rubbing my exposed arms.

“You have to stop going to Calbrock Bay. This is the last straw.”

“What is it? Did you have a vision or something?”

Kaimana shook her head. “Are you listening to me? You’re done! I’m not letting you go back to those horrible people.” She stretched a long arm out to the dead sailor and siren, her eyes widening as she looked at me. “Do you want to die like this, Siddhe?”

“Tell me,” I said, closing the gap between Kaimana and I. I took her hands into my own.

She let out a whimper and it broke my heart. Her eyes were glazed with tears. It had been ages since we’d embraced, but it felt right. I wrapped my arms around her.

“Tell me what happened, Da’Na. I need to know.”

With a sigh, Kaimana regained her composure. “They poisoned her. Then, they killed her. And you’ll be next if you don’t listen to me.”

I smoothed her hair. “This girl isn’t a Sea-Knight. I can handle the humans. I play the sheepish bar maiden well. But, they have no idea who they’re dealing with.”

Kaimana pulled away, her face white as snow. “This is not a game, Siddhe. You don’t know what you’replayingat.”

Leave it to me to ruin a good moment. I reached for her hand. “That’s not how I meant it. I’m just saying that I need to do this. I need to break our curse and free us all from this fate.”

Kaimana shook her head and folded her arms across her chest. “Aruna and I spoke. She says you’ve found the immortal pirate. How much do you know about this?”

I chewed my nails, afraid to reveal what I’d done. I decided to skip the parts about the kiss, and stick to what I knew about Elian.

“His name is Elian Westin. He came into my tavern, and shortly thereafter, I found the body.”

“So, you’re telling me you had him in your tavern, and let him go?”

I winced. It wasn’t that easy.

“I didn’t have a plan. He just strolled in there, and I worried he’d harm me. I prefer to work in stealth, Da’Na. Its the safest way. Now that I’ve been in his presence, I can track him. I have his scent.”

Kaimana stepped closer, and sniffed me. Then, she grimaced and glared at me.

“Yes,” she said. “I’ve noticed.”

I could feel my cheeks blushing. Nothing got past the Sea Shaman.

Then, she nodded for me to leave. “Go get him then, Siddhe. End this before its too late.”

CHAPTERELEVEN

AN OMEN

The next morning, I was awakened by the sound of buzzing outside the barracks.

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