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grabbing at her, but she shoved them away.
She was doing this for them, and all the other mortals this siren might
hurt.  
    Kaimana scrambled through the scattered checkers, toward Tullia . "I wish you weren't so stubborn, Tullia ."
    The siren snorted
as she rubbed her temple. "Coming from you, darling? That's the best joke
I've heard in years."
    Yuri rolled her
eyes at the squabbling and held out her hand. "The pearl."
    Tullia spat a curse in Greek. She slapped Yuri's hand away
and tried to sing again. Her voice wavered, but she didn't stop.
    Yuri felt the tug
at her magic again, like someone pulling sharply at a rope that attached itself
to her breastbone. She held onto it this time, hoarding it deep inside herself , and clapped one hand over the siren's mouth. She
yelped when Tullia bit her palm, but didn't move
away. "Give me the damn pearl."
    Tullia bit her again.
    Yuri smelled blood
this time, and her eyes watered with the pain. Instead of pulling away like the
siren wanted, she leaned closer. "You've got one more chance. Give me the
pearl, or I'll find a way to make sure you never step foot on land again."
    Tullia's eyes narrowed. She said something that was muffled
and indecipherable through Yuri's palm.
    "She wears
the pearl in a pouch around her neck." Kaimana jumped onto Yuri's arm and wrapped its tail around her elbow to keep steady.
    Yuri took a deep
breath, but nodded. If the siren wasn't going to hand over the pearl
voluntarily, she could take it on her own. It occurred to her that she should
probably have more of a problem shoving her hand down another woman's dress
than she did. All the same, she reached forward with her free hand.
    Tullia slapped her hand away.
    Kaimana sighed. "I will keep her from singing. You
retrieve the pearl."
    "Yeah, yeah.
As long as she doesn't bite me again." Yuri reluctantly pulled her hand
away from the siren's mouth.
    The mo'o spoke something in Hawaiian as it leapt back onto the
table. Yuri felt the magic sizzle through the air.
    Tullia opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She tried
again, with the same effect.
    "Hurry, hoaloha ; the spell will not last long."
    Yuri swallowed a
smirk and plunged her hand down the front of Tullia's dress. Her fingers found a soft, silken pouch almost immediately. She grabbed
it and pulled away. "Is this it?"
    Judging by the
look of horror on the siren's face, it was.
    Pride flooded
through Yuri for a moment as she placed the little silver-blue pouch on the
table beside Kaimana . She'd done it. She'd managed to
grab the pearl, stop the siren, and not get herself killed in the process.
Piccolo could suck it.
    "What the
hell do you think you're doing?" A mortal man with "Manager"
embroidered on his pinstripe uniform shoved his way through the little crowd
that had gathered to watch the scene. "This is a family-friendly
establishment!"
    Yuri glanced
around at the circle of humans. She hadn't even realized they'd noticed what
was going on at their little table. How much had they seen? How much trouble
was she in?
    Something familiar
tapped at her magic, alerting her to another powerful force nearby--Piccolo and
Webb had found them. Whatever trouble she was in with the mortals, she was
probably in about double with her partner. This day just couldn't get worse,
could it?
    "You can't
have pets in here, either!" The manager pointed emphatically at Kaimana . "Get out before I call the cops!"
    A deep voice spoke
from over Yuri's shoulder. "We're with Galveston P.D. What seems to be the
matter?"
    Yuri glanced over her shoulder
and smiled weakly at Piccolo and Webb. They
were both tall and radiated power, but that was about all they had in common.
Piccolo was whip-thin, dressed in a slick black suit that complemented his
ruddy complexion, and frowning disappointedly at her. Webb was
broad-shouldered, wore a brightly-colored t-shirt that
contrasted his ebony skin, and looking suspiciously innocent.
    The manager
spluttered for a moment, motioning at Yuri