King of the Wilds - Tasha Black Page 0,20

him to grab Miranda by the arm and drag her back toward the pool.

“We did it, brothers,” Tristan said brightly.

It was good to see Tristan looking so happy. For all that he was the King of Light, he had always been sullen. Not so much anymore. Bron suspected it was Tabitha’s effect on him.

Dorian clapped a hand on Bron’s shoulder.

“She’s lovely,” Dorian said.

“Who?” Bron asked.

Dorian let out a barking laugh and Bron almost tripped he was so surprised.

“Having a queen suits your humor, brother,” Bron said.

“You should try it,” Dorian told him.

“They’re mortal,” Bron said, wishing he understood why they were so drawn to these short-lived women. “What will you do when she’s gone?”

“No idea,” Dorian said. “To be honest, I can’t picture it at all. I’m just trying to enjoy what we have for as long as we have it.”

“But she puts herself in danger,” Bron said. “How can you let her chase these monsters?”

“She’s good at it, and it makes her happy,” Dorian said. “Who am I to stop her?”

“You’re the bloody King of Darkness,” Bron retorted.

“Before her, I was a pauper,” Dorian said with a strange half-smile.

Bron observed his brother in wonder.

But Dorian only walked on, past the pools and through the fence to join his queen.

His queen…

Was that the feeling that was drawing him to Miranda?

Bron pushed the bothersome thought aside and ran to join his brothers.

10

Miranda

Miranda followed the others into the mansion on the cliffside.

Bron had been silent in the car the whole way over.

She wasn’t sure if she had done something wrong, or if he was merely pensive. She didn’t really blame him. After all, this was the end of their adventure.

The six of them stepped up onto the porch without speaking, all of them perhaps awed at the magnitude of what they were about to do.

Tristan stepped forward, cupping the padlock that hung from the door in his hand.

It sprung open with a click.

He turned the knob and the door swung inward to reveal the interior of the empty mansion.

Miranda had been here before, but only during the day. The place was kind of cool but also depressing with its nests of cobwebs and old furniture standing silently like mourners at a funeral.

In the darkness, the dust disappeared and she saw only the elegant lines of the curved staircase and the moonlight on the black and white tiles of the foyer.

“Come on,” Sara whispered.

They headed into the conservatory.

A huge section was missing from the mirror on the wall. This was the part that had been smashed when Sara released Dorian and the monsters.

Sara crouched on the floor, pulling shards out of her bag and lining them up in order.

“There,” she said in satisfaction.

Sure enough, the pieces on the floor fit together like a puzzle, in the exact shape of the missing section on the wall.

Tabitha pulled out a roll of duct tape and they worked together to stick the pieces in place.

When they were finished, the mirror was whole once more, with cracks outlining each shard.

“Tabitha,” Tristan said quietly, holding a fog of warm, soft light between his palms.

Instantly, Miranda felt peace in her soul. She wondered if Tristan was using his powers to lend confidence to his queen.

Tabitha extended her hands to touch the mirror as Dorian pulled the shadows down around them all.

Miranda felt a tremor, as if the whole house were holding its breath.

But nothing happened. Scars still rent the mirror.

“I don’t understand,” Tabitha said.

“Try again,” Tristan encouraged her.

They all focused their energies and the room filled with shadows once more.

When Dorian lifted the darkness again, the mirror was the same.

“I can’t restore it,” Tabitha said, shaking her head. “It’s not ready to come together.”

“Oh,” Sara said. “The corner.”

“Of course,” Tabitha said, turning one of the mounts that held the mirror in place to reveal another missing piece. “We noticed this piece was missing before Sara broke the rest of it. I didn’t even think about it. But it feels like that’s what’s holding it from going back together. It wants to be whole.”

“But you said each shard was a creature,” Miranda said. “So if a piece is missing, does that mean…”

“Something is loose, and has been,” Bron said. “Something that was already here in the realm before Sara freed Dorian and the other creatures.”

“That’s impossible,” Sara said. “If there were a monster, we’d know it.”

Her words hung in the air.

Miranda moved to look at the broken corner of the mirror.

There was something about it, something about the shape, it