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CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT

Ellery

I had no idea how long it took me and Scarlet to go through our section of the town, but by the end, I felt deflated and dirty. These amsirah had been gone for millennia, if the black stone was any indication, but it felt wrong to go through their homes and search their things.

This whole town was a cemetery, and we were stomping through it.

Many homes contained the remnants of their past residents, but some were empty. At some point, their occupants had wandered out to visit with their friends, shop at the castle, and read in the library.

They’d gone out to enjoy the lives torn from them in an instant. With every house, my dread increased, and so did my certainty that from one breath to the next, we’d evaporate too.

But somehow, we made it through and retreated to the castle. I couldn’t wait to get out of here so I could scrub away the remnants of this place.

Ianto and Callan were already waiting for us when we arrived at the castle gates. With circles under their eyes and a weary set to their shoulders, they looked as defeated as I felt.

“Did you find anything?” Ianto asked.

“No,” I told him. “Did you?”

“No.”

“What time is it?”

“A little after ten.”

He must have recently checked his watch, as he didn’t bother to look at it.

“At night?” I asked.

It was impossible to tell what time it was in this place, and while it didn’t feel like we’d been gone that long, it could have been morning already. Time didn’t exist in this place of darkness, death, and pulsating gems.

“Yes,” he replied.

I tried not to pace while we waited for Ryker. I really didn’t think there was anything monstrous down here to attack us, and while I sensed he was safe, I wanted to see him to be sure.

I was about to walk around the castle to see the back road when Tucker and Ryker rounded the corner of the building. After being apart for so long and seeing all the dead, I felt more in control of myself as I ran to him.

When Ryker opened his arms to me, I threw myself into them. He lifted me off the ground and clasped me against his chest.

I sighed and nestled closer as I inhaled his familiar scent of horse and cinnamon. This place was still awful , but he made it a little more bearable.

“Did you find anything?” I asked.

“No. You?”

“None of us did.”

I almost suggested bypassing the road we’d first walked, but we couldn’t leave here without finishing what we’d started. If we did, we’d always question if we missed something.

“With all of us working together, we’ll get through the last of the town pretty fast,” Tucker said. “It doesn’t seem like there’s anything for us to find here, but we still have to search it.”

It was like he was reading my mind… and probably everyone else’s.

When we descended the hill again, we stayed in our groups of two as we split up to search the remaining homes and businesses lining the street.

With the six of us working together, it did go a lot faster, but it still felt like we’d spent days instead of hours here by the time we made it to the last of the houses.

Scarlet and I entered a coral-colored home with tangerine shutters while the others divided to take on the last two homes. As we made our way through the residence, curiosity propelled me to the sink.

I’d considered turning it on in many other houses but decided it felt too weird to use a dead man’s sink. This was our last chance, and I couldn’t leave without at least knowing what would emerge from the tap. Plus, it would be good if we could refill our canteens before leaving this place.

Standing before the white basin, I twisted the tap and held my breath as I half expected a ghost to flow from the pipes… or maybe blood. That possibility almost had me turning it back off, but I waited.

However, instead of a ghost, blood, dirt, or water, nothing poured from the spigot. I fiddled with it for a few seconds before turning it off again.

Turning, I examined the kitchen with its yellow walls and abstract paintings decorating them.

This wasn’t the first home where we’d encountered a smaller pile of clothes indicating a child, but a lump lodged in my throat when I spotted the small shoes by the back door.

They’d probably been going outside to play.

I pushed myself away from the sink and strode into the living room, where I met Scarlet coming down the stairs. She was paler than normal.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

“There’s a crib upstairs.”

That was all she had to say. When she stepped off the last stair, I opened my arms and embraced her.

I’d never return to this hated, awful place.

“Let’s get out of here,” I said.