Fairest (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale #2)(62)

Brody finally pulled away, his breath shaky. A small smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. Nan smiled back.

Until she noticed the night sky and her audience. Nan blushed beet red and tried to sit up but was a little weak. Brody was immediately helping her sit up.

“Why are we outside? Why do I smell smoke? Mina? Did you catch the apartment on fire?” She looked around her surroundings, at the hospital and fire trucks. “Oh, my bad, you just caught the hospital on fire,” Nan joked, not knowing how close to the truth she had come.

Mina was crying. She wiped her nose on her sleeve and tried to bestow a happy smile on her face. “Hey, sleepy face. Did you have a nice nap?” Her lips quivered with hidden emotion.

Nan scrunched up her nose. “No, I had this weird dream of getting kissed by a bunch of boys.” She pointed to Naga, Constantine, and Magnus. “And you were in it, and you were in it, and you were in it.” She teased doing a replay of a popular scene from The Wizard of Oz. The smile died on her lips when she saw Peter.

Peter walked up to Nan but kept looking at his expensive black shoes. “Hey, you,” he greeted nervously.

“Hey, you back,” Nan answered softly, not being able to meet his eyes either. She tried to listen to Peter but her gaze kept drifting back to Brody. They talked quietly.

Suddenly, Mina felt extremely tired. The police officer and Dr. Martin came over and weren’t angry at the impromptu concert, which they blamed for Nan’s remarkable recovery. Dr. Martin was ecstatic and immediately called Veronica. Since they had plenty to talk about, Mina decided it was time to leave.

Her tired and sore feet had carried her across the parking lot and to the parking garage when she realized her dilemma. She had come with Brody to the hospital, but she didn’t have the strength or courage to get a ride home with him. Not after witnessing their magical and awakening kiss. Collapsing on a cement parking bumper, Mina rested her head in her hands.

She pulled out the black leather book and opened it to its newest page. It was a picture of Nan sleeping on the gurney, while Brody, the four band members, Jared, Mina, and Dr. Martin gathered around her outside of a glass hospital. Mina felt her lips pull up into a wry smile. When she counted the heads out loud, she came to seven, plus a prince. She was even more surprised when she turned the page and saw another picture of Brody and Nan kissing, proving that she had completed Sleeping Beauty’s as well.

Her skin started to tingle, and a shiver of power ran up her spine. The smell of gardenias encompassed Mina, a sure sign that a Fae was opening a gate. Mina had a feeling she knew which one was coming over. A flash of light appeared and quickly dissipated. Mina refused to look. The smell of gardenias perforated the area.

“Two birds with one story,” Mina said out loud to no one in particular. “It could have been a disaster, if it weren’t for Diedre’s sacrifice.”

“Yes, it could have been, but sometimes one must sacrifice a pawn.” A woman’s voice spoke out of the darkness.

Mina turned toward the sound, but she was too exhausted to stand or give the Queen a curtsey. Maeve came and stood before Mina and raised her eyebrow at Mina’s lack of respect. Her dress was a beautiful dark blue with gold macramé overlay.

“I see you have kept your part of the bargain and reclaimed the Grimoire once again,” Maeve’s voice had a distinct royal undertone in it.

Mina found herself snorting in disdain. “No thanks to you. In fact, I was half a mind to ignore our bargain and leave the Grimoire in the room to burn. It would have saved us all a whole lot of trouble. Your kind wouldn’t be trapped anymore; I wouldn’t have to finish the stupid quests--”

“Don’t even joke about such things. You have no idea of the power of the Grimoire.” She stepped forward, and her voice rose in pitch but her face stayed impassive.

Fed up, Mina stood to confront the Queen, her anger spilling out in waves. “Don’t play me. I’m not dumb. He’s your son,” Mina yelled.

Maeve stopped moving. Only the tremor in her voice gave her away. “I have no idea what you mean.”

“Jared. He’s your son. And he is somehow bound to the Grimoire. It can’t hurt him or capture him because he is inexplicably linked to it.” Mina began pacing back and forth, her hands waving in the air, and the picture became crystal clear.

Maeve stood frozen, her chin rose high in the air, neither denying the claims nor agreeing.

“I started to piece it together when Ever said Pixies don’t get along with Ogres. If anyone knew Jared it was Ever. It’s when I figured out he had to have royal blood in him. Only the Royals can transform to multiple shapes.”

Mina threw her head back and laughed. “I get it. He’s like a genie in a bottle and that’s his prison. I can only see and talk to him when I’m in possession of the book. It’s why he disappeared the same time the Grimoire did. It’s why you wanted me to get the book back so badly. It had nothing to do with the innocent Fae being trapped inside. The Reapers work for you. They kill the Grimms whenever we come close to finishing the quest. But this one didn’t want to listen to you. You couldn’t control this Reaper. It’s because you wanted your son back safe and sound. But at the expense of what? Nan, Dr. Martin, me, and Diedre?”

The Queen’s face blanched, and she looked pained. Mina thought it was something she’d said until she saw the Queen reach out past her to someone standing behind her. Mina turned to see Jared, unmoving, he was livid. He moved forward, toward his mother. Mina backed up, thinking he would go and take sides with the Queen. Instead, he came and stood directly in front of Mina, as if he were protecting her from his own mother.