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Lucienne waited in the hall outside the surgery room with Kian and five guards, including Jonas. She looked haunted from the faint bluish shadows and smeared mascara in the hollow under her eyes. Her brown eyes lingered momentarily on Kian’s wet shoulder. She had been sobbing.

Jed would never expose vulnerability like that. Jed once said that she was more human than any other Siren during tea one afternoon. Being ‘too human’ wasn’t a compliment in Jed’s book.

“I don’t hide how I feel in front of my friends,” Lucienne had said.

“Sirens don’t have friends,” Jed said. “We can’t afford to have them.”

“I’ll continue to cherish loyalty and friendship.”

“That’s your hot Russian blood talking,” Jed said.

Her hair bristled on the back of her neck. The Russian part of her heritage had always earned her the name Russian Wretch or White Trash. “Did you mean that as an insult?” she asked coldly.

“You’re one of a kind. That’s what I meant,” Jed said. “You’re the first female Siren.”

“I can be cold and calculating. You know I excel at that, even though my blood runs hotter than former Sirens’,” Lucienne said. “There’s no need to bring up my mother. I’m not ashamed of my Russian heritage, just as I’m not ashamed of being part of yours. I didn’t choose either. ”

“Do things your way. You’re the Siren now.” Jed pushed aside the supreme tea served in Jingdezhen teacups and left abruptly.

That was before he left for the relic site in Egypt.

Lucienne averted her eyes from the wet spot on Kian’s coat. When she stopped weeping, she became the unbreakable Lucienne Lam again.

“Go to bed.” Kian regarded her. “There’s nothing you can do here. If there’s any update, I’ll send news.”

“Why don’t you go rest for a change?” Lucienne said. “When was the last time you slept?”

“I sleep when I can.” Kian pulled her up from the chair. “I’m walking you back to your room. One day is enough for you. There will be more on your plate tomorrow. You’re in command now.”

Lucienne let Kian lead her down the corridor as Jonas trailed behind. When Lucienne and Kian were out of earshot of the guards, Lucienne asked in a hushed but determined voice, “Is Vladimir here, too? I want to see him before I go back to my room.”

“Last I saw him, he was sleeping like a doped monkey in one of the guest rooms,” Kian said.

Lucienne raised an eyebrow.

“He turned out to be fine after he stayed . . . a certain distance from you,” Kian said carefully. “Your nanny gave him a mug of sedating tea that put him to sleep.”

“Why did you wake up Aida?”

“You knew how she is. She never goes to bed before you do, expecting you’ll need her.”

“I’m not a kid anymore,” Lucienne grunted. “And Aida isn’t young—”

“Don’t let her hear that.” Kian chuckled. “She won’t be pleased.”

Frosty air assaulted them as they walked out of the infirmary. Lucienne shuddered and Jonas cursed the coldness. Kian, as always, remained untouched .

“You’re right,” he said. “I should stop protecting you like you are a little girl. You’re the Siren, more now than ever. Just don’t grow up too fast for me to catch up.”

“Nothing is too fast for you to catch, Kian. Nothing will ever be too fast for you,” Lucienne said.

“But you know a shielded life is never meant for me.” She halted as she caught sight of the Red Mansion a few blocks away with its red tiles.

The dawn’s pale light gave the tiles a shadowy look, but soon the sun would rise high, and the roof would shine the color of blood.

“Who did this to my grandfather?” she asked.

“It was an ambush,” Kian said.

“Bring me the assailants. I’ll skin them!”

“The attack was an indirect hit on you.”

Lucienne took a moment to digest that. “They believe once Jed’s out of the way,” she said coldly, “they can all come get me.”

“As the Czech boy said, they’ll have to crawl over my dead body to get to you.” Kian’s voice was even colder than Lucienne’s. “And I plan to live a long life.”

At Kian’s promise, Lucienne’s blood warmed in her veins. “A bloodbath is not my way, but let them come.”

“They’ll come,” Kian said. “Jed won’t hang in there long. Your rule has begun. They’ll seize the opportunity to try to push your half-brother back into the Siren’s seat.”

“Any news on Hauk?”

“That coward hides deep.”

“He’s twenty-two now, isn’t he?”

“You should have taken him out when he placed a bounty on your head years ago. You had the right.”

“He has Jed’s blood, too. Killing him then would have turned even more of the family against me. And I wanted to give him a chance to walk away from this.”

“Rumor has it he vowed never to rest until he erases you from the face of the earth. ”

“Then he’ll continue living a sad, disappointed life.”

“The attack will come sooner. Perhaps sooner than we expected,” Kian said. “Before it comes, we’ll remove you to Sphinxes.”

Sphinxes was an uncharted Pacific Island that a former Siren bought centuries ago. For years, Kian and their loyal team had been secretly building their future headquarters on the island.

“No, I’ll stay for the war.”

“Not this time,” Kian said. “As your security chief, I overrule you on this matter. You’ll follow my plan.”

Lucienne pouted, but Kian wasn’t compromising. In the end, she sighed, “What’s the progress in Sphinxes?”

“Labs and military bases are all complete, but there’s still too much to do.”

“The work never ends. How are the soldiers?”

“Watchful and loyal,” Kian said. “An elite team is on their way here. Our enemy won’t expect that, though Jed won’t approve of the warriors coming to the complex either.”

“I’ll work on Jed. He wants to keep the Lams together, but he desires to preserve the next rightful Siren even more.” Speaking of her grandfather, Lucienne dropped her gaze, staring at the ground. “Will he wake up?”

Kian sighed. “He’d better.”

Kian accompanied Lucienne into the Red Mansion. When they stopped before her room, Jonas was right behind them. Kian eyed the guard, and Jonas darted inside for a security sweep. When Jonas came out and resumed his station at the door, Kian kissed the top of Lucienne’s head. “Good night, Princess.”

Lucienne grinned. “You should shave more often, Kian McQuillen. Hygiene is required.”

Kian shook his head. “Stop talking like that peacock prince you fancy too much. ”

Her smile dimmed. She was sure that beautiful peacock was going to dump her at the first opportunity he got when he woke up in the morning.