"Bjei… I've been waiting for you."
I stopped breathing.
The voice came from behind the enormous door.
It was soft.
Almost gentle.
But there was something about it that made my stomach twist.
I looked at Shawshank.
He was staring at the door as if he had seen a ghost.
"Who is that?" I whispered.
He didn't answer.
"Shawshank?"
"Don't open it."
I frowned.
"But the voice said—"
"I know what it said."
"Then who is behind it?"
He stepped closer to the door and examined the golden symbol.
"I've never seen this door open."
"Then how do you know it shouldn't be opened?"
"Because your grandmother sealed it."
My eyes widened.
"My grandmother?"
"Yes."
I placed my palm against the door again.
The golden mark on my ankle suddenly became brighter.
The door trembled.
Shawshank grabbed my wrist.
"Bjei, stop."
I looked at him.
"Why?"
"Because something is trying to get out."
Before I could respond, the voice came again.
"Don't trust him."
I froze.
The voice was my grandmother's.
I knew it.
I didn't know how, but I knew.
"Grandma?"
Shawshank's grip tightened.
"Bjei, listen to me."
"That's my grandmother."
"No."
"You don't know that!"
"I do."
"How?"
He looked frightened.
"Because I heard that voice before."
"Where?"
"When I was a child."
I stared at him.
"You knew my grandmother?"
"Not personally."
"Then how?"
Shawshank looked at the door.
"She came to the kingdom when I was very young. Everyone knew about her."
"What did she do?"
"She tried to destroy the door."
My heart pounded.
"Why?"
"She said something was trapped behind it."
I looked at the door.
"What?"
Shawshank shook his head.
"She never told anyone."
The voice came again.
"Bjei, don't let him lie to you."
I stepped backward.
"Why would my grandmother tell me not to trust Shawshank?"
"I don't know."
"Maybe because you are hiding something."
His eyes met mine.
"I am."
I stared at him.
"What?"
He lowered his voice.
"I didn't tell you everything about why you were brought here."
My chest tightened.
"What aren't you telling me?"
Before he could answer, the door suddenly opened.
A powerful force pushed us backward.
I fell against the wall.
Shawshank landed beside me.
The darkness behind the door began moving.
Not a person.
Not an animal.
Something else.
A shadow crawled across the floor.
Then stopped.
I couldn't move.
Shawshank stood in front of me.
"Stay behind me."
The shadow slowly formed the shape of a woman.
Her face remained hidden.
But I could hear her breathing.
Then she lifted her head.
"Bjei."
I felt tears fill my eyes.
"Grandma?"
The figure smiled.
"You came back."
My heart shattered.
Back?
What did she mean by back?
I stepped forward.
Shawshank caught my arm.
"Don't."
I pulled away.
"She knows me."
"She knows what you are."
"What am I?"
The figure laughed softly.
"You haven't told her?"
Shawshank remained silent.
I turned to him.
"Tell me."
He looked at the woman.
Then at me.
"You aren't completely human."
The world seemed to stop.
I laughed nervously.
"What?"
"You heard me."
"No."
"Bjei—"
"No!"
I stepped away from both of them.
"You're lying."
The woman smiled.
"Your mother should have told you."
"My mother?"
"Yes."
"What am I?"
She opened her mouth.
But before she could answer, a deafening sound shook the entire kingdom.
The guards.
They had found us.
Shawshank looked toward the corridor.
"We have to go."
I didn't move.
"I want answers."
"You'll get them."
"When?"
"Later."
"I don't trust you."
Pain flashed across his face.
"I know."
He reached for my hand.
This time, I didn't pull away.
We ran.
Behind us, the mysterious woman disappeared into the darkness.
But her laughter followed us.
And as we escaped through the tunnel, I heard her whisper one final sentence.
"Your mother didn't send you to the sea, Bjei."
I looked back.
The darkness swallowed her completely.
Then her voice came again.
"The sea sent you to your mother."