Dread settles into the pit of my stomach. I hope I didn’t accidentally poison him with ordinary bread and butter. We don’t have time for me to nurse him. I won’t try feeding him again.
“I asked you this before we got distracted, but you didn’t really answer. Did the witch give you a puzzle to solve?”
He nods and gestures down a hallway. “I’ll show you. It’s in here.”
We enter what appears to be a library, but instead of books, the shelves are lined with game pieces. On the table in the center of the room, jagged ice shards lie haphazardly.
“I have to use all of the pieces to spell out—” He clutches his throat, gagging. Startled, I touch his shoulder. He brushes me off. “Are you sick?” I ask.
“I cannot tell you the word.” He smooths his hair back. “I forgot that rule. The Queen reminded me. The task is for me to spell out the word within a perfect rectangle.” With one extended finger, he pushes a long piece up against another. The angle of the short edge doesn’t quite match. Dejectedly, Kai sets it aside and tries a different piece.
“This looks harder than I expected.” I sigh.
“Did you think I would make it easy for you?” The Queen strides into the room in a cloud of snow and billowing silk skirt. I can’t deny the pang of envy I feel at seeing her ageless beauty. She wafts over to Kai and reaches out to cup his chin.
I swat her hand away. The sting of touching her is a hundred times harsher than the frostbite of his skin. I wince and shake my hand.
“That will teach you to defy me,” she says icily.
“Don’t let her touch you, Kai.” My voice comes out low and menacing. He tips his head, considering me. “It’s how she steals your warmth. She needs it. Don’t you?”
I turn to her.
The Queen’s red lips press into a thin line. Blood in fresh-fallen snow. Her strange blue eyes glow with aurora lights. No heat reaches them.
“Unlike you, I do not take pleasure in pain, Gwendolyn. I hope your night with Kai was a memorable one.”
I drop my gaze to my toes, ashamed.
“You’re not jealous?” I ask.
The fae witch waves dismissively. “A little human wench could never inspire envy in me. Enjoy her as you will, Kai, for the hours you have remaining.”
As one, he and I turn to the hourglass floating in the corner. Most of the snow has piled in the lower half.
“We were supposed to have three days!” I shout. “We made our bargain less than a day ago. How is the glass so empty? I thought you couldn’t cheat.”
Gods, I’m furious.
“I haven’t cheated. Daylight was nearly gone when we made our bargain. Your first day barely lasted ten minutes. You spent most of the second in Kai’s arms. Now you’ve wasted the majority of your opportunity to solve my little puzzle and save your lives.” She glides out of the room. Abandoning him, I follow her, seething.
“You’re a dirty rotten cheater.”
“For every name you call me, I will dock another hour,” she says over her shoulder, unperturbed.
“Cheater, cheater, cheater!”
“That’s three hours more gone.” She waves her hand idly. The stupid hourglass made of frost and snowflakes floats after us, suddenly dangerously close to empty. I hate magic. I hate this terrible castle with frozen humans for decor and most of all, I despise its owner, the tricky witch who cheats and punishes me for calling a spade a spade.
“To appease you, Gwendolyn, I will offer you a clue in exchange for one more hour of time.”
“What kind of clue? I’m not trading an hour of time for a useless hint.”
“One that will solve the puzzle if you can figure it out. I’m being quite generous, especially after you called me names.” She lifts one eyebrow.
I have to force the words past my gritted teeth. “I’m sorry I called you a cheater. I accept your trade. One hour for a useful clue.”
She snaps. Another chunk of flakes dump into the bottom portion of the hourglass.
