Page 94 of When Wishes Bleed

“You’re not opening that,” Tauren ordered.

“I am, but not here,” I amended.

“Sable, anything sent by your mother is unsafe for you.”

“She didn’t come here,” I reasoned, “and he didn’t threaten me. Perhaps this is an olive branch. In any event, I can’t open it here. I need Brecan and Mira with me in case I’m wrong.”

Tauren stared at the parcel like it might turn into a scorpion and strike at him with its bulbous, barbed tail. I was about to dismiss him when he speared me with an intensely determined look. “I’m coming with you.”

“It’s too dangerous for you.”

“When you open it, I will be there, Sable.” He sheathed his blade, never taking his eyes off me. Then he offered his arm, leaving no room for argument. I accepted it and together, we walked quickly upstairs.

Mira had showered, but was still shaken when she entered my room. “My mother froze the pool, didn’t she?” I surmised.

Mira nodded, her eyes wide as she looked between the Prince and me. “What’s that?” she asked, pointing to the package I held securely in my arms.

“I need you and Brecan here in case something happens when I open it.”

“Is it from her?” she rasped. “You don’t want to open it, Sable. She’s… she’s… she took over Thirteen.”

“What?”

Mira nodded. “That’s what she said. At the pool, I was trying to reach Bay when she appeared instead.”

Brecan slipped into the room, catching the last of our conversation. “I can’t reach Wayra, either. And it’s obvious that no Priestess of the House of Earth has been Elevated, since everything remains dead.” Brecan pushed off the wall. “It’ll stay that way if an Earthen Priestess isn’t Elevated soon. If Cyril is strong enough to block the Circle, irreparable damage might be done.”

“Nothing is irreparable,” I whispered.

“Let’s go see what your mother sent you.” Brecan gestured to my door, then looked at Tauren. “Are you sure he should be here?”

“No,” I grumped. “But I’m not sure he shouldn’t, either.”

Tauren stiffened beside me, but I took his hand and pulled him into my room. Mira followed us.

Sending an anxious glance to Brecan and Mira, they extended their hands and readied themselves for battle as I untied the string and unwrapped the parcel. Inside was a simple, hand-held mirror. The handle and frame were ornately carved from jade, and ivy tendrils crawled up each side of the oval frame.

The mirror smelled of rich soil.

It also smelled like my grandmother’s rosemary hand lotion.

I looked in the smooth glass. My reflection was quickly replaced by another, but the one looking through the mirror smiled. The way her lips moved, the dark shade of her eyes… They were the same as mine, yet there was a rage, barely restrained, contained within.

“Stop reading me, Sable,” she snapped.

Blinking, I snapped out of the lazy haze and focused on her. “What do you want?”

“What do I want? Is that any way to greet your mother after seventeen years of absence?”

I remained still, careful to keep the mirror trained on my face and not allow her to see Tauren, Brecan, or Mira.

“How is your little Water witch friend?” Cyril grinned.

“She is well. Why would you ask?”

Her eyes narrowed fractionally, and then she began to pace in front of the purple couch in my House. “I’ve resurrected the House of Fate. Thank you for attempting to clean it before you were plucked away.”

Number one, it was my House now. And she was thanking me? “I wasn’t plucked. I chose to leave.”

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