Page 69 of The Wild Zone

That was a little strange. I was pretty sure the naiad and I had been the only ones in the bathhouse, but I shrugged. “I don’t know. I suppose ‘Stomp my Bleeding Heart’ is catchy.”

“But you told Zuri that all you listen to is K-pop because you ‘gotta represent.’ ” The girl made air quotes. “And the other morning at breakfast, you were going to order Sunkist but changed your mind and chose hyeonmi-cha instead, which you promptly dumped out.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Are you, like, stalking me or—”

“You grew defensive when I pointed out your name was spelled wrong in hangul. A simple mistake most would laugh at. And then there are your visions.” The girl leaned close and whispered, “You react more loudly than you think.”

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Something was definitely odd about this girl—I mean aside from the unicorn hoodie and the questionable puzzle-solving methods. The light seemed to bend around her, making it hard to focus on the details of her face. A moment before, she had looked like she could be my little sister. Now her hair seemed honey-blond, her eyes more like amber. I knew I’d seen her before, but my brain felt fuzzy in her presence.

“Since you know so much about me,” I said, trying to sound defiant, “why don’t you tell me why I care?”

“Oh, no.” The girl shook her head. “It’s never wise to assume other people’s motives.”

From inside the Big House, I heard the creaking of floorboards and multiple voices coming nearer. One of them was Argus’s.

“And that’s my cue to leave,” I told the girl. “Good-bye.”

I pivoted on my heel and headed for the front door.

“Know yourself and be true to yourself, Katie Kim,” the girl called after me. “That is where the greatest happiness lies.”

I rolled my eyes and spoke over my shoulder. “Don’t—”

But the girl was gone. So was the table with the puzzle. A hint of woodsmoke lingered in the air, reminding me of the fire pit between the cabins.

What had the girl said? She knew every language spoken in every household? And she’d been putting together a jigsaw of six houses in a row—identical facades, but each in a different color, probably with very different families inside.

Had I just been talking to Hestia, goddess of the hearth?

As I was trying to process that, and wondering why a goddess would wear a unicorn hoodie, Argus emerged from the Big House, followed by a cadre of dryads and satyrs.

“…searched all night,” one of the dryads was saying.

“Except the Wild Zone,” a satyr retorted. “Which was the place he warned us about!”

“Silas wouldn’t dare go beyond the border,” the dryad argued back. “Even we do not dwell in those trees!”

As soon as Argus saw me, he held up his hand and the nature spirits fell silent.

“Katie Kim.” Only one of Argus’s many eyes focused on me—the one on his chin, and it didn’t seem to like me much.

“I need to talk to you,” I said. “About Silas.”

Argus gestured at his companions. “Can’t you see I’m busy working on just that? You should go get dressed for break—”

“I know you found his panpipes,” I said.

Everyone on the porch now focused on me. The satyrs looked nervous. The dryads scowled like they were silently judging my pajamas.

Argus turned to the nature spirits. “We’ll speak more later. Thank you.”

They dispersed, heading toward the woods or off to their chores.

Argus faced me fully, giving me the attention of at least a dozen eyes, all of which looked weary and bloodshot. “Well?”

“I think Silas was taken by the same creature that took Grant from the Wild Zone.”

Argus cocked his head. “Grant was in the Wild Zone? How do you know that?”