Siren's Song [A Siren Sisters Anthology] Read online

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  Resplendence Publishing, LLC

  www.resplendencepublishing.com

  Copyright ©2007 by Melinda Barron, Midnyte Dupree, Jade Buchanan

  First published in RP, 2007

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  NOTICE: This work is copyrighted. It is licensed only for use by the original purchaser. Making copies of this work or distributing it to any unauthorized person by any means, including without limit email, floppy disk, file transfer, paper print out, or any other method constitutes a violation of International copyright law and subjects the violator to severe fines or imprisonment.

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  CONTENTS

  Sirens Song

  Prologue

  Iaha's Story

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Adara

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Aella

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Epilogue

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  Sirens Song

  A Siren Sisters Anthology

  Copyright © 2007, Melinda Barron, Midnyte Dupree, and Jade Buchanan.

  Publication date: Deccember 2007

  by

  Resplendence Publishing, LLC

  Edgewater, Florida

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  Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and occurrences are a product of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, places, or occurrences, is purely coincidental.

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  Prologue

  Poseidon pulled himself from the sea, laid out flat on the rock and reveled in the sunshine. It was a beautiful summer day, and he was happy to be alive. He had numerous beautiful women ready to do his bidding, control of the sea, and not a care in the world.

  The sun shone brightly as he surveyed the Aegean Sea. He closed his eyes and tried to decide which female to grace with his presence tonight. He'd just decided on revisiting a beautiful blond he'd ravished three nights previous when a loud male voice broke his thoughts.

  "You seem lazy today, brother. It's not often you pull yourself from frolicking in the sea, unless a woman is involved."

  Poseidon opened his eyes and frowned at his brother.

  "What do you want, Zeus? I'm relaxing and don't need an interruption from you."

  Zeus laughed and ran his hand through his white hair.

  "Whether or not you want my interruptions we need to have a talk, concerning your daughters."

  Poseidon laughed. “Which ones? I have several hundred of them, you know."

  Zeus's smile turned into a frown. “It's your youngest three, the half-humans, that are causing problems."

  Poseidon's grin expanded. “Those three are my darlings. They never cause trouble. I don't know what you're talking about."

  Zeus sat down next to his brother and shook his head. “They're telling people that their father is a Greek god. It could cause trouble for us."

  "Nonsense. You would love it if the people believed in us again. Besides, who would believe them? I can have a talk with each one, if I can find them. They're off at different ends of the earth. You never know where you're going to find those three."

  "I know just where to find them, well two of them anyway. The oldest is pretending to study the stars while she uncovers things that are best left under wraps. The middle one is messing with hurricanes. And the third one ... don't even get me started on her."

  Poseidon stood and turned toward his brother.

  "Stay away from my children. You have no right."

  "I have every right. If the actions of your children risk our discovery then something has to be done. And if you won't do something to pull them back into line then I will."

  "Stay away from them, brother. I warn you."

  "You warn me?” Zeus threw back his head and laughed. “I am the king of the gods; you have no control over me. You will see to your wayward sirens, or I will do it for you. And you won't be happy with what happens."

  A loud crack of thunder filled the air as Zeus disappeared.

  Poseidon let out an angry cry and the sea below him, which had been calm and peaceful just moments before, turned into choppy waves.

  He closed his eyes and envisioned his three Earth-bound daughters, each so beautiful in their own respect, just as their mothers had been. All three of them knew that their father was a powerful Greek god. It had been hard for them to handle at first, but as they grew older they'd adjusted to the fact that they were only half-mortal, and that they had some of their father's powers inside their own minds.

  Iaha, the oldest of the three, was staring at the stars. An astronomer, she'd been born in the United States, but had relocated to Greece at her father's urgings. Like her mother she was gorgeous, long dark hair with beautiful sea-green eyes. She had a voluptuous figure that attracted many a man, some of whom Poseidon had felt the need to chase away.

  Poseidon watched her as she leaned into her telescope and stared upwards. How was she risking exposure of her powers or her lineage? All she was doing was looking at the heavens. No one was with her.

  Her father shook his head and moved his inner eye to his middle daughter, Adara. She was swimming in a pool. What could be wrong with that? Again, she was alone. She was as beautiful as her older sister, and Poseidon knew that once again, Zeus had missed his mark.

  Now the younger one, if anyone was going to cause troubles Poseidon knew it could be her. The fiery redhead Aella was a dreamer, always flitting about from place to place and causing mischief wherever she went.

  When he located her she was swimming, as was her norm. She was so very like her father in that respect, always wanting to be in the water, playing with the underwater creatures and enjoying life.

  Zeus was wrong. They were doing nothing, absolutely nothing, that would risk the exposure of their lineage. Poseidon turned his thoughts away from his daughters and back to the beautiful woman he was planning to bed that evening. His daughters were fine, and if Zeus laid one finger on them, the king of the gods would have him to contend with.

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  Iaha's Story

  By

  Melinda Barron

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  Dedication

  My thanks to the usual suspects for their help with this story.


  Thanks for Midnyte and Jade for their great ideas.

  This one is for the members of our Yahoo group for loving these stories.

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  Chapter One

  Iaha stared at the clear blue Aegean Sea. Her father must be in a good mood today, because the water was calm and inviting. She could always judge his moods, even when he wasn't anywhere near her, by how the sea behaved.

  If the sea was calm, he was happy. If it was choppy, he was mildly upset. If hurricanes and other storms abounded, Iaha did her best to stay out of his way. Of course she didn't see him every day. But still, she knew he kept track of his daughters. She could feel his presence every time he looked into her life.

  She'd felt it just the other day, and she'd expected him to pop in for a visit, but he hadn't. The waters were churning that day and she'd wondered at the cause. A feeling nagged at the back of her brain that it had something to do with herself and two of her sisters.

  Iaha hadn't heard from Adara or Aella in quite some time. She made a mental note to try and contact them tomorrow. For now, though, she had work to do. She trained her telescope on the sea and sought out her target.

  Usually she used her equipment to study the stars. It was only fitting, since her name was patterned after the Egyptian god of the moon. Her mother, Saundra, was a forward thinking British woman who traveled with her brother in the 1850s to explore Egyptian remains, and eventually became an Egyptologist. She'd fallen for a gorgeous man she'd thought to be a Greek of her time. Too late she realized he wasn't mortal, but immortal, and not just any immortal, but the great god Poseidon.

  By that time Saundra was already pregnant, with a child that had immortal traits. Iaha had a hard time coming to terms with the fact that every time she took a bath she sprouted a mermaid's tail. The first time her legs had transformed into the shiny red fin she'd been ten. She had screamed and cried when it happened. Her mother had always told her who her father was, but this was the first physical sign that she was truly different. As she aged, she learned to control the transformation. What's more, she learned to love it and the other immortal gifts she inherited from her father.

  She shook off the memories and focused on the task before her. She'd seen the handsome man in town many times. She'd learned lots of things about him, chief among them that he was British and was searching for the lost city of Yumani.

  Tales of Yumani had fascinated her since she was a child. She'd thought everyone had given up on finding the city. Atlantis was still popular, but Yumani had fallen by the wayside. She'd asked her father about it before, but he'd told her that some things were better left alone. When Iaha had pushed, he'd become angry. She never mentioned it again.

  Iaha examined the ships anchored off shores until she located the one she was looking for. This particular vessel belonged to the absolutely beautiful specimen of a man. The shopkeeper said his name was Sheddrick Collins, Shedd for short. She scanned the deck of the ship and found two people on board, both of them men who didn't interest her.

  That meant Shedd was probably diving right now. She imagined his body enclosed in a wetsuit and groaned. He was a handsome man, well built and tanned. His sandy blond hair and blue eyes attracted her more than she cared to admit. She'd first seen him at the market in town; their gazes locked and he winked at her. Her heart had double-tapped and her mouth had gone dry.

  Every time she saw him after that, she studied him from a distance. Bad experiences with men in the past had taught her to be cautious. It wasn't easy being the daughter of a Greek god.

  She was tempted to swim out to his boat and do some close up reconnaissance work. She would have to morph, though, and she didn't want her first true encounter with Shedd to be while she had a shiny red tail attached to the lower portion of her body.

  She settled in a chair to study her star charts. Every once in a while she checked to make sure that the ship was still in place, and that Shedd wasn't on the deck. After two hours of waiting, her eyes widened when she focused on the deck and found the handsome man stripping out of his wetsuit.

  Iaha quickly packed up her telescope and drove down to the dock. She parked and picked up a loaf of stale bread. She'd planned this “chance” meeting a week ago. When Shedd's ship got back to shore she would put herself in his path.

  To him, she would look like a local woman doing nothing more than feeding the birds. Once he was on the dock, she planned to start a conversation. With any luck she'd have a dinner date for the evening.

  She watched intently as Shedd and his crew piloted their ship into its berth. Then she trained her hearing on the deck. The men were mostly silent as they worked. Then one sentence hit her full center.

  "I know someone who can look at that find of yours."

  The voice was young, and Greek, and it could mean only one thing. Shedd had found something that dealt with Yumani.

  "Pestola has lived on this island forever. If anyone knows what this is, he will."

  Iaha smiled when she heard the name. That would be even better than meeting him on the docks. When he got to Pestola's house she would be there.

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  "And how is your father, Iaha? He used to come and visit me some, but I haven't seen him in years."

  "He's fine, Pestola. Although I haven't seen him for a while, either. He pops in on occasion to see how things are. And he always makes sure I have plenty of money."

  "Poseidon is a very generous god. He's been good to me over the years, so I'm only happy to help his beautiful daughter. Tell me, do you want this man to know about Yumani, or not?"

  Iaha considered her answer. Her father wouldn't tell her much about Yumani. Pestola obviously knew, and, unlike her father, he would tell her. But if he told Shedd everything it would ruin the fun of discovery, the fascination of the chase.

  "How is it that you know about the lost civilization?"

  Pestola looked at her with a frown. “I am Yumanis. A caretaker, if you will. One of my jobs is to see that Yumani is left alone. But for the daughter of Poseidon I would do anything. If you wish this man to know, then he will know."

  Iaha shook her head. “I could not allow you to break what is obviously a vow, Pestola. I had no idea."

  "You were not meant to know, dear one. But times are changing. Perhaps it is time that Yumani is brought back into the light. Otherwise, they may..."

  A knock on the door startled them both. Iaha had been so fascinated by what the old man was saying. Was it truly possible that not only was Yumani real, but that its people lived there, and here, to this day? And they may what? Furthermore, who were they? She wanted to ask him exactly what he'd meant to say, but the sight of the blond Englishman walking into the room distracted her. She and Pestola exchanged a look and the older man nodded slightly.

  "I hope I'm not interrupting anything.” He turned a look on Iaha and she felt as if she would melt on the spot. “I know you. We buy fruit at the same market."

  She nodded and smiled. “I'm Iaha."

  "Iaha. Nice name. It's Egyptian, right?"

  What was wrong with her? She nodded and tried to form words, but they stuck in her throat.

  "And you are?” Pestola tried, and failed, to hide a grin.

  "Forgive me. My name is Shedd Collins. I'm an underwater archeologist who's been working in the Aegean. I found something today that I'd like for you to look at, Mr...?"

  "Pestola. Just Pestola. Come, come, let me see."

  Iaha studied Shedd as he opened a bag and took out what appeared to be a small statue. He was having more of an effect on her than she thought he would. She took a deep breath to try and get hold of her senses. He was just a man, obviously. She'd had lovers who were lesser Greek gods who didn't affect her this way.

  The older man took the artifact and turned it round and round. He frowned, and the room remained silent for many minutes. Then, finally, he cleared his throat.

  "Where did you find this?” Pestola's voice was fu
ll of authority.

  "About twenty miles off shore. It was lying in some vegetation. Do you know what it is?"

  Pestola shrugged his shoulders. “Probably just something that fell over the side of a ship."

  "I don't think so. Look, the material it's made out of, I've never seen it before. Something porous, yet firm. And the face, it matches none of the gods, Greek, Egyptian, Roman, nothing I've ever seen before. This is something unique, something different. I'm told you're an expert on such things."

  "I'm just an old man who's lived here forever. It's true, I know things. But I know nothing about this. I'm sorry."

  He handed the statue back to Shedd, who nodded. Iaha could see his dejected reaction by the slump of his shoulders.

  "I thank you for your time."

  "Don't run off,” Pestola said. “My wife will bring tea. You must sit and join us for a brief time. Tell me what you're searching for."

  Shedd laughed, and then took a seat. While Mila, Pestola's wife, passed around tea, the room remained silent. When she was seated next to her husband, Shedd smiled.

  "You know what I'm looking for, Pestola. You may act like you don't, but I know better. I'm sure I'm not the first person to search for the fabled city."

  "What makes you think it really exists?” Iaha tried not to focus on his lips. She just bet they would feel perfect against hers, both on the top part of her body, and on the lower. She blushed at the thought.

  "It's there. I've studied charts and graphs, and the stars. I've also looked at the journals of other archeologists. I know it exists, and I'm going to find it."

  "You seem very sure of yourself."

  "I am, Iaha. I'm positive that Yumani exists, and I intend to prove it."

  Pestola laughed, and then changed the subject to the weather. Iaha laughed at his obvious tactic. The four of them talked for half an hour about inane things, and then Iaha stood.

  "Thank you Pestola, Mila. I'll see myself out. Shedd, a pleasure."

  "I'll walk you out.” He thanked the couple and told Pestola he was sure they would talk again. Then he put his hand on the small of Iaha's back and propelled her out the door.