Free Surrendering (Swans Landing) by Shana Norris Page A

care who they have to hurt to get what they want. They’re dangerous and they know how to do things that you can’t fight against.”
    Luis narrowed his eyes. “If these people are finfolk, like you, then why are you warning me about them? Shouldn’t you stick with your own kind?”
    My lip curled in disgust. “They are not my kind. These people are completely different from the finfolk here in Swans Landing. I’m not like them.”
    Luis stood, his eyebrows raised. “You lie, you hurt people. Seems that you’re not that much different.”
    I opened my mouth, but I couldn’t deny what Luis had said. I had lied, to a lot of people. And I had hurt more people than I’d ever wanted to.
    But I was not like Domnall. I knew that deep in my gut. I would never be like him. I would never hurt people the way he did to get what I wanted.
    “I should go,” I said.
    Luis nodded. “You probably should.”
    At the door, I paused, my hand on the painted wood. I looked back at Luis, who was now polishing utensils by the stove.
    “Please just be careful,” I said. “And keep an eye on Mr. Jasper.”
    Then I pushed the door open and left the kitchen, walking across the silent dining room to the front door of the Sand Dollar. I had done what I could to help the humans of Swans Landing, but I hoped it would be enough.

 
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER ELEVEN
     
    Sailor inspected a jar of pickles and then tossed it into the basket she had set on the floor by her feet. “Do you like olives?” she asked me.
    “Not really.” I leaned against the shelf of ketchup and other condiments and sighed. “Sailor, are you even listening to me?”
    “No,” she said, sticking her tongue out at me. She nudged the basket with her foot, moving it down the aisle to the display of rice and pasta. The basket was already nearly overflowing and it didn’t look like she was done shopping yet. The cabinets at Miss Gale’s house were looking pretty empty, most likely due to the fact that Miss Gale hadn’t left her house in months.
    “You need to talk to Dylan,” I told her again. “He’s upset about you bringing Callum back with you. I think you should go talk to him about it.”
    Sailor shrugged. “It’s not my problem if he’s jealous now. He didn’t care to take notice of me all these years. I moved on and found someone else. If he doesn’t like it, whatever. I don’t care.” But the edge to her voice told me she did care, even as she scowled at a bag of white rice before tossing it into the basket too.
    “Look,” I said, “it’s not my business who you want to be with. If it’s Dylan or Callum, that’s up to you. I’m not getting into the middle of your relationships. But there’s something bigger at stake here, and we all need to work together if we want to survive. So you need to talk to Dylan and get him to trust that Callum is on our side. I’m afraid of what might happen if we start fighting with each other.”
    Sailor sighed. “I’ll try to talk to him. But I can’t make any promises that he’ll listen. Dylan can be stubborn sometimes, when he wants to be.”
    “Tell me about it,” I muttered. “You’re not the one who had to go out on watch with him this morning. I’m glad Lake agreed to let me go alone next time.”
    “When are you on duty again?” Sailor asked.
    I looked up at the dusty old clock hanging over the door of Moody’s Variety Store. “Half an hour,” I said. “I’ll be there until tonight. So you don’t have to worry about me for dinner.”
    Sailor frowned. “I’m not worried about feeding you. You’re welcome to what we have. Jim told me to take what we need.”
    “It’s all right,” I said. “I’m used to not eating much. I can survive on peanut butter sandwiches, remember?”
    Sailor made a face and I laughed. She had probably had enough peanut butter sandwiches while we were in Scotland to last her the next year.
    The bell over the door jingled and we both turned to see who had