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"Do you have any sort of plan?" Jack asked.
"Not really. "
"Eh, just as well. It'll be less of a disappointment when you fail. "
"Thank you for your confidence. "
We meandered, Jack struggling a little, as always, to find the door to the Faerie Realms. "In case you die, which I'm thinking is pretty likely, there's something I need to say. You don't even have to believe me, as long as you hear it. What I did. . . it was wrong. I know it was wrong. You are"-he paused, swallowing hard-"you were the closest I've ever had to a friend, and I used you, and I'm sorry. Trust me when I say it's not an emotion I'm very familiar with. "
I shook my head, avoiding the sincerity pooling in his bright blue eyes. His manipulation of me had been both thorough and admirably well plotted. I wasn't going to let it happen again. I had no doubt he'd cut his losses and bail the second he thought he could do it without Reth hurting him.
"Ah," he said finally, breaking the silence that had stretched between us after his apology. "Here we are. Any particular place you want to come out?"
"Don't suppose you know where the Dark Queen holds court or keeps her captives?"
"I am a very smart boy, Evie, and extremely good at self-preservation. So, no. "
I sighed. "I dunno. Anywhere in Unseelie territory, I guess. "
He shrugged and opened the door; we walked out together into a forest of mirrors. Every tree was perfectly sculpted out of a brilliantly reflective material, each line of the bark a new facet, each leaf perfect, razor thin, and shining. A thousand fractured replications of the two of us stared back at me, distorted and strange and really, really bad for hiding. Even the ground was mirrored. Anyone anywhere near us would be able to tell immediately that we were somewhere we weren't supposed to be.
"This place gives me the creeps," Jack muttered.
"Not exactly ideal for sneaking around. " I took a step forward and was rewarded with a crack that echoed through the entire forest, growing and doubling back on itself until the sound was overwhelming. Bits of mirror shattered and started falling off the trees, raining down all around us. A piece bounced off my hand, leaving a tiny line of blood in its wake.
I put both hands over my ears, accidentally tugging Jack's with mine, screaming, "Somewhere else! Anywhere else!" He yanked his hand back, and with a stomach-churning twist we were on the outskirts of a city. I squinted, totally disoriented. We were in New York. But no-those skyscrapers weren't made of metal and concrete. Metal and concrete didn't move in subtle, writhing, slithering motions. Oh gosh. It was New York made out of millions of living snakes woven together, as far as I could tell from this distance. And the degree to which I did not want to get a closer look was pretty much infinite.
"Not very creative, are they?" Jack commented. "They couldn't make a new city out of snakes?"
"Seriously. I mean, New York is awesome and all, and who'd have thought snakes would be such a durable construction material, but couldn't they do better?"
"No, we really can't," Reth said, standing next to me and observing the city with a thoughtful expression.
I didn't even bother to be shocked that he'd found us so quickly. I looked at him from the corner of my eye, not wanting to turn my back on the snake city lest they decided to stop being buildings and start coming for me. "I'm doing this, and you can't stop me. "
"I see. I cannot tell you how many times I've wished that, in place of a soul, I could fill you with an adequate amount of fear. You never seem to realize how hard it is to keep you alive, especially with you so constantly trying to achieve the opposite goal. "
I certainly wasn't lacking in fear. If I thought about facing the Dark Queen too much, it was all I could do to breathe. I just didn't care anymore. The fear wasn't worth noticing because it didn't change anything about what I had to do. "It's not my life I'm worried about right now. "
"You aren't going to find him here. And the longer you wander directionless around these cursed places, the sooner you will be found and incapable of helping the boy. "
"You want me to survive so much, then help me! Take me to him and I swear I'll do everything I can to make it out alive. "
"I can take you home in a heartbeat, you know. "
I lifted my chin. "And I'll keep finding new ways to get back here if it kills me. "
He stared at me, his heartbreakingly beautiful face devoid of any expression. Finally the corners of his perfect lips turned down ever so slightly. "I'll be very upset if you die. "
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I ignored the small, annoying, creeping warmth in my heart. He wasn't allowed to make me feel that way. "Does that mean you'll help?"
"Give me your hand. "
I tucked Tasey into my jeans, pulled out my knife, and slid it through the duct tape, severing Jack's connection to me. Ripping the last of the sticky gray strands away, I laced my fingers through Reth's-then was surprised by Jack taking my other hand, his fingers circling mine.
"You're off the hook, Blondie. Go terrorize someone else. " I gave him the best smile I could muster. He'd helped me when no one else would. He was still unbalanced and only helping me under duress, but it was something.
