Forever (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale 5)

Ever had said it was like a prism. Fae were in essence magic, and magic had seven colors—like a spectrum. She had thought of—not just splitting him in two—but using a prism and mirrors to split him seven ways. Each one would weaken a part of him. Then Mina and Ever would simply have to destroy the mirror and trap him inside. He’d never be able to cross over and hurt one of them again.

Except that Ever was trapped in one of the mirrors with him.

Thankfully, she wasn’t split. She hadn’t been in the center with the prism long enough. But she was injured and with a shadow form of Teague. Which one would he be? Would he be evil? Good? Something else?

Beads of sweat appeared across Ever’s forehead, and her eyes started to look glazed.

“Oh no no no no!” The effects of the poisoned dagger were causing Ever to fade fast. Mina pressed herself to the mirror and called out. “What do I do?”

Ever bent down out of sight and stood back up, her right hand hidden out of sight. Ever smiled sadly and mouthed the words. “It’s too late for me. Break the other mirrors.”

She raised her hand and held up the towel bar she’d pulled off the wall.

Teague came into focus, running toward the mirror, just as Ever smashed the bar into it.

It shattered.

What had Ever done? Did she not think Mina could save her?

Mina stared at the broken mirror before wracking her brain for answers, but she didn’t have any. Ever sacrificed herself for the plan by destroying the mirror from the other side.

Then her bedroom door burst open with a flash of light as someone blasted her in the chest. Pain surged through her body as she flew through the far mirror.

Chapter 16

Mina landed on something cold and hard. The glow of the portal she had been hurled through closed up, leaving her in pitch black. What mirror was she in? It wasn’t the bathroom, hall, or kitchen. The darkness surrounding her made her shiver. Was it the house trying to help her again? Where had Nix even found this mirror?

She sat up and groaned in pain, her foot scraping across what sounded like stone. Mina felt around her and along the freezing cold floor. There. A wall. Better to have that to her back than be wide open to who knew what. As she shifted, she heard something slide across stone. Someone or something was in the darkness with her.

“Who’s there?” she called out softly.

No one answered, but she heard a slight cough. Terrified of being attacked in the dark, she scrambled along the wall until she felt a somewhat familiar shelf. She sighed in relief when she felt a paint can, toolbox, and next to it a flashlight. Nix had found a mirror in the basement. Clicking it on, she swung the beam in an arc while she kept her senses on high alert.

>“Teague,” Mina whispered his name. “That dagger is evil. It’s changed you. If you’d let me help you, we could remove the rest, and you’d be back to normal.”

“And why would I want that?” His eyes went dark, and he turned on her. “I’ve never felt so alive… so powerful… so in control of my own destiny.”

“Fine. So does this mean it’s over?” she asked. “That you’ll leave me and my family alone?”

He turned to her, his face lighting up in an evil grin. “I’ll spare your friends, but I’m not done with you.” Within seconds, he was pressed up against her, his hand cupped around her face, his thumb just brushing the corner of her lip.

Mina’s breath caught as he leaned forward to kiss her. She pinched her eyes shut, scared to fight, scared to breathe as his lips barely brushed hers.

“My only wish,” he whispered, “is for you to share my fate.”

Her eyes shot open. The dagger glinted as his arm lifted to plunge it into her.

“No!” Mina screamed and reeled backward falling onto her bed.

Her fall made her even more vulnerable. He smiled.

The door burst open, and Ever exploded into the room flying straight for the dagger in his hand. She grabbed his wrist mid-lunge and yanked backward.

“Now, Mina!” Ever shouted, as she struggled with Teague to pull him closer to the their target.

Mina pulled all of the power through the mirrors into the room. The mirrors glowed, lights flickered, and the paintings on the wall shook.

Teague blasted Ever against the wall, leaving a spidery crack up the plaster. She looked a bit dazed, but the pixie shook it off and flew toward him again, grabbing the hand with the dagger. Teague seized her in a net of power, frozen, her hand still wrapped around his wrist.