Page 25 of Thief of Dreams
How am I going to get out of here when I can’t even look away?
"Show me the Dragon's Heart," I repeat, my fingernails cutting into my palms.
Once again, Prince Keir comes into view. He's slinking toward a wide, tiled bath that looks somewhat akin to the one off my chambers. Steam curls off the water, and he's lost the towel.
Help. I do not need to know that.
But something else captures my attention.
The mirror blurs the edges of the view, thank the Goddess, or I'd be staring right at the Prince of Dreams's most valuable possession.
Instead, the view is focused on his chest. Granted, it's a lovely chest, but the charm that lies against his sun-kissed skin winks in the light, and my breath catches. Maybe the mirror wasn't lying with that first image.
Maybe it's not showing me Keir, after all?
It's a primitive piece of jewelry, and I've seen him wearing it before. Carved in the shape of a claw, it's the length of my index finger and made of solid gold.
Amongst all the marble and gems that exists in this court, it fades into insignificance.
But where else does one hide a valuable relic?
Right in plain sight.
Slipping it off Keir's neck without him noticing its loss is significantly more difficult than breaking into a treasury. This is the cursed Prince of Dreams, after all. But now I know why there's been no hint of magical relics in his palace or in the treasury.
Now I know where it is.
I just need to break the mirror lock.
Easier said than done.
I know what the runes say now:Beware those who look into the glass, for your true desire will trap you.
Somehow I need to break the chain.
"Show me the creature who killed Lady Altrea."
The mirror resists. It wants to offer me fortunes and futures. It wants to trap me with gold and gems and hints of Prince Keir's bare flesh.
Don't I want to see my mother?
Don't I want to see my fae relatives?
It could show me.
All I have to do is ask.
The thoughts are not my own, and the second I even think about my mother, I see a face forming in the heart of the mirror's black depths. A face I cannot afford to see, because then I'll never be able to look away.
"Show me the creature," I almost sob.
The mirror offers me a glimpse of the dining hall last night, but I can sense its reluctance. I was expecting to see the Wyrdwolf, but then... that's not what I asked.
My breath catches as I see half a dozen of the princesses; Altrea, Narcissa, Calliope, Ismena, and two other girls I barely recognize.
"Go home,"Princess Ismena sneers at one of the girls."You don't belong here. Neither of your bloodlines could even dream of tempting the prince."
"Perhaps he's not concerned with our bloodlines,"one of the princesses replies bravely. Everly, I think. We've spoken once, but not again.
