The Curse Girl (12 page)

Things I’d folded lay everywhere. Roses as always, in fragrant heaps. Boxes, purses, shoes. A mirror. I picked it up and stared at my expression. I pressed my fingers against the chill of the glass. My breath fogged the mirror, making a circle. I drew a shaky circle in the middle of the fog and tapped two dots for eyes. A smiley face. But I drew a frown for a mouth.

Sometimes I felt as if I’d fallen asleep and never woken up. Like Sleeping Beauty, trapped in her bed for so long. I was living in a dream world, and like a nightmare, I was forgetting the people I’d left behind. I’d stopped seeing Drew’s face every morning when I woke, in that dreamy space between sleep and waking before I opened my eyes. I used to think of him then, but now …

Was I forgetting him? The thought made my stomach hurt. How dare I let his memory slip away. How dare I betray him by my own apathy. It was like the lethargy of the house, stuck in time for so long, was seeping into my veins and corrupting my heart.

I slammed the mirror down so hard the glass cracked. A piece fell out onto my lap.

“What are you doing?”

I turned and saw Will in the doorway of the conservatory. My insides tugged. He was standing in a shadow, his arm propped against the doorframe and his eyes on me. I closed my fingers over the shard of mirror and slipped it into my pocket. I pushed the mirror under a pile of roses. No reason to look suicidal or something. He’d worry.

“Hey,” I said, glad to see him but afraid at the same time. This weird mixture of emotions had been cropping up a lot around him. It scared me—but I liked it.

“Are you all right?” He took a few steps towards me.

I looked out the window and then back at him. I thought about lying and saying everything was just peachy, but what would be the point of that? He deserved to hear how I felt. “No.”

“What’s wrong?”

A sigh rippled up from my lungs and leaked through my lips. Will hopped up onto the edge of the sailboat and swung his legs next to mine. I looked at my bare feet, next to his sock-clad ones.

It was strange how different I was with him now. So opposite from the beginning of our acquaintance.

“What’s wrong?” Will asked again, bumping my leg with his. “You’re making your thinking face.”

He said it to make me smile. But a tiny tug of my lips was all he got.

“Do you think we’ll
ever
break the curse? I mean, honestly.”

He was quiet for a long time, like he was thinking carefully about what he would say in response. I sat waiting while cold crept over my skin. Part of me wanted him to really think about it, sure, but a bigger part of me had just wanted him to say immediately
Of course we will, don’t be silly
.

But he wasn’t saying that. He was thinking.

I stared at my hands and bit my lip.

“Have you finished reading Marian’s diary?” He said instead of answering, after a long pause.

I let him get away with not answering. Because I didn’t want to hear his answer any more than he wanted to say it. It was easier to think of things to do rather than think of what we couldn’t change. “Almost. It’s pretty slow reading.”

“And no mention of the book of letters, or the curse, or anything like that?”

“Nope.”

“You did skip to the end first, right? Because she might have mentioned—”

“I’m not a total dummy,” I said, with a low laugh. “Of course I read the last bits right away. But the diary ends before . . . before this started. It ends with her wedding. Maybe she decided now that she was here with him, she didn’t need it. Or maybe she started another one.”

“We should keep our eyes out for it anyway.”

“Yeah.”

We both stopped talking then, and the silence rushed in like a warm blanket. This time it felt good. Being beside him was like sitting beside a warm fire. Comforting.

And right now I needed some serious comfort.

The prickle started at the back of my eyes. The itch of tears, unshed. I rubbed one hand over my eyes and cleared my throat. I just really wished I could cry.

“Beauty—” Will started.

I wanted to scream, but it came out like a sob. Will wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. I pressed my face into his shoulder.

It was the first time we’d ever hugged.

We stayed that way for a long time.

“I’m scared,” I muttered, my mouth mashed against his shirt.

“Why?”

“This stupid curse. We’re not going to figure it out. We’re not—”

“Yes we will.”

I turned my head so my voice was clearer. “We need to go see her again.” Meaning Marian, of course. Who else?

“What? Are you crazy?” Will pulled back and stared down at my face. He laughed in disbelief. “The last time we went, it was a disaster. I never should have taken you. No. Absolutely not.”

A thought popped into my head.

Who said he had to take me?

“Fine,” I murmured, trying to look appropriately disappointed so he wouldn’t suspect anything.

Will sighed and started to wrap his arm around me, but guilt was seeping into me again, and I moved away. He dropped his arm but didn’t argue. He just looked at the floor.

“I’m sorry, Bee. I mean, we’ll try harder to find the book of letters. That’s what we need to do, anyway.”

“Sure,” I said. “You’re right. We’ll try harder.”

But in my head I made other plans. And when the moon rose in the sky and darkness descended, I slipped silently to the mirror in his study that night while the house slept beneath its curse. And I passed alone into the Fey Lands.

THIRTEEN

Everything was as bad as I remembered. Dark-eyed faeries sneered at me from behind a row of columns, and a thin gentleman in a red suit asked me if I wanted to give him my blood. I pushed through the crowds, looking for the flower ballroom. Maybe Marian would be there again.

“Beauty!”

I turned. It was Storm, the rogue elf. He caught up with me and, seeing that I was alone this time, flashed me a suggestive smile.

“No leash tonight?”

“I’m not under Will’s thumb, if that’s what you’re implying,” I said. “And go away.”

“You’re looking for Marian, aren’t you?”

“I can’t pay you. I don’t have any money.”

Storm laughed. “My dear girl, I don’t accept money. I am paid in memories.”

Memories? A shiver ran down my spine as I remembered the way Will had put his fingers against Storm’s in exchange for information. He’d been giving the elf a memory? “What kind of memories?”

His eyes sparkled. “Ones full of emotion. They taste the best.”

I thought about the night when I’d come to the curse house. The rage and pain I felt at being abandoned, the fear and sadness of being alone.

I wouldn’t mind forgetting that moment.

“Okay,” I said. I wasn’t completely sure what I’d just agreed to, though. “I’ll, uh, trade you a memory and then you’ll show me where Marian is?”

Storm tipped his head to one side. “Agreed.” He reached for my hand. “Now think of the memory.”

Closing my eyes, I pulled up the scene in my mind—the darkness full of whispers, the bed and the soft down pillows. My aching chest and dry, gritty eyes. Storm’s hand burned in mine, and the memory was suddenly brighter, more vivid. I felt the pain burst fresh inside like I’d been slugged. I gasped, and Storm squeezed harder. My mind went blank for a moment as the event I’d been picturing vanished from my mind to Storm’s. The vivid scene slipped away, leaving a lingering feeling of sadness in my chest. And then … nothing.

“Ahhh,” he sighed, and released my fingers. “Very good.”

That was weird. I rubbed my hand and looked away. I felt like a mind prostitute or something. Hopefully that memory wasn’t important, because it was gone now. “Okay, now where’s Marian?”

Storm looked blissed out now. He blinked at me sleepily and licked his lips. “You’ll find her in the Hall of Roses.”

Awesome. “Well, where’s that?”

“Sorry, I only give one answer per memory. If you want directions, you’ll have to share another.” He stared hungrily at me.

I wasn’t sure at this point what I’d given him—my memory faded into a fuzzy gray fog when I tried to recall it—but I knew at least that it hadn’t been a good one. I tried to think of another unpleasant situation, one that I wouldn’t mind forgetting.

My arrival at the curse house?

No, I needed to hang onto that one. As awful as it was, I needed to remember that moment. I searched for something else. What about the time Will told me my father’s true motive in bringing me to him?

My stomach twisted. Not that one.
Not one of Will
.

The desire to hoard memories of him surprised me. But there it was. I looked at Storm and shook my head slowly.

“Never mind. I’ll find the Hall of Roses myself.”

Storm frowned, but the expression shifted into something leering once more. “Fine. Suit yourself, Curse Girl.”

I pushed past him for the faery marketplace. I didn’t dare ask anyone else for directions. Storm had asked for a memory. Someone else might ask for my blood.

As I walked, it occurred to me that I didn’t know how much time had passed. I was getting hungry, but I remembered Will’s warning. No food or drink here.

Ahead, I saw a hallway of columns covered in ivy. Sunlight drifted down through glass skylights, and I could hear music. The scene was beautiful but surreal. Like being in the middle of a forest ruin.

Someone bumped into me, and I whirled, ready to defend myself if it were a vampire or a bloodthirsty elf. My heart stumbled in my chest.

But only an astonished young girl stood with both hands pressed over her mouth, looking equally terrified. We gazed at each other, determined neither was a threat, and then laughed together shakily.

“I’m so sorry,” she gasped when she could speak again. “I was looking at the birds… I’m such a klutz.”

Klutz? That didn’t sound like something an enchanted being would say. That sounded like a human girl.

“You aren’t a faery, are you?” She said, hesitant.

I grinned, relieved. She’d practically read my mind. “Nope. Are you human?”

The girl beamed and clasped her hands together. “You can call me Anna. This place is so scary! I’m looking for a wizard named Maleus. Do you know who he is?”

“No, I’m sorry,” I said, and I really was. I wished I could help her. “I’m looking for a witch named Marian.”

“I don’t know who that is,” she said. “Sorry.”

“Do you know where the Hall of Roses is at, by any chance?” It was worth a try, right?

A brilliant smile flashed across her face. “Yes, I do! Come with me!”

She stretched out her hand. “Here, take my hand and I’ll show you.”

I reached for her and then paused. What had Will said about touching people here? It was dangerous for some reason.

Anna tipped her head, confused at my hesitation. “What’s wrong?”

Wait a second
. A thought dropped into my mind like a stone into a pond, causing ripples of apprehension. She’d never answered my question about being human, had she?

“Faeries have to answer direct questions honestly, right?”

“Yes,” Anna said. Her right eye twitched.

Suspicion hummed in my chest. I took a step backwards.

“Are you human, Anna?”

Her bright blue eyes faded to black as she hissed with fury. Only then did I spot her ears, long and pointed, and her fingers, with nails like claws. Had they been hidden with magic before? “Stupid human! I was so close to catching you. I hope you rot forever under Marian’s curse.”

My interest was piqued. “So you know Marian?”

The faery pouted. “Why should I tell you anything?”

I probably needed to bribe her, I didn’t want to give away another memory. That was way too creepy. I chewed my lip, trying to think. What did I have? I dug into the pockets of my jeans, but the only thing I had was a piece of paper and the sliver of the broken mirror I’d put in the front pocket earlier. I pulled out the paper and folded it into a rose. Maybe she’d like origami.

“What magic is this?” The faery whispered. I looked down at my hand and froze. The paper rose had turned real.

“It’s … origami.” I was in shock. Apparently the change didn’t need a night of magic to happen in the Fey Lands? “Here, take it. You can wear it in your hair.” The Faery hesitantly slid the rose into her curls, and I pulled the shard of mirror out to show her.

“Anna” perked up when she saw it. “A shield!”

“It’s a mirror.”

She bobbed her head in a quick nod. Her long fingers were already reaching. “Yes, yes, a mirror.”

“A shield against what?”

“Against magic, against mischief … it is nothing for you. Everything for me. I will take you to the Hall of Roses now,” the faery said. “Give me the shield and I will take you.”

Puzzled, I handed over the scrap of mirror. I didn’t need it. Maybe it was a faery thing? The faery snatched it from me and tucked it away in her belt. “This way,” she said, pointing at the ivy-covered columns. “You will find the witch Marian there.”

~

Marian was waiting for me. Someone must have told her I was wandering around, asking about her. Maybe the faeries had a network, maybe Storm was being paid by her too, maybe it was just some freaky magic. Whatever. Either way, she knew. Her dark eyes raked over me, taking me in.

“You look a lot less pretty today,” she said, sneering. “Less of a Beauty without your Beast, are you?”

“Never mind him,” I said. “I’m here to talk to you. Just me this time.”

“What do you want to talk about?”

“Don’t play stupid with me,” I said. “The hourglass is almost empty. We don’t have a lot of time. I want you to give me another hint.”

She stared into my eyes for a long time, so long I almost thought she’d forgotten I’d spoken. Then she laughed.

“Why do you continue to think that I am going to follow your childish assertions? I am not bound by you.”

I moved in front of her when she tried to leave. My heart was thudding so hard in my chest I could almost hear it. “Because I think somewhere, deep inside, you’re sorry about what you’ve done.”