“Not if they're in the glass,” Morph pointed out.
“I can still feel them.” I shook my head. “The Mirror may have taken my magic, but their links are inside me.”
“Like a claim ticket,” he said thoughtfully. “You're right; don't risk using the Dragon. Her magic might travel down the line and hurt the others wherever the Mirror is holding them.”
“I'll have to give this some thought.”
“Whatever you do, be careful, V,” Morpheus said. “We're all waiting at Pride Palace for you. Well, except for me. I've been waiting in the Dream Realm for you to go to sleep. But I'll be heading back now.”
“Thank you, Morpheus.” I hugged him. “We wouldn't have a chance of escaping without you.”
“Just get out safely.” He kissed my cheek and faded into the mists.
“Sure, no problem,” I muttered. “All I have to do is find the weak spot in a cursed mirror and shout the magic word to break the spell all while it tries to get me to commit suicide. Just another day in my life. C'est Lavine.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
I awoke in the clothes I'd arrived in; a full set of underwear, purple heels, and a black, linen, over-the-knee dress that should have been horribly wrinkled but seemed to be freshly laundered every time it was returned to me. I sat up and yawned awake.
I was in a frothy, white, four-poster bed, my body sunken into its down comforter and veiled by its diaphanous curtains. The rest of the room seemed just as feminine through the haze of white; a padded bench at the foot of the bed, a lace-covered dressing table to the right, and an Oriental folding screen beside it. There was a collection of dainty chairs set between the vanity and the bed, and Narcissus was sitting in one.
Narcissus stood and approached me. “Vervain, are you all right?”
I groaned as I pushed my way through the bed curtains. “Yeah. Thank you. You arrived just in the nick of time.”
“I'm afraid the Mirror has learned viciousness and violence from its victims,” he said softly. “And from me.”
“What do you mean?”
“Please, sit down.” He waved at a chair and waited for me to take it before he resumed his seat.
“Have you seen Kirill or Trevor?” I asked. “I can feel that they're alive but beyond that, I don't know. Normally, my ring would be able to tell me if they were in trouble, but I suppose we're all in trouble.”
“I saw Trevor briefly.” He grimaced. “He tried to kill me.”
“I'm sorry.”
“He was acting upon an illusion.” Narcissus waved it away. “The Mirror, as I mentioned, has learned to be ruthless.”
“What is it that you want to tell me?”
“I knew you were coming,” he admitted. “A few weeks ago, a man summoned me to the portal with a spell. He spoke to me as you spoke to your husbands; through written messages. He told me that you'd be coming and that if I was able to get you to kill yourself, I'd become strong enough to break my curse.”
I went still. “So, why didn't you do that?”
“I don't trust that easily.” Narcissus smirked. “Why would this stranger help me? It seemed just as likely that he simply wanted me to do his dirty work for him. He said that he had a way of enchanting the Mirror so it would pull you in. Normally, the curse prohibits Gods from entering the Mirror, but he swore he had a way around it.”
“Did he say what that way was?” I leaned forward.
“No, but he was adamant,” Narcissus said. “I only nodded to him, and he left. When you showed up with your husbands, I didn't know it was you at first. He said you'd be alone. But then you revealed yourselves to be Gods, and I realized who you must be; the Godhunter.”
“Yes. And now, someone's hunting me.”
“It would appear so,” he agreed. “But it isn't me, Vervain. I don't know what that god was up to, but I know I can't consume your power; that's the Mirror's ability, not mine. Even if I could, I wouldn't do it. You've offered me a way out, and I'm going to take my chances with you.”
“Thank you,” I said softly. “And I happen to know—” I stopped and looked around suspiciously. “I'll tell you in a minute. First, there's just one thing I want to talk to you about.”
“What?”
