Sacrifices of the Siren [Sirens and Sailors 6] (Siren Publishing Allure) (10 page)

“So they’re not like normal women, is that what you’re saying?” Dr. Jay frowned in disbelief. “I notice they don’t use contraception, why is that?”

“They don’t need it. You see, doctor, we are descendants of an ancient race. Sirens can only get pregnant if they make love, which means both partners actually
loving
each other. Sex alone doesn’t make them pregnant. It’s something to do with hormones. There has to be an emotional commitment. Not that I’d expect
you
to understand that,” Hermandine sniped.

“Now just you wait a minute!” Farris was angered at the old crone’s implications about their personal relationship with Ademia. They were in a ménage with her and, despite what the old woman obviously thought, were very much in love with her.

Dr. Jay put his hand up to stop Farris from losing his temper.

“So you’re saying that Melantho was in love with this guy, and he with her?” the doctor clarified, looking back at Hermandine.

“They must have been. Though I don’t see how. She had only just become a Siren. It was just after her she turned twenty-one. She told me it was love at first sight.” The old woman spoke dismissively.

“So where is he? The father?” Blandon’s voice was quiet as his throat clenched.

“Dead, of course. The Sirens always killed their prey.” Hermandine sounded almost triumphant at the revelation.

“Melantho killed him?” Farris clarified in astonishment.

Hermandine sighed. “Oh no. She couldn’t manage that bit. The others did it, though, while they slaughtered the rest. They didn’t know Melantho loved him, of course. No one did. I only found out when I realized she was pregnant. I don’t think she really understood it herself until then, she said she assumed all the women felt that way about the men they ‘entertained.’”

“But you allowed her to have the baby?” Dr. Jay asked warily.

“Not intentionally. By the time I realized she was pregnant it was too late to do anything else. I brought her over here and the hospital arranged for its adoption.” Hermandine spoke very matter-of-factly.

“So she had the baby? Which hospital?” Dr. Jay stared at her intently.

The old woman tightened her lips.

“It’s important, Hermandine. We need to find out whether there were any complications—she had a caesarean section, which means it didn’t exactly go smoothly. If she suffered depression afterward it might well have a bearing on how she copes with this latest breakdown. We need to know how to deal with the situation to help her the best way we can.” The doctor spoke clearly and slowly.

“I don’t remember.”

“I think you do.”

“It was a long time ago.”

“How long?”

She stared at the doctor. “I don’t remember.”

“Solon, what can you tell us?” Dr. Jay turned his attention to the woman who had regained her seat and was sat silently listening.

“I wasn’t aware of everything,” Solon replied quietly. She looked genuinely shocked.

“Hermandine, if you don’t tell us what we need to know the police will be involved and you will
have
to explain it all to them.” Dr. Jay explained. “I need you to tell me which hospital she had the baby at, and anything you know about the adoption, do you understand?”

Hermandine sighed. “It was the Midcounty Maternity Hospital, but I don’t know anything about the adoption. They took care of it there. I simply took her there and collected her afterward,” she replied sulkily.

“You didn’t stay with her?” Farris was clearly horrified.

“No, of course not. She was there for months, I couldn’t be expected to stay all that time. Besides, questions would have been asked.”

“You mean by the authorities?” Farris’s teeth were clenched as he spoke.

“I mean by the
Sirens
.”

“We Elders weren’t aware of…everything,” Solon added a little sheepishly.

“Melantho didn’t want a fuss,” Hermandine insisted.

“All right. We’d better get back to the hospital. Thank you, ma’am.” Dr. Jay nodded to the ladies and the men headed for the door.

Blandon felt his heart racing as they strode back toward the hospital. It was a lot to take in.

“Poor Melantho, she must have been terrified,” Farris said at last. “Those poor girls don’t seem to understand about having babies at all.”

“I guess they don’t get taught because they’re never expected to have any,” Dr. Jay agreed.

“So she was all alone not knowing what was going on,” Blandon added ruefully.

“I’ll find out what I can. I need to speak to Dr. Ernaut in the first instance,” Dr. Jay told them as they entered the large white building. It was late at night and the corridors were empty. “Why don’t you guys grab a coffee while I find him? You must be exhausted.”

“Good idea. Should we let Rech know we’re OK?” Farris yawned.

“I’ll do that from the office.” Dr. Jay headed up the main corridor while Blandon followed Farris to the canteen.

Luckily the canteen was open all night, and they got their hot drinks before taking their seats in the lounge area. They sat on large squishy sofas which enveloped their tired bodies.

“It’s a lot to take in, huh?” Farris smiled kindly at his friend.

Blandon nodded. “I just feel awful that she’s gone through it all on her own. No wonder she seemed so sad sometimes. How could she have been expected to cope with something like this?”

“Well, at least we can help her now we know.” Farris sipped his coffee.

“I don’t see how. The baby’s already got its own family now, so she won’t be able to get him or her back—hell, we don’t even know what gender it is!”

Farris laughed. “Does it matter? The main thing is it’s alive. Where there’s life there’s hope, I always think.”

Blandon grinned. “You’re right.” He closed his eyes and lay back on the soft sofa. He hadn’t realized how tired he was, but his eyelids began to droop and he closed his eyes to rest for a few minutes.

The young sailor became aware of murmuring and he slowly opened his eyes. Farris and Dr. Jay were sat at a table a little way from him, talking quietly. Farris looked over when Blandon stirred.

“Hey, sleeping beauty. Feel any better?” He smiled broadly.

Blandon smiled back, stretching. He felt a lot better. “Yep. Was I out long?” He went over to join them on the upright chairs where they were enjoying coffee and croissants. The smell of bread and pastries filled the air, reminding him how hungry he was.

“A few hours. We’re just having some breakfast, want some?” Farris gestured to the plate full of hot croissants and muffins on the table in front of them, and Blandon tucked in eagerly.

“Any news?” Blandon asked as he buttered a croissant.

“Healthwise she’s gonna be OK. The cops want to talk to her about getting beaten when she’s up to it. She did wake a couple of hours ago but didn’t want to talk. She’s very depressed at the moment, which is understandable. They’re starting her on a course of antidepressants later this morning, and a counsellor will be around to see her,” Dr. Jay explained.

Blandon felt his heart lurch at the thought of her being so low. “Can I see her?” he asked hopefully.

“Sorry, bro. She’s gone back to sleep now. We’ll see if she’s up to visitors later. Meanwhile, we’re waiting on some information from Midcounty. They’re checking their files for us to see if they can find anything on Mel and the baby.”

Blandon perked up slightly. “They’re already on it?”

Dr. Jay chuckled. “It’s a hospital, bro, they work twenty-four-seven remember?”

Blandon grinned. He’d got used to life on Refrainia where they all had to stop work when the sun went down. He was relieved that something was actually being done to help Melantho. His heart ached for her. He was slowly beginning to realize just how much he loved her.

“I spoke to Rech earlier, too. Pallas was really worried about Mel. She’d been over to see him. I told Rech what was going on and he’s going round to talk to her this morning, see if he can put her mind at rest.” Dr. Jay took a long swig of his coffee.

“At least she’s out of that hell hole now!” Farris spoke through gritted teeth. “Honestly, bro, I don’t know how you kept your cool with ‘The Witches of Eastland.’”

Dr. Jay grinned. “There’s a very old saying, bro, ‘softly, softly, catch ye monkey.’ I find I get better results by taking it slow and easy. If I’d yelled at the old battle-axes like I really wanted to, they’d have slung us out without telling us anything.”

“Good point,” Blandon interjected.

“Bloody relief—I thought you were going soft in your old age!” Farris chortled.

“As if!” Dr. Jay giggled scornfully.

“Will we be able to find out who adopted the baby?” Blandon asked thoughtfully after a while.

“That depends. It’s all very confidential so usually you can’t find that sort of thing out without a very good reason. In our case, Dr. Ernaut agreed that if it’s affecting Mel’s health and well-being, he might be able to help. It may be that she doesn’t want to know anything about the baby. She might be trying to forget it and move on with her life. If that’s the case we need to respect her wishes.” Dr. Jay smiled kindly at the young sailor.

Blandon nodded. “What if she wants the baby back?”

Dr. Jay sighed. “We’ll have to cross that bridge when we come to it. It’s not usual for a parent to get a baby—or a child—back after it has been successfully adopted. That’s why it has to be a legal process.”

Blandon felt a cold shudder pass through him.
Poor Mel!

“Do we need to get back today or are we OK for a while?” Farris queried.

“There’s an order of flowers due to come over tomorrow so they could do with the ship back by tonight so they can get it loaded,” Dr. Jay said with a frown.

“I’m staying here.” Blandon was adamant. There was no way he was going to leave Melantho on her own again.

“I hear ya, buddy, but you need to be ready to spring into action when she wants you. If she won’t talk about it and doesn’t want company right now we need to respect that, but be prepared to get your ass here when she has a change of heart. When that happens you need to have your wits about you. You don’t want to be tired and dirty when she sees you, do you?” Dr. Jay reasoned.

“I guess you’re right,” Blandon relented with a sigh.

“Besides, Dr. Ernaut’s going to be keeping me informed every step of the way so we’ll know when we need to come over.”

“I just don’t like leaving her on her own.” Blandon bit his lower lip hard.

“Sometimes people need to be on their own,” Dr. Jay said gently. “She might need time to sort things out in her own head before she wants to talk about it. Anyhow, she won’t be alone here, the doctors and nurses will be keeping a close eye on her, and they’ll be around if she needs to chat. Sometimes it’s easier to talk to a stranger.”

Blandon nodded thoughtfully. He knew Dr. Jay was right. He had known the doctor for a good few years and he’d never let him down. He didn’t always say what you wanted to hear, but hell—he was always right. Blandon respected him for that. The doctor certainly knew his stuff.

They enjoyed a hearty breakfast as the sun came up.

“If we’ve got some time to spare I could do with having a word with Yuli while we’re here,” Farris said as he sat back in his chair. “I’m hoping he might be able to help out with some plastic piping I can use for an irrigation system for the top field.”

“There’s no rush. We can stay as long as we like as long as we get back before dark,” Dr. Jay replied with a nod.

“Can I see Mel before we leave then?” Blandon asked.

“Yes, we’ll pop in later to see how she’s doing,” Dr. Jay promised.

“You can come with me if you like?” Farris offered cheerfully. “I’ll need a hand carrying the pipes if he can spare them.”

They finished their meal and as Dr. Jay went to find Dr. Ernaut the other two sailors headed out into the sunshine.

“Looks like a nice day for a change,” Farris said, looking up at a clear sky.

“Thank goodness. It always seems to be raining over here,” Blandon said a little gloomily.

“Yeah. The sooner we get back to the island the better,” Farris said with a grin.

“The sooner we get
Mel
back the better,” Blandon corrected. “I hate thinking of her being over here. She must hate it.”

“She’ll get there, bro,” Farris said as he put a reassuring arm around his friend.

* * * *

It was gone lunchtime before Blandon and Farris had finished their business with Yuli at the construction site near the harbor. Yuli had welcomed them warmly and offered them anything they needed. Some of his staff helped them to carry a load of plastic pipes and tubing over to
The Refrainian
where they stowed it safely in the hold. Yuli had also given them some tools and equipment that would be useful to build the irrigation system. Blandon was pleased to find all the construction site workers extremely friendly and helpful, and Yuli insisted that he and Farris joined them all for lunch in the café down the road. The food was delicious—homemade hotpot with extra crispy potatoes.