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“Very,” growled Gustav. “And even touching you, I can faintly hear the singing.”

“Then don’t let go.” Because Avera didn’t want to be alone in this strange place.

The mist abruptly ceased—there one moment, gone the next—and with its disappearance, Josslyn came to her senses.

And she was angry.

She whirled and wagged a finger. “Why did you let it drag me here?”

“It was his idea.” Avera pointed at Gustav who bore the blame with his broad shoulders.

No surprise, he didn’t apologize. “Figured we should see where that mist wanted people to go.”

“Then you should have been the one leading,” Josslyn complained, hugging herself.

“I would have but then who would have defended you if there was danger?”

“Avera would have,” Josslyn snapped.

“Bah. Don’t be mad. Aren’t you happy it’s warm?”

Josslyn’s eyes narrowed. “You want warm? I’ll make sure your funeral pyre is piled high.”

The statement had Gustav grinning. “Pity I’ll be dead because I’d love to see you chopping wood.”

“Grrr.” Josslyn growled and Avera stepped in.

“What Gustav should have said was thank you for guiding us because we would have never found this place without your help.”

Josslyn tossed her head. “Glad to be of service.” She glanced behind her. “The tunnel keeps going. Should we follow it?”

“Got a better place to be?” drawled Gustav who obviously wanted to die.

“I hope something eats you,” Josslyn huffed before stalking further into the mountain.

The passageway went upward and emerged onto a sizeable ledge, not wide so much as long. It ran the entire circumference of a cavern dotted with balls of light. Massive didn’t come close to describing the size of the space. It was as if the entire mountain were hollow and within it…

“What is this place?” Avera whispered as she glanced down and saw a veritable city carved into the mountain’s innards. Paths inclined and wound around at various levels. Braziers blazed, emitting heat and light. But almost as astonishing as the secret city, the people moving around.

“I think we found the missing villagers,” Avera whispered.

Chapter 16

Rather than followingthe winding path from the ledge into the city, the trio flattened themselves to the floor and peered over the edge. There was much to observe.

First, the workmanship that went into creating this place. Even if the mountain had been hollow from the beginning, the amount of chiseling required to create the dozens of doorways and smaller holes for windows boggled the mind. For decoration, vines and flowers had been carved along with lines and swirls that might have been a language like what they’d seen outside the cave. Globes of light emitting no smoke appeared embedded in the stone, providing illumination. The ramp leading down wound around the mini city in the pit, the road wide enough to handle a horse-drawn wagon and several people abreast. Not a speculation but fact, since they saw it in use by the bustling residents. Some carried baskets, others toted long poles with buckets on either end. No one stood around chatting. Everyone seemed intent on their task. Oddly enough, Avera spotted no guards, something Gustav remarked on.

“Whatever this place is, they aren’t afraid of being discovered. There’s no one stationed anywhere keeping watch.”

“Maybe because no one is crazy enough to explore the spire,” countered Josslyn.

Or whoever was in charge didn’t worry about intruders because no one who saw the hidden city could leave. Surely if these residents of the hamlet could have returned home, they would have, right? What kept them here? What kept them moving around like drudges? Apart from the lack of talk, Avera heard no laughter, saw no children racing around being young, no one slacking. Given how often Avera had been ignored growing up, she’d grown adept at observing people and their behavior. This came across as highly unnatural.

Josslyn noticed it, too, and murmured, “They’re like ants. Busy, busy, busy.” An apt comparison.

“What’s that big, dark section at the very bottom?” Gustav craned and squinted.

“Looks like a lake of ice.” The surface was opaque and glistening in spots as water pooled atop it.