Page 178 of Mountain of Mirrors and Starlight
Father… how she’d like to see him now. Either of her parents would know what to do, she was sure.
Instead, all she had was a sawn-off halberd, stuffed into a makeshift belt, and an albino dwarf who for all she said was good at staying out of trouble, had the footfall of a giant. Her moonlight skin did not help her to blend in.
They reached the outside of the palace walls. The gates were heavily patrolled, but Aislinn located a spot on the walls where there looked to be a blindspot. She found a nearby plant to give them a boost, and they tumbled into the gardens.
Sensibly, someone had turned up the crystals, and the place was flooded with light. Soldiers both mortal and dwarf patrolled the grounds.
They were on the wrong side for the stables, and Aislinn couldn’t chart a clear path. There was an open window on this side of the palace, however. High up—but not too high for her.
She calculated her best course of action. She could get into the palace, find some better weapons, inspect the Mirror, and maybe find a mortal soldier by himself to glamour into helping her. Or threaten, since the magic was out. Yes, that worked. Perhaps she could even get him to inspect the stables himself if she got him outside the barrier…
She paused, gathering her courage, and explained her plan to Luna.
“Stay here,” she instructed. “Hide in that bush there. Whistle if you think someone’s spotted me.”
“All right,” she agreed.
“One more thing.” Aislinn cleared her throat. “I shall not reveal the location of our safehouse, not even on pain of death.”
Luna blinked at her. “Big vow.”
“Necessary.” If she was caught, she wasn’t revealing where the others were. She would rather die.
She imagined Caer would rather die than wake up and realise what she’d done, but she hoped he wouldn’t have to. She glanced down at Luna.
“Are you even armed?”
Luna pulled back her cloak. “I’m carrying my rolling pin.”
“Right.” Aislinn stared back at the wall. “Please try not to get caught.”
“I’ll do my best.” She paused, and then threw her arms around Aislinn’s middle. “Don’t die in there. Find something to help him.”
Aislinn wanted to swear that she would, but she couldn’t, not even for this. Caer needed her to come back. She needed tocomeback.
I’ll be fine,she told herself, unable to speak it.I have to be.
She patted Luna’s back, pulled away from her, and darted up the side of the palace, swift as string and rubber, not stopping until she reached the window and slid inside.
It was a grand bedroom on the other side of the palace from where she’d been staying. She wished she was closer to her room. Good as the soft-soled slippers were for leaping up buildings, her boots would be much better in a fight. It seemed unlikely she’d be able to avoid one forever. She scanned about the room, searching for anything else that might be useful—a dagger, a proper belt—anything.
A soft snore alerted her to the presence of someone on the bed, thankfully fast asleep. Excellent. She took a few minutes to rifle through the drawers. All the clothes were the wrong size, of course, but a belt with a fine silver buckle was fairly quickly located, and a better cloak than the one she’d stolen—longer, almost hiding her skirts which she’d slashed at the knee to allow for easier movement.
She found a chest in the corner filled with weapons.Perfect.She discarded the broken halberd and took two daggers instead, buckling them to her belt. They didn’t have the reach of a sword, but it was easier to move with them.
The snoring stopped.
Aislinn paused, flattening herself against the wall. Even if the dwarf woke, they wouldn’t be able to see her in the dark. If she stayed quiet—
“Who’s there?”
Her heart hammered in her throat.
The dwarf turned to a dial beside his bed, and the crystal lights flooded the room. Aislinn bolted from her spot, pinning the dwarf to the bed before he could even move, dagger against his throat.
Prince Tiberius stared back at her. “Aislinn,” he gasped.
Aislinn did not release her hold. “I like you, Prince, but I will run you through with your own dagger if I suspect for even a second that you will endanger my mission.”
