Dirty Lying Sirens

Chapter Twenty One

Madeline

The tower was at the edge of the beach in a bubble. Enough water was allowed in from the bottom that it even allowed gentle waves in, the morning light shining in shallow crescents as it moved onto the white sand. In the far distance, I could even see the outlines of the other towers that rose to the surface, connecting Atlantis to the outside world.

The moment my feet hit the sand outside the tower's door, I had the urge to sink my bare feet into it. We were on a softer part, not quite where the jagged white rocks hugged the edge of the house-lined streets. When I looked down to admire it, I noticed Calliope and her company had no shoes on. It was all the encouragement I needed to ditch mine as well.

Everything in me wanted to jump out of my skin and explore as we started walking. Even though it was early, people were awake. The market I saw was waking up, windows were popping open and airing out for the day. I was even thrilled to spot a small patch of field where a cluster of children were giggling to a game involving two balls in a circle. We followed a path of footprints through the sand until we reached a white stone staircase up to the street level.

"Ashana would meet you in the morning," Callipoe's interpreter started, catching my attention. "As would the other keepers of the house of sirens."

"And Ashana is your leader?" I asked.

The woman nodded, her smile warm and open. "Indeed she is. As wise as she is skilled with the songs. She will know the most peaceful path to welcome you into our arms."

Peaceful sounded great. Considering I'd been agonizing over my unexpected reception in this unknown place, it was nice to hear they were at least trying to make it an easy transition.

"We will walk with you some of the way to the home of Caspian," she said as Calliope began to speak in rapid, bubbly tones. "Rest today, and tomorrow you are invited to share the morning meal in the house of sirens."

That sounded all well and fine, but I gave Caspian a glance and his nod reassured me.

"Thank you," I answered. "I look forward to it."

And so we walked, a cool stone under my feet as we followed a twisty cobbled path up a gentle slope. Getting a close-up look at the houses was fascinating. Even more painted details were popping up for me to see now that I was next to them. Some of the domes were made of glass, and with the rising of the sun, I could see the reflection of it to easily spot which houses had glass and which were made of the same stuff as the base of the house. Tile doorsteps were vibrant with handpainted ceramic squares. Baskets and pottery sat in gardens and windows, giving me more of an eyeful of the local aesthetic. It was all white where it could be and decorated to the nines with saturated colors. Floral patterns, woven lines, and fish. I couldn't get enough of it. My eyes were hungry to see it, and it didn't go unnoticed how many Atlantian eyes were curiously watching our procession as well.

"What are they doing?" I whispered, seeing a pair of teenagers watching me from an upper balcony.

"They probably want to know why Calliope is out and about," Nikkos answered. "And if they noticed Calliope, they'll have noticed a new face. We don't get new faces, not here."

It made sense, but it also made me bashful. I stepped back and stopped being so obvious about my sightseeing. After all, now that I was here I had all the time in the world to learn about it.

Our path continued, and I realized that this was the main road of the island. It wound, it rose, it dipped, but it continued. The other paths that jutted off of it weren't as wide, and I could almost make out where the other end of this path crossed the island up to a large building at the summit, then down to the beach near another tower in the distance. We were halfway up the gentle slope when Calliope stopped near a new road and began to speak.