it only burned brighter with the addition of their firstborn child. The girl had gotten the very best qualities of both her parents, thank heavens. (Katherine might have found Georg handsome, but he reminded Ingrid of a toad.) They named her Snow White. With porcelain cheeks, the roundest eyes with gorgeous lashes, and thick black curls, the kingdom’s new princess was adored by all . . . except one.
When little Snow White stared into Ingrid’s eyes, she could swear the child knew the darkness of her soul. Every time she held her—which was plenty, seeing as how she was lady-in-waiting and the princess’s aunt—the child screamed.
Fat tears rolled down Snow’s cheeks as Ingrid tried to bounce her up and down and shush her. But no matter what she tried, the child could not be soothed in her arms.
“Here, let me show you,” Katherine said, scooping Snow up and holding the six-month-old in her arms. The swishing movement, combined with Katherine’s dynamic smile, soothed the child instantly. Within minutes, the baby was actually cooing. The rest of the room gathered round to watch.
“She’s a natural mother, our queen,” said a handmaiden Ingrid couldn’t stand.
Ingrid pushed the woman aside. “Katherine? Are you almost done here? We’re supposed to discuss adding more workers to the mines. Truthfully, I think we could just make those down there spend more hours working.” One of the handmaidens gave Ingrid a look of disdain. Ingrid didn’t care. “If they did that, we could double our diamond harvesting and our profit would be plentiful.”
Katherine ignored her for a moment, continuing to coo at Snow White, who lapped up the attention that should have been for Ingrid.
“Katherine?” Ingrid’s voice was sharper. “Our appointment time together is only for a half hour. You have a busy day ahead and we haven’t much time to discuss things.”
“Oh, Ingrid,” Katherine said, her eyes still on Snow. “The mines can wait for another day. Right now, come enjoy your niece with me.”
“But . . .” This was infuriating! The kingdom needed someone to take a firm hand and shake it alive. They could be drowning in riches and wealth if pathetic Georg would put his foot down! Spending longer hours in the mines, however unstable the miners claimed those conditions to be, would garner them riches like they’d never seen!
Now is the hour. Take thy dream. Seize the ultimate power.
“You keep saying that, but it isn’t possible,” Ingrid spat, and everyone looked at her. Had she just said that out loud?
Give yourself to me. Put thy hand on the glass. I’ll show what you fail to see.
So the mirror wanted more lifeblood. If she was honest, she hated touching the mirror. Every time she made direct contact with it, it seemed to glow brighter, while she felt tired and weak. The feeling had to be in her head. After all, it was just a mirror . . . a mirror that spoke to her soul. She’d done it several times already, and the bond between her and the magic had strengthened. She now knew spells she’d never heard of and had brilliant thoughts about fixing the kingdom. But she hated feeling so drained.
“Did you say something, Ingrid?” Katherine asked. She couldn’t even look up to ask the question. It was outrageous! That ridiculous baby took up all of Katherine’s time and attention. And royal duties took up the rest.
“No,” Ingrid muttered, even though she wanted to scream.
You know what must be done. A life for a crown . . . if you want this battle to be won, the mirror told Ingrid yet again.
But she still wasn’t ready to listen.
“I learned something today that could be of use,” Happy declared as the final dish was dried and put back in the cupboard.
The men and Snow looked up from their various positions around the cottage. Happy and Doc were on dish-drying duty, while Dopey and Bashful were sweeping the floor. Grumpy was starting the fire, and Snow, Sneezy, and Sleepy were cleaning up the kitchen.
For the last week, she had lived with the men, or the dwarfs, as she knew they referred to themselves, and she had quickly fallen into a new routine. The men wouldn’t hear of her cooking or cleaning for them (“You’re the princess!” they protested) so it was agreed they would share the housekeeping duties, with Snow prepping meals while they were at the mines. She didn’t leave the cottage during the day—Grumpy had made her promise. (“The queen has