Sound of Sirens

Chapter 7

By the time we call it a night, it is way past my usual bedtime on weekdays. I'll be intolerable to be around tomorrow morning, but right now, I couldn't care less. I spent an evening with the most handsome guy on Skylge and I heard the most beautiful songs ever. And he's okay with sharing the mythical power of electricity with me. We've even agreed to a second 'musical date' on Friday afternoon before dinner time.

"Will you be all right?" Royce inquires as he gets into his car. "It's pretty dark out."

I cock an eyebrow. "Care to drop me off in Kinnum and draw out the entire village with your motorized vehicle?"

He looks away. "Just asking."

"Yes, I'll be fine." I raise my hand to my forehead in a mock-salute. "Will report for LP duty on Friday. No worries."

"Good." Royce waves once more, then slams the car door shut and drives off into the night, the high beams of his car illuminating the tall grass on either side of the road.

I wait until he's gone before I start walking. My eyes need to get adjusted to the darkness once more. I spent hours under artificial lights and it feels like my retinas are burned because I'm not used to such bright light at such a late hour.

Just when I reach the edge of the abandoned village, I hear a sound. Someone is talking, and another voice is responding, but the second voice sounds strange, as though it is coming from a tin can. Both are male. The voices seem to be coming from an old shack close to my left.

A shiver down my spine makes me tremble. This smells fishy. If people are out at this hour and hanging around in an ancient, uninhabited village, they are probably up to no good.

I clench my hands into fists and stop in my tracks, ducking down when the door of the shack suddenly swings open on squeaky hinges. Oh Fosta – what will I do if these guys catch me here?

To my relief, the shadowy figure coming out of the old hut doesn't even glance my way. Instead, the man – his friend must still be in the house – makes his way across the fields in the direction of Kinnum. My heart is tapping in my throat as I scramble up again and carefully follow him with my eyes, sticking to the cracked pavement of the old road on my way back. I stop breathing entirely, though, when the mysterious figure reaches the Main Road illuminated by gas lamps.

It's my brother.

What is Sytse doing out this late? What's more, what was he doing in Stortum? Could it be he saw me when I snuck out earlier? But if so, why would he hide in a shack instead of barging into Royce's cottage to confront me with my lies?

I stop again, making sure Sytse can't see me if he decides to look back now, and wait until he's completely out of view. My brother is hiding something, and I wonder what it is.

By the time I get home, I'm dead beat from all the walking and the elation of the entire evening, but I still have trouble falling asleep. When I finally do, I dream about Sirens calling my brother out into the waves as Royce plays his strange, electric piano at the seaside. And I just stand there and watch, frozen in time.

The next morning, I'm actually glad to be woken early by my faithful albatross. Since we still have leftover pancakes, I won't have to worry about breakfast, so I might have some time to cycle back to Stortum and take a closer look at the mysterious hut Sytse was hanging around in.

"Hi there," I say softly. The bird, now perched on the table next to our front door, cocks its head and observes me with its yellow eyes. When I extend my hand to offer the animal a bit of pancake, it hops backward and lets out a soft screech, almost as if to say: "Really?"