The sirens curse

Chapter 11

Cyrene reached for the key and tried to insert it into the lock around her neck. The chain loosened as she pulled it off her hips, up her torso towards the lock. She turned the key and failed to get it to open. Her expression changed from optimistic to defeated. Another theory crossed my mind seconds before I blurted it out.

"wait! I have another theory..." I thought about it for a few more seconds before I spoke. " Lilith and Celeste have keys too right?" I asked. Cyrene nodded and instructed me to continue.

"do all sirens have guards?" Again she nodded, as I continued, the confused expression on her face only grew. " what if the guards have the correct key? What if the one around your waist is only there to give you the illusion of being able to escape" I wasn't sure if I was right, but I remain hopeful. I badly wanted to help Cyrene, she's been lost in this curse, forced to be her worst self, for who knows how long.

" how are we going to test this theory?" Cyrene asked. My head hung as I thought about it. She has two guards. Would they both have the same key to set her free? Was it just one of them? Had they even known if it could set her free? And even if they did know that it could set her free, would they be willing to? Hundreds of thoughts crossed my mind. I began thinking about what I saw in Lilith's eyes. She was consumed with anger and pain. I thought back to when her and Celeste attempted to drowned me, trying to remember what I saw in their eyes.

Eyes can tell a story, even if the mouth doesn't speak a word. I had only caught a glimpse of Celeste's eyes, but from what I remember, it was similar to Cyrene. I could see pain and longing. Even if she had wanted to kill at the beginning, she too, was in pain more than she would ever speak of.

" is there a way you can contact Celeste? Ask her to meet you somewhere?" I watched her expression as she thought about it. She wasn't looking forward to it, but she knew in order to prove this theory we had to try. The safest bet was to try with Celeste first. Lilith would be a whole different story. That would be a problem for a different time.

I promised Cyrene that we'd find a solution, together. She smiled as she swam away into the darkness of the sea. McKenna and I walked back to her room where I'd stay the night, the air had a chill that caused us to walk even faster. As we got inside, McKenna turn on the lights. Nobody was there but us, at least for now. She led me into the room her bed was in, we laid side-by-side under the warm blanket as I found comfort in her arms. Some thing about her felt safe. We were becoming good friends, and I was completely okay with that. The warmth I felt from the blanket, and McKenna's body was enough to put me to sleep.

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She was staring at her tail as I approached her. She seemed to be lost in thought so I hadn't said anything yet, I didn't want to scare her. She was admiring her scales as she began fidgeting with the key. I knelt down beside her.

"We're going to figure this out, I promise." I whispered. She looked up at me and smiled. I stayed silent for a moment, letting her gather her thoughts.

" it's just... This is the first time I've thought about being free. I've never thought it would actually happen, but we are figuring it out. It's like I can feel the cursed slowly unraveling the closer we get to a solution." She smiled again.

I began to think about what would happen when Celeste would meet up with Cyrene. Would she be nasty like Lilith or would she be kind? I didn't know anything about her, other than the fact that she was one of Cyrene's guards. She watched me as I thought about our task. I could tell she had something else on her mind, but she was scared to say it. I looked at her and asked her to tell me.

She kept her eyes low. " I can see everything. Hear everything. I know what you felt when you were with her." She confessed. My mind raced back to McKenna and I in the shower. " I want you just as much as you wanted her and just as much as she wanted you. I want to feel what you felt." Her eyes stayed on the rocks beneath her.