Crown of Ice (25 page)

Voss’s cruel cackle fills the chamber. “She can believe the evidence of her own eyes. The two of you, so closely entwined. That seems like more than friendship to me, does it not, little one?” He grips Gerda’s shoulder with his boney fingers.

The sight of Voss’s hands on Gerda is too much for Kai. He breaks my grip and flies at the wizard. Gerda stands between the two men—a small, forlorn figure.

Kai halts right before her, the toes of their boots touching. “My dear friend,” he says, reaching for her hands. “Come away from this evil. Don’t listen to his lies. You know me. I would never harm you.”

Gerda lifts her golden head and looks Kai in the eye, wearing an expression that mimics the wraiths’ tortured masks. She raises one hand as if to press it in Kai’s open palm, then swings and slaps him hard across the face.

Kai rocks back, holding his hand to his cheek.

“I saw you.” Gerda’s voice is low and laced with venom. “The two of you, kissing like … like that.”

“Gerda,” Kai pleads, “it doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. We’ve always been friends. You’re like a sister to me.”

I move to Kai’s side, shooting him a warning glance. Little as I know about human relations, I know that “sister” is the last thing Gerda wants to hear from Kai.

Gerda launches into me, beating her fists against the crossed arms I’ve thrown up to protect my face. “You witch!” she screams. “You used your magic to steal him from me, sorceress!”

I shove her away. She crumples to the floor, burying her face in her hands, sobs racking her body. Kai kneels beside her, one hand hovering over her shoulder.

I point a finger at Voss. “You did this.”

“Indeed.” The mage pulls his black velvet robe about him. The garment’s gold embroidery flashes in the light like sparks from a dying fire. “It took very little skill. All I had to do was whisper a few words in the girl’s ear while she slept, planting the seed of doubt. Then I waited for the right moment, which I knew I would sense, even from afar. After that it was a simple matter to guide her here to observe your little romantic interlude.” Voss’s eyes cloud over, as if he’s thinking of something, or someone else. “I have proven my point, I believe. All goodness can be corrupted, given the right conditions, and time.”

“You had no need to prove your point to me.”

“It wasn’t you I was trying to convince.” Voss’s knife-blade smile splits his face. “Or even your little friends. They are but pawns in a greater game.”

“Sephia.” Of course, Voss is still obsessed with the enchantress. This gambit was a way to prove his theories to her.

“Yes, my dear mentor. Always she taunts me, claiming goodness will triumph, that purity will defeat my power.”

I take in a sharp breath. In Voss’s crystalline eyes there’s a hint of something human. Twisted and bitter, but human nonetheless. A flicker of hurt and loss.

Kai’s taken a weeping Gerda into his arms and sits, rocking her gently back and forth. “You have no power,” he tells Voss. “Not in the end, no matter if you lay claim to all the mirror’s magic.” Kai’s dark eyes flash. “I think I wish you to have it, your immortality. You deserve to live with yourself forever.”

“Watch your tongue, boy. I’ll transform you into an insect if you’re not careful.”

“You won’t.” I step between Voss and Kai. “You need his hands, and his mind. Only four pieces remain to be placed. With Kai’s help I can manage it, otherwise …” I spread wide my hands. “You know what happens. Yes, I become a wraith, but you lose everything too. Remember what happens to the mirror if I fail.”

Kai glances up at me, puzzled. “What do you mean, Thyra? I know he has to create another Snow Queen …”

“That, and the mirror flies apart. It must be reassembled again, from the beginning. Isn’t that right, Master Voss?”

Voss levels an icy glare at me. “That is true, though I do not know how you discovered that fact.”

“I’m rather intelligent, or hadn’t you noticed? I put some clues together quite a while ago.” I extend my hand to Kai. “Let’s take Gerda to her room. She needs some rest.”

Kai grabs my hand and uses my leverage to lift Gerda as he rises to his feet. She clings to him, limp as a frost-blighted leaf. “Yes, she’s exhausted.”

I don’t tell Kai that it’s my magic that’s sunk Gerda into a stupor. Although I’m using it to protect her—concerned that in her anger she might say something to trigger Voss—I doubt Kai would understand my motives at this moment.

“Perhaps you”—I address Voss—“should leave us alone from now on. You’ve played your little game with Gerda, now allow us to finish your precious mirror. It’s in your best interest to do so.”

Voss bends his head in a mock bow. “And yours, Snow Queen.”

“I don’t deny it.” I move to Gerda’s side, placing one of her arms around me as Kai drapes her other arm about his shoulder.

Voss observes us, the cold smile fading from his face. “I do have another journey planned, so I shall leave you for now.” He wheels about and heads into the corridor. “I expect the mirror to be complete when I return.” His words drift back, winding their way around my temples and tightening like a vise.

I motion for Kai to wait for a moment before we leave the Great Hall. I’ve no wish to encounter Voss in the corridors.

“What journey must he embark on now?” asks Kai as we make our way to Gerda’s room. “Surely he wants to be present when the mirror’s completed.”

I help him lower Gerda’s limp body onto her bed before I answer. “I suspect he’s gone to seek out Sephia, the enchantress I mentioned. I think he’s still trying to prove her wrong, after all these years.”

“But why does he care so much?” Kai drapes a bearskin throw over Gerda and sits on the edge of the bed. He keeps one hand on Gerda’s shoulder as he looks up at me.

“Because, once upon a time, I think he loved her.” I meet Kai’s searching gaze. “Love can make one do foolish things, or so I’ve been told.”

“It can indeed.” Kai extends his other hand to me.

I shake my head and back away. “Not now, Kai. We’ve no time. You must make sure Gerda’s all right, and I must return to my appointed task. Only a few days left, remember.” I break my hold on Gerda, allowing her to wake, before I turn and stride into the hall.

Kai’s voice follows me. “It isn’t over, Thyra. Not till time, or death itself, defeats us.”

WINTER’S END

Shadows dance as the light flaring across the mirror flickers. I snap my eyes open and grip the edge of the table with both hands, forcing my buckling knees to lock.

“Thyra?” Kai rushes to my side and places his hands on my waist. “You must get some sleep. I think you were sliding to the floor.”

“I was.” I rub at my aching eyes. “But I can’t sleep, Kai. We’ve only three more pieces to place, but tomorrow …”

“I know. Tomorrow’s the final day before your birthday.” Kai pulls me close. “We’ll do it, Thyra. We must. I can work by myself for a while if you’ll sleep.”

“And who’ll keep the lights blazing?” I shake my head. “Only I can conjure enough light for us to work.”

“I know.” He sighs deeply. “Let’s get back to it, then.”

Two shards lie upon the blank section of the mirror. Only three pieces remain to be placed. It should be so easy, but the last fragments have resisted all our efforts thus far.

His dark head bent over the shining mirror, Kai’s a picture of concentration. His lips are pressed tight and lines furrow his brow as he places two fingers on one of the shards. I stare at his profile. An observer might say that although he’s rather a handsome young man, he’s nothing extraordinary. Not the type of person to turn heads as he saunters down the street. But I know better. I know I’ll never see another face that will stop me in my tracks, or speed the beating of my heart. Only this one. Only Kai.

I step closer and lay my fingers over his. “What about this?” As we move our hands together, turning the fragment ever so slightly, it clicks into place.

Kai jumps back, still holding my hand. “Another one!” He pulls me close and kisses me firmly on the lips.

For several minutes I forget all about the mirror. Kai’s the one to pull back, planting a final kiss on my forehead before he steps away.

We stare at one another, both breathing hard. There’s a look in Kai’s eyes that delights and terrifies me at the same time.

Kai averts his eyes. “Sorry, I lost track of myself there for a bit.” He clears the hoarseness from his voice. “Now—for the final two shards.” He stares at the mirror and frowns. “Hadn’t you better retrieve Voss’s shard so we have it ready? We’ve yours, of course, but I wouldn’t want to leave his piece until the last minute.”

“Of course.” I examine the mirror. Only a tiny corner remains dark. “I wanted to wait until he was out of the palace, but I think I saw him leave this afternoon.”

“He took off after lunch.” Kai shrugs when I cast him an inquiring look. “I saw his sleigh through the windows. The black one, isn’t it?”

“Yes, pulled by a snow-white reindeer.” I slide my shard around the small space left on the backing board. “Speaking of lunch, or rather food in general, where’s Gerda? She never brought us any dinner.”

Kai stills all his movements. “No, she didn’t.” He glances at the reflective blackness of the windows before looking at me. “That isn’t like her. You don’t think …” His dark eyes widen.

My mind races, evaluating the possibilities. “Luki’s with her, so the wraiths won’t bother her. And they can’t harm her, at any rate. Although perhaps they terrified her enough that she’s kept to her rooms?”

“Surely Luki would’ve alerted us if something else was wrong.” Kai carefully places my shard in the bin. “I’ll go check, just in case.”

“I’m coming with you.” I brush aside Kai’s protestations and follow him out of the Great Hall. We race each other down the corridors.

Kai scans Gerda’s empty room. “Her boots are gone.”

“And her cloak.” I lay my hand on Kai’s trembling arm. “She probably decided to step outside for some air.”

“In this weather?” Kai dashes out of the room.

I have to run to keep up with him. He’s right, of course. A quite natural, but fearful blizzard is raging. It’s already dumped several feet of snow around the palace.

When we reach the kitchens a distinctive howl rises from the pantry.

“Luki?” I stride over and toss aside the chair that’s propped up under the knob. Claws scratch wildly at wood. I throw open the door and Luki leaps out, whimpering and panting. He places his forepaws on my breast and licks my chin before dropping to the floor.

“No, no.” Kai’s voice is as strangled as an animal in a trap.

I turn to see him slumped against the stout kitchen table, a piece of paper dangling from his fingers. “What is it?” I reach for Luki’s warm body and bury one hand in his fur.

“Gerda’s gone.” The pain in Kai’s face strikes my heart like a dagger.

I cross to the table, Luki at my heels. “Gone? Gone where?”

“Away,” says Kai with a harsh laugh. “Home, she says, though how she expects to get there, in this storm …”

Leaning in, I gently pull the note from Kai’s fingers. It’s written in a childish but very firm hand. “She does say she took Bae. That’s something, Kai. The reindeer’s much more likely to get her home safely than if she were traveling on her own.”

Kai swings out one hand, pointing toward the kitchen doors. “Out there? In the dark? Even Bae can’t fly through a blizzard, Thyra.”

“I know.” I examine the note more carefully. Gerda’s words leap out at me—“since you don’t love me the way I wish to be loved …”

“Oh, Gerda,” I say aloud. “Why couldn’t you just wait?”

Kai casts a sharp glance at me. “What do you mean?”

“Well”—I take hold of one of his hands—“you and I know that we can’t stay together. You said it yourself—in order to survive I must accept immortality as the Snow Queen. Whereas you”—I turn to face him—“must return to your own world, your real life. A life that includes the university, but also family, and friends, and love. Perhaps Gerda’s love, in time?”

“No,” he replies, gripping my shoulder with his free hand. “There’s only one girl I love. I told you that.”

I smile, knowing he’ll read the sadness in my eyes. “You did. But it’s a dream, Kai. A beautiful, impossible, dream. Now—we must put all this aside and go and find Gerda and Bae.”

“But the mirror, Thyra.” Kai gives me a little shake. “You can’t leave the mirror. There’s so little time left.” He glances at the standing clock. “Only twenty-four hours. You must stay and place the last two pieces. I’ll search for Gerda and Bae.”

“In the dark?” I lay one hand on his cheek. “In a blizzard?” I release my grip on his fingers. Placing my freed hand on the other side of his face, I lean in until our foreheads are touching. “You’d freeze in hours, Kai, no closer to finding Gerda than you are now. No”—I kiss him with great deliberation before drawing back—“Only I can control enough of the storm to allow us passage. We go together.”

“We should hurry, then.” Kai draws me into a tight embrace. “The mirror must be completed, Thyra. For my sake as well as yours.”

I stroke my fingers along his backbone. “It will be. But for now”—I break away from his embrace—“we dress for deadly weather and venture into the storm.”

He nods. “I’ll meet you in the stables in less than half an hour.”

“I’ll be there,” I reply, watching him dash out of the kitchen. I pat Luki. “It appears we must attempt another rescue, my friend. What do you say? Will you truly follow me anywhere?”

Luki gazes up at me, golden eyes bright, tail wagging. I don’t need him to speak to know his answer.

***

Buffeted by the driving snow, it takes much of my power to maintain a sphere of calm air about our sleigh. Forced to concentrate on our protection, I’ve handed the reins to Kai, who drives the ponies like he’s been doing it all his life.

“I’m good with horses,” Kai shouts at me over the whistling of the wind.

I hang on to my hood with one hand and yell back at him. “Turn left, toward the mountains. Bae will seek out a cave, as he did before.”