(Skeleton Key) Princess of the Damned (7 page)

Stupid broken bones.

He dropped his head on the table in front of the mirror, just to rest his eyes because they didn't want to stay open. He heard her panicked whisper from a distance as the medication won their battle and he fell asleep.

"Friend?"

L
ANDON WOKE UP HOURS
later. Eiress was on her way to the ball for the evening, head high even as her entire body trembled. He needed to get up, get ready, gather supplies…but he couldn't leave her. Not while she was so afraid. So he stayed and watched, hoping she could feel him there with her. He watched her face down Mary and Elizabeth both, her huge green eyes narrowed. Both of them laughed, but he could feel their discomfort. They were afraid of Eiress.

He'd thought so before, but hadn't been sure until now. This was very important, he could feel it. But he didn't know how to use it to his advantage. He needed to know
why
they were so afraid of her.

He had no idea how to figure that out.

Instead, he made a list of everything he could think of that he would need. First and foremost, the cat's eye ruby that would keep Mary away from him. Second, a flashlight because one always took a flashlight into terrifying mirror worlds. Third, the key. Because otherwise, this was all just pointless.

That was the entirety of his list.

Landon felt massively ill-prepared.

The ball, for the most part, was uneventful. At least, it was as uneventful as it could be. No one traded their soul for hell, no one was dragged kicking and screaming through the black, rotting gates, and no new princesses were sucked through the mirror.

All in all, he'd call it a good night.

Several times, he saw Eiress look up at the mirrors on the ceiling, as if she knew that was where he watched from. He knew she couldn't see him—she'd told him so, once—but it still gave him something between goose bumps and butterflies when it felt like she was staring right into his eyes.

And then the ball was over, and she escaped to her room. He finally let out the breath he'd been holding, the tense set of his shoulders slipping away when he knew she was safe.

"Thank you, friend," Eiress said quietly as she collapsed onto her bed, Kaida settling at her feet.

"You're welcome." Landon put his hand to the mirror. "I'm coming, Eiress."

He gathered his supplies. Checked on his parents, who were both sleeping. Landon knew full well that he might not make it back. That he might never see them again. He knew they would wake in a few hours and he'd be gone, and they'd be terrified, and he had no idea how to alleviate that fear. His note was short.

Going to rescue a good friend in trouble. Please don't worry. I love you both.

Yep. That would work.

"Landon?"

He jumped, nearly fell over—and not just because the pain meds made him loopy.

"Your mom told me you were sleeping when I came by earlier, but I saw your light on." Cassie eased through the opening in the back door. Damn the safe neighborhood they lived in. His parents never locked the door, and Cassie knew it.

"Yeah. I was. Broke my hand." He lifted said hand and waved it carefully, as if that explained everything.

"Oh my gosh. How? You poor baby! Let me kiss it better." Cassie gave him a wicked grin as she reached for his hand. Just before noticing the bag sitting at his feet.

And the note on the table.

"What's going on?" The wicked grin died from her face. Now her eyes were narrowed, half-suspiciously, half-worried.

"I've gotta go. I'll talk to you later, okay?" He tried to maneuver her out the door without it seeming like he was trying to maneuver her out the door. She sidestepped his attempt and planted her hands on her hips.

"Landon."

Sighing, he raked his good hand through his hair. "I've gotta go. A friend is in trouble."

"Right after you mysteriously break your hand? What the hell is going on, Landon?" Her eyes narrowed more.

He set his teeth. This was going to hurt.

Her. Not him. He'd never loved her. Not with Eiress in the mirror.

"Cassie, it's a girl. She's in trouble and I'm going to help her." There. That hadn't been so tough, had it?

"A girl?" Her voice was suddenly shrill. "From school?"

"No. Not from school."

"Then from where?" Shriller, still.

"I can't tell you that."

Her thin eyebrows shot up and her cheeks reddened. "What do you mean, you can't tell me that? Are you cheating on me?"

He shook his head. "No. But you should know…I'm in love with her," he said softly.

Cassie sucked in a breath, paling like he'd hit her. He'd never told her he loved her. She'd said it, a few times. He never had.

And he felt like the biggest jerk ever, right then.

"And…" She tilted her head, tears pooling in her eyes. "You're in love with her, but you aren't cheating on me?"

"No. I'm not cheating on you." He was aware of the clock behind him, the ticks of the second hand mocking him. He was losing so much time. "Cassie, I can't explain this to you tonight. I've gotta go. When I get back, if you still need answers—for closure or whatever—I'll tell you what I can. But I've gotta go now."

"You always treated me like crap. I treated you like a god, and you—"

"I know. I'm awful. You deserve better. I'm sorry, Cassie. I really am." He was glad she was angry. Anger was easier to deal with than pain and tears. If she'd let those tears fall, the guilt would have eaten him alive.

"I'm not going anywhere." Cassie folded her arms over her chest and glared. "I want to meet this mystery boyfriend-stealer."

"She's not—Cassie, you can't meet her. Not tonight. I won't even be back tonight."

"Then I'm going with you." She reached over, plucked his truck keys from the post by the door, and tightened her fingers around them, hazel eyes daring him to try to take them away from her.

But he wouldn't. He didn't need his keys, and wrestling them away from Cassie would only waste more time. Sighing, he grabbed his bag. "I'll be right back."

He left her there, in his kitchen. Alone. Because he was in love with someone who was not her, and Cassie was safe and Eiress was not, and he was a horrible boyfriend.

He went into the bathroom and shut the door, praying Cassie didn't try to follow him in. Hefting his bag over his shoulder, he dug the cat's eye ruby from his pocket, holding it tightly in his good hand. With shaking fingers, he reached out and turned off the bathroom light.

He had no more excuses. It was time.

"Bloody Mary."

His voice shook. He didn't sound like a brave hero. He sounded like a scared little boy.

"Bloody Mary."

The mirror seemed to fog, and he felt the cold seep from it and into his bones. For several long minutes, he stood in silence, eyes wide, throat closed with fear. He couldn't do it. He couldn't summon her. He wasn't brave enough.

"I'm so sorry, Eiress."

Eiress smiled in her sleep. In that smile was forgiveness. No judgment, no anger. It encompassed everything she was—good, strong, beautiful.

And he couldn't fail her.

"Bloody Mary."

For the first time since he could remember, he couldn't see Eiress in the mirror. He didn't see himself, either. The room froze, the light from under the door vanished, and icy wind swept through the bathroom. Landon stumbled back, slammed against the wall, where his legs refused to move.

Mary appeared before him.

"What is this?" she purred. "It's not often I'm summoned by a
boy
. Only the girls are brave enough to face me." She smiled, a wicked, soul-sucking smile, and reached for him.

Landon didn't fight. He wasn't sure if he would have even been able to, so frozen in fear were his limbs. He felt her claws sink into the skin of his throat and he had a wildly horrified moment when he thought she might kill him without even pulling him in—like Eiress's sister.

But then he was dragged through the mirror. It was like being pulled through the ice on a frozen lake. The edges tore at his skin and the cold chilled the breath in his lungs. Everything hurt. Everything glacial. He fell to his knees on the black ground at her feet as chains raced through the room and clamped on his wrists and ankles. "I have no use for men," Mary said. "But Elizabeth does. She'll—"

Landon thrust his fist in the air. The cat's eye ruby seemed to burn through the ice in his veins.

Mary screamed and fell back, clawing at the black and gray walls. "Get thee hence! Elizabeth!"

Landon scrambled to his feet, trying to force his sluggish body to do his will. This was not the time for immobility. Digging the key out of his pocket, he ran for the throne room, where he'd seen the chains attached to the giant lock behind the thrones. Behind him, he could hear Mary screaming for Elizabeth, could hear her footsteps stumbling through the darkness, but he didn't dare look behind him.

Get to the lock. Get to the lock. Get to the lock.

He raced past Vlad, who stood at the doorway to the ballroom, stunned. Apparently, they weren't used to live men running through their haunted halls.

It worked in Landon's favor.

"Stop him!"

He saw Elizabeth come in the side door, more horrible in person than she'd ever been in the mirror. She was beautiful, yes, in a nightmarish, horrific sort of way.

She wasn't fast enough.

Landon dove for the throne and the lock between them, chains curled around it like sleeping snakes. The key fumbled in his casted hand, and he dropped it. It glowed against the black floor, translucent light. He snatched it with his good hand, fell to his knees and shoved it into the lock.

I'm going to die. But Eiress will be free.

And he would go to hell, because he died here. Whether he deserved it or not.

It didn't matter. Eiress would be free.

The chains hissed, lashing at him, coiling tighter around his wrists. He fought them, pushing the key through the lock. Elizabeth screamed and dove at him, but Mary was strangely silent. He didn't have time to search for her, though, as he fought Elizabeth off and tried to untangle himself from the chains.

Vlad was rushing from the doorway. Landon landed one miraculously placed kick to Elizabeth's face. Her nose broken, black blood gushed from her gray face, and she tumbled back, howling.

Vlad froze, eyes on the blood, fangs biting into his bottom lip.

Landon didn't hesitate. He sprang to his feet and ran for all he was worth. Elizabeth was behind him, Vlad's fingers grabbed at the collar of Landon's shirt, and there was no time to think. He dove for the wide, stained-glass windows. The glass shattered around him as his body hit, and hot air enveloped him as he flew through the air and landed hard on the black grass below. He rolled to his back and crab-walked backward, trying to get his feet under him, injured hand screaming as more bones cracked.

Above him, Elizabeth, broken and screaming, stood at the window, Vlad next to her. Neither of them made any move to follow Landon, and although he had no idea why, his feet were finally under him so he turned and ran for all he was worth into the darkness.

A
T SOME POINT,
E
IRESS
had dozed off. She wasn't sure when, and she had no idea what time it was when she jerked up in bed, heart hammering in her chest. Cold dread gripped her, making her shake despite Kaida's warmth.

Something was wrong.

As always, she searched for her friend, first. He wasn't there.

Or…he was there? But he was far away.

Confused, she pressed a hand to her forehead. No, he was close. Closer than he'd been before.

What did that even mean?

She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and pushed herself to her feet. Padding silently across the dark room, she went to the mirror and pressed her hand against it.

Cold.

Ice cold.

Shivering, frowning, panic clawing at her throat, she turned in a circle, trying to place the difference.

He was in trouble.

Chills raced up her spine. Yes, he was in trouble. Of that much, she was suddenly certain.