Page 116 of Tiger's Quest
“I found the next doorway, Kells. Come on. It might be better to rest there.”
The dusty circular steps inside the trunk of the world tree led us to a cottage overgrown with thick ivy and flowers. Tinkling laughter could be heard inside.
I whispered, “There are people in there. Let’s be careful.”
He nodded and untied the chakram from his belt while I nocked an arrow.
“Ready?”
“Ready,” I whispered.
He carefully opened the door, and we were greeted by the most beautiful women I’d ever seen. They ignored our weapons and bid us welcome to their home.
A gorgeous woman with thick waves of long brown hair, green eyes, downy soft, ivory skin, and cherry lips dressed in a shimmering, blush-colored gown took Kishan’s arm.
“You poor things. You must be tired after your trip. Come inside. You can bathe and rest from your travels.”
“A bath sounds great to me,” said an entranced Kishan.
She paid absolutely no attention to me. Her eyes were locked on Kishan. She stroked his arm and murmured to him of soft pillows, hot water, and refreshments. Another woman joined the first one. She was blonde and blue-eyed and wore a gown of sparkling silver.
“Yes, come,” she said. “You will find comfort here. Please follow us.”
They’d started to lead Kishan away when I protested. Kishan turned and a man approached. Six feet of tanned, muscular, bare chest, blue-eyed, blond male turned all of his attention to me.
“Hello, welcome to our humble home. My sisters and I rarely have any visitors. We would love for you stay with us for a while.” He smiled at me, and I blushed furiously.
I stammered, “Umm, that’s very generous of you.”
Kishan frowned at the guy, but the girls turned their long-lashed fluttery charm on and distracted him again.
“Uh, Kishan, I don’t think—”
Another man came out from behind a curtain. This one was even better looking than the first. He was dark-haired with dark eyes, and his mouth riveted my attention. He pouted and said, “Are you sure you can’t stay with us? Just for a while. We’d love to have some company.” He sighed dramatically. “The only thing we have to keep us occupied is our book collection.”
“You have a book collection?”
“Yes.” He smiled and offered me his arm. “Will you allow me to show it to you?”
Kishan had left with the women, and I decided to check out the book collection. I rationalized that I could always blast the guys with lightning if they tried something.
They did indeed have a book collection and happened to have many of the books that I loved. In fact, on closer inspection, I found I knew every title. They offered me refreshments.
“Here, taste one of these tarts. They are amazing. Our sisters are excellent cooks.”
“Oh. Umm, no thanks. Kishan and I just ate.”
“Ah then, perhaps you would like to freshen up?”
“You have a bathroom?”
“We do. It’s behind the curtain over there. There’s also a shower. Pull on the long vine, and water will rain down from the leaves of the tree. We will arrange some refreshment and a comfortable place for you to rest.”
“Thank you.”
We were obviously in the House of Sirens. Their bathroom was real, thankfully, and I took the opportunity to shower and change clothes. When I emerged, I found a long golden gown had been left hanging for me. It was similar to the gowns the two women had been wearing. My original clothes were still torn and bloody, so I put on the golden dress and hung out my fairy clothes to see if the fairies would still clean them in the world tree.
Quietly, I read through Mr. Kadam’s notes on sirens. I skimmed through the sirens of theOdysseyand the story of Jason and the Argonauts. I already knew those tales, but he had also included information on sea nymphs, mermaids, and mermen, who were sometimes called sirens as well.
