by S. J. West
“It’s constantly in the back of my mind, like a ghost that won’t stop haunting me,” I tell him. “I resisted getting close to Gretel, Scarlet, and Isabel when I first went to the academy. I knew we were training for a high-risk job and letting them inside my heart put me at risk again. Sometimes I wish I had kept them at an arm’s length, and sometimes I consider them to be the best part of my life. If I let you in Coltan, I’ll be gambling with an even larger part of my heart that you could easily crush one day.”
From Coltan’s thoughtful expression, I get the sense he’s thinking over my words carefully before saying anything.
“If I walked away right now,” he begins, measuring his words carefully, “and promised to never see you or try to contact you again, would that make you feel any better?”
Unexpectedly, his words bring tears to my eyes, and a weight settles over my heart like all of my hopes and dreams were suddenly snatched away from me all at once.
“No,” I sob as he brings me back into his arms to hold me. “Why would you even say something like that?”
“I said it because I care about you deeply,” he tells me. “If your life would be made easier without having me in it, I would leave, even though every part of me wants to stay.”
“Don’t leave me,” I beg him.
It’s then I realize that I’ve already let Coltan inside my heart, and there’s no way I can let him walk out of my life now. My mind may have tried to keep him at a distance, but my heart will never be able to let him go.
“I need you,” I whisper to him.
He wraps his arms around me a little tighter, and I feel him rest his cheek against the top of my head.
“I need you too,” he tells me. “And there’s nothing in this world I wouldn’t do for you, Cin.”
“Then don’t ever leave me,” I say.
“Is that an order?” he asks. I feel his smile, and it brightens my mood.
I lift my head up from his chest so I can look into his eyes.
“It’s a request,” I reply.
Coltan leans over to kiss me on the forehead. Tingles dance down my spine, but this time, the sensation fills me with warmth.
“Calling all Thorns!” an urgent voice says on my com bracelet. “Calling all Thorns! Shadowspire is under attack! I repeat: Shadowspire is under attack!”
“I’ve got to go. Stay here with Maximus,” I order Coltan as I run for the door.
“Be careful!” he calls after me because I don’t give him time to do anything else.
Thorn Kimp is in the elevator holding the door open for me when I get there.
“Place this floor on lockdown,” she instructs Thorn Stone. “No one is allowed up here until Shadowspire is secured.”
“Understood,” Thorn Stone says.
As soon as I’m in the elevator, Thorn Kimp pushes the button for the first floor.
“I’m not sure why it surprises me that the Princes would attack us on a day like today, but it does,” Thorn Kimp says, crossing her arms and shaking her head in dismay. “With only a skeleton crew manning Shadowspire while we handle the chaos the supernova caused, it’s the perfect time for them to strike. I suppose we should have seen it coming.”
“Are you sure it’s the Princes?” I ask as I wonder if it could be someone else entirely.
“Who else would attack us?” Thorn Kimp asks, providing me with a stern look as if I know more than I’m letting on.
“Whatever escaped from the asylum,” I reply. I go on to explain to Thorn Kimp what little information I have concerning the beast.
“I had no clue we were keeping such a dangerous prisoner,” she admits, shocked.
“I only know because I saw what was left of its cell. I’m sure that’s the only reason the commander explained it to me. If whatever this thing is survived the supernova, maybe it’s seeking retribution against the people who kept it locked up for so long.”
As the elevator doors slide open, Thorn Kimp uses her com bracelet to try to contact anyone at Shadowspire, but she doesn’t receive an answer. In the lobby of the hospital, all of the Thorns who were helping with the patients and keeping an eye on security are there to get their orders from Thorn Kimp, since she’s the senior Thorn present. When I catch sight of Isabel, I immediately go to her.
“How’s your dad?” I ask as we give each other a hug. I have to say, she looks a lot better than when I left her. She isn’t crying anymore, and she seems to be in control of her emotions.
“He’s still in surgery, so I’m not sure,” she says. “But Gus told me that I should have faith he’ll pull through. He said my dad was saved for a reason, and that I need to hold onto that thought.”
“Does everyone have a ride to Shadowspire?” Thorn Kimp asks all those gathered.
“Did you get the keys to your car back from Gus?” I ask Isabel.
She holds them up in the air to show me that she has them.
Since everyone seems to have some sort of transportation, Thorn Kimp orders us to move out and meet up at Shadowspire.
I take the keys from Isabel so I can drive her car. I’ve had a bad day, but she’s had an even worse one. The fate of her father’s life is still up in the air, but she’s holding herself together better than I expected her to. Perhaps I’ve been judging her and Scarlet on a different scale for too long. They have both acted bravely today, and I couldn’t be prouder to have them not only in my squad, but also as my best friends.
When we get into the car and I turn the key to start the engine, I suddenly feel lightheaded and the world begins to spin out of control.
“Cin . . .” a voice says to me that doesn’t belong to Isabel.
I whip my head around and look in the tiny backseat of the car. Sitting there is Briar Rose with worry lines etched into her face. Isabel seems unaware of our visitor.
“She can’t see me, Cin, and I’m not sure how long I’ll be able to maintain this connection with you, so listen to me carefully,” she tells me urgently. “You need to go back to your home before you go to Shadowspire.”
“Why?” I ask, not understanding her logic.
“Are you talking to me?” Isabel asks as she turns her head to look at me.
“No,” I tell her hastily. “I’ll explain in a minute.”
“It’s not the Princes who are attacking Shadowspire,” Briar Rose says. “You’ll be able to see the truth of that when you see the building, but right now, I need for you to drive as fast as you can to your house.”
I turn back around and put the car into gear as I peel out of the hospital’s parking lot.
“Why am I going home?” I ask Briar Rose.
“You need to get something there that will protect you from her.”
“Is this the ‘she’ you and the others warned me about?”
“Yes,” she says gravely. “She’s come for me, Cin, but you have to stop her before she causes even more death and destruction.”
“Are you safe?” I ask, imagining the top floor of Shadowspire being infiltrated as we speak.
“For the moment,” Briar Rose says. “But she’s smart and determined. I can protect myself from her for a time, but I would rather not do that if I don’t have to. The cost would be too great.”
“What will protect me from her?”
“This will sound strange, but I need for you to break the heel off of one of your mother’s crystal slippers and bring it with you to Shadowspire. It will help protect you from her magic and give you a weapon to use against her if she’s foolish enough to attack you.”
“I don’t understand,” I say, shaking my head at her in the rearview mirror. “How is a piece of crystal going to protect me from her?”
“Trust me,” Briar Rose says as she begins to fade away. “Hurry, Cin. She’s getting closer.”
I push the gas pedal to the floorboard. The sudden jolt of speed momentarily forces Isabel’s head back into her headrest.
“What’s happening, Cin?” she asks. “Who are
you talking to, and why are we heading away from Shadowspire?”
“I was talking to Briar Rose, but she’s gone now,” I say, taking a corner a little too fast and almost losing control of the car. I slow down a touch to make sure we get back to the house alive. “She told me it isn’t the Princes who are attacking Shadowspire. It’s the she that Briar Rose and the others kept referring to in my dream. I believe it’s the mage Darcy helped escape from the asylum.”
“Mage?” Isabel asks since she doesn’t know what her father and Commander Ford told me back at the crater. I take the time to tell her everything that I was told by both of them.
“Is it a human mage?” Isabel asks. “Did Commander Ford tell you?”
“No. She didn’t give me much information, but it doesn’t really matter. I’ll be seeing her soon enough myself.”
“I don’t understand how the heel from your mother’s shoe will help you save Briar Rose,” Isabel says, sounding as confused as I feel.
“Me neither,” I admit. “But I don’t think she would tell me to go get it first if it wasn’t important.”
I pull into my house’s driveway and park in front of the entrance. Both Isabel and I race out of the car and into the house.
“Do you know where Kalder keeps his tools?” I ask Isabel as we stand in the foyer.
“I think I saw his toolbox in the kitchen,” she answers.
“Grab it and meet me back here,” I say before running off to my bedroom to get one of my mother’s shoes.
I’ve kept the crystal slippers in my walk-in closet ever since I returned home. I placed them on the top shelf and then pushed them to the back of my mind. To me, they’re simply a memento that my mother left behind, but to Briar Rose, they seem to be the key to protecting me from the dangerous mage who crawled out of that crater and escaped.
I grab one of the shoes and make my way back to the foyer. I don’t have to wait long before Isabel returns with Kalder’s toolbox. I sit down on the wood floor by the door, and Isabel does the same while opening the toolbox.
“I saw Kalder use a hacksaw with a carbide blade when he repaired a metal pipe underneath the sink,” she says as she rummages around the bottom of the box. “That type of blade should cut through crystal too.”
Isabel places the hacksaw in my hand. As I saw the heel off the slipper, I wonder how I’m supposed to wield this as a weapon. All Briar Rose said was that it would protect me from her attacker. I still don’t understand why my mother’s shoes would have that kind of power, but I didn’t get a chance to ask that question. I know so little about my mother’s past that I can’t even hazard a guess. I don’t even know where her shoes came from. Could they be a treasured heirloom handed down through the generations? Or were they made especially for her? I honestly have no idea, and I wish my father had talked about my mother more. The few times he did tell me about her seemed hard for him. I could tell he loved her a great deal, and he never quite got over losing her at such a young age. I don’t even know what she looked like. He said they never got around to taking any pictures. I suppose when you’re young and in love the thought of death doesn’t enter your mind. Still, it seems weird that there aren’t any pictures of her at all.
Once I have the heel off the shoe, Isabel and I stand from the floor. I place what’s left of the crystal slipper on the table by the door on the way out of the house. I slide the heel inside a hidden pocket sewn into the lining of my jacket. As soon as we get back into the car, I drive straight for Shadowspire as fast as I can.
I’m so busy keeping my eyes on the road for pedestrians that I don’t realize something is wrong until Isabel gasps in horror.
“Cin, look at Shadowspire!” she says, pointing straight ahead with terror in her eyes.
I chance a glance away from the road and look up to see what’s frightened her. Since Shadowspire is tall enough to almost reach the clouds, it towers over every other building and is easily visible from far away. I feel my heart fill with panic as I stare at Briar Rose’s resting place.
Swirling around Shadowspire is a dark, semi-transparent mass that seems to reach all the way up to the tip of the building. I can only assume it probably also reaches all the way down to the bottom as well.
“What is it?” Isabel asks with a tremble. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”
“If that isn’t dark magic, I don’t know what is,” I reply, disheartened by the sight.
How am I supposed to go up against a magical creature that can conjure something like that? I don’t know what the spell does yet, but it can’t be anything good.
When we pull up to Shadowspire, there is a group of at least fifty Thorns gathered around the base of the building. Their heads are tilted back as they stare at the swirling black mass that’s encapsulated the spire. After Isabel and I get out of the car, we walk over to Commander Ford who’s standing just outside the spell and contemplating the entrance of the building. It becomes clear pretty quickly why none of the Thorns present are trying to breach the dark mage’s barrier.
Thorn Kimp and a few of the other Thorns who were at the hospital are trapped inside the spell. It seems like they were frozen into place as soon as they tried to enter it.
“How are we supposed to get inside?” I ask Commander Ford as I consider our options.
“I’m not sure,” she says, with a deep frown. “I’ve called the Guild to see if they have a mage there who can counteract this spell, but it’ll be a while before they get here. In the meantime, Briar Rose is at the mercy of the beast.”
“So you’re sure it’s the dark mage from the asylum?” I ask.
“That would be my guess,” she replies. Commander Ford looks both angry and scared. I’ve never seen her scared of anything. “I don’t know what this spell is, Cin, and our mages may not be able to find a way through it. From what we can see out here, everyone who was inside the building is frozen into place just like Thorn Kimp and the others.”
Discreetly, I place my hand in the hidden pocket of my jacket and pull out the heel from my mother’s slipper. I keep it hidden in my hand because I don’t want Commander Ford to know I have it. All I can do now is trust what Briar Rose told me.
“I don’t have time to explain this to you right now,” I tell Commander Ford, “but I can get to Briar Rose. Can you trust me to do what needs to be done?”
The commander looks confused by my words, but I also see a desperate kind of hope illuminate her eyes.
“Can you take anyone else in there with you?” she asks.
I shake my head. “No. I’m the only who can go inside.”
“If you can get in there and protect her, do it,” Commander Ford orders. “You can explain things to me later. Right now, she needs someone to shield her from this thing.”
I nod my head in agreement and look over at Isabel.
“I’ll be back,” I promise her.
“I know you will be,” she replies with the most encouraging smile she can muster.
I grip the crystal heel tightly in my hand and plunge myself into the dark swirling cloud. I stand inside the spell for a moment to make sure I can breathe and still have free movement of my limbs. The spell itself doesn’t seem to be affecting me. I can feel the wind kicked up by the swirling motion, but even that merely feels like a slight breeze. I walk forward to check on Thorn Kimp first.
Her eyes are wide open, and she has a determined expression on her face, ready to battle whatever was inside the building. She’s been frozen into place, exactly like all the others, and I pray that she’s still alive. I place my hand against the side of her throat and feel a pulse. I breathe out a sigh of relief. Not wanting to waste any more time, I run for the entrance of Shadowspire. The doors slide apart automatically, which tells me that the spell only affects people, not machinery. I’m grateful for that because the only way up to Briar Rose’s chamber is the elevator.
The Thorns who were in the lobby when the beast came through the doors stand in fi
ghting positions with their weapons raised and their bodies poised for an attack. I don’t check them for signs of life because time is not on my side. Odds are they are frozen into place like Thorn Kimp. I make a mad dash for the elevator. It’s no surprise when I have to call it to come down to the lobby. The mage attacking us would have had to use it to get to the top floor, but she would also need one more thing: a Thorn’s hand. While I wait for the elevator, I scan the area around the lobby and spot the Thorn who lost her right hand at the wrist.
Once the doors open, I walk in and place my palm against the biometric sensor, which is smeared with blood from the severed hand that was used by the mage.
As the elevator ascends to the top of the spire, I open my hand and look down at the crystal heel in my hand. I don’t understand what’s so special about it. To me, it looks like an ordinary piece of crystal, but by some strange magic, it’s protecting me from the effects of the dark mage’s spell. As the elevator passes the floor where the commander’s office is, I wrap my fingers around the heel and pray that I can stop the mage’s plans for Briar Rose.
Chapter 7
The elevator dings and the doors open. A black-cloaked figure stands in front of the gold embossed doors that protect Briar Rose. The mage is attempting to conjure some sort of spell to open them.
“Get away from there!” I order as I step into the room and stride toward her.
The mage spins around to confront me as if I caught her off guard. She was concentrating so hard on what she was doing that she apparently didn’t hear the elevator arrive.
I can’t see her face clearly because the hood of her cloak is drawn too low. All I can see are her mouth and chin. From this small glimpse of her face, she looks ancient. Her lips are thin red slashes on pale, parched skin. Her appearance makes me wonder how long she was imprisoned for. From the looks of it, she may have been there since the building was converted into an asylum.
“How did you get in here?” she questions harshly with a scratchy voice that sounds like two pieces of sandpaper rubbing against each other.