Page 4 of A Snowed in Valentine's

But even as she uttered the words, she couldn’t help feeling a smidgen of doubt. Shewasa powerful witch. But there was a difference between regular magic and dark magic. Heck, it was calleddarkfor a reason. This kind of magic was incredibly complex and dangerous, not to mention that it typically came at a cost.

And that was merely fromperformingdark magic. If she messed up the spell or got interrupted, the consequences could be dire. If she hoped to find this portal and make it to and from Frost Mountain in one piece, she was going to have to be extremely careful.

The thought of what lay ahead sent a shiver down her spine. Once she completed the spell, the grimoire would vanish. All copies of the Book of Nyx were rigged to do so whenever powerful dark magic was performed using them. From what Daphne had learned, the book was rigged that way as a safeguard against magic users performing too many powerful spells at one time. The book disappeared for a while, though nobody knew for how long, and it returned later.

Once she performed this spell, she’d be on her own for some time. But Daphne knew the spell. Once she reached Frost Mountain, she could try to create a new portal.

There was no turning back now. She was going to do this. Shehadto.

With a sigh, she read the words on the page again. Thankfully, the instructions were clear enough.

“I can do this,” she said to her reflection. “It’s just a bit of dark magic, right?”

The woman in the mirror merely blinked back at her.

Feeling like bees were buzzing in her stomach, she braced herself on the sink, staring hard at the words on the yellowed page.

Do it,she urged herself.Now.

“Svassissimo nepo divana,” she muttered, and at the same time she concentrated her magical energy on the spell, thinking,Frost Mountain. A portal to Frost Mountain.

She felt a sharp tug in her gut at the last word. She braced herself again, waiting for the air before her to shimmer and for her surroundings to change. The die had been cast. Whatever happened next… there was no going back.

Nothing happened at first, and Daphne frowned.

Then the plane gave a violent jerk, knocking her into the door. She grabbed the sink to steady herself, just in time to see the Book of Nyx dissipate into black smoke. The spell had worked!

So why was the plane trembling like this?

Did I somehow mess this up?she wondered.Did I ruin the protection spell?

She heard a series of muffled screams from the cabin before she had time to dwell on that thought. Something was definitely happening out there, and it wasn’t turbulence. There was something terribly wrong with the plane, and Daphne suspected it had something to do with the spell she’d just cast.

The lights overhead flickered dangerously, like a Morse Code warning of the danger that was about to befall the plane and its passengers. She could hear them screaming and crying just beyond the locked cubicle door. Her gut clenched as she glanced up from the spot where the grimoire had been moments ago.

And she nearly shrieked.

The woman staring back at her was her reflection, alright. Her flowing locks were blonde, her wide eyes grey. But everything else was different. Her reflection was covered with specks ofsnow, her lips almost cerulean, and the fingers clutching her cheeks were in the first stage of frostbite.

And her face… her face was twisted in horror and dread.

Daphne’s breathing ceased for a moment. “What in the—?”

She never got the chance to complete her statement. There was another tremendous tremor, and she heard a deafening groan above the screams of the passengers. The lights flickered even harder, then went out.

“Svarta!”she cried.

Then the plane came apart, and the cubicle plummeted toward the earth with Daphne still in it.

***

He hadn’t met her yet, but he already loathed her with every fiber of his being.

August Kane stood up to his ankles in the snow, the lapel of his brown coat flapping in the gentle west wind, and waited for the witch to appear so he could kill her.

In one hand, he clutched a curved blade. In the other, the Kane insignia emblazoned across it was a silver brander, the only magical object he owned. With both weapons and his wits, it shouldn’t take long. All he had to do was wait for the witch to fall within his sights.

“Where on this damned mountain are you?” he muttered, sweeping his gaze around. There wasn’t much in sight besides the snow and the cabin behind him. In the distance, he spotted clusters of trees and valleys. The sky was clear, the afternoon sun beaming its light over Frost Mountain.

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