Chapter 22 · The Kids Start Singing

"You open that ward and you kill them faster than the song does." Silas's forearm slammed against the quarantine door right over my head and pinned me there. His chest hit my back. Hot. Too hot. Like he was burning up under that coat.

"Get off me," I snapped. "They're already singing, Silas. Your lock isn't saving anyone."

"It is keeping them alive," he said, his mouth right by my ear. "You want to play hero? You do it my way."

Inside the ward, the kids started again. Not crying. Not coughing. Singing.

That same low hum from last night. That awful lullaby that meant the black veins were moving. One voice, then three, then all of them. Off-key and sweet and wrong.

My stomach dropped. "Listen to that. You hear that? That's not alive. That's the choir."

"I hear it," he said. His arm didn't move. His breath was rough against my hair. "Which is why that door stays shut."

"Screw your door!" I shoved back against him. He didn't budge. Solid as the wall.