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Siren Song
By Leah Alvord
AuthorHouse
Copyright © 2011 Leah Alvord
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4670-2816-5
Chapter One
"Remind me again: Why are we moving here?" I asked my sisters from the backseat of Shae's silver 2008 BMW M3 Sedan. I knew the bare minimum about cars, but Shae claimed that this was a good one. I took her word for it. At times like this, I could see why. Shae was a speed demon. And this car kicked up to 60 mph in about four or five seconds.
My speedy sister was beautiful in all respects. Shae was just shorter than Ariana – who was supermodel tall – and had long red hair. It wasn't fire-orange red, either. It was closer to a lovely crimson. Even now, she turned to flash me an even white smile and I wished she would keep her sapphire eyes on the road.
Ariana turned to roll her sky blue irises at me. I flashed my blonde sister a grin of my own. She was the eldest and most uptight of us. And she looked more like a movie star than anyone had a right to. Her soft yellow hair flowed down her shoulders in loose curls. Her lips were full, her cheekbones high, and she had perfectly arched eyebrows. She was gorgeous.
"You liked the house, you liked the town, and you liked the ease of the transition into living here. What are you complaining about now?" Ariana asked me with a sigh.
"I was just thinking of you, sis. You've got to drive nearly two hours to go to school. Maybe we should have bought a house a little closer," I replied with a shrug.
"Kalina, if you don't sit back, I'm going to speed up," Shae warned me with a grin. She was usually so responsible. Unless she was behind the wheel of a fast car. I sat back.
"I'm fine, KC. Two hours of a nice, long, leisurely drive. In my nice, reliable, old Dodge," Ariana answered, turning a smile on Shae. Shae just grinned.
"You can have your luxury speed machine and you can have your old car. I don't care. I just want a truck. A nice, big, black truck!" I announced. For four years I'd been trying to talk my sisters into getting one for me as a birthday present – not that any of us actually knew when we were 'born'.
"Hmm. A Chevy Silverado would be good. We might be able to swing that," Shae said, looking at our sister.
Ariana was the eldest Siren and was "legally responsible" for me. According to our latest birth certificates she was nineteen, Shae was barely eighteen, and I was a mere seventeen. And most seventeen year olds didn't have the cash to buy a brand-new vehicle.
"Fine. Better than her asking for another dog. You want to take her tomorrow?" Ariana asked Shae. I flopped back, doing my little happy dance in the back seat. I was going to tell her that I might as well get a dog if I was getting the truck, but I decided against pushing my luck.
"Alright." Shae grinned at me conspiratorially in the rearview mirror. I smiled back.
For the rest of the ride, we each stared out the windows at our new location. At all times, it seemed, we were moving through a tunnel of trees. One side of the road always seemed to be a wall of deep emerald or gorgeous jade. Clouds hung heavy in the air, but blue was visible on the horizon. Should it rain, it probably wouldn't last very long.
Pulling onto a dirt road, I could hear the squish of the tires – even over the engine. Closing my eyes, I listened to the music around me. Birds flapped through the trees, setting wet leaves to dancing and shaking the drops onto the ground. The staccato of drop after drop hitting other things reached my ears. Rustles, drips, chirps, buzzing, the wind. All of it made me feel like I was in a Disney movie where every sound created a musical note. Well, with my ears, it was fact, not fantasy.
"Ariana!" Shae's sudden groan made my eyes snap open.
Leaning forward to see what she was seeing, I groaned as well. There, at the end of our driveway, the mailbox read in very fanciful letters: The Crevan Family. I was just as embarrassed as Shae. Three sisters – three Sirens – were all there was to our family. Three females in a house were not a family; they were roommates.
After pulling into the short cement driveway, Shae stopped outside the garage to let me and Ariana out. I stood there for a moment and examined our latest new home.
The front door was a vibrant blue, especially compared to the two-toned gray siding on the house. One storied, the house was long and oddly shaped – compared to the houses of our ... earliest American decades. Yet, all around the sides were trees. Behind the house, it almost immediately gave way to fauna and forest. We were at a dead end, so the trees looped around to fill in across the road as well. It was federal land, right there. Only on one side did we have neighbors, but our house was shaped so that they wouldn't be able to see into our 'backyard'.
"So, are we moved in?" I asked Ariana. She had been here every day, nearly, for the past few weeks. Shae and I had packed up everything from our Helena home and Ariana had moved it here. This was the first that Shae and I would really get a chance to look at it.
"Well, you two have got to unpack. But, yes, we are," Ariana said with a triumphant smile.
"Okay, then where's my key?" I asked impetuously, holding out my hand for it. Ariana tossed it to me and I strutted to the door just to make her laugh.
Once inside, I wandered down the short, narrow hall that emptied into the living room. There was a small fireplace with a tiny alcove above it. When we had done the walk through, a small television had been sitting in there. Now, our safe – with all of our money and jewels – was in there and our large flat-screen covered it nicely. Our black leather couch rested where the previous one had, facing the large windows, and my large matching recliner sat straight across from the flat-screen. Already, it felt like home.
Shae and I were not lazy. We set to unpacking all of our belongings quickly and easily. We had a lot to go through. When you live forever, everything sort-of accumulates. Being an immortal Siren had its perks. Well, a long time ago it did.
Ages ago, after we had gathered our gold and possessions, the three of us had made a pact to stop singing. It was the hardest thing we've ever had to do. And, admittedly, I slipped up. A lot. (I couldn't help it. The song was my soul.) I never understood how Ariana and Shae gave it up so easily. But we were tired of the obsessions, chaos, and tragedy. And our songs caused that wherever we went. We yearned for the human life, filled with its safety and predictability. So we stopped singing.
"Are you two finally finished?" Ariana mocked. Pulling out of my reverie, I scowled at her. What a show-off. Of course, all of her artwork already decorated the entire house flawlessly. That was Ariana: flawless.
"Yes, thank you. Now, I can finally relax," I replied before reclining in my chair.
"In a minute. What do you want for dinner?" she questioned. I looked to Shae.
"Spaghetti," the red-head announced and headed for the kitchen. Ariana winked at me and I grinned. Shae was a do-it-herself person. Give her something to do, and she was on it.
I lied back in my chair and put my headphones in my ears. My iPod was loaded with all sorts of music. Everything from hard rock to country, from R&B to Blues was on there.
The only down side, however, was that whenever I listened to my music, I had to make sure to always keep my mouth shut. I couldn't sing along with the lyrics without every straight guy and lesbian in the vicinity being drawn to me. Being a Siren was a curse.
After a while, Ariana yanked the headphones out and told me to get ready for dinner. I did as I was told and dressed in a plain black skirt and a frilly blue blouse. Dinners were almost always formal for us. It was our fun time. Every human on the planet had let society strip away this most elegant of times. My sisters and I liked to keep the etiquette alive with us. And we had centuries' and countries' worth of etiquette to sustain us. Tonight – since Shae made spaghetti – we adhered to true Italian dinner etiquette as we ate. Wine was a must.
After dinner, we cleared the table and cleaned the kitchen. Shae didn't have to since she cooked. So, when Ariana and I were done, we found her curled up in a blanket on the sofa. She had a thick volume in her hands and I didn't bother to find out which one it was today. I passed by her and went to my piano. I let my eyes drift closed as I played. If I had been alone, I would have hummed along with the music. As it was, my sisters were there and humming was just as dangerous as singing. Finally, Shae was done with her book and I finished my playing. All of us went to bed at the same time, nearly. As always.
* * *
The next morning, I took a long, hot shower. I tried to shake the dream – nightmare – I'd had from my mind. Ariana, Shae, and I were back on the island near Greece. We were singing and singing and singing. No one came. No one heard our songs. It left a feeling of loneliness and desolation. It was my bleakest memory of our time there. For a Siren, to be adored for one's song was an absolute need. To sing and have no listeners created despair beyond comprehending. I had woken up crying.
Looking in the mirror, I wiped the fog off with my hand. What I saw made me sigh. I was beautiful – no doubts about that. But next to Ariana and Shae, I was plain. My biggest draw was the contrast between my brilliant blue eyes and my jet black hair.
Seduction was a crucial element to a Siren. We were created to draw the eye and these features certainly did that. Still, I was only average height, my black hair was bone-straight, and my heart-shaped face was easy to look over. When I was near my sisters, anyway. Compared to any other girl in the world, I was the most beautiful being ever. But other girls couldn't compare, leaving my sisters as my only true competition.
Maybe looking at myself would not have been so depressing if I could still sing. Where my Siren sisters bested me in looks, I had them beat with my voice. It was the loveliest voice on the planet and we all knew it. That was why it was so hard for me to stop. I was nothing special compared to Ariana and Shae, unless I was singing. But that life was over now.
"KC, hurry up!" Shae called. Doing as I was told, I quickly dressed before pulling my brush through my wet black hair. It was what I loved most about being a Siren: things like our always-smooth hair and our simple grace. Things that made us seductive. Confidence poured from every cell of our bodies.
"Alright. So, what are we doing today?" I asked when I entered the kitchen and leaned against the counter. They were both there, waiting for me.
Today was job-hunting day. I could tell just by what Ariana was wearing. It was a cute, gray office suit. The skirt was tight and the blazer accented her full chest nicely. Of course, my super-model sister was also a bit of a prude. At least, since we came to America and people condemned women for using their sex appeal in the workplace. So there was a plain white blouse underneath the jacket. It was buttoned up nearly all the way. Ariana also had her hair pulled back into a severe French braid. Her plain black pumps matched her simple clutch and her briefcase.
Shae was not above using sex appeal. Her black dress pants were actually out of character in their looseness. However, her cute stilettos set off her gracefulness when she walked, as I had seen often. Her black blazer was left open. Underneath she was wearing a shiny dark green silk top. It was cut low enough that her breasts could clearly be seen from the right angle. As she had intended, no doubt. If Ariana was a prude, Shae was a slut.
"It looks like I have to go and change," I commented. I really didn't want another stupid, minimum-wage job given only to desperate teenagers.
"No; you're not getting a job. Shae and I will need you to clean up the house while we're at work," Ariana explained. That worked for me.
"Alright. So how long are you two going to be out?" I inquired, grabbing an apple out of the refrigerator. Shae grinned at me.
"Long enough to get our resumes around the town," Ariana answered blankly.
"Long enough to score a good job," Shae told me as soon as Ariana was done talking.
Ariana would be respectable and hand out her resumes. Shae was going to be devious and flirt herself into a spot. My tactic was usually playing the young, vulnerable one. Men liked to protect and provide for my type.
"Hey, you guys want to give me a ride into town? I can get some pictures while you're job hunting," I told them. Shae nodded and I hurried back to my room to grab my camera.
Shae offered to take me and I grinned as we got into her BMW. Almost immediately we were talking and laughing. It would have been a silent ride if I was in the other car. As much as I loved Ariana, Shae and I were closer than I ever could be with the eldest Siren.
"So, where are you going to start hunting?"
Shae shrugged. "Doesn't matter to me. Where do you want me to drop you off?" she asked. I glanced out my window, trying to decide.
Scanning the area, a map was appearing behind my eyelids while I searched through the trees in vain. I remembered the roads and the layout. While reviewing the image in my head, I happened to remember a landmark I'd wanted to see since I'd first researched Florence, Oregon.
"Down by the bridge. I'll get some good shots for my scrapbook," I told her.
"Another one?" Shae inquired as she turned appropriately, heading south towards the bridge. I nodded and she sighed. It became a tradition since I first got my hands on a camera. Now it was kind-of an obsession. "Just keep me out of it." Her warning offended me.
"When have I ever put our pictures in there, hmm?"
I knew better than that. If someone ever found my collection and saw the three of us in all of the books, there would be hell to pay. So, I simply wrote the name of the city and the date we moved in. I also wrote our names on the inside. We kept the same surname sometimes, but that just made the books seem like they were all kept in the family. I just liked the reminders of when I was there and who I was. Shae did not agree.
"Just reminding you. You know how you slip," she responded with a hard look. I looked away to stare out the window. Like I needed that! "Relax, Kalina. New place, new start."
"You can drop me off here," I stated as we came closer.
Shae pulled off to the side of the road and I practically jumped out of the car. I had just closed the door when I heard the window being rolled down. I turned to look at my favorite sister.
"I'll call you when I'm done. Then we'll go and get your truck," she said with a grin. I smiled and nodded. The window zoomed back up and she drove off.
As I began walking to the bridge, I realized again how damp the ground was. Clouds clumped together and blocked the sun efficiently. It was going to rain later. Already the wind was teasing through the leaves, notifying them of this change. I could literally hear them curl upwards to catch the drops. Added to the shifting of rocks in the silt on the side of the road, a smooth, catching melody drifted through the air. The legs of my jeans brushed against each other as I walked. My hoodie shifted as I adjusted my bag. Birds called to one another and insects buzzed about their business, repelled by my inhuman scent. Each single thing threaded into a song. A song I was not allowed to sing.
As I reached the bridge, the song morphed. The sounds of the Siuslaw River added their own voice to the constant melody playing in my brain. Gulls cried out as their wings sliced through the air currents. Water slapped against the sides of boats and the laughter and yells of people drifted across the cold water. To top it all off, there was the sound of my camera. The shutter rattled away as I took picture after picture.
For upwards of an hour, I snapped photos of the bridge, the water, Florence. Then I got a phone call. Apparently Shae already found herself a job and was picking me up so that we could head to the nearest Chevrolet dealer to get my truck. As I hung up, I could not possibly have smiled wider.
* * *
Following Shae home, I was practically bouncing in the driver's seat. I sat behind the wheel of a brand-new, shiny, black Chevy Silverado. My face felt like it was going to split from me smiling so much. When we pulled in the driveway, I was pleasantly surprised to find Ariana's old Dodge sitting outside. She was giving me the other garage space! Trying to smile wider, I pulled my Silverado in beside Shae's BMW.
Jumping out of the vehicle – it was huge and I loved it! – I locked the doors and ran into the house. Ariana was in the kitchen and I ran in to give her a hug, expressing my thanks. She laughed and Shae did too when she walked in. After I settled down – which actually took a while – we all gathered in the living room.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Siren Song by Leah Alvord Copyright © 2011 by Leah Alvord. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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