Page 27 of Wicked Prince of Mirrors
Lyra’s gaze turned distant and troubled. “Those are cryptic words. My father will not speak of it, but I’ve often wondered, what is the lesson the prince was supposed to learn from his banishment? The prophecy speaks of his return, to set things right again, as they should be, with Mirror Magic. I don’t think your appearance by his side is a coincidence. A princess. Daughter of his worst enemy. And you carry the magic he needs. That power lives within you and whether you like it or not, we all need it.”
I recalled Methrin’s words, telling me I had no idea how much power I had. But my worth as a princess was nothing, and my value diminished when I gained Mirror Magic. I had no power, no way of controlling the fate of the world like my father.
Lyra and I sat in silence, the words we’d shared creating a vast, invisible barrier between us.
Prince Methrin was my father’s enemy, the kingdom’s villain, but I had the unique opportunity to see him in a different light and discover the truth. All my life, I’d lived according to the whims of others, listening to the words they spoke, changing my habits to fit the role assigned to me. The palace was a beautiful prison from which I’d been freed.
Mirror Magic had given me the opportunity to rewrite my life’s story, discover the lies I’d always believed and understand the truth. It might give me the opportunity to shape the trajectory of the kingdom. Yet that thought was bold, impossible. Magic had sent me into hiding, brought me face to face with people I once would have seen the Venators execute. Now I thought of them as potential friends.
Friends. The word echoed like a warning.
All my life, people had used me. What if I were blind to their desires? I couldn’t be. Prince Methrin wanted me for my magic, and Lyra saw me as a means of escape from her hidden haunt. What did that mean for me?
10
ESMIRA
“Esmira?”
The shape of my name on his tongue startled me. I’d thought I was alone in the kitchen and set to work, eager to earn Lyra’s praise. Over the past three days she’d taught me how to stroke the dying embers of a fire, boil water, and make tea. Small victories, yet a step toward independence. Lyra spoke no more about leaving, and I hadn’t seen Methrin since the first night, or Rydlin since we’d first arrived.
Now I turned, and the apparition of a shadow flickered on the edges of my vision, gone as Methrin strode into view, tall, composed, and utterly unreadable. He paused at the table, tapping the wood with his fingertips, studying me.
Dark green fabric enveloped his lean, muscled figure, tailored to fit him in all the right places. Damp curls hung over his temple, accenting the perfection of his sculpted features. My pulse ticked up as our eyesmet, his stormy violet eyes compelling, deep enough to get lost in.
I was the first to look away. The list of questions I’d built up for him over the past three days fled from my mind.
“Tea?” I asked, gesturing to the kettle.
“No need. I think it’s time we talked.”
My heart kicked. “About?”
Methrin took a seat at the table. “Join me.”
I sat across from him, wondering if I was about to hear all the answers to the questions I should have asked him long ago. As I curled my fingers around the steaming mug to anchor myself to the moment, I wasn’t so sure I wanted answers anymore.
“There are many things I haven’t told you. Truths I’ve kept hidden,” Methrin began. “I don’t trust you, not yet, because you did not choose this path. It was forced on you. But I need you. Your help. Your magic.”
I didn’t know what was worse, the thrill in my blood when he said he needed me, or the quiet ache that if not for Mirror Magic, I’d mean nothing to him.
“Why?” I asked. “To take back the kingdom? I will not help you with that.”
His lip curled. “So you do have claws.”
I tensed. Had I let down my guard? I sternly reminded myself that I was still alone in the world. These people weren’t my friends even though I’d been forced to flee into their open embrace for protection. I needed to cling to my independence and not get swept away in the flood of what was coming.
“No claws,” I corrected. “I have morals, values, I will not hurt my father.”
“Even if he were willing to hurt you, because of what you’ve become?”
My bravado vanished. Whathadhappened to my mother? Was my father responsible?
“I know what’s it like to be exiled, outcast and far from home.” Methrin offered, voice low, almost gentle.
I desperately did not want to talk about myself anymore. “Was this when you were trapped in the mirrorverse?”
He held my gaze. “Yes. Beyond the mirror is the mirrorverse, a place of shadows and mist between worlds. Not many are aware that mirrors are portals between worlds and I was lost . . . searching for my way back home.”
