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A door closes in the distance—a thump loud enough to shake the hallway.

“Come on we have to go; I don’t think it can see us in the stones,” she says, quickly.

“Where are we going?” I whisper.

Daisy presses a finger into a hidden panel and it pops open. A chilly gust of air ghosts across my cheeks and around the hem of my slacks. She enters first, her words trailing behind. “I can’t quite put my finger on it, but I will tell you this…”

Entering the passage reminds me of my first night here. As I turn to pull the passage’s panel closed the footsteps become clearer, clomping by in the hallway intersecting with the one we’re hidden in. Curiosity strikes and I peer around the corner, catching a glimpse of a long dark figure trudging by, dragging its dangling leg.

A breath hitches in my chest and I slowly back into the cold stairwell, shutting the panel in front of me. Misty huffs a breath, and I turn around, meeting Daisy’s scrutinizing stare.

“Sorry. What were you saying again?” My question is met with a scoff but she turns and leads the way down.

“Kieran has been working on a serum to revive an individual from certain death—don’t ask what that is right now—and I’ve been with him for a few cycles. There have been nine cycles so far. None have truly endured.” She speaks rapidly like someone being held hostage and they only have a few seconds to cry for help.

The stairwell is dark and narrow. The walls, cool and sharp, were likely designed with the basalt rock that forms the cliff faces.

“What does that even mean? Nine cycles?” I hurl the questions at her before she can compose herself.

She inhales.

Loud knocking surrounds us and Daisy turns to me. In the dim lighting only afforded by a few cracks in the walls, her eyes are wild and expectant. What could I do for this woman? I reach for her shoulder and squeeze. “What did you mean by ‘it’ can’t hear us in here?”

Daisy clears her throat and slowly she speaks, “there are many things he’s done since the death of his wife, little experiments. I’m not privy to all the details, but I only live here because he allows me to. I exist because of him. That is the only reason I stick around.”

“What do you mean?”

“I came from the sea as well. At least I think I did,” she tells me frenetically like the skies before a thunderstorm.

“Is Kieran hurting you?” The question is brash, but I need to know.

“Talk to the Sheriff, he should know there are ways to speak truth without the watchful eyes of the world. There are things he might know. He’s a part of their inner circle now. And to answer your question, no. I can’t remember him hurting me.”

“Kieran’s inner circle?” I want to push for answers, wring them from her. But I’m not sure why she holds back.

“Look, I only know as much as I do because I’m invisible. No one notices me. You can trust the Doctor to the degree of him keeping you safe, but if that look in your eye tells me anything, it’s that you want answers. Talk to Sheriff Valen.”

“Will he tell me about the creatures?” Especially the one from yesterday. “Was he involved with Kieran’s wife?” I add.

“Creatures?” Daisy leans closer to me this time. Her eyes are ablaze. She ignores the second half of my question. “And you’re not dead?”

“Yes, when I was in the East Wing, something beckoned me—led me to this hospital looking room.”

“Look, the Doctor’s lab is in that wing. He used to live there by himself until his wife joined him. That part of the house experienced an explosion back when his lab was above ground…now it’s someplace beneath the house. Or it was already below the house. I’m not sure. I honestly wish I could tell you where the entrance is.”

“What is your purpose to him, Daisy?” Her name is a plea on my tongue. If I knew anything, it was the look of a woman in a distressing situation.

“Honestly…I don’t know. Not currently anyway. My time here may be coming to an end soon.”

The trek down the stairwell continues, and we eventually stop at another panel. Daisy presses an ear to it, then mimics her earlier actions and steps through. We are in a room filled with what could be statues, draped in sheets. The feeling immediately sends goosebumps along my arms.

“Is this why you told me all this stuff about him? Wait a second—” I reach for her arm, grabbing ahold of her wrist. The gelatinous sensation that tickles my palms causes me to recoil in subtle disgust. What in the hell? Come to think of it, every person in this household had come to me in scant lighting. Their faces only lingered long enough for me to make out important features.

“I will tell you more when I can. Now isn’t the right time for it to come from me. Now go, before someone stops you.” A series of clicks sounds and a door opens. A curtain of thick vines greets us on the other side.

“Stop me?”

“Your freedom is merely an illusion. Knowledge, however slow it may come to you, is the key. Keep pushing and use what you already have to your advantage.”