by Billi Jean
Table of Contents
Legal Page
Title Page
Book Description
Dedication
Trademarks Acknowledgement
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
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
New Excerpt
About the Author
Publisher Page
A Siren’s Song
ISBN # 978-1-78651-157-7
©Copyright Billi Jean 2017
Cover Art by Posh Gosh ©Copyright June 2017
Edited by Sue Meadows
Totally Bound Publishing
This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Totally Bound Publishing.
Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Totally Bound Publishing. Unauthorized or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.
The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.
Published in 2017 by Totally Bound Publishing, Think Tank, Ruston Way, Lincoln, LN6 7FL, UK
Totally Bound Publishing is a subsidiary of Totally Entwined Group Limited.
Warning:
This book contains sexually explicit content which is only suitable for mature readers. This story has a heat rating of Totally Sizzling and a Sexometer of 2.
Sisterhood of Jade
A SIREN’S SONG
Billi Jean
Book twelve in the Sisterhood of Jade series
“When a Siren sings, best listen”—Stephano
The god of war, Ares, had reached down to Hades and given Stephano another chance at life as one of his legendary fighters—Spartans. For centuries, he’d fought and survived more battles than he could recount. But the one fight he feared he might lose came in the form of one tiny, perfectly formed woman who was off-limits.
Yet, the longer he had with her, the more he realized she might be the one battle he would gladly lose.
Maeve was a Siren, one of only two remaining in her realm. When warriors arrived and offered her brother a way out of their realm, if only they led them to the gates between worlds, she knew she had to aid them. It was the only way to free her brother from the burden of caring for her. She would help them, lead them to the gates, then let her brother go so he could be free from her.
Only one warrior, one sexy, too-handsome rogue, might ruin her plan. Especially when he was clearly bent on seducing her. Worse, for the first time in her life, she was tempted to allow it, just to see if he could make her sing in his arms.
Dedication
Thank you, girls, I couldn’t have survived these last few years without you.
Thank you, Tom-Tom. I knew you could do it!
Thank you, Cay. You remind me daily why dreams are important.
Trademarks Acknowledgement
The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:
Spiderman: Marvel Worldwide Inc.
Academy Award: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Frozen: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Chapter One
Maeve finished the crimping of the blueberry tart’s crust. Satisfied with the scalloped edges, she placed it in the small stone oven her brother had built for her. Her long braid swung down, almost touching the floor before she swept it back over her shoulder. Dusting her hands off, she sighed. She was tired, but it was a good kind of tired. It had been a good day.
The stew was almost finished. It needed nothing more than the vegetables to soften with the meat to make it delicious. The scones were baking in their spot on the hearth. There was milk and fresh cheese, along with butter for the biscuits. Everything is perfect.
The cottage glowed with the cleaning she’d given it. And the scent of food lingered throughout their comfortable home. But the tart was Brennan’s favorite. She wanted it to be perfect.
The setting sun let enough light through their windows to make the room appear bathed in sunlight.
Today was the third spring they’d have been living here, in this home. She wanted this night to be special. She rubbed her back and smiled. Perhaps some rest would have been acceptable, too. But there’d been too much to do. The berries were ripe and had needed picking. The garden had been filled with weeds, and Brennan’s shirts had needed mended. The first warm day after a harder than usual winter, and she’d thrown open the shutters and attacked every corner of their home.
It had been a wonderful day.
The door to their cottage crashed against the wall, startling her so badly she dropped the spoon she’d been going to use to stir their stew. The small sketch she’d set in the windowsill fell to the floor.
“Brennan!” He didn’t move, but stood there, breathing so heavily his broad shoulders rose and fell. Queasiness hit her stomach. Not again. Please, don’t say we have to leave again.
“What is it?” She lowered her voice to a whisper, fear making her legs tremble. There was always a chance someone would hear… Has someone heard me? Knows of me? Made it through Evie’s spells?
Brennan cast a glance over his shoulder, then shoved the door closed, his features taunt. He’d not shaved this morn, and the golden bristle on his face always made him appear older, sterner. Heavy brows lowered, he ducked his head to take his satchel off, then his sword before he walked over and set both on the bench by the table. Did he run home from the village?
“There are men here willing to pay for us to lead them through the crossover. This is our chance, Maeve. I feel it.”
The fear tightening her stomach climbed up her throat, closing it off at what he was saying. He’ll leave me now for good. We’ll never be here, again, like this.
“They’ll pay. Even Evie agrees. With their gold, we can begin again, in their realm. Once there, we can find someone to aid you…” He trailed off, but she could see how much he wanted this. His face glowed with excitement. Even his rough voice was filled with hope. “We can get out of this hovel,” he added passionately, easily disregarding all the work they had put into making this cottage a home. “We can be rid of this place. You won’t have to cook every meal and spend all your time cleaning and mending. We can have a real home!”
She loved this hovel. She loved cooking. She loved cleaning and mending and knowing that with her own hands she helped them more than survive, she made them comfortable. Or I thought I did. To Brennan the small one b
edroom and with a loft wasn’t enough. He’s never understood that this is all I want. All I need.
“Did you hear me? We can be free. This is going to be the best thing that’s happened to us. I can feel it. Their realm is the best place for you.”
Maeve nodded but made their meal an excuse to turn away before he read the unhappiness dousing all the joy out of her day. She set her spoon down, taking the time to move the pot of stew to a cooler spot on the hearth so she could calm herself. “It sounds wonderful, Brennan.”
Brennan thought he knew her so well, but he didn’t know her—or what was best for her. This is the best place for me. But I can’t say that. She checked the scones, then returned their lid so they could continue browning. The smell of berry tart was beginning to mingle with the other fragrances filling the room. She’d even picked a bouquet of sweet-smelling lavender and her favorite pink lilacs for their table. He doesn’t even realize that lilacs are my favorite flower. But I can’t tell him I want to stay, not when he wants so badly to go.
“It will be enough, you think?” she asked without turning.
Brennan exhaled heavily as if he’d held his breath. She glanced at him, but his attention was on the table. Her heart clenched. His shoulders were so broad, and he carried so much of their load. He needed to be free, to finally live without the constant worry over her. She looked away before he raised his head.
“Yes. I believe so. Evie agrees,” he repeated sounding so eager she felt another sharp pain in her chest.
He’s never understood. But I understand him. He wants freedom—from me.
“She will release me?”
“Yes. She doesn’t hold you here. We have repaid her long ago, ‘Aeve.”
It was true. Evie had always said that Maeve had repaid her the first time she’d sung. But Evie’s agreement to release her still felt oddly like a betrayal or…a too-abrupt dismissal. Why wouldn’t she come speak to me? Evie was busy, of course. She hardly ever came to their realm, but when she did, she was always kind to Maeve, and always, always sought her out. Has she grown tired of protecting me?
“These men have money. They will pay handsomely. We’ll have enough to begin again, safer, there.” Brennan sounded tired. She glanced over and saw the lines of weariness on his tanned face. He’d aged these past few years. But anyone would with having to always be on guard and ready for a battle.
I need to do this. For him. Once there, I will…be safe and when he sees this, he will be free to do what he wants. She cleared her throat, worried that the tightness there would show her emotions. “If we lead them, you mean? If they make a safe crossing, or if we simply take them to the crossover?”
He took a seat at their small table. His gray eyes were darker today, the furrow between his brows deeper. Because of me. He rubbed his thumb along a cut on the scarred and dented surface of their table, lost in thought.
“If we lead them,” he finally answered. “We must ensure they make it across, otherwise we will not be paid.” He caught her eyes and his flashed with excitement. Some of the worry slipped away, revealing a younger, happier man. “Evie knows one of the leaders, and another man. Both have the means to make good on their promise of gold.”
“Then we will go.” She tried her best to sound happy and must have succeeded because he grinned. She hadn’t seen him smile like that in far too long. “When?” She wiped her hands on her apron, trying to clear the painful sadness from showing. “When will we leave?”
“They’ve asked us to leave in the morn. I’m not sure we can, though.”
Her stomach felt as if it fell to her toes. “So soon…”
Brennan didn’t notice. He was already lost in his plans. “We might though. We can gather most of what we need from our own stores. We won’t need anything else from this place,” he muttered, dismissing everything she’d done to their home. “Their realm is rich with resources. We’ll need horses. They have none. We can gather stores along the way. Six men will need to eat a lot.” He gave her a crooked grin. “That might require two extra mounts.” The laugh in his tone had been missing this past year. Brennan had grown more solemn, less the brother she knew loved to laugh at life. “It would be best if we could sell them before we cross over,” he muttered back to his plans for their journey. “But if we can’t, the gold they pay us will be enough for a new beginning.”
It was decided then. She lifted the stew to the table and ladled out a bowl for Brennan. Her stomach was too twisted to hold anything down. She bent and secured the scones, checking the tart once more. Her face felt pale, cold and clammy when moments before she had been hot from all her work. We will travel with men. That will mean I need to stay silent.
“A new beginning,” she agreed, nervously wiping her hands again. “You should wash. Supper is ready. I made you a tart.”
Brennan seemed to hear something of her hidden pain. He caught her hands in his, holding them the way he used to when they were children and she’d forgotten her mittens in the middle of winter. “This will fix everything, ‘Aeve. You’ll be safe there. You’ll see. It will make everything better.”
Her heart twisted. “I’ve always been safe with you, Brennan.”
He scraped his chair back over the hardwood floor as she spoke, drowning her words. Soon it won’t matter. Among a group of men, I won’t be able to speak. Why should he listen now?
* * * *
Ajax paced the confines of the common room, clearly agitated. Stephano sympathized. They’d met with Evie, a woman who owned a club in their world, and now they discovered, here in this realm as well. The two establishments were polar opposites. The one in Los Angles provided all an immortal could ever want. This one was little more than a country tavern. It was a puzzle.
Oh, there was singing and some truly lovely women, but there was also a common room, small rooms for private dinners, and accommodations for weary travelers. It reminded him of an early seventeenth century pub he’d frequented way back when. But this whole world was backward, so it made sense that the last settlement before the dangerous Dark Wood was the same. Evie owning it did not.
Evie had not been pleased to see them. Not one bit. She’d almost denied them entrance, but something Alrick had said must have swayed her. Still, she’d forbidden them to leave the small private room or else be forced out of her establishment all together.
He’d half like to see her try. Like we need one more battle. This entire realm is a battle. Walking into a pub is a battle. He speared a piece of cheese on his knife. The food was at least good. Warm, plentiful and filling.
“Why can’t she allow us journey through to her club in our realm?” Ajax demanded. “It would make too much sense, I assume! The damn woman is straddling the fence, but won’t allow us passage?”
“She has her reasons.” Alrick shot Ajax a frustrated but understanding frown. “We all have our alliances, Ajax. She does not. She stays neutral. For her that’s her safety.” The king of the Lykae was much too tolerant. Stephano didn’t feel so inclined. He’d been six months in this hell. Half of that time had been spent trying to reach a gate guarded by the Silkies, the other half battling their way out of the grip of the Dark Faye. Alrick had surprised him. He’d always thought the man stubborn and hard headed. He was, but he also held his own in a fight.
They’d come here when a gate had been created from their realm to this. One of their team, a witch, had been taken before they’d even discovered the existence of the passage. They’d aided in rescuing her and destroying the gate, but they’d ended up losing three good men. Two were fellow Spartans. He hoped both were already returned from Hades, tipping back Mojitos with their muddy boots up on the coffee table. But the third man, Jacob, was a mystery. They’d seen him fall, but when they’d rescued Garret in the Dark Faye’s arena, the wolf swore he’d had to face Jacob on the sand. And, he’d barely survived.
But they’d searched. Staying far too long within the Dark Faye’s gilded cities for his liking. There’d never
been another whisper of the Vampire.
Now, almost at the end, or near enough, to this adventure-gone-bad, he was ready to relax. Evie’s provided plenty to relax with too. There was an abundance of soft, willing women waiting for his attention. No doubt half a dozen of them were right through the door. But could he go and blow off some steam, ease his aching body and find contentment in the arms of one? No. He was forbidden.
“Obviously, the witch wants us to suffer.” Darren’s comment earned him a withering glance from Ajax.
Stephano’s shield mate had more than a soft spot for witches in his opinion.
“Otherwise, why stick us in here?” Darren persisted. “And what the hell is up with having to meet with this brother and sister team one at a time?”
“She said the sister had to be familiar with us, otherwise she wouldn’t guide us.” Alrick stretched his arms behind his head and arched his back as if it ached as much as his did. The other Lykae, Darren’s younger brother, Garret, simply sat, as if he didn’t care how much time passed with him on his ass.
“The witches told us that here we’d find guides. These two must be the guides,” Alrick reminded them all.
The door opened and the cool night breeze washed over Stephano’s face, momentarily easing the heat blistering over his skin. Sweat ran down his back, working to cool him even as another suffocating wave of humidity hit him as soon as the door closed. He was tired. He ached from head to toe. He wanted sex for a few weeks straight and food.
Evie walked in as if she owned the place. She did, but still for a small woman she certainly commanded attention. Alrick even rose to his feet respectfully for her.
Stephano didn’t move.
“So, I have the brother here. His name is Brennan. He is…unusual, but a stronger warrior you couldn’t ask for on your journey.”
