Page 23

VIOLET

C rossing the portal wasn’t as easy as I thought.

It was like being submerged in water, the weight of the world pressing in from all sides. My limbs felt sluggish, as though something was trying to drag me back, inch by inch.

I'd pictured the magic of the portal as smooth, seamless—a bridge, not a battleground.

A sharp tug at my chest made me gasp. My body lurched forward and then back, caught in some invisible force pulling in opposite directions.

No. No, no, no, it couldn’t—

Then, suddenly, it spat me out. I stumbled forward, my knees hitting the soft, carpet-covered ground. The air was different—too thick, too charged, too wrong. I looked up, head still a little dizzy from going through the portal, sight slightly blurred. I was in a room. Not just any room: it looked like something straight out of a history book. Cream walls richly adorned with golden decorations; high, frescoed ceilings above; thick, drawn curtains that revealed arched windows; a massive canopy bed that dominated the area.

And then I saw her.

A figure standing just a few feet away, bathed in the ethereal glow pouring from the windows, eyes wide in shock. She was wearing a light blue gown, the skirts touching the floor, and her hair sat in a bun on the top of her head.

Daisy. She was alive. She was right before me.

For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. The universe narrowed to the space between us, the rest fading out of existence.

Her lips parted, a soft, trembling sound escaping them. “Violet?”

I barely heard it before I got up, closing the space between us in a single, urgent movement, wrapping my arms around her.

She was warm. Solid. Real. God. I thought I’d never see her again.

A sob broke free from my throat, relief violently flooding my system. “You’re here. You’re alive.”

Her arms tightened around me. “I’m alive.”

I pulled back just enough to look at her, really look at her. She… well, she seemed fine, to be honest. Actually, more than just fine: her skin had a healthy, vibrant glow to it, the dark circles around her eyes were gone, and it looked like she’d put on a little weight. It wasn’t what I was expecting at all.

She quickly looked around, breath hitched in her throat, as she wiped a single tear with the palm of her hand. “How are you here? Why?” Her eyes darted for a second toward a point behind my shoulder, where I could feel the portal crackling with magic. And pulling me back, though I momentarily decided to ignore that.

“I’m here because you’re here, so you go first.” I was trembling. I couldn’t believe I’d been able to get to her.

She glanced at the big double doors and licked her lips. “I didn’t choose this. Well, technically, I did, but it’s not like…” She let out a trembling sigh. “Dad stole something from the fae. It wasn't on purpose; you know how he is." She flinched at her own words. "Was, I guess. They came to our house claiming he needed to pay for what he'd done, and I couldn't… I couldn't just stand and watch." The look she sent in my direction was urgent, desperate, begging for my understanding. "I offered to pay the debt in his place. I… There is so much more to it, but I don't think we have time. They'll sense you're here."

I wanted to ask who she was referring to, but there would be time for that.

"You're right, it's not the right moment." My fingers wrapped around her wrist, and I pulled her toward the back of the room, where the portal swirled in a glowing oval. The pull was getting stronger by the second. "Come on. Let's go home. We can—"

But she resisted, forcing me to stop and look back at her.

The glint of relief I’d seen in her eyes had flickered out, replaced by something heavier. “Violet, no.” It sounded like she was struggling to get the words out.

I stiffened. “What do you mean, no?”

Daisy bit her lip. Her gaze dropped like she couldn’t bear to hold mine. “I can’t.”

A cold weight settled in my stomach as her words started making sense. I shook my head, my grip tightening on her wrist. “Yes, you can. That’s why I’m here: to take you—”

“I can’t” she repeated, the finality in her voice cutting deep like a blade.

I swallowed, shaking my head, a surge of rage and panic mixing in my chest. “Why not? The portal’s there!”

She hesitated, guilt pooling in her eyes. “I made a deal. My freedom in exchange for my father’s life. If I tried to escape, they’d kill him.”

I froze.

Daisy closed her eyes, drawing in a shaky breath. “I knew what I was doing. I knew what the price would be. I chose this.”

No. No .

I grabbed her arms, desperate, frantic. “Then we’ll protect him. We’ll find a way to break the deal without consequences; we’ll—”

“Violet.” She slowly shook her head, tears rolling down her face. She wasn’t even trying to wipe them away anymore. “I can’t go back. They’ve… I was entirely erased. Dad doesn’t know who I am anymore. And maybe it’s for the best, because he was…” She sniffed. “He was fine when they came to take me away. Stable. I saw him forgetting who I was, but he was better for the first time in years.”

My vision blurred. “You don’t mean that. It’s not for the best.”

“Maybe not” she agreed, her voice trembling. “But I have no other option. I’m stuck here.”

“So what does that mean? That I will…” The words stuck in my throat, refusing to be spoken out loud. “That I will never see you again?”

A sob built in my throat, but I swallowed it down. I couldn’t lose her again.

As if sensing my panic, Daisy looked around frantically. I could almost hear the gears in her brain turning at full speed. She ran to the dressing table by the bed, pulling the drawers open and rummaging in them until she found what she was looking for—two small, delicate mirrors framed in silver.

“This,” she hurriedly said, pressing one of them into my hand. “An engagement gift. They’re enchanted, see?”

My sight was blurry with tears, but I looked down, nonetheless. Instead of my reflection looking back at me, the mirror showed Daisy’s face, crumpled and worried and distraught. We both looked up at the same time, directly staring at each other. “What do you mean, engagement?”

But speaking was getting harder, not only because my heart was broken. The portal was sucking me in, and it was getting impatient, reminding me of the limited time I had.

“I’ll explain it to you some other time. It’s complicated.”

My fingers clenched around the handle. “Daisy—”

“You have to go.” She turned to the double doors, her movements panicky, frantic, as if she was hearing something I couldn’t. “Now.”

“No.”

“Violet.” She cupped my cheek with trembling hands, eyes filled with both fear and determination. “You’re my best friend. I’m so—You have no idea the relief I feel knowing you haven’t forgotten about me. But if they found you here…” She trailed off. The dread in her gaze was clear enough; she didn’t have to say anything else. “I won’t let anything happen to you. I love you way too much.” She inhaled. “I’m sorry.”

With one last sad smile, right when the doorknobs started rattling, she shoved me back.

The portal immediately sucked me in, magic hissing in disdain, as if I’d challenged it by taking more time than I’d been granted.

I reached out, fingers grasping at nothing—

And then I was gone.