Page 81 of Firedrake Betrayal
I squeeze my hands into fists. When my nails cut into the fleshy part of my palm, I’m only barely conscious of the sharp sensation.
The female laugh comes without warning.
I nearly topple into the water as I spin around.
I’d thought I was alone out here, and I am.
In this green glade with bright grass as far as the eye can see, it’s just me.
So who was laughing? Where are they hiding? And why did that laugh sound so achingly familiar?
No matter how hard I strain to see, nothing moves in the grass, and no laughing woman pops into view.
All too soon, the pool of water recaptures my attention.
It terrifies me, and I don’t understand why it would, but something pulls and pulls at me to creep a little closer.
So I do.
After taking a deep breath for courage, and ordering myself to stop being stupid, I remind myself it’s just water and it can’t hurt me. I look down.
It’s me.
My reflection, actually.
See, Jade. Nothing to be so afraid of.
My shoulders relax and I smile at such a ridiculous, pointless fear.
“You’re weak.” The female voice comes from right behind me, hot breath kissing the back of my neck.
I scream and tip over, flailing desperately to save myself from crashing into the water. A hand grips my wrist and yanks me back.
The moment my bare feet sink into the soft, springy grass, I whirl around.
And I stare.
At me.
Down to the long, white dress, loose dark hair, and big, dark green eyes. But the expression in her gaze is not me. I would bet anything that I have never looked as fierce as that.
The woman who looks like me but isn’t lifts her chin as she scrutinizes me. “You’re afraid all the time. Don’t you ever get tired of it?”
She even has my voice.
And not.
There’s a confidence in the way she speaks, the way she tilts her head and peers at me that’s as unfamiliar to me as the look in her eyes.
This woman doesn’t look like anything in the world scares her.
“Who are you?” I demand as I back up. Not too far, though. I still have a terrifying pool right behind me.
She throws her head back, and that same laugh from before rings out.
My laugh. But different.
I stare at her and struggle to make sense of what’s happening. This is so beyond confusing and weird.
