Hush’s eyes darted between the two of us, landing on Audrey and waiting. Audrey inhaled a deep breath, nodded her consent, and said, “Show us.” Giving us one last lingering look, Hush turned and banged on the door with the side of her fist.
Thump, thump, thump…thump…thump, thump…thump.
A specific pattern. A code, I realized.
Moments later, the large door groaned on its hinges as it opened, and distant noise echoed out to us.
Alotof people were in there.
One of Ilia’s siren guards was on the other side of the door, dressed just like Hush with the siren mask over his mouth and everything. Holding it open with one arm, he allowed us to follow Hush through.
I didn’t look behind me when he shut the door; I could hear it echo when it closed. Light bulbs lined the hallway we walked through, and drapes covered most of the stone of the mountain. Soon, we stepped onto what looked like floorboards. Two heavy drapes were covering what I assumed was a large room, based on the amount of chatter coming from the other side.
Hush gave us one last, lingering look before lifting her arm and pulling the drapes aside.
Revealing…children.
And mothers.
Hundreds of children with their mothers, too many for me to count. Some were at tables, writing in books. Schoolwork, maybe? Younger children were playing with each other, with toys and puzzles. Teenagers were huddled together in small groups, too, reading thicker books that could be schoolwork as well. Mothers were scattered around. In front of us, a mother lifted her chubby baby up into the air before nuzzling their cheeks. Eliciting a sharp, baby siren squeal that echoed throughout the chamber.
Nearby, someone gasped, and everyone slowly went onto alert. Eyes tore away from whatever project they were focused on, locking on Audrey and me.
Every single pair of eyes was golden.
“Wh—why are they down here?” Audrey whispered. Hush stepped to the side, following the wooden platform that elevated our entrance from the rest of the room, toward doors to other rooms on the far side of the cavern wall. It looked like it was all carved out long ago by a very skilled hand, but part of mewondered what the likelihood of the mountain caving in on top of us was. The ceilings were so high.
As Audrey and I followed Hush to the side, I noticed a small opening near the top of the cavern. Past all the wires from the lightbulbs and TV screens illuminating the space. There were no windows, no exterior doors, and almost no source of natural light.
Except for one at the top, higher than most skyscrapers I’d seen. The bright moon from the night sky shown through the opening, providing oxygen.
Wow.
I glanced around, smiling what I hoped was a warm greeting at passing siren mothers and not one of confusion. Emotions started flooding my system:Safe. Hungry. Confused. Annoyed. Scared. Warm. Curious.
Hush took us into what looked like an office space, and when I saw Sergei towering over documents scattered on a large wooden desk, I stiffened at the threshold. Sergei’s golden eyes locked on me; a dark brow lifted in what might have been confusion.
“Come in and close the door.” Her voice was firm and authoritative. Audrey tugged me through the threshold and kicked the door shut. The war of emotions within my nervous system immediately tempered.
Odd.
“What is all this?” Audrey asked, with more volume to her voice. Sergei ignored us and continued perusing the papers on the large wooden desk. Hush approached him before turning and resting her butt on the edge of it.
“This is a sanctuary,” Hush explained.
“For whom?” I asked. Though part of me already suspected the answer.
“For the siren children who have developed the gift of whismerra,” Hush confirmed. “…and their mothers.” Audrey cursed, plopping herself down into a cushioned chair on the far wall. She bent over, scraping her nails through her hairline.
I leaned my head back to admire the high ceiling; another skylight was cut out near the top, what felt like miles above. I rubbed my hands on either side of my neck, tugging.
“Okay.” I nodded at the ceiling, “Okay. This is good.”
Audrey lifted her head to stare at me. “Good?”
“Yes.” I nodded. “Because now we know Ilia isn’t killing the missing siren women. Or sirens with whismerra. They’re alive.”
Audrey shook her head before staring at Hush. “…But why do the mothers and children need to hide?” Hush and Sergei shared a look before letting silence answer for them.
