Chapter 23
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Cassian asked, his reflection staring back at me in the smooth curves of the ice sled he'd crafted for me. “If Blamore sees you…”
“Then I won't be alone this time,” I said assuredly, adjusting my numb legs into the sled. “Take me to the castle. We're going to find the pieces of that mirror and free you if it's the last thing I do.”
And it very well might be.
“What makes you so certain that Blamore still has the broken mirror?” he asked.
“Because I've seen it before.” I thought back to the shattered remains of reflective glass I’d seen glittering in the fire’s ashes in my past life.
Blamore must have tried to burn the remains of the mirror after it broke.
I'd thought it was odd that the fragments were never charred, but now that I knew the mirror was magic, I could understand why it wouldn't be so easily destroyed.
“If I can get inside the palace, I'm sure I can find it.”
The sled seemed to glitter with encouragement, Cassian’s eyes twinkling like freshly fallen snow.
“Then it's time to make it snow.” He summoned a gust of chilly wind, and the blow nearly knocked me forward as the sled started barreling down the hill.
My grip was too weak to hold onto anything, but Cassian seemed to read my movements and a strap of solid ice appeared around my waist, securing me to the seat.
My hood fell back from my face, but the wind felt invigorating as I flew past the mountain’s majestic scenery.
“Is that too fast?” Cassian shouted, his voice nearly lost to the wind.
“No!” I shouted back, catching half a mouthful of snowflakes. The air was refreshing, but my lungs were struggling to retain any of it. Time wasn't a luxury I had. “Keep going!”
He didn't ask again, speeding us down the mountain without a single bump in the snow. We glided for what must have been an hour, the multi-day hike tackled in a fraction of the time with the sled’s speed.
The mountain’s slopes eventually smoothed out, slowing significantly when we glided into the first village.
I recognized the houses immediately, and when the sled finally slowed to a stop, I had drawn the attention of a familiar set of villagers.
“Hey, look!” Harley shouted, his sharp voice drawing the attention of his sister, who was gathering thin sticks in her shivering arms. “It's the crazy mountain lady!”
I could barely recognize his sister with how many scarves she had wrapped around her neck and face. They stumbled through the snow toward us, their eyes wide as they ogled the striking sled.
“Whoa!” The young girl gasped, likely sucking in a mouthful of wool with it. “You made it back! We thought you had turned into an icicle.” A brutal cough interrupted her, her small voice choked by a terrible round of wheezing.
I stepped out of the sled as best as I could, resting my weight on the cane as Harvey and I ran to her side.
“Are you all right?” I asked, waiting for her breathing to slow. Her scarf slid down her face a touch, revealing the tip of her nose that was tinged black like she'd rubbed a spot of coal on it.
No…
“Everyone in the village has been coughing lately,” Harley explained. “Granny thinks it's because of the black smoke that came from the mountains a few months ago.”
“I'm fine,” Gilly said, clearing her throat and tucking the scarf back over her nose. “Just a little cold, but we can go inside after we hear about your adventure!” She looked at me eagerly, her bright eyes still watery from her coughing fit.
She's dying and she doesn't even know.
“Yeah! Tell us everything!” Harley jumped, and I couldn't help but notice he wasn't putting weight on his left leg. It didn't seem to be moving properly when he ran across the snow either.
What have I done?
“Did you take good care of Douglas?” Harley asked, the slightest rasp creeping into his tone as well.
Words left me as I stared at the brave children, their spirits too strong to be suppressed by a deathly poison. The kingdom was worse off than I thought, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t still a chance to make things better.
“Douglas took good care of me, Harley,” I said, doing my best to kneel to his level when my legs didn’t properly bend.
It broke my heart that I couldn’t return the special stone to the boy, but in truth I hadn’t seen him since I left him behind at the castle.
“Thank you for lending him to me. I’m hoping I can go back and find him someday. ”
“Douglas is missing?” His big, watery eyes wobbled with his lower lip.
“I’m afraid he might have been kidnapped,” I theorized, trying to imagine a daring adventure where the crafty stone snuck his way into Blamore’s pocket.
“Oh!” That seemed to perk the boy up. “I see, so you’re on a rescue mission now!”
“I certainly am,” I smiled. “But not just for Douglas. There are a lot of people I still need to save.”
“Then you’re going to need this!” He rummaged through his pockets, presenting me with a toothy grin and a pristine pinecone covered in a touch of lint. “This is Piney. He’ll know what to do.”
“I see,” I said, accepting the small treasure. “I can’t thank you enough for your kindness.”
“Don’t thank me, Douglas taught Piney everything he knows,” Harley said with a firm nod while Gilly rolled her eyes behind him.
“I don’t doubt it.” I gave the boy a cheerful pat on the head, then tucked Piney safely into my cloak before using the cane to pull myself back up on my feet. “I promise I’ll use him well.”
“Did you use a cane last time?” Gilly asked bluntly, cocking her head as she studied my legs. “I don’t remember you walking funny.”
“Well, I couldn’t use such a fun sled if I walked properly, now could I?” I suggested, nodding toward the glittering creation. “I’ll tell you what. I can’t really use it where I’m going, so why don’t you two keep an eye on it while I’m gone?”
“Really?” Harley gasped.
“Consider it a thank you for your gifts. Those matches helped me just as much as Douglas.” I smiled, and Gilly beamed with pride.
“Did you use all of them already?” she asked, and my smile twitched as I recalled the two I’d wasted. I would give anything to wish for my legs back, or for Cassian’s mirror to appear in my hands, but a wobbly cane and Piney the pinecone would just have to do.”
“I used three within only a few minutes,” I said honestly, thinking back to the first box I’d had. “They’re the reason I’m here with you today, and the reason why I have so many people that I need to save.”
Gilly and Harley stared at me for a long moment, seeming both confused and awestruck.
“Then you better hurry!” Harley finally said. “Take Piney and go save the world!”
“Yes, go!” Gilly said, a small cough creeping up on her again. “We’ll watch your sled.”
I bid them my thanks, then hobbled down the buried street with my new pinecone in tow.
The sled wouldn’t do me any good without something to pull it, and having Cassian magically slide it through the town would draw too many eyes.
I needed to get into the castle without being recognized, but that was hard to do when you could only move as fast as molasses running uphill in the winter.
Eyes peered out through frosted windows, drawn to the cloaked stranger that vaguely resembled the runaway princess. I tried to hurry along, but no amount of convincing could make my legs go faster.
“They’re watching me,” I said to the ring, my nerves settling when Cassian’s face appeared in the ice crystal’s reflection. “I don’t think I’m going to make it unnoticed.”
“Do you want to turn back?” he asked, worry lacing his voice. “I can create another storm as a diversion.”
A pair of royal guards turned their gazes on me. Their faces were covered completely in wool-lined helmets aside from their eyes. Even if they didn’t recognize me yet, they were sure to if they approached me. I needed to decide what to do now or risk being taken to the castle.
Wait...the castle.
“No,” I said, stopping in my tracks as I waited for the guards to move toward me. “I’ll let them bring me to Blamore.”
“What?” Cassian gaped. “Safara, he’ll try to kill you again.”
“I’m already dying,” I said, feeling my spine slouch another inch. “As long as I can get to that mirror, it doesn’t matter what he does to me.”
“But, Safara—” I covered the ring with my other hand, silencing him just before the guards stopped in front of me.
“Identify yourself,” the first guard commanded, his bushy brows already knit as he studied my familiar features.
“I am Princess Safara of Rothen,” I said in the raspiest tone yet. “Take me to the castle and tell Prince Blamore that the snow queen requests an audience.”