Page 7 of Wicked Prince of Mirrors
Did anyone in the palace know I had magic? Obviously, someone had seen me at the Night Market and reported my whereabouts to my father. Had they also seen my incident with the mirror? Panic set in as I thought of myself in the plaza, hands bound above my head, vision blocked, waiting for the sound of those knives to pierce my flesh. The screams haunted me, the pain, the blood, the daggers sticking out of her body.
I had to flee before my secret became public knowledge. Light-headed, I leaned forward on my hands and knees and closed my eyes. The seer’s words came back to me:If you wish to keep your life, escape through the tunnels and go where they are afraid to go. For the closer you are to danger, the further you are from death.
I stood, a firmness coming over me. I was tempted to pack a bag, wear my cloak, and steal down to the kitchens for food. But it would be too obvious, too dangerous. It was broad daylight, the halls were busy and if stopped or questioned, it would be difficult to explain myself.
Instead, I stood tall, unlocked the door and walked out of my room.
Forcing myself not to break into a run, I took the servants’ entrance to the main floor, the same way Rhea and I had gone when sneaking out to attend the Night Market. On the main floor I walked through passageways into the ballroom. It was empty, my footsteps loud, jarring in my ears as I crossed the wide area.
I kept my focus straight ahead because I’d learned,as long as I walked with purpose and intention, no one questioned where I was going or what I was doing. I kept my arms down by my sides, hands open, empty, harmless. Part of me wanted to cower back and hide, but it would only draw the wrong kind of attention.
When I peeked down at my fingers, there was still a light hue to them, unnoticeable in daylight but here, inside, it was very clear that something unusual was happening with my hands. When I lifted my head I almost walked into the broad chest of the Captain of the Venators.
Hissing with surprise, I stepped back, eyes wide as I scanned the ballroom. He stood in the nearby doorway, watching me with those dangerous eyes. “Princess Esmira,” he said coldly.
Crossing his arms, he waited.
“Captain.” I recovered. “I did not expect to see you here.”
“I imagine not, but this is a fortuitous occasion. What did you think of today’s execution?”
I clasped my hands behind my back, trying not to be overtly obvious about looking for a way to escape him. “It is the law, I did not find it unusual.”
“No?” He straightened and took a step closer. “Your father tells me it was your first attendance of an execution. You were not shaken by the brutality of it?”
I wished my father had kept his mouth shut. Had he shared with the Captain how disturbed I was? I thought I’d done a better job of hiding my emotions, but I knew it was impossible to keep secrets from my father. Therewas a reason he, and none other, had ascended to become king.
“It does not matter how I feel about executions, justice was served.”
A flash of white teeth came as he prowled closer.
“Then you did not feel some sort of alliance toward the prisoner? After all, she had Mirror Magic, and one sign of Mirror Magic is glowing hands. Another. Silver blood. A third, shattered glass.”
He knew.My fingers tingled at the revelation and I glanced around the ballroom, my body tensed to flee.
His voice dropped lower. “It shouldn’t surprise you, after all, your mother had latent magic too.”
My heart raced. “My mother?”
A predatory smile crept across his face.
“Captain?” a voice called from the other side of the wall. “Captain?”
Boots rang out, then paused as they reached the ballroom doors. I made out a younger man, sweat covering his brow.
The Captain turned to me, a spark of annoyance on his face. “We have plenty of time for this conversation. Later.”
His boots rang out as he joined the younger man and the two of them walked away, low voices carrying on an urgent conversation.
He knew.
The truth sank deep inside me and this time I ran deep into the palace. I opened doors I’d never opened before and stumbled upon narrow passageways I’d never seen. At some point I became conscious ofwhispers tugging at me, leading me deeper inside and down into the bowels of the palace. Did magic guide me or was I losing my mind to madness?
Finally, I came to a door that opened into cool darkness. It was silent below me and when I inched my foot forward, I was met with solid rock. The air was cool, almost damp. Despite the darkness, a faint glow came from my fingertips, showing me the top of a spiral staircase. I shut the door behind me, relieved when I didn’t hear the clink of a lock.
My panic abated as I descended into the dark, listening for the sound of dripping water, cautious of rats and other rodents that might be drawn to the darkness. Yet all that awaited me was silence.
As the staircase came to an end, a pale glow hovered before me, bright enough that the glow on my fingers faded away. I trailed my hand along the wall which was smooth stone, a sort of marble and cool to the touch. The passageway turned abruptly, growing wider and displaying the location of the light. It came from underneath iron double doors.
