As the hunter disappeared, a new thought entered my mind. With him out of sight, perhaps I could finally delve into my pack and check Calista’s mirror. It had been far too long since I’d looked.
I cleared my throat, glancing at Frisk, Mauro, and Kendra. “I’ll… check for wood on the east side.” I jerked my thumb in the direction opposite of where Theron had gone.
Thankfully, no one objected or asked any questions. I turned and headed toward the other side of the mountain, drumming my fingers along my leather trousers as I walked.
Just a few more steps.
I had to physically refrain from quickening my speed. I didn’t want to arouse suspicion. And knowing Frisk, who could easily follow me without detection, he would want to know what I was hiding.
To keep up pretenses, I ducked under the branches of a tree, testing some of the fallen debris for anything dry. I would need firewood when I came back—to prove I hadn’t been up to anything suspicious.
I counted to one hundred in my head, looking for wood all the while. I found a few good branches and cradled them in my arms before continuing my search.
After I counted to four hundred, I ducked behind a thick evergreen tree and dropped my branches, then hastily dug through the contents of my satchel. I cast aside a few sparkwood apples, spare clothes and daggers, and finally found the rolled-up towel. With shaking hands, I peeled the layers away to reveal my hidden treasures: the iron blade and the crystal hand mirror.
My breath caught in my throat at the sight of the mirror. It glinted innocently in the light of the rising sun, as if it were nothing more than an ornament. A piece of glass with an elegantly carved frame. An accessory for a princess.
But it was so much more than that.
Ensuring the iron blade didn’t touch my skin, I eased the mirror off the towel and held it up to my face. All I saw was my own pale reflection staring back at me, my eyes wide with fear and my cheeks and nose pink from the chill. My wavy black hair was strewn messily about my face.
It was the reflection I knew well. But it was the magic lingering under the surface that I was most concerned with.
My breath shook as I whispered, “Magic mirror, whose glass I see, reveal and reflect the truth unto me.”
The mirror quivered in my hand. Warmth spread from its handle, seeping into my palm and shooting up my arm. A white glow formed around the glass, shining so brightly I had to squint against it. My pulse raced as I waited.
The glow faded, and my reflection changed. Still the same woman, a scared and feral princess. But I had pointed fae ears. I now understood that this was how the mirror worked. It was revealing my true nature—as a half fae.
My skin was also no longer pale. It was covered in sickly green spots.
I swallowed down bile as I angled the mirror to inspect the rest of my body. Instead of showing my clothing, the mirror reflected the poison in my body.
It hadn’t overtaken me completely yet. The juice from the sparkwood apples was keeping it at bay. There was truth in the myth that fae magic repelled the sparkwood trees. The opposite was also true: Sparkwood trees repelled fae magic.
Including the magic that had poisoned me when Calista had struck me with her claws.
One at a time, I lifted my hands to inspect them. One arm was covered in spots, but the other was not. And patches of my left cheek were still clear.
But that was it. The rest of me had been claimed by the poison.
I didn’t have much time left. The apples weren’t doing enough.
Tears pricked my eyes. If my father were alive, he wouldbe devastated. I thought of the pride in his eyes when he spoke about when I would become queen.
Now, that day might never come.
“Blood and ice,” whispered a voice.
I yelped, jumping nearly a foot in the air and tucking the mirror behind my back. Frisk emerged from the brush, his dark eyes wide as he stared at me. “Snow, what happened to you?”
My heart still racing a mile a minute, I sighed in resignation. I should have known Frisk would follow me anyway. Even if Ihadn’tbeen hiding anything, he always liked to stay close.
“I’m dying,” I whispered.
Frisk’s head reared back. “Dying?”
“Shh!” I flapped my hand urgently, glancing around the wood to ensure the hunter wasn’t lurking nearby. That was just what I needed, for the queen’s assassin to learn all my secrets. “You were right, Frisk. There’s a reason I haven’t tried to get back to the castle. It’s because even if Icanseize the crown from Calista, I won’t be able to rule for long.”
