Page 6 of The Mirror in the Mountain

There was a roaring in my ears. My friends’ voices merged together in a distant murmur as my trembling finger traced iridescent letters atop the clammy skin of my palm.

You saved us, and now it’s our turn to save you. Hold on, hellion.

Chapter 4

Eva

Ishould have known Alette had fire magic.

Maybe I should have been more surprised. But I could only look on with detached horror as Alette blasted the False King’s quarters apart, a fireball tunneling down through the floor until the hole it had formed looked like the yawning entry to hell itself. Flames flickered at me from every surface, and it was all I could do to quash my terror as my mother’s screams filled my mind, my two worst nightmares merging to become reality.

I was almost grateful Bash couldn’t feel my distress as I lay rigid with fear, trying not to let my panic overwhelm me.

But there was a faint reddish glimmer around the bed that not even the smoke penetrated, the shield the exact shade of the fire I had seen in Alette’s eyes. Shaking, I desperately focused on it, forcing my mind to calm.

I hadn’t so much as breathed in before four guards, who must have been stationed outside the door, burst into the room. Alette, however, was gone, as if she had disappeared into the hole she had made in the earth. I pretended to be stunned as one of the guards unlocked the chain extending from my manaclesto the bedframe, their metal now steadily heating around my wrists.

Sucking in a scorching breath, I readied to make my move. As two of the guards yanked me up by my forearms, I kicked out with both feet at the third in front of me. His eyes flared as he seemed to hang in the air for an extended moment. Then he fell into the flaming hole with a scream that was swallowed by the roar of the fire.

Taking advantage of their shock, I stomped on the foot of the guard to my left, yanking myself from his hold. The other guard roughly twisted my arm, trying to subdue me. I slammed the crown of my head into his face, feeling the gush of his blood on my hair as it cracked his nose.

I screamed as something hit me from behind. A stream of water turned to ice as it pinned me against the double doors. The fourth guard prowled forward, a sneer curling his lip. With all my limbs frozen in place, I could do nothing to stop him as he pulled that too familiar syringe from a small metal case and stabbed it into my arm.

A burning sensation spread like a fire through my veins. The flames swam concerningly.

No.

Past and present merged together. Smoke blurred my vision. And then I could feel my mother’s hand on my chest pushing me into the void?—

But there was no mirror to fall through. There was nothing at all.

Chapter 5

Bash

My heart pounded loudly in my ears; each beat a thunderous drum in my chest. Every instinct screamed at me to do something, even as I stood rooted to the spot, the room closing in around me as I stared at the space where the last missive had appeared.

“She’s alive,” Marin said firmly. “You would know if she wasn’t.”

I swallowed hard; my mouth dry. Ignoring the voice that whispered,Would I?

Tobias’s hands curled into fists. “We can’t just sit here and?—”

Another flash, and Yael snagged a second message from midair, a frown crossing her face before her eyes met mine.

My heart caught in my throat. “Is she?—”

“I don’t think so,” Yael said, her features tight. “Our people there say the prince—” She shook her head, correcting herself. “The False King is gathering a contingent. He’s leaving the castle. Which means someone’s doing our job for us.” She frowned, worry lines etching her forehead. “We have to assume he’ll take Eva with him.”

“Whatever happened, it at least bought her some time if Aviel now needs to move her,” Rivan said grimly.

“We need to let him get farther away from Morehaven so there’s no chance he can quickly return to the Source when we do attack,” Yael said, then winced. “Even if that means Eva’s trapped with him longer. But if they’re on the move, and in a hurry?—”

“—whether anticipating retribution from us or running from whomever orchestrated that attack,” Rivan interjected.

“Then this may work in our favor,” Marin finished.

I forced myself to swallow my immediate retort. They were right—though I noticed Tobias looked no happier about that than I did.

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