Page 161 of Blood of the Fairest

I even brought the little pot of red lip stain I found among Rhinestone’s many cosmetics, which isn’t doing a shabby job of covering the bite mark still healing on my lower lip.

All that’s missing is the dress and mask, and then I’ll stroll into the masquerade with Snow White, Anika, and Ingrid.

God, I cannot wait to see them in their dresses. As much as I’m focused on getting home, my inner child fashion nerd who watched The Devil Wears Prada about eight trillion times is beyond excited to see a bunch of beautiful fairytale ballroom dresses.

Just as I’ve finished donning the spectacular dress Ida perfected for me and pulling on the dark red opera gloves, Eris appears in the vanity mirror.

He looks like he’s about to say something, but freezes with his mouth hanging open slightly, eyes widening on me.

“There you are,” I grin, spinning to give him the full effect. What do you think?”

Ida killed it. While I was unsure about using the two things I couldn’t stop thinking about as inspiration—namely, the creepy broken mirror in Rhinestone’s secret passageway and, of course, blood—I think it paid off.

The ball gown is made of silvery-blue mirror flax. Its corset-like bodice has a sweetheart neckline and is carefully embroidered to look like it’s covered in delicate hairline fractures, perfectly capturing the effect of a broken mirror. Though the skirt starts off liquid silver, it melts into a deep, violent red where it billows to the floor. My silver masquerade mask is inlaid with delicate glass shards to enhance the broken-mirror look.

I’m fucking proud of the way it all turned out, but when Eris says nothing, I look up curiously.

His opalescent gaze drinks me in for another moment before he swallows hard. His voice is rough enough to make my stomach flip.

“I think you’re trying to kill me, Fairest.”

“That bad?” I joke.

“Don’t make light of taunting a starving man. As if I didn’t crave you to the point of madness before, now you have to look like this on a full moon.”

I’m not sure what the full moon tonight has to do with anything. But I’m suddenly having a really hard time finding a way to tease my pearlescent model about saying he craves me again when he’s staring at me with such…desire.

If I’m honest with myself, the feeling is mutual.

If I could pull Eris through the glass into this world and drag him to the masquerade with me, I would—but at least I know he’ll be there in this way, watching me.

With a pounding heart, I accept the compliment, grab my cracked-mirror-like mask from the vanity, and slip it on. Then I take a deep breath.

“Okay. Operation Bum-Magic-Off-Cinderella begins now,” I tell myself.

I lock the queen’s guest room as I leave and make swift progress through the Isenmerian guest wing of the castle.

Up ahead, I spot Snow White standing with Anika and Ingrid, all of them chatting excitedly as Isenmerian guards stand waiting to escort us to the ballroom.

I don’t realize Eris must be in the reflection in my mask until he speaks.

“Wait, Verena. About that knight from yesterday⁠—”

“Yeah, yeah. I know. You want me to get over my fear of gore and guzzle his Kool-Aid.”

“You should feed on him, but when I searched the barracks, I didn’t see⁠—”

“Eris. I really want to just pretend I’m a normal, non-Kool-Aid-guzzling woman. I want one beautiful, sparkling night in this world where I don’t feel like a fucking monster. So can you not bring up the B-word or that knight tonight? Please?” I tack on.

He pauses and then sighs. “Why can’t I say no to you?”

“Because my Sundance Kid would never.”

When I reach Snow White and the others, I can’t help it. I clap and squeal like I’m ten years old and we’re all showing off cute pajamas at a slumber party, even though that makes some of the Isenmerian guards look both scared and confused.

Poor men. So easily affected by a little playful whimsy.

“Oh my god, look at you! You look incredible,” I gush, taking Snow’s hands to spin her around.