Page 87 of The Eternal Mirror
“Probably just as well. You do know we’re likely heading into a trap.”
“Of course. You look after everyone else, and I will look after you.”
Finally, it’s dusk. We’re back in the room when we hear a light tap on the door—three knocks, silence, then three more. It’s the sign. Khronus has left the building.
The journey down to the dungeons goes without a hitch. But for all that, I can’t dismiss the sense of foreboding that fills me with dread.
At least I’m more appropriately dressed. In black pants and a black shirt and my own boots, I feel a little more like myself. I left the pink dress behind; I don’t think I’ll be wearing that again.
Khaos is invisible, just in case we do bump into anyone. I’d like to keep his continued existence a secret at least as long as I possibly can. And he’s too recognizable to anyone here.
Once down in the dungeons, Khaos and Killian head to the right, and Sheela and I go left. Khaos is to free Winter’s brother and bring him to the mirror room. Killian is going along with him, just in case Niall doesn’t feel comfortable in the company of a man he can’t see.
“I hate this place,” Sheela mutters.
“I don’t actually think you’re supposed tolikedungeons,” I reply. “That’s the point.” And it’s the only dungeon I’ve ever been in, so I don’t really have anything to compare it with. There are no guards tonight. I think Khaos was right—the dungeons have been cleared out. Maybe Khronus is making room for new prisoners.
We come to a halt in front of the invisible entrance. I touch the wall lightly and it fades to nothing—it knows me now.
“I never even suspected this place existed,” Sheela says. “And I’ve been down here a lot to heal the prisoners.”
“It’s warded,” I say. It’s a bit like my bedroom back on Earth. I’d warded it to prevent people from wandering in. “Not a physical ward, like Khronus uses to protect himself, but more...psychological. It makes you think something bad is going to get you. So, you avoid the place.”
“I can’t believe my mother was down here all those years. Beneath me. Going through god knows what.”
She’ll see for herself soon enough. I step into the room, and I know in that moment that we are so fucked. Because the heavypresence of dark magic has faded to a lingering hush—like a silence that falls after the screaming stops.
The mirror is gone.
Just not there.
The chamber is empty. There are faint lines where the trails of silver once led from the mirror to the cells.
“What’s wrong?” Sheela asks from behind me. I’ve come to a halt just inside the room.
“The mirror is gone,” I say. Khronus must have taken it somewhere else. Because he doesn’t trust me? To be honest, if I were him, I wouldn’t trust me either. But then I’m sane, most of the time, and he lost his hold on sanity a long time ago.
Maybe he’s just taken it somewhere for safety.
“Well, there goes plan A,” I mutter. Pity we never bothered with a plan B.
“What was plan A?” Sheela asks as I move out of the doorway so she can come up alongside me.
“We use the mirror to get out of here. That’s clearly not happening.” It probably would have dropped us in the middle of the void, anyway, though even that would be better than here. I press my lips together. “Let’s get them out of the cells, then we’ll decide what to do next.” That will depend on what state they are in.
She breathes in, undoubtedly inhaling that unique blend of despair and terror that lingers in the air. Most of the cell doors are locked, which I’m hoping means that the occupants are still inside and alive. I remember Yasmin saying that she would die if released from the mirror. I really hope that’s not true.
Fingers crossed, I head to the closest closed door and open it.
A woman is huddled on the floor, her arm chained to the wall. But she’s awake.
“Are you alright?” I ask.
A flash of disbelief crosses her face. “No.”
At least she seems sane. I cross toward her, and she flinches but then holds still as I whisper the spell to unlock the single shackle that holds her to the wall. She winces as her arm falls to her side and then rubs her shoulder.
“We’re getting out of here,” I say. “Get ready.”
