Page 134 of The Unseen Hour

Somewhere near us, the clock sounded.

It was midnight, and I was home.

Remi and Regi were still with me, but the Shades drifting away from us were fewer in number. How Charon ensured each soul came out at the country of its death I couldn’t begin to fathom, but the souls weren’t my main concern when it came to my plan.

I looked around but didn’t spot Orion or Charon. Ry had told me that the god went from country to country during the hour. He could be anywhere in Rayus. As long as he was far away from Orion, our plan would work.

We’d arrived just inside the Fox Haven gates.

“This way!” I waved the brothers onward, toward Death’s church, but they didn’t respond.

Orion’s brother let go of my hand, and the two of them began to drift away.

“Remi! Regi! What are you⁠—”

They weren’t listening. They were singing. The streets were filled with fog, and the lanterns were dark.

There was a clacking sound, and I looked up to see five tree hoppers circling overhead. Somehow, they’d made it out. I flashed my wrist, a pink bracelet glinting through the fog. The birds cawed in response.

I swallowed down the lump in my throat. I could do this. I could stop this whole thing—hopefully before the brothers or other Shades hurt anyone else. It was possible Orion had already started singing at the ruins. At any moment, the Shades might all follow his voice.

I raced over the cobblestones in the center of town, forcing myself not to stop at any of the familiar landmarks. As I neared the clock tower, the urge to turn west toward my family’s estate was stark, but I ignored that as well.

Just one more night. You’ll have plenty of time with them soon enough, I reminded myself.

As I raced past the clock tower, I saw more Shades. They were grouped together around the apothecary. Singing, with their hands joined.

Orion had said Shades tended to target their old friends and neighbors. I supposed they could be patients, but he’d never indicated Shades could behave this cohesively.

I paused when I heard the door creak open.

Dr. Stephans emerged.

“No! Don’t come out here!” I ran for him, but he froze, dropping to the ground before I could reach him. Within seconds, a new Shade wearing Dr. Stephans’ face joined the crowd.

I put a hand over my mouth, covering a scream and backing away in horror.

Dr. Stephans and the other Shades moved as a unit to the next building.

This was how Charon planned to win. He had enough Shades, and perhaps enough Shades with their emotions built up over so many years, that walls and doors weren’t enough anymore.

If I didn’t succeed, the entire town would be dead by the end of the hour.

I’d tried to prepare myself to fight against the urge to sing. I’d brought extra cloth to stuff in my mouth, but I didn’t have the slightest inclination to join the Shades.

Maybe the music I held in my hand kept me immune.

I sprinted the rest of the way to the church, past other groups of Shades.

The massive structure loomed over me. I put a hand out to the twisted metal of the church door-knocker, but I couldn’t grasp it. I wasn’t really a Shade, but I’d been in the Ether for a year. Orion had said it had taken him years to work out how to grab things in this realm, and he’d never breached someone’s sanctuary when they hid during the hour.

I’d beat the other Shades to this particular location, but I knew it was only a matter of time.

On instinct, I wanted to start beseeching the gods for help, but one was already doing as much as she could. One would kill me if he found out what I was up to, and the others hadn’t bothered to answer me anyway.

I was on my own. This plan had to work. With new determination settling in, I reached for the knocker with one hand, and the handle to the right side door in the other. I took several steadying breaths, and squeezed.

I couldn’t help the surprised squeak followed by the sigh of relief as my hand closed around the cold metal. I could feel it.