Leoni shoved my back. “I’ll let her do the explaining.” She held the pixie dust out, and Gabrielle gasped. Her brown eyes filled with that sorrow I’d been so afraid to see.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“Why do you have the pixie dust?” Gabrielle asked, voice shaky. “What is going on here?”
I swallowed. “Do you know what this dust has the power to do?”
“I know it’s from the pirate lord,” Gabrielle snapped. “I know that it’s magic. I know that magic always has a price.”
“But sometimes that price is worth paying,” I said.
Gabrielle’s face paled, and she blinked like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You don’t even know what the price will be. It could be your life. Mine.”
“It will be worth it,” I ground out. “Because this pixie dust will destroy the mirror my stepmother has been using. It will destroy her power and weaken her. It will allow me to take back my court.”
Gabrielle shook her head. “No. No, Liliath. Listen to yourself. You can’t be serious. There has to be another way. Look what’s happened to the earth court because of that mirror. Your stepmother has used its power and destroyed your entire court. She thought she could steal magic from your people, from you, but the magic is corrupted. You told me so yourself. Why would you want to risk that?”
“It’s the only way,” I pleaded.
Gabrielle stood and took the vial from Leoni. “No. I won’t let you use this. I won’t let you put me or my people at risk. I hid this weapon for a reason, and you—you manipulated me.” She glared at me. “Is that why you told me all those sad stories about your stepmother, about your court? So you could get information out of me?”
Shame filled me.
“It’s not her fault,” Penn said, voice firm.
“Stay out of this,” Gabrielle said, voice sharp.
Penn struggled against his restraints. “She wanted to tell you the truth. I wouldn’t let her. This was all my plan. We’re not betrothed.”
“Penn!” I didn’t want Gabrielle to know I’d lied about even more.
Gabrielle’s eyebrows drew together. “What?”
“I didn’t rescue her,” Penn said. “I kidnapped her, forced her to come here because I wanted that weapon. She tells the truth. I wanted it to destroy the mirror.” He looked up at the vines thatcrept over the walls. Vines. Everywhere. He was using his magic, an immense amount of magic, and they didn’t even realize it.
My heart stopped in my chest as he wiggled his fingers, still tied behind his back, and the vines dipped down, slithering like snakes.
Leoni looked out of the corner of her eye. “He’s going to attack us!” She and the other guards immediately summoned their water magic, water whooshing around us as the vines snaked out around their ankles and pulled them to the floor.
“Penn, no!” I yelled. “We don’t have to do this!”
He looked at me but said nothing.
I studied that look in his eyes. The one I’d seen time and time again that I couldn’t quite place, but in this moment, I recognized it: guilt. He felt guilty about something, but what?
“Penn?” My voice shook as water wrapped around my body, and I fell to the floor. The vines snaked up and under the water cuffs, snapping the water around his wrists. He jumped to his feet, commanding the vines to tighten around the guards.
Gabrielle looked at us with wide eyes, fury lining the features of her face. She drew her sword and jumped down in front of Penn just as he swiped his arm, and a vine knocked the sword from her hand. A sword, made from wood, thick vine, and other plants grew from his hand, while one made from water grew from Gabrielle’s. Their weapons clashed, their bodies meeting before Penn spun around Gabrielle, kicking his boot into her back.
“Penn, stop it!” I screamed, still restrained by the water, unable to move on the floor. “You have to stop this!”
Gabrielle fell down next to me, her guards now throwing out discs of water that Penn dodged. Leoni slid across the floor, sending out water ropes that tied Penn’s feet together. He wouldn’t be able to beat them—not in their territory, where their magic was at its strongest.
Penn crashed to the floor.
I swallowed, still unable to move.
Penn locked eyes with me as the guards shook off his vines and stalked toward him. He held out his hand, a vine curling from it and shooting straight into his satchel. It pulled the mirror out, and I sucked in a breath at the tarnished gold object. Rust and grime covered the glass, and moss flecked the handle. It didn’t look like anything spectacular, just an old mirror. Maybe that was the point, so no one would suspect its power.
