Nox chuckles darkly while Elora pushes around Cass to stand in front of us. “Well, that was…whateverthat was,” she says, referring to Arin, “but can we please get back to dancing now?” Her hand extends out towards me, but I send a questioning look at Nox.
“Why don’t you go ahead, Rhea,” he answers, placing a soft kiss on my lips. “This warrior’s body needs a rest.”
I laugh and then grab Elora’s hand, letting her lead me back out onto the dance floor—where we spend what feels like hours laughing and dancing together.
I hum as I walk hand in hand with Nox after leaving the tavern, Cass having gone with Elora to make sure she makes it home safely. We pass different statues and water features built around the center square, one in particular drawing my eye enough to tug Nox towards it.
A beautiful woman, her hair long and wrapping around her hips, stands in the center of a pool, the water shooting out from the perimeter towards the middle. She wears a crown with a flaring sun centered on it, two mirrored crescent moons on either side, and stars filling in the gaps between them. Carved onher in exquisite detail is a long dress that clings to every curve, a line drawn down the middle of it. One of her hands is extended in the air, as if offering the city of Galdr whatever is on her palm, though I cannot quite make it out. The other palm is drawn down, something round in the middle of it that has darkened with time.
“This is the first queen of Void Magic,” Nox says at my side.
A sweet-smelling breeze ruffles my hair as I stare at the woman, her expression carved into one of soft happiness. There are no words etched onto the statue, nothing to indicate who it is other than the lore of it having been here for a very long time.
My finger reaches out to drag along the cold stone of her arm. “She’s beautiful.”
“Indeed,” he answers, but when I look to him, he’s staring at me.
We continue our walk back to the palace, the two guards stationed at the front doors opening them as they bow to Nox. The inside is quiet, not much more than the late night shuffling of steps by the palace aides, until the sound of voices carries down the hall and into the main foyer.
Nox stops, his head tilting to the side before his cheeks lift with a smile. “Bahira,” he says, looking down at me. “I think my sister is talking through the Mirror with my parents. Can we say hello?”
“Of course.” Nox had previously told me what the Mirror was and how it worked, the magic of it linked to the land and blood of the current ruler.
He leads us down the hallway towards the council room, knocking on the door in a rhythmic pattern before opening it. Sadryn and Alexandria stand together in front of a tall oval-shaped mirror near the head of a long twelve-person table. Their gazes turn towards the door, and Alexandria motions for us to come over. I can feel Nox’s excitement as his parents take a stepto the side to make room. Through the glass of the Mirror—which looks as if it’s liquid—stands Bahira with her curly brown hair pulled up into a high ponytail, the long strands dangling past her shoulders. Her arms are crossed over her chest, and even through the faintly distorted image, it’s impossible to miss how beautiful she is. And, once more, how intimidating.
“Hello, nerd,” Nox says, leaning back against a chair and wrapping an arm around my waist.
“Hello, idiot,” Bahira responds, someone on her side of the mirror chuckling deeply at her response. Her eyes narrow as she turns to look to the side before focusing back on us—onme. “You must be Rhea.”
“It’s a pleasure to officially meet you, Bahira,” I say, a bit shakier than I would have liked. Her smile is small but genuine, and I get the feeling that she doesn’t offer brilliant wide ones to anyone until she is sure about them. I understand that to my core.
She updates Nox and their parents on her journey so far in the Shifter Kingdom, detailing the experiments she is running and things she is doing, even from afar, to hopefully help the Mage Kingdom and its people get their full magical capabilities again. The conversation eventually dwindles to goodbyes, Nox squeezing me more tightly to him. As Bahira steps back from the Mirror, a woman’s sing-songy voice calls her name out followed by another deep chuckle. The glass gets cloudy, like an impending storm, before it settles back into an unassuming mirror.
“She looks well,” Alexandria says to Sadryn, wrapping her arms around his waist and laying her head on his chest.
“Are you surprised?” he replies in a teasing tone, rubbing his hands down her back.
“No, no, of course not. But I can’t help but worry.”
Sadryn kisses the top of her head and whispers something only she can hear before lifting his gaze to Nox. “I’m glad you were able to—”
“King Sadryn of the Mage Kingdom,” a voice, slightly altered, abruptly booms through the Mirror. I stiffen, my magic rushing to my throat.
Nox holds me closer to him, his voice soft as he says, “It’s okay. This is how the rulers communicate through the Mirror. It’s probably King Kai using it for Bahira again. She must have forgotten to tell us something.”
Sadryn steps closer to the Mirror, the glass altering as the magic runs through it. But it isn’t the fact that a phantom voice rang through the Mirror that has my heart beating at a frantic pace. It’s the cadence of the voice, the note of malice within it. Irecognizethat voice deep within my bones. It is one I still hear in my nightmares, one I’m afraid I’ll never fully be free of.
My fear is confirmed when the image on the Mirror settles and King Dolian’s face is there.
Chapter Fifty-One: Nox
“Shit,” my father startles,stepping back from the Mirror with a jolt.
My gaze is still on Rhea’s, watching as she grows pale and her body becomes rigid. My magic pushes at my bones, feral in the way it seems tobegto be unleashed.
“King Sadryn, I’m glad to see you’vefinallyanswered my call.” His voice is like rusty nails scraping down my back, and when I look at him, the cunning smile he has painted on his vile face falters. “You,” he snarls as his hands clench at his sides.
Drawing his attention back, my father responds, “Well you have my attention now, King Dolian. What can I do for you?”
