to night, only shuddered back into morning. The light through the blinds made me sleep fitfully, my dreams full of wheeling terns and Mikhail, lunging at me from out of the mist only to turn into Hardcastle and then transform into the creature from the church.
I woke to sweat-soaked sheets despite the cold. On the mainland it had been in the sixties during the day, but on the island it was a good fifteen or twenty degrees cooler—something about microclimates and ocean currents.
I stared at the wall, the scenes from the day before playing through my head again. The creature, the hum. Rushing back to the shore and piling into the Katydid. It seemed like the mist had been chasing us. Liam and Abby and I had no chance to talk to each other—Dr. Kapoor sent Abby back to Mrs. Popova’s and assigned Lily and Kenny to teach me how to log the day’s data, and then to give me an overview of the various projects they were working on.
By the time we were done it was late—and I could feel the backlash coming, the price I paid for feeding my fear to the void. Abby was now in the room Liam had occupied the night before, so I closed my own door and curled up on my bed to ride it out. I must have fallen asleep at some point because I didn’t remember anything else until morning, when I woke with my head throbbing and my lip bloody where I’d bitten down on it to keep from making any noise.
A knock on the door gave me half a second’s warning before Abby opened it, leaning in. She was fully dressed, her messenger bag over one shoulder. “You’re late,” she informed me.
I blinked groggily. “What time is . . . ?” I glanced at the clock and swore. The odd timelessness of the midnight sun had knocked my internal clock truly askew.
“This whole thing does work a lot better if the boss lady likes you,” Abby said. “But you smell like dead fish and despair. Might want to hit the shower.”
I made a rude gesture in her direction, scooped up my clothes, and bolted for the end of the hall. I rinsed the stale sweat from my skin and dried myself hastily, then braided my hair by touch as I hurried down the hall, Abby trailing.
I wasn’t the only one, at least. I found Kenny in the kitchen, a piece of jam-slathered toast hanging from his mouth as he pulled his sweater on. “Mgrfing,” he said, then took the toast out. “Good morning. Nice of you to stay behind to walk with me.” He winked.
“I’m so dead,” I groaned. Not a real internship, I reminded myself, but I thought of Dr. Kapoor’s stern gaze and hurried to lace up my boots.
“It’s our lucky day. Lily messaged me. Dr. Kapoor’s been in her office with Dr. Hardcastle all morning. Hasn’t noticed we’re missing. If we hurry, we might survive another day!”
“I’ll tag along, if that’s cool,” Abby said. Kenny bobbed his shoulders in a shrug that was less an answer than a refusal to take responsibility.
We headed out the door together, pausing to lock up behind us. I caught a flash of my reflection in the window by the door, exhausted and tousle-haired. At least mirror-me looked as bad as real-me felt.
Lily had taken the car the assistants shared, leaving us to hoof it along the gravel road. Mrs. Popova’s house was on the southwestern edge of the island. In fact, given the island’s hook, it was the farthest spot on the island from Belaya Skala. Which meant it was a long way from the LARC as well, and most of that uphill. I was sweating again by the time we hustled up the last stretch to the door.
Lily met us at the door. “You’re in the clear,” she said, and high-fived Kenny and me as we went past. She gave Abby a quizzical look, but she swanned past without explanation.
We shuffled into the break room, which was more of an overflow-storage room with a couple couches crammed in between the boxes. Liam was there, leaning against the counter by the coffee maker. He had his arms crossed, his body compressed with nervous energy, but when he saw me he relaxed a little. I didn’t think my arrival had ever inspired that reaction in someone.
“Howdy,” he said.
“Is that your attempt at an American accent?” I asked him.