Page 47 of The Eternal Mirror
Which means if the need arises and we have to leave in a hurry, all I need to do is get us all out of the palace.
I wait a few seconds, then whisper my new favorite spell again. The world ripples around me. Invisible once more, I slip back through the gates, past the guards, and through the marble corridors of the palace.
Back in our rooms, Zayne lies on the bed, his arms wrapped around Josh, whose face is streaked with tears. Neither of them stirs as I settle onto the sofa and try to get comfortable.
I stare up at the ceiling.
Where are you, Khaos?
Part of me hopes he never comes here; he would complicate an already complicated situation. If Khronus gets his hands on him, he will just be one more hostage for my good behavior. If Khronus doesn’t kill him on sight.
But hoping doesn’t get you anywhere. I know Khaos will come for me. So my best bet is to get out of here before that happens. And then, go find him.
There are just a few things I need to do first.
Chapter 16
Little Miss Rebel Princess?
Of course, I don’t manage to go to sleep.
Every time I close my eyes, I remember where I am: deep inside the palace of a megalomaniac with ambitions to become atruegod. A new Vortex. With the power to create and destroy entire worlds.
And let’s not forget the super fun detail where he thinksI’ma gift from the gods—one he’s just dying to unwrap. I want to believe he’s delusional. Ireallydo. But I don’t.
There’s something down in that dungeon, something that’s feeding his ambitions—something alive, and twisted, and wrong. And I need to find out what.
But first, I need sleep.
My body is wrecked, but my mind is doing cartwheels, like it thinks sleep is for the weak and sanity is overrated.
I toss and turn on my not-very-comfortable sofa—like everything else in this place, it’s designed to look impressive and feel like punishment.
In the end, I get up and tiptoe out of the room so as not to wake Zayne and Josh. Khronus has kept his word, and I do have freedom at the palace—just not anywhere else. At least it gives me the illusion of freedom and of being alone.
I miss being alone.
The sun is just rising as I make my way out onto one of the many roof terraces, the sky a glorious mix of purple shading to orange. Above my head, the stars still twinkle. This world is so beautiful, and for a moment, I clear my mind and just breathe. At times like this, it’s easy to believe this world is a creation of the gods. So why did they abandon it?
I cross the terraced area and peer over the parapet that surrounds this section of flat roof. It’s quite near the center of the palace, so when I look over the edge, all I see is more palace.
Everything is quiet. Then I see a flick of movement off to the left. There are a couple of soldiers stationed in what looks like a watchtower that rises high above where I’m now standing. They’re archers—I can see the longbows on their backs. I wonder what I’d have to do to make them shoot.
I hear footsteps behind me and whirl around.
Zayne is walking toward me, and he doesn’t look happy. He looks like he’s got something really important on his mind. AndI guess I’m going to hear it, though I suspect I already know what it is.
He stops in front of me. He’s aged in the last few days. Lines that shouldn’t be there mark his young face. His eyes are shadowed. His lips are pressed in a tight line. I know he’s scared, but right now he’s also angry.
“We have to leave,” he says without so much as a good morning. “And we have to leave now.”
“Right now?” I ask.
“Don’t be facetious,” he snaps. “I fucking want out of this place. And you—” he points a finger at my chest, “—seem way too happy to stay here and play little miss rebel princess. Are you even trying to get us out of here?”
“It’s a work in progress.” Perhaps now is the time to tell him the good news: my mirror magic works outside the palace, and I have a way to get us out unseen—literally. But he doesn’t give me a chance.
He smiles, but it’s grim. “Well, time to speed up the fucking progress, princess.” He blows out a breath. “I spoke with Sheela before you turned up yesterday. We can join them—or you can magic up one of your mirrors when we get out of here—and we can go wherever we like. But we’re leaving this palace. Look, I’ve been thinking about it… I can shift. So can you. We’ll get Winter’s brother. One of us can carry Josh, and one of us can carry him, and we’ll just fly straight off this fucking roof.”
