Page 26 of Lucifer's Mirror
…and spit me out the other side.
Chapter 13
The In-Between Place
Istumbletomyknees.
I’m in a room, but it’s open to the dark night sky. There are so many stars. They provide enough light for me to make out the smooth silver walls, intersected at regular intervals by arched doorways. Mirrors surround me, and through the doorways, I see more still.
I glance behind me. For the moment, it seems that I am alone. There’s no sign of Zayne or Khaosti, and a flicker of unease shimmers through me. I have no clue where I am or what I should do if they don’t appear soon. I’ve just popped through a freaking mirror—into a room full of more freaking mirrors.
Except there’s something strangely familiar about this place. It’s as if I’ve been here before. Or maybe it’s as though it knows me and accepts me. Sure, I’m being fanciful. But hey, what’s new?
I twirl slowly around, taking in all the mirrors; there are around fifty in the room. I thought they were all identical. But now I realize there are subtle differences. While they are all about the same size—big enough to step through—and they all have dark frames, some type of wood maybe, the actual mirrors are different. Some are gleaming, like the one I just came through. Others are dull, almost opaque, and many are darkened, the glass dimmed to a black, non-reflective surface as dense as obsidian. Is there anything on the other side of these mirrors?
I step closer to the nearest and touch it lightly with my fingertip. A shudder jolts through me, and fear stirs in my belly. Maybe there is something on the other side, but not anything I ever want to see. I step back, and at the same time, I become aware that the amber resting against my skin is warm. I reach up and slide my hand beneath my shirt, wrapping my fingers around the pendant. It pulsates in my hand as though it has a heartbeat of its own.
Something tugs at my subconscious, and my gaze is drawn to the doorway opposite me. My feet move of their own volition, and before I can stop myself, I’m stepping through the doorway—into another room full of mirrors.
I glance back, trying to imprint the previous room in my mind, but it’s merely a room full of mirrors, exactly the same as the one I’m now entering. Stars above me and countless mirrors all around. That feeling pulls me on, a weird compulsion I can’t ignore. I stroll between the mirrors, my hands grazing them as I pass. Sometimes my fingers dip inside the reflective surface of the mirror, and a tingle sweeps through me. Sometimes they meet solid resistance. I snatch my hand back at a particularly strong reaction and rub my fingers against my jeans, then continue on. I’m drawn through another doorway and into yet another room. Then another.
“Amber!” I hear the call from somewhere behind me. It sounds muted, as though it’s coming from far away, and my feet stop. I shake my head, almost as though I’m coming out of a trance.
“Amber!” It comes again. I recognize Khaosti’s voice and turn around. All I can see are mirrors, and a sense of urgency suddenly fills me.
What am I thinking?
I hurry back. I think it’s the way I came, but I’m not certain. All the rooms look the same.
“Amber, where the hell are you? Get back here.” That’s Zayne. He sounds seriously pissed. Or maybe worried. Probably both. I hurry toward the sound of his voice, through the doorways, past the mirrors, finally into the first room I came to. Though it looks exactly the same, I can identify it by the two tall, pissed-off males standing in the middle. Both of them are glaring at me. I hurry over and plaster a smile on my face. “Hey, what’s with all the mirrors?”
“Where the hell have you been?” Khaosti asks, ignoring my question, which is getting to be a seriously irritating habit. I can hear the impatience in his tone, but beneath that, I sense his fear. He’s scared, worried about me. That’s new. There are not many people who have worried about me in my life, or at least, few that I remember.
I shrug. “Just taking a look around while I waited for you guys.”
His nostrils flare. “We have to go,” he says. “Do not disappear again. Stay close.”
I glance back the way I just came from. That sense of something drawing me close is still there, but I nod. He’s right. We need to get out of here. We need to go find the Crone and get some answers.
Khaosti is looking around as though searching for something. There are a lot of mirrors here. But I’m betting none of them are Lucifer’s.
“Do you know which one we have to go through?” I ask. How can he tell? I’m guessing he’s thinking the same thing. He walks among them, his eyes narrowed. I don’t know what he’s looking for. But he must find whatever it is as he comes to a halt in front of one. “This is it. I think.”
It’s one of the intermediate mirrors. The surface has lost its shine but has not yet dulled to solid black. I want to ask what that means, but I suspect now is not the time. Especially since, at that moment, there’s a noise from outside, voices maybe, then footfalls growing closer.
“They’re coming,” Khaosti says.
I can sense the urgency in his voice, and I take the last steps to the mirror. Khaosti whispers his secret words, and the surface ripples sluggishly. It’s just starting to glow.
“Go,” Khaosti says. “We can’t wait.”
For a second, I stare at it, unease running through me. The voices are getting closer, and Khaosti gives me a shove from behind. I dive through, but this time it feels different, like wading through thick mud. I think maybe I won’t get through, and I’ll be stuck here like a rat on a glue trap. And… then I pop out the other side. Zayne crashes into me from behind, and we both go down. I push him off me and roll over as Khaosti appears.
He stares down at us. His lips twitch. “This is no time to sleep,” he murmurs.
“Hah,” I mutter, pushing myself to my feet and brushing off my jeans. But I like these rare flashes of humor from him. They make him seem more… human. Which is sort of ironic, considering I suspect he’s anything but.
He turns back to the mirror, searches the ground around him, and picks up a rock about the size of my fist. He slams it into the mirror. At first, nothing happens; then cracks appear, splintering the reflective surface. He kicks out with his boot, and the whole thing shatters.
