Gwyneth stands and spins in a circle. Charming catches her around her waist and dips her back. Their wide eyes blink at each other. Charming opens his mouth and belts out, “I don’t want to be here, I don’t want to die.”
Gwyneth follows with, “But we are stuck inside this cursed lullaby!”
Words bubble in my throat, and I clutch my chest, trying to force them to stay hidden. “What the Blazes is happening? Why can’t I stop—” I jerk to my feet and push back my chair to wiggle my hips. “The Snow Queen’s got us dancing, and now I have to hop.”
Theo leaps to my side, catches my hand, and spins me in a circle with a look of utter disbelief on his face as he sings, “We should be fighting. We should be armed.”
Nash slams his hands onto the table, making the plates jump. “Instead, we’re harmonizing, and I’m quite alarmed.”
Sir Sweeps-A-Lot does a loop around the room as Malachi shimmies over to where one of the few ice warriors remain. His face is like a thundercloud, and I brace for the fight he’s asking for. Then he raises his hands in the air and makes cute waves, while his feet perform some kind of tapping on the floor, like they are an instrument.
Gwyneth does a high kick just as Charming launches into a dramatic solo. “I don’t know if we’ll make it, but I will not flee. I will protect you, Gwyneth. It’s my destiny.”
Gwyneth kicks him in the shin, and I’m not sure if it’s on purpose. “This isn’t the time for your dumb romantic plea!”
The Snow Queen watches this entire spectacle, sipping her wine with an amused smirk. “Ah, I love a good performance.”
We all line up and, to my horror, begin synchronized dancing. The genie reappears and scans us. “I was gone for three tempos. How did this happen?” He points at the queen. “You. Stop this nonsense.”
Please, for the love of the Idols, stop this nonsense.
She lifts a shoulder. “They can stop when they’ve finished.”
The genie growls and snaps his fingers. The music halts immediately, and I collapse to my knees, panting. “Never. Again.”
Theo shakes his head. “I’m going to have nightmares about this.”
Malachi chuckles. “I might have enjoyed it if we weren’t all about to die.”
“Speak for yourself,” Gwyneth snaps.
The queen claps. “Wonderful,” she purrs. “I shall have my musicians record that. Quite catchy.”
The temperature in the room plummets as we climb to our feet. The torches flicker out, bathing the room in shadow as the Snow Queen stands, her gown billowing around her like an icy storm.
“This was fun,” she murmurs. “But playtime is over.”
She stomps her foot on the ground in a sharp motion, and shards snake up my legs, locking me in place. The rest of our gang is in a similar predicament. The queen saunters over to me, and her fingers trail down my cheek.
“You were always meant for this,” the queen whispers. “And soon, you’ll see that for yourself.”
The castle groans, like it’s shifting beneath our feet. “What is that?” Charming asks.
The queen’s eyes flash with rage. “My husband has finally grown a pair of balls,” she snarls. “Eron, I hope you know what you are doing.”
My heart stops for a split tempo. Eron? My Eron?
The room plunges into total darkness, and a laugh rings out. “I’ve always known, Sara, that it is you who is clueless. That shall be your downfall.”
What have we found ourselves in the middle of? A marital spat of epic proportions?
Something sharp presses against my throat, and my hair tickles my ear. “Stay still, Daphne. I’d hate to kill you prematurely and have to take your sister instead.”
“Let her go,” Eron snarls from the shadows.
“Show yourself, husband, and I might consider it.” The darkness envelops us, concealing any glimmer of hope. The flickering torches ignite again, revealing my magic mirror man, now fully formed, staring hollowly back at us with no reflection.
“I’m sorry, Daphne,” he breathes. “But some destinies are inescapable.”
