Narrowing my eyes, I study the mirror. A subtle, green glow permeates the frame and handle. It is magic, but it does not feel sinister.
As if sensing my question, Glenda holds it out to us. Bright light flashes across the mirror a moment before it reveals Queen Rina and Fredrik, locked together in a lover’s embrace.
My mouth falls open and Lyana gasps as Rina’s image fades away to reveal a goblin woman with long, purple hair and pale lavender skin. Noticeably absent is her swollen abdomen.
“I… don’t understand,” Lyana whispers in shock. “Rina is—”
“A goblin and a blood witch,” Glenda says, finishing her sentence. “Yes. And she is not with child either. That was a glamour meant to fool you and your father into trusting her, whilst manipulating Fredrik to believe it was his child as well.”
“Can Fredrik see her true form?” Lyana asks.
Glenda shakes her head.
The image fades, replaced by our reflections. “Why do you show us this?” I ask, eyeing her warily.
Magic flows through my veins, arcing through my body and sparking across the tips of my fingers, ready to strike if this goblin dares try anything.
Glenda’s gaze drops to my hands. “I promise that I mean you no harm, Prince Caelen. You or your mate.” She darts a glance at Lyana. “Just as you have learned that not all humans are bad, surely you must realize that not all goblins are evil.” She pauses. “Yes, we are few and far between, but we do still exist.”
Despite her words, I am hesitant to trust her. I want to put as much distance between us and this goblin as possible. “We are leaving,” I state firmly. “And if you wish to live, you will not try to stop us.”
Glenda sighs heavily. “If you leave now, you will be unable to save her.”
I go still.
“Please,” she pleads. “Let me help you.”
“Why would you offer to aid us?” I ask. “Why should we trust you?”
“Because if you do not, she will most assuredly die.” She turns to Lyana. “Your mother made a bargain with me long ago.”
“My mother? Why would she come to you?”
“She was desperate for a child. My magic gave her two. You and your brother. But there is always a price for such things, especially a spell as potent as this. I warned her, but she refused to listen. I have had to live with this guilt, and that is why I help you now.”
Lyana studies her in disbelief.
Fear tightens my chest, followed quickly by anger as I glare at the witch. “Tell me: what price did your magic exact for this bargain? And how can we break it?”
She swallows hard. “I cannot tell you how to break a spell I have cast as the result of a bargain. You understand magic; you know the rules of binding prevent me from speaking of it.”
I growl low in my throat. “You will speak of it to me,” I grind out as I step toward her, readying to cast.
With a flick of her wrist, she throws up a barrier spell, but I easily step through. Her eyes widen. “Wait!” She holds out the mirror. “I cannot speak of it, but the mirror can show you.”
“Show me what?” I grit through my teeth.
“The future—that which will come to pass.”
I level an icy glare at her. “How do I know what it will divulge is true?”
“Your magic is strong. Surely you can feel even now that this mirror does not lie.”
She is right. Nothing about this mirror suggests malevolence, but something does seem slightly off. I take it from her, studying it warily.
“While the magic itself is not evil, this mirror can still do harm,” she says. “Those who use it too often go mad.”
“Why?” Lyana asks behind me.
As I stare down at the glass, I understand the witch’s words. “Some things are best left alone,” I murmur. “Knowledge of the future can be a powerful and dangerous thing.”
Lyana’s hand on my back draws my attention as she moves to my side. She glances at the mirror and then up at me. “Then, we will only use it once.”
I nod in agreement.
The witch touches the frame and closes her eyes. “Mirror, mirror in my hand, show them the future that they must understand.”
Images flare across the smooth surface, moving so fast many of them are blurred. A silver dragon flies overhead, raining down fire upon Fredrik’s forces.
Suddenly, I’m transported; I am standing in the midst of battle. I look down and gasp as Lyana lies in my arms; her body limp and her eyes fixed upon mine with a glazed expression. I pull her to my chest, raging and crying out for help.
She disappears and a sylven apple is in my hand—a symbol of hope and life among my people. I lift my head, and find a glass coffin laid out upon a gray stone slab; Lyana inside it, her eyes closed in death.
Terror seizes my heart and the vision falls away, leaving me shaken.
“What dark sorcery is this?” I growl at the witch. “I will kill you where you stand.”
