Page 103 of Blood of the Fairest

Chains clank together. I try not to look too hard at the shadows behind the twisted bars and vines, just in case I glimpse something nightmarish.

Of all the statues and stained glass windows I've seen depicting the Thirteen Faeries, I'm not actually sure if I've seen Malivant's likeness anywhere.

Curse my flighty attention span—because now, there's nothing worse than not knowing what this powerful monster I'm about to set free looks like.

"It's unwise to bait me," Malivant's smoky voice warns.

"Drat. You caught me." I mime snapping my fingers. Then I tip my head. "Not that it matters, because come to think of it, you have been incarcerated for almost a century. One of the other twelve faeries might have a better grasp of the current goings-on with ghosts trapped in mirrors. Maybe I should track one of them down so I can help him before I go home. If you don't mind waiting a few more days⁠—"

"As woefully transparent as you are, I would be amiss not to warn you away from the other faeries. Crones only know how that lot would amuse themselves with a transmigrated soul like yours. Know this: your admirer is not a ghost, but rather a displaced soul. Unmoored. Whatever body he once had, he merely cannot return to it, for whatever reason."

I glance at Eris, who's hanging out in one of the rippling puddles near the underground waterfall. Wulf stands near me, though he's set down the bags and basket.

"So if someone tracks down Eris's body, he'll be able to leave the mirror realm?"

"Assumably."

"But what if his body is just…gone? Decomposed, or something?"

"If his body passed away, he would also have passed on," Malivant sighs, like that should be the most obvious thing in this fucked-up fairytale world. "Now, the spell."

As I pull the paper out from my pocket, Eris moves to a closer pool.

"You don't have to free him, Fairest. I'll give an honest effort this time, teaching you to read."

Aha. So he was intentionally being a shitty teacher.

I suspected as much, but it doesn't matter. Why spend so much time scouring the evil queen's dusty journals when Malivant can send me back to my world right away?

Before I go, I'll use the Huntsman's pledge to ensure Eris will have help finding his body.

I might also ask Wulf to keep an eye on Snow White when I'm gone. She'll have a lot more support here, and I'll just go back to everything I was before all of this.

Alone and scarred, but safe.

As safe as I've ever managed to feel since I escaped him, anyway.

Unrolling the paper in my hand, I scan the charcoal writing. It's what I jotted down yesterday, zoned out as Eris gave me each word.

But I freeze now, scanning it again with my reading comprehension skills turned on this time.

Oh, my god.

"Please tell me this isn't saying what I think it's saying," I whisper-hiss to Eris.

"I tried repeatedly to warn you that this would be unpleasant."

"Unpleasant is the understatement of the fucking century. I know Rhinestone was a horny bitch with issues, but are you sure you reverse-engineered this thing correctly?"

"Yes. Again, it's not too late to simply learn to read instead."

I groan and start to pace. Seriously, why can't I catch a break in this world?

Malivant's tone is scathing with impatience. "Do share what has you in hysterics."

"To break the curse, we have to…" I gag and keep pacing.

"Make sounds like wretching animals?" the faerie deadpans. "Loose your infuriating tongue already. We have to what?"