Even though we were never supposed to leave the compounds, old men in the would share horrific stories about the remains of human settlements, and the monsters that hid in the shadows of the derelict buildings.
The light on the horizon silhouetted the broken concrete and leaning houses, crumbling beneath ash so thick it had condensed into a layer of corrosive concrete, oozing down through the structures before hardening into a thick paste. It gave everything a warped, curving appearance like the whole town was melting.
“Do you hear that?” April said suddenly, slowing her steps.
“Hear what?” Luke asked.
“Whispers,” Jazmine said. “Like voices, I hear them too.”
“Keep your eyes out for the missing children,” I said.
“They’re long dead,” Camina replied. “Nobody could survive out here so long, by themselves.”
“Maybe they just got stuck or trapped.”
“All of them?” Trevor asked.
“We made the mayor a promise,” I said. “We have to at least look.”
“Now I know why they call it the lurks,” April said. “Feels like we’re being watched.”
I rubbed my arms through the thick leather of my jacket. It did feel like that, though I couldn’t hear any voices.
Probably just a slagpaw den. I held my breath, listening to the wind in the trees and the soft sizzle of falling embers.
Movement rustled up ahead, and I froze, pulling out the curved sword, but it was just an old bobcat, lean and tough, with gnarled ears and long whiskers. It froze, watching us with detached yellow eyes, before scampering down an alley.
This town wasn’t as big as the city where Havoc was hidden, but some of the buildings were larger; giant stone blocks that held dozens of living apartments. We turned at the gas station, entering another area of town. The oak trees of the park had grown so large they pushed into the houses around the edge, their gnarled limbs tearing through broken windows.
Through the trees, I could see a playground, stripped of paint, its steel bars shrouded in ferns and vines. It was dark under the canopy of branches, and I strained to see up ahead into the black void. A spark of light caught my attention. Some sort of firefly, buzzing in the thick grass, drew my attention to the stately-looking house set back away from the park.
It had a wide open porch, with a swinging bench hanging crookedly from one rusted chain. More fireflies lit up as we approached, filling the air with a gentle buzz that felt almost like a physical pressure.
“That’s the one,” I said, pointing at the mailbox. The wooden post had disintegrated, probably burnt through at one point, but I kicked over the rusted mailbox on the ground to see the number.
The rotten wood groaned beneath his weight as Trevor climbed up the stairs carefully. He’d nearly reached the porch when light flooded through the windows.
I gasped at the sudden change, shielding my eyes against the blinding light.
“Get down!” I whispered, pulling Trevor backwards and hiding in the thick grass beneath the porch. The others scattered behind the skeletal remains of the large rhododendron bushes lining the street.
“Do you hear that?” April asked, breathlessly. We froze, hovering as still as possible. I held my breath to silence my mask and then I heard it. The faint strains of music.
With the lights on, I could see that the house – though still old and in need of repair – was in much better shape than the rotting remains of the collapsed structures around it.
“Someone can’t be living here, can they?” Jazmine asked.
“Out in the open like this?” Luke said, “with their lights on at night, a beacon for prowlers? If they are, they’re insane.”
“So what should we do now?” Camina asked. A sharp gust of icy wind sent a shiver down the nape of my neck.
“Now,” I said, stepping forward, “we knock.”
21
I rapped my knuckles against the door, which looked freshly painted. I heard the lock unclick and the door swung open, but nobody was there. Just a clean and well lit hallway. I’d never been in a house like this before. It wasn’t the gilded luxury of the citadel, nor the cozy, organic houses of Algrave. I’d visited a few houses from the Before; mostly ruins, half eaten by the plants and the elements.
My muddy boots hovered over the shaggy carpet of the foyer. To the left was a living room, with a long leather couch and big windows. They weren’t even boarded up. Tasteful paintings lined the walls, their hues almost eerily matching the flower