Page 202 of Fated to be Enemies

“Is that all?” I feared there would be a lot more themes, but this maze could only be so big in the arena.

Kieran scowled. “Questions like those are why other Summer Court members target you.”

Okay, I didn’t like this broody version of him. I clenched my hands, trying not to throw a punch. “Excuse me if I was raised on Earth. We didn’t do crazy shit like this.”

We turned a few times, and I expected something to pop out at us. Then we stumbled on a pool of water. Moire gasped, dropping to her knees on the bank. “Oh, thank the heat of summer.”

Kieran grabbed my shoulder, holding me back as if he thought I’d go after her, just as I said, “Moire, wait.”

Blind with thirst, she didn’t listen and took a huge gulp of water.

My stomach churned.

I waited for something bad to happen, but it didn’t. She continued to gulp water.

If it was safe, I wanted some, too. I moved to join her, but Kieran stopped me.

“Don’t,” he murmured, his irises darkening. “We need to wait until the trial is over.”

I could tell he was worried, so I nodded and grimaced. I could deal with my thirst for a little longer.

“Here,” he said and reached out, brushing his finger against my lip. “Open.”

My breath caught, and my lips moved of their own accord. He slipped his finger inside my mouth. After a second, ice gathered on my lips, and the heat of my mouth melted it so cool water ran over my tongue and down my throat. Our eyes connected as something warm surged through me that had nothing to do with the heat. Soon, my thirst was quenched enough that I wasn’t desperate to drink the water, and he removed his hand as Moire stood and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

“You should have some. It’s good, and I feel so much better.” She nodded.

“Let’s get moving.” Kieran gestured to the path, ending the conversation.

As the three of us walked, following the branches, more screams echoed around us. Then we took a sharp turn and saw mirrors that lay against the hedges and flowers.

They reminded me of the pictures I’d seen at the Fairy Bar, where I’d met Ember.

I hurried to them, thinking maybe I’d see Ember, just as Kieran said, “Alina, don’t?—”

When I saw my reflection, I was suddenly transfixed.

Chapter Twenty-Two

In the mirror, the image changed from a reflection of me to the inside of the carriage that had brought me here. A younger version of me that looked like a prepubescent child sat in the forward-facing seat with a woman who appeared to be in her thirties sitting across from me. She looked like what I could only describe as nature … and very familiar.

Mom.

My forest-green eyes widened. I glanced out the window and saw a garden where hundreds of fae were hunched over, harvesting various fruits and wheats.

“You know what a good idea would be, Mother?” I flung my braided strawberry-blonde hair over my shoulder. The ends were just becoming lighter … like sunlight. “When these fae are done, they should swim in the warm waters of the falls. We could bring carriages to take them there. It would relieve their tired muscles.”

My heart squeezed. Everything else I’d remembered had made my prior version seem unkind, but that right there proved I had cared about our people. Maybe it wasn’t such a burden to be what everyone thought I should be.

Mother’s nose wrinkled, and her gray eyes filled with disappointment. She leaned over, her champagne dress gaping, exposing more of her cleavage. “Alina, no. They need to go home and rest to be prepared for tomorrow. We can’t have them staying out late and dragging the next day. They can rest at their homes.”

The version of me in the mirror pouted and stared out the window again. “But Mother, one visit can’t hurt anything.”

She huffed, her face turning pink and contrasting with her wavy green hair. “Giving them access to the falls once is all it would take for them to want to go again. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss. You’d best remember that since you’re to inherit this kingdom.”

I rubbed my hands on my sparkly pink dress, and the current version of me remembered that it had been one of my favorites. I’d always been partial to the sunfire blossoms of our kingdom. The radiant pink flowers that bloomed in the mountains had petals that glistened like flames, emitting a golden glow.

“I know, Mother, but?—”

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