At first, when she first moved to the shelter, Isha was a little happy.

Officially known as the House of the Advent Sisters, it is a place of warmth and friendliness. Here she and Madeleine have a one-bedroom suite of their own, the furnishings are not high-end, but they are very clean and comfortable, and she no longer has to worry about "guests" who might break into her room in the middle of the night, or the gunshot on the porch or the unknown blood stains in the elevator......

And her mother is no longer an alcoholic, and she doesn't need to be taken out by strange-looking men and come home scarred.

Everything looks a lot better than before.

But gradually, things started to look wrong. The entire Sanctuary House was filled with love and trust for the sect as if they were suffering from hysteria, and for a long time, even Isha herself couldn't help but wonder if it was she and not Madeleine who was really abnormal. Isha fell silent, instinctively realizing that this might not be the place they thought they could be at ease. But she is the only one who seems to be aware of this. Madeleine's growing fanaticism for Adventists began to frighten Isa: the woman who had raised her, who loved her more than anyone else, seemed to have become strange in a short time. The so-called redemption, the so-called love and guidance seemed to have a special magic, which made Madeleine crazy, and reason and even maternal love gradually disappeared from her body like a sand sculpture washed by the waves. Worrying Isha even more was Madeleine's body, as the school teachers told her that humans needed food and water to stay alive, but the Advent teachers kept repeating in their ears the benefits of "purification". Isha watched her mother grow emaciated and shriveled little by little, but when she asked any questions about what was going on here, all she could get was her mother's hysterical almost frantic rebuttals, and, of course, the seemingly cordial guidance and preaching of the "sisters" and mentors......

That's why when Madeleine, her beloved mom, runs back to the sanctuary in a delirious state, she sneaks out late at night to ask Calvin for help.

“…… She looked like she was going crazy. As she rushed to the sanctuary with Calvin, Isha recounted Madeleine's condition to him with uneasiness, "She had a wound on her neck, but the bleeding was not serious...... I think she might have been robbed, or maybe ...... She has been hiding in the bathtub since she returned, saying that she had met a demon...... I thought she should go to the hospital, but the people at the shelter told her to kneel in front of the sculpture and pray, and they didn't allow her to rest, I don't know what they were questioning her, I just knew that her mother was bleeding all the time, and those bastards didn't help her with her wounds at all......"

"You should call 911, someone will ......"

"No one will care. There was desperation in Isa's eyes that she shouldn't have at her age, "There's the House of Refuge...... The House of the Adventists...... The tutor snatched my phone away and she told her that everything was okay over there......"

"And the police believe it?"

Calvin's face grew solemn.

Isha nodded with tears in her eyes.

"Some police officers will come to Mass......"

Calvin listened to her choked voice and patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'll find a way to get her out and we'll take her to the hospital together. ”

He whispered.

The road leading to the shelter was dark on both sides, a residential area, with only a few houses lit up in the middle of the night, and dogs could occasionally be heard barking from behind the bushes. After a few cats slid into the shadows with a snort as people passed by, their pupils reflecting tiny light in the dark. Calvin's face was rather solemn, and in fact he knew that there was no one in this world more unfit to go to the House of Sanctuary to help Isha, the territory of the Adventists, the cradle of the Adventists to raise fanatics.

Every nerve, every cell in Calvin was telling him that he shouldn't have taken such a risk.

It's just stupid.

As he stood in front of the white building, looking at the English-style arches and fences, he heard the voice in his head say this.

Outside the building, which looked a bit like a family hotel, was a dense field of white roses, and those bowl-sized flowers hung from the black branches and leaves like a baby's skull in the night, giving off a strange fragrance.

A brick and stone sign stands in the middle of the roses.

"House of the Adventist Sisters"

The gift of the Child of Light, the sign and the refuge

It said something like this.

Calvin's gaze lingered on the Child of Light for a moment, and the shuddering sensation came upon him like a tidal wave once more. The stench of decay emanating from here brought Calvin back to his childhood, and he felt a faint ache in the wound behind his back during those dark days.

"Calvin ......"

Isha whispered softly next to Calvin drew his attention back.

Calvin glanced at Isha, a young girl of the same age as Calvin had fled and the same trepidation and unease.

He grudgingly smiled at Isha, trying to calm her down. He then told Isha to hide in a corner on the other side of the fence before he pressed the answering machine next to the archway, which had a clear sign posted underneath: No non-believers (please register if you visit)

Soon, the answering machine was connected.

"Who is it?"

The voice on the other end seemed unusually vigilant and defensive, unable to maintain even the most basic politeness.

Calvin frowned.

"I'm a friend of Madeleine Daisy, and I've heard that she had some accidents today—"

"We haven't heard about it. Who are you, what is your relationship with Madeleine, are you an Adventist?"

Calvin was interrupted rather crudely by a voice on the other end of the answering machine.

"I'm pretty sure she was robbed and injured. Calvin said.

"Please answer my question. ”

“…… I am friends with her, my name is ...... Helen, I'm not a Catholic. ”

Calvin took a breath and replied word for word.

"Then you have no right to enter the House of Sisters. Please get out of here as soon as possible. ”

The other party's voice became a little colder.

Calvin glanced at Isha not far away, her face growing paler in the night, and the fear in her eyes growing.

"Hey, listen, I just want to make sure Madeleine's condition, I don't need to enter your territory, I can look at her through the railing......"

"Please leave, or we'll call the police. ”

The man on the other side of the answering machine said without a hint of humanity, his voice cold and dry.

Calvin raised his head and glanced quickly above the arch doorpost, where he saw the monitor's flickering red light.

Then he shrugged his shoulders, spat at the iron door, and left in resentment.

After making sure he was out of range of the monitor, he motioned for Isha to follow him.

"Hey, listen, I want you to repeat your mom's thing carefully. ”

He crouched down in front of Isha and said seriously.

"What?"

Isha looked more helpless than ever, and she looked at Calvin in despair, "Repeat what? I don't understand...... They had allowed others to visit before, so why did they suddenly ......"

"Calm down, hey, baby, calm down. Calvin shook Isa's shoulder, "Something isn't quite right, can you tell who the guy I'm talking to is?"

Isha swallowed a mouthful of saliva and nodded hesitantly, "She's Anna...... Mentor Anna. She is responsible for managing the internal affairs of the shelter...... Mom didn't like her ......"

The man was very nervous.

Calvin was sure of this.

The man was in a complete panic at the word "Madeleine" - despite her efforts to maintain her cold and calm appearance, Calvin could accurately judge this, and combined with what Isha had told him earlier, Calvin could tell that it was not as simple as a woman being robbed in the middle of the night.

"Listen, Isa. I'll call Isaac later and see if he can send someone-"

At this moment, a very, very faint woman's wail crossed Calvin's ears along the silent night.

Calvin jumped to his feet, looking uncertainly at the white building surrounded by railings.

Is that...... Cry......

As if to answer his doubts, another faint howl came.

It's just that the sound is so low that if you don't listen carefully, you can easily ignore it. But since Calvin heard that voice, he naturally did not ignore the intense pain in the wail.

His breathing quickened for a moment.

"Calvin!"

Isha grabbed Calvin by the sleeve.

"What's that sound?"

Calvin rubbed his temples.

"Damn. ”

He cursed resentfully, then bowed his head and spoke to Isha again: "...... I'll have to go in and see what's going on. Isha, you're waiting outside, I'll call Isaac to pick you up. 166 Reading Network