Page 56 of The Mirror in the Mountain

When I break you, when you learn you are mine…we will remake this world together.

Bash’s eyes filled with shadow, and I realized my hand had gone to my throat, my fingertips brushing the bite mark now fully scarred. I deliberately placed my hand back on the table, letting it flatten slowly along its wooden grains. Bash’s hand immediately came on top of mine, wisps of shadow lacing around our fingers.

Yael looked at Rivan. “Has there been any word of the False King?”

“Aviel’s still in Morehaven,” Rivan replied before turning to me. “Putting that band on him was ingenious. It seems it took some time to remove.”

Good.I hoped he had suffered in the process.

“Though his return to the Source will mean he’s drained more power,” Tobias added quietly.

“His army could begin their journey to Adronix any day now,” Rivan said grimly. “Our rangers are readying to travel through the mirror to Soleara as we speak, so we should be able to head them off. And Queen Sariyah sent word that she and her forces have begun their journey east.”

I caught my brother’s gaze, my nails digging into my scarred palm as I asked, “How often did Aviel have to draw from you?”

A flicker of a wince crossed Tobias’s face, and I cringed at my bluntness.

“I just mean…he needs my magic to trick the Seeing Mirror. Will it fade if he doesn’t use it?”

Tobias’s light sparked in his eyes as if he were reliving all the times the same had been done to him, though his expression remained carefully blank. “I can’t be sure, but from what I gathered, I think it has to do with if, and how much, he uses it—expenditure, not time.” A muscle tensed in his jaw, the only sign of his discomfort as he added grimly, “There was never a rhythm to how often he drained me.”

“He used some against me,” I said, my voice hollow as I was transported back to that bed, that room. My own darkness holding me down in a cruel mockery of my magic. “So between that and the band, he might not have enough?”

“Not something we can put to chance.” Tobias grimaced. “But if he does need you…well, he knows where you’re heading, right?”

I swallowed. “Another reason we need to beat him to that mountain.”

We shared the slightest of nods.

My breathing quickened, a slight buzzing in my ears as I thought of the danger of him making it to the mirror before me. “And if we rode ahead? Just us, and have our forces follow?”

Yael pursed her lips. “It would be safer not to. There are creatures in those woods that would be scared away by an army but would happily go after a smaller group. It will only delay us a day to wait. Besides, we have a head start from Soleara, and Aviel’s forces won’t be able to travel any faster than ours.”

I could feel Bash’s reluctance to let go of my hand as he pulled out the scroll from his jacket. “We also have one last task before we can leave.”

Right. Esterra.

My gaze immediately found Yael’s, who was glaring at the broken seal on the parchment. It had formed an ornately twirlingE, I realized—thus her response.

“What does the Eastern King want?” Rivan asked through a mouthful of eggs.

Bash’s voice was carefully controlled, though I could feel his flicker of impatience. “King Eliav would like an audience before committing to another war.”

Yael’s mouth pursed. “Confirmation before committing his troops? Likely. Someone to make him feel like his contribution’s worth it? Most definitely.”

Tobias, Quinn, and I shared an equally confounded look.

“Can someone please explain the politics for those of us not brought up with maps that move?” Quinn asked tartly.

I blinked. “Maps that…what?”

Yael bounded down the hall to what I assumed was a study, coming back with a large, rolled-up map she opened with a flourish. It almost covered the entire table, nearly rolling over Rivan’s plate before he pulled it onto his lap, grumbling low obscenities.

Bash, who had gracefully snatched our mugs out of the way, handed me mine before leaning over the map. “We’re here,” he said, pointing to Soleara. The map was indeed moving: lines of wind whipping around the mountains, the seas choppy with waves. At Bash’s light touch, a glowing dot appeared where we were in the mountain top, a bronze castle gleaming below it.

“Nice to see it on the map again,” my brother said wryly.

Itwasnice seeing a glimpse of joy across Tobias’s face again, however fleeting. He had always loved the part of our lessons that involved poring over maps for our war games, each topographical curve shaping his strategies of attack.

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