She swung around and spotted smudges of white flying across the sky. It took her a few moments to recognize Odette and the Black Swan Smugglers in their swanbodies.
They flew in a tight circle just above Angelique’s head before one of the swans abruptlydipped.
Bells clanged, and light, wind, and dust wrapped around the swan as it dove toward theground.
Angelique jumped back a bit when it looked like the transforming bird might careen into her, but Odette landed on the ground with a painful-sounding thud, barefoot and back in her human body as the light of her transformation magicfaded.
Angelique opened her mouth to ask the Swan Queen if she was hurt, but Odette blurted out, “It’sgone!”
Angelique frowned. “What’sgone?”
Odette’s eyes were wide with fear. “Themirror.”
Chapter 23
Although it was nearly mid-summer,the ground of the valley was covered in frost, which crunched under Angelique’s boots as she peered up the narrowchannel.
Behind her, Odette and Clovicus spoke, following Angelique as she picked her way past slabs of rock and massiveboulders.
“Explain it, one more time,” Clovicussaid.
“I’ve explained itall night long! Telling you again isn’t going to change the outcome of what my people and I saw!” Odette snarled. The waves of her blonde hair looked a little flat, and her good manners hadn’t made a re-appearance since she had returned with her direnews.
“Please.”
When Angelique glanced back over her shoulder, Clovicus was rubbing the circles under hiseyes.
“Just once more,” hesaid.
Odette heaved a sigh. “My crew and I were investigating one of the mountains King Toril and Queen Linnea had decided upon. Half of the mountain was gone, and most of the valley was filled with stone and ice—it’s a glacier,practically.”
Angelique listened as she scanned the valley—one of the entrances to the northern mountains, and the official mess she and Clovicus would have to clear if they ever had a hope of examining what Odette and her people had found. It wasn’t too bad. Since everything was frozen, at least it wasn’t muddy and impassable—but there was lots of rubble andice.
Behind her, Odette continued. “In the bright sunlight, we saw the shadow of a hole. We landed and transformed so we could investigate on foot. We found a room of sorts that was cleared out of ice and rubble. There was a ruined pick axe, and the walls were dimpled from the dig, but there were also signs of someone with magic—either ice or fire—as on the ground you could see where ice had melted and then re-frozen.”
Angelique jumped a little when Pegasus appeared at her side. He sniffed a chunk of ice and made his way past her, the little stars in the murky black of his coat glowing brighter thanusual.
Angelique stared at a band of stars on his hipbone and heard the crunch of grit as Clovicus strode afterher.
“There was a clear groove in the ground where something—like the frame of a mirror—had once been pressed into the ice,” Odettecontinued.
Angelique winced, though she had heard the tale over a dozen times by now.It was dire when we realized the Chosen were our real enemy, but if they took the mirror…I don’t know that there’s even a way to describe just how bad that would be. Could we even beat them if they haveit?
Clovicus’ deep voice drew her back into the conversation. “But there was no other proof of the mirroritself?”
“Do the King and Queen of Verglas frequently bury treasure in the middle ofmountains?”
“Of coursenot!”
“Then what else could it be? What other treasure couldpossiblybe buried in an ice field in the northern mountains like that?” Odetteasked.
Clovicusgrowled.
“Lord Enchanter,” Angelique called—half reminding him to be civil and half wanting his attention. “Could we build an ice bridge that crosses above all ofthis?”
“Not unless you have secret skills I don’t know of.” Clovicus sighed and joined her in watching Pegasus pick his way across the treacherous footing. “A simple ice slab won’t do the trick. You’d need an understanding of architecture basics—something I know nothingabout.”
Angelique nodded. “I guessed as much,” she said. “Do you have a limit on your magic, or aprice?”
