Page 179 of Lady of Ashes

“The man I see in my dreams? Yes,” she answered. “He is bonded to Altaria.”

“Who are you?” Sorin demanded, stepping to her side.

A dark smile curved up on the man’s lips. “Someone who does not answer to you, Prince of Flames.”

“Perhaps not, but you entering my wife’s dreams is a problem,” Sorin said darkly.

“Is it?”

A growl rippled from Sorin, and Scarlett sighed. “Stop acting like an overprotective animal. He’s never once threatened me or attempted to hurt me.”

“That is not in the least bit comforting,” Sorin retorted. “Are there more mirrors?” came Ashtine’s lilt.

Scarlett glanced back to ?nd Briar standing before her, hand raised and a dagger of ice grasped in it.

“There are, your Highness,” the man answered. “Before you inquire, I cannot reveal the locations. They can only be found by those who already know where they are.”

“That’s convenient,” Scarlett muttered.

“Did you not ?nd one?” he asked.

“By accident,” she drawled.

“Or by fate,” the man said with a shrug.

“Fate,” she spat.

His head cocked to the side as he took her in, studying her. “You do not believe in the Fates?”

“Does it matter?”

“Not really. The Fates do not care if you believe in them or not.”

Scarlett clucked her tongue, crossing her arms, and glared back at him. “So what? I can come to where you are through this mirror?”

“No. It is not a literal gate. It is amirror,” the man drawled.

“That is called a mirrorgate,” Scarlett retorted, really not in the mood to argue with him over semantics.

She had woken with a headache. She was exhausted. She hadn’t been lying when she’d told Sorin that. It didn’t seem to matter how much sleep she got lately. She never felt fully rested. Even more so, she never felt like her power wells stayed full. She had been trying to conserve her magic the last two days, just to test a theory, but they seemed to slowly drain whether she released her gifts or not. She had no idea what to make of it.

The man shrugged again. “Fair enough, but no, it is not a door of any sort. I know some legends claim such a thing, but they are simply mirrors between different kingdoms. Nothing more. It is more of a communication method.”

“Great,” Scarlett muttered. “What message do you need to deliver this time?”

The man was silent, appearing to study her closer. “You are … unwell.”

“You don’t say?” she bit back. His brows rose at her address. “Since our last little rendezvous, I have found four of the seven keys you instructed me to ?nd. I still do not know where the lock is, and I have been practicing with my gifts. What more do you want from me? Because I do not have much left to give.”

“I know that a lot is being asked of you,” he started, his tone softening.

“Then stop asking!” she cried.

She felt Sorin reach for her down the bond, to try to comfort her, soothe her, but she shoved him out. She didn’t want comfort right now. She wanted answers. For once,just once, she wanted some straight answers. No riddles. No guessing games. Just a fucking answer.

The entire room had fallen silent at her outburst, but her eyes remained ?xed on the man in the mirror.

The man who had found her in her dreams.

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