“Calliope grabbed a piece of sea glass and sang into it. The glass expanded into this.” I held up the charm, showing Savina the blue-green wave within the circular, frosted glass, moving like a living organism. “She told me that, should the pendant break, the song inside would kill all the sirens in the water, and that if I ever wanted to see my father again, all I need do was destroy their kind. Then my father would come for me.”

Savina’s eyes widen. “So, what did you do?”

I laughed, brushing a stray piece of red hair that had covered her eye. “You know what I did, silly.”

“I know. Tell me anyway.” Savina smiled.

“Well, I told her I didn’t want to kill the sirens. I grew up with them. They were my family and, I thought, hers, too. For the first time, I questioned why Calliope and I were on the Isle of Anthemusa. Calliope only smiled and said she understood and that one day she hoped I’d meet my father. Later that evening, Lorelei came back with a gift of her own. It was a gold chain with a medallion. She placed it around my neck and kissed my forehead.”

I kissed Savina’s temple, and she giggled. The dimple we shared danced on her small, rosy cheek.

“Lorelei said, ‘From this day forward you are The Emperor of the Ocean, and all my people shall hail you as their sovereign.’” The memory came back like a swift kick in the head. Lorelei had reeked of ale, sweat, and cigar smoke, unfamiliar scents at the time that I would later refer to as human stench. She normally smelled of roasting fish or briny scallop, or sometimes—if we’d spent the day exploring the island—like wildflowers. At the best times, she smelled of windswept rain, stuck in her long, reddish-black hair for days after a storm.

“I told Lorelei how much I loved her present and hugged her. Then I took the piece of sea glass and placed it on top of the medallion and declared them my two favorite birthday gifts. She smiled and said, ‘Look, they are a perfect fit. I’ll meld them together, so you only have one prized possession to hold onto.’ She cupped the two pieces in her hands a moment, blending them before my eyes, and then kissed the united pair for good luck.”

I looked down at the fused ornament, the only way to kill the sirens, and frowned. Artemis was correct; this endeavor would challenge me in more than one way. They weren’t all evil, and if I couldn’t warn those without blood on their hands, the entire race would die by mine.

“Then what happened?” Savina asked, bringing me back to the present.