Its paws are splayed out before us on the floor, only the front half of its body visible from where it is crafted into the wall.
“Ah. Newcomers,” says the sphinx. “It’s been a long while. Oh, don’t worry,” he says, having caught the fear on our faces. “I am not here to eat you—unless, of course, you fail the test.”
Nolan instinctively steps in front of me, and the sphinx lets out a low, echoing laugh. Afraid that the sound will carry down the stairwell, I back up from behind Nolan and shut the door behind us, twisting the lock back in place. Though I’m sure if the Sister discovers we’re up here, it will do little to delay her.
“Yes,” Nolan says. “We seek to merit use of your passage.”
He bows in honor to the sphinx, as the legends would suggest is wise.
“Well, that will not do. I’m only permitted to allow one into the sanctuary at a time. Lucky for you—it’s now empty. Other than what you’re seeking, I suppose.”
My heart races. There’s a chance that it’s not my son behind the sphinx. But I don’t want to raise the question aloud. It feels treacherous to do so.
Still, what else would the Sister guard this heavily?
“It should be you,” Nolan and I say simultaneously.
I shake my head, fear lancing through me. “No, you’re the better fighter of the two of us. There’s no guessing what else is behind that wall. If there are guards, you need to be the one to fight them off.”
Nolan frowns. “Is that what you’re afraid of, Darling? That you’ll find guards behind that wall?”
My yes catches in my throat, and my husband cranes his head at me knowingly.
“You’re his mother, Darling,” he says.
I hug my arms to my chest. “And that’s always been the problem, hasn’t it?” I ask, my voice raspy. “Please. Please, you go. I don’t want to fail him again.”
Before Nolan can argue with me, the sphinx yawns. “You can continue this conversation if you wish, but know it is a waste oftime. I will grant passage to whichever of you is the first to solve my riddle.”
Nolan and I glance at each other, and I try to silently convey that if I figure it out first, I’ll whisper it to him so he can present it to the sphinx.
“What’s the riddle, then?” I ask.
“I only exist when my enemy is partial,” says the sphinx.
I swallow, glancing at Nolan. I’ve never been any good at riddles.
“Are we allowed to discuss with one another, or will you count our guesses as our final answer?” asks Nolan.
The sphinx grins. “You may discuss. But I would discuss quickly if I were you. It seems you are not meant to be here.”
Panic taps against my chest.
“Could it be some sort of criminal?” asks Nolan. “Judges are what I think of when I think of someone being partial or impartial.”
I shake my head. “Criminals exist whether a judge is being partial or not. Besides, judges could be partial either way, toward or against the criminal.”
“What about light?” asks Nolan.
I blink. “That could work. Light doesn’t exist where darkness is total.”
The sphinx’s voice drawls. “Is that your final answer?”
Nolan offers me a look of question.
I nod my head. “You do it,” I say.
He frowns, but answers all the same. “Light is our final answer.”
