Her panic melted away, and her whole body relaxed. A haze filled her mind, and she couldn’t remember why she’d been so worried. She knew she had been, but Penn was so beautiful, and the song was so wonderful. Harper wanted nothing more than to stand there and listen to Penn sing for all eternity.

“Harper, you’re going to do whatever I say,” Penn said in her lyrical way.

Harper nodded dazedly and said, “Okay.”

“Harper?” Daniel said, but she didn’t respond. She just stared dreamily at Penn.

“As for you…” Penn turned her attention to Daniel.

“She might do whatever you say,” Daniel allowed. “But I sure as hell won’t.”

Penn’s eyes widened when Daniel talked back to her; her eyes were like those of an animal surprised to be caught in a snare. She opened her mouth to command Daniel to do something, but then he punched her.

31. Defiance

THIRTY-ONE

Defiance

Sawyer had one arm around Gemma’s waist as he pulled her away from the crowd and toward the docks. Her legs flailed wildly, and she knocked off one of her flip-flops. His hand was pressed so tightly against her mouth that she could hardly breathe, and she clawed viciously at his arm.

As strong as she was, Gemma felt powerless against him. His arms were like granite around her, and he dragged her away with the singular determination of a man on a mission. The sirens had told him to get Gemma, and he wouldn’t be able to stop until he fulfilled their orders.

That explained his insane strength. When under the spell of a siren, Sawyer could tap into every ounce of strength to carry out their bidding. He could act like an uncontrollable speed freak if he needed to.

He was pulling Gemma down an embankment, toward the docks where her father worked. The docks would be deserted right now, and there Sawyer and the sirens could do whatever they wanted with Gemma. Or Alex, if they found him.

As a new panic took over, Gemma felt a change slowly wash over her. It reminded her of the familiar transformation when her legs shifted into a tail, but this was different. Her vision changed first. At first it blurred, then the night became clearer than it ever had before.

Her mouth trembled and tingled, like her teeth were beginning to itch. Her hands felt like they were stretching out, and the fingernails she’d been scratching Sawyer’s arms with were turning into full-on talons.

She was turning into a bird-monster, and she couldn’t let it happen. The last time she had, she hadn’t been able to control it. She couldn’t even remember what she’d done, but somebody had ended up dead. She couldn’t risk it this time.