Page 90 of Sweet Nightmares
François leaned back into the wall, bending a knee and placing his perfectly shined shoe against the wallpaper as he examined his friend. “Are you planning to die?”
“Of course not…”But I just have a feeling.So much so that she had picked up the letters she had written after the sinking of the Titan steamship and placed them in her dress.
François reached out and took the letters, combing through the envelopes. “What, I don’t get one?”
“Do you need one?”
He shrugged.
“If I wrote you a letter, it would say, “Be nicer, and smile more—and not like you want to rip someone’s head off—but you don’t need that reminder since I tell you that daily.”
“Like this?” A mocking smile lifted on his cheeks. “But yes, you are the bane of my existence.”
“Precisely… “ Jane smiled warmly back at him. “Although if I had written you a letter, I probably also should have warned you that a girl from your past is plotting against you.”
“Jane?” He raised a well-manicured eyebrow. “Is this something I should be concerned about?”
“If I thought she was dangerous, I’d let you know. And honestly, with this one, you kind of have coming.”
“Jane…”
Jane clicked her tongue. “Perhaps you might even enjoy it.”
“Jane?”
“Oh, and one more thing,”—she completely ignored him—“if I die, there are casefiles and autopsy reports in the Mirror of Terror. I would like you to return them to the morgue.”
The Mirror of Terror was where the Mirror Mafia kept all of their secrets. Jane had moved the reports there in the morning because, although she agreed not to investigate during the eleven days, she still wanted access to them without going back to the Looking Glass—and Nightmare’s realm.
His eyebrows went from slightly amused to terribly concerned. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”
“No, I just have a bad feeling.” She rubbed her chest, a trickle of fear climbing her ribcage like a spider weaving its web. Her magic’s inklings were never wrong. “Anyway, you should go enjoy the night. You don’t have to be patrolling a casino floor or overseeing a light maiming.”
“Hilarious,” he said, starting to walk away. “Are you not joining?”
“I will, but first I need to eavesdrop on the prince and my sister.”
The side of François’s mouth twitched. “Now, that is dangerous.”
Jane sighed. “Yes, it is.”
François’s expensive shoes clicked as he strolled away from the alcove.
“Oh, one more thing,” she called after him. “Stay away from fiery brunettes tonight. Just trust me.”
He laughed. “Will do.”
Jane scrunched her nose as she turned back toward the alcoves. The last thing she wanted to do was watch or listen to her sister kissing the Playboy Prince, but Jane needed to make sure her sister’s bargain was successful.
But gods, she did not want to overhear any of it, and it wasn’t like there was much she could do.
“Are we snooping?” Periwinkle said in a fairy-sweet tone, popping out of thin air. Jane jolted and nearly came out of her skin. “I do love snooping.”
“We are not snooping.”
“It certainly looks like we are.” Periwinkle tapped her nose. “Is it a redhead thing to lie about eavesdropping? Or an Ashelle thing? Maybe it’s an Ashelle fated ballerina thing. Hmmm, one may never know.”
“Fated?”
