My mother’s voice boomed behind me, and I spun toward her. It was dark, but the firelight illuminated her as she dismounted her stallion and ran to me.
Even though I was a full-grown adult, when she opened her arms, I fell into them, just as I had when I was a child.
“Did she hurt you?” Her voice was a low growl.
“I’m okay now,” I replied, not wanting to lie. Queen Liliana had hurt me, but I was safe now, and that’s what truly mattered.
“I need to speak privately with you,” I whispered to her, “and Zane.”
She nodded and called Zane over, then barked orders at her guards to enforce a perimeter around us. A large canvas tent had been set up nearby, with an oil lamp already lit inside.
We stepped through the flaps, and I took a shaky breath, trying to gather my thoughts.
“Please tell me you killed Queen Liliana,” my mother asked Zane.
A dark look crossed his face, making him appear fierce. “I would have loved nothing more, but I didn’t have the chance. She wasn’t there. But I saw something—I’m not sure what it was, but it looked like some sort of portal to my world. I didn’t stay to investigate. My priority was getting Lorelei to safety.”
His gaze shifted to me, and I read the panic in his eyes.
I chewed my lip. “The Summer queen figured out a way to drain my magic using my dagger and then used it to open the mirror portal to Ethereum early. I didn’t even know that was possible.”
I took a breath, looking Zane straight in the eyes. “I’m so sorry, Zane. After opening the portal, she escaped into your world.”
My mother gasped, and Zane began pacing the small tent.
“How is that possible?” my mother asked. “The portal isn’t supposed to open until the Spring Equinox.”
I wrung my hands, my heart aching for Zane. Queen Liliana was targeting his loved ones, and I wasn’t sure there was anything we could do to stop her. “She had all these books about the princesses’ daggers. The faestones are special. They hold far more power than we were ever taught.”
Anger flashed across my mother’s face. “Oh, I feel like such a fool for giving her that mirror. I had no idea. She said she was training you, and by the time I realized—”
“It’s okay. You couldn’t have known,” I said, grasping her hands and squeezing them.
Zane went deadly still, his gaze locking onto me. “She’s going to kill one of my brothers, isn’t she?”
I had already told him about her plans in one of his dreams, but I could see on his face that he wanted me to tell him it wasn’t true.
“She’s going to try,” I told him honestly. “She took the faestone dagger with her.”
Zane resumed pacing, rubbing his jaw as he got lost inthought. Despite everything, I found myself distracted by how handsome he looked. Wholly inappropriate thoughts considering the circumstances, but I couldn’t help it.
“What are you thinking?” my mother asked him. She was the smartest strategist I knew, and I hoped she could help him process this.
“I’m thinking that mirror portal is still open back at that manor house. I could go through it, warn my brothers, and kill the Summer queen.”
My mother nodded. “You could. But what if the portal is only one way? What if, after you kill her, you can’t get back? Or what if, rather than you killing Liliana, she manages to kill you? It could take days or weeks to find her, and in that time, you might miss your opportunity to end the curse forever. Isn’t that why you’re here in the first place?”
Zane stopped walking, his gaze flicking to me for a brief second. That look said so much. He’d traveled to Faerie not just to destroy the curse but also for me—maybe even more for me.
That realization sent warmth spreading through me in a way that was not entirely unwelcome.
Returning his attention to my mother, Zane nodded slowly. “I’ve thought about all of that, too.”
Oh, my heart ached for him. It was an impossible choice. I didn’t want him to have to choose at all.
“Zane?” I asked, drawing his attention. “Aren’t your brothers really powerful?”
“They are,” he replied. “As are their wives. But if they don’t know the threat is coming …”
