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“What was it?” John asked. “I bet Helen twenty bucks it was a whale.”

“Can confirm it was not a whale.”

Helen smacked her thigh. “Ha! Hand it over, sucker.” She clambered to her feet and plucked a strand of seaweed from my hair, tossing it aside. “You look as old and haggard as I actually am.”

I gathered my remaining strength and lifted my head to look at her. “I rushed here to save your life and that’s how you repay me?”

She shrugged. “I don’t have to repay you. You’re the Neighborhood director of security. Saving me is in your job description.”

“I’ll remember that the next time you ask me to check under your bed for monsters.” In fairness, there had been an actual monster there once and she had yet to work through the trauma.

“You’re a hoot and a holler, Maya,” John said.

“I’ll assume that’s a compliment.” I looked at Helen. “Next time, use a beach with a lifeguard or one of the pools.”

The succubus shuddered. “I don’t like public pools. Everybody pees in them.”

I gesticulated at the water. “And you think that’s more hygienic?”

She folded her arms. “I’m old school. I prefer natural bodies of water.”

“Fine. Then don’t swim unless there’s a lifeguard present.”

“The sign says swim at your own risk.” She splayed her hands. “I’m a grown woman and I took the risk.” Her gaze dropped lower. “If you ever decide to invest in more attractive undergarments, give me a call. I’d be happy to help.”

I trudged to my golf cart. My feet were covered in sand, which wasn’t my favorite feeling in the world. I dried off, got dressed, and drove barefoot to the office, where my next indignity awaited me—Penny Beaufort, the island’s new assistant director of security and my protégé. The young fury had become the star of my nightmares. Most of my waking hours were consumed by her too. As her boss, it was my job to train her, just as Judd had trained me.

Of course, Judd hadn’t been hiding a deadly secret.

The werewolf’s death had rattled me to my core. Judd was the big brother I never had. An emotionally distant big brother, but still better than nothing. I already got the impression that Penny looked at me like the big sister she never had, which made this new arrangement difficult. She had no idea I was a fury like her, and under no circumstances could she ever learn the truth—so this big sister had to remain not only emotionally distant but also as physically distant as possible. No easy feat given our professional roles.

“There you are,” Penny said, chipper as ever. “I thought you’d be here an hour ago.”

“I took a detour.”

“Your hair is still wet from the shower.”

“Yes, the shower,” I deadpanned.

“Are you using a new skin cream? Your face is so dewy, it’s practically glowing.”

I glanced down at my shirt. “Must be my new color scheme. I decided to switch from black to gunmetal gray to reflect my sunnier disposition.”

Penny gnawed on her bottom lip. “You’re using sarcasm again, aren’t you?”

I flopped into my chair. “You’re a fury. Isn’t sarcasm a necessary part of the job?”

“I worked exclusively in the Midwest,” she said.

“The dew on my face is called sweat, Penny. I just ran into an Aspidochelone that nearly swallowed Helen Jacobson whole.”

Her eyes widened. “Is that typical?”

“The Aspidochelone is uncommon. A monster encounter—not so much.”

“Is it a problem we need to look into?”

She sounded far too eager to dive into research mode. Then again, eagerness and enthusiasm seemed to be two of Penny’s main attributes. I wasn’t sure how she managed to retain them after working for the Fates. Those three were the cruelest mistresses one could encounter.