Page 33 of The Eternal Mirror
“Sit,” he says. “I will bring refreshments.”
I sit, because all of a sudden, the world seems an uncertain place. It was so easy before—I gave my orders, and they were obeyed. Now, I don’t feel I have the right to order anyone to do anything. And I’m not sure I appreciate the change. I need to find a balance, because I’ve been on many battlefields when sometimes the only thing keeping your men alive is following orders.
And these days, my life is one great battlefield, and Killian and his little group are the only soldiers I have.
So if I need to give orders, then I give orders.
Brown returns a few minutes later holding a tray with cold beers, hot coffee, and a jug of water. We all take a beer and sit, facing the single chair where Brown seats himself.
I can’t hold the question back any longer. “Have you seen anything of Amber? Has she come here?” I ask, always hopeful. Maybe she got away. But I doubt it.
He shakes his head. “I haven’t seen her for weeks, not since she came here and visited with Sheela while you were imprisoned.”
“Damn.” It’s only what I expected but I need something.
“But I have news of her.”
“You have? Tell me.”
“She’s a guest at your father’s palace. Her brothers are still alive—as of now, or as of when I last heard.”
“A guest? That doesn’t sound too bad,” Killian says.
I turn to look at him. “Believe me, you never want to be my father’s guest of if you can possibly help it.”
“According to my sources, she’s staying in the palace guest quarters, not the dungeons,” Brown says.
I think for a moment. “So you have ways of getting news to and from Astrali?” I’m taking a leap of faith here. That Brown is not on my father’s side. But more than that, that he is willing to risk everything by siding with me over his king.
“I do, to a limited extent. Miss Sheela used to visit regularly, and we could get messages back and forth that way. But now she’s inthe north with the rebels. Still, I can get a message there if I need to.”
I sit back and drink my beer, considering what my next move should be.
“We need to get to Astrali,” I say. “But we have to avoid my father.”
Brown looks at the other three. “They’re all shifters?”
I nod.
“I believe the Chamber of Mirrors is still being guarded. Perhaps your father expects you to...visit.” He sits for a moment, presumably considering the problem. “We will need a distraction—something that lasts long enough for you to get out of the chamber.”
“Hopefully, they’ll believe I am coming from Valandria so won’t be watching this mirror.”
He gets to his feet. “I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime, I will send you food. Let me know if you need anything else.”
The door clicks shut behind him.
We’re alone again.
For a few seconds, nobody says anything. Laura leans her head back on the couch and closes her eyes. Jack fidgets, like he’s got a tick under his skin. Killian stares into his beer as though it might reveal the meaning of life. Grimlet curls up on the back of my chair and closes his eyes, wings draped over him like a cloak.
Silence.
It stretches. Taut and heavy.
“I thought this was going to be more exciting,” Jack mutters.
“Give it time,” I say. “I suspect you will have more excitement than you can handle before long.”
