Snow's Lament (2 page)

I pulled the necklace out from underneath my shirt and unclasped it. Holding it up, the gem twinkled in the dim office light, but otherwise, gave no clue to its potential hidden power. You would have thought it would be easy, saying something like “
open sesame”
and a bright, shiny new portal would open for our visiting pleasure.

“Open sesame,” I murmured.

“Idiot,” Robin said cheerfully.

“Boo,” I muttered, wishing that teleportation thing would come to fruition.

“Excuse me?” Robin stared at me, perplexed.

Belle snorted, fully aware of my fascination with all things Star Trek and my secret ninja leanings.

“Maybe we should ask Rumple,” Cyndi said.

“How?” I asked. “If we knew how to contact someone, we would have done it weeks ago.”

She broke eye contact with me and I got a bad feeling in my stomach. “Cyndi?”

She fidgeted. Cyndi rarely fidgeted. In fact, the only time she fidgeted meant she’d been lying to me about something…or hadn’t told me something—the same thing if you asked Belle.

“Before I left, Rumple gave me something to use to contact him.”

I pinched the skin between my eyebrows.

“But I’m not supposed to use it unless it’s an emergency!”

I groaned. “How is being a virtual prisoner in your own house and cut off from your homeland for months not considered an emergency?” I asked, trying to keep the hysteria out of my voice.

“We always figured out something before!” she shouted, her cornflower blue eyes filling with tears.

My lips twitched because she still looked like a circus clown, although the makeup was beginning to fade. She was right, though. We’d never been in a situation this long before. Even if we came up with some harebrained, ridiculous plan, we always found a way out of any situation we’d gotten ourselves into.

This time, though, it was different. We had to be careful. Lives and kingdoms were at stake, so we couldn’t afford to go off half-cocked.

“Plus,” Cyndi said, “we almost have it figured out, right?”

My eyebrows flew together. “How?”

Her gaze flicked to the amulet. I sighed.

“Right now, it’s just an expensive piece of jewelry,” I said. “I have no idea how to use this thing.”

“Blood, fluid, or incantations,” said Belle, a thoughtful look on her face.

“Umm, ewww,” I said, because really, there was nothing else to say.

She laughed. “It’s always the same. Magic can be twisted and difficult, but all spells are activated in one of three ways.”

“Blood, fluid, or incantations,” repeated Robin.

“Yup,” said Belle, still refusing to look at him.

“Hmmm,” I pondered as I allowed the pendant to sway and twist. “Who wants to volunteer some blood?”

Belle shook her head. “Nope. Your father gave it to you. It’s either you or Simeon, most likely, but it’s just as likely to be activated by one of the other two. Let’s get lunch and try to come up with some ideas.” She stood and dusted off her leggings.

I groaned as I pulled myself up into a standing position. “I don’t see how you can read all day.”

Belle smiled. “Yoga and vegetables. It makes me flexible and happy.”

She left us standing there, Robin’s hungry gaze traveling after her and lingering directly on her shapely derriere.

“Gross.” I shoved him as I brushed past.

“You have a nice one, too, fair Snow!” he yelled as I walked into the kitchen.

We were all hopeful the pendant could be activated without an incantation, because if it did require one, we were screwed. We’d been through almost every book in Belle’s library and nothing screamed, “Snow, here’s the chronicler’s gem incantation!” I’d rather not contact Rumple if we could avoid it, but if we struck out with the other two, we didn’t have much choice.

We gathered in the living room and placed the pendant on the table, all of us a little more careful now that we knew the potential of its power. It looked innocuous sitting there. My mother used to wear the piece around all the time and I wondered if she knew what it was or just thought it was a pretty bauble…or if my father knew. Maybe this was the reason he sent it through the portal with me when I was young. It was one thing to always be kept out of Naomi’s hands, but my father had deliberately chosen to send it with me. Was he trying to ensure its safety from Naomi or was he trying to tell me something? After the skirmish between us a few months ago, there was no doubt Naomi knew where the pendant was. She’d be coming for it sooner rather than later.

Belle placed a long, deadly looking stiletto next to the pendant.
The better to prick you with, my dear
, I thought and shuddered. I was far from squeamish, but shedding someone else’s blood was one thing, shedding mine—on purpose—was another thing altogether. The book I found the information in lay open, the script mocking me. I felt like I should know more about this jewel, but Father and I never had the opportunity to talk before I was forced onto Earth. I’d kept it as a memento from him, never thinking it could be more.

“So…” Robin drawled, “are you going to sit there all day or are you going to stab yourself and see what happens?”

My mouth twisted to the side. “Maybe I should stab you first to see if the stiletto is sharp enough.”

He clutched his chest and groaned. “You wound me, lass.”

“That’s the point,” I said, but sighed as I picked up the wicked looking blade.

Belle looked a little ill, but Cyndi’s attention was rapt. Stabbing myself might make her forgive me a little bit faster for the makeup thing. Even though she didn’t really have a right to be pissed, I had to admit, looking ridiculous for two days was probably payback enough for what she’d done to me. As long as she didn’t touch my stuff again, we were square.

I stared at the knife, grimacing when I saw the light shimmer off the shiny surface. Holding up my finger, I poised it at the tip, hoping I could just quickly prick it and be done. It was ironic in an Aurora-ish sort of way. That’s what I get for calling Sleeping Beauty a bitch.

I took one deep breath…

And our front door shattered into a thousand pieces, blowing us all back. Shards of wood and metal pierced our skin, but as soon as it began, it was over. I lay crumpled in a heap, the acrid taste of blood in my mouth from biting my tongue. The stiletto blew out of my hand and lay several feet away, so I rolled to my feet, wincing at what felt like thousands of tiny cuts in my skin, and drew my Sig, ready to blast whatever entered my home into tiny pieces.

“Fire not,” a gravely voice spoke through what seemed like water. A shrill piercing rang through my ears.

“Rumple,” I screamed, “couldn’t you have fucking knocked?”

He raised one eyebrow at me like I was the biggest idiot in the room. “No,” he said, his tone clipped.

I clicked the safety off my gun. “No?” I repeated, murder in my voice.

“Lower your weapon, Princess. I just saved your worthless life.”

I dropped my Sig a quarter of an inch. “Pardon?”

He stepped into my living room, his boots crunching on the remnants of my front door. I’d only seen him once before, but every time I did he took my breath away. Rumple was brilliant, mean, and hands down, the most gorgeous man I’d ever laid my eyes on. Fairytales didn’t always get it right, but I suspected in this case, Rumple had a lot to do with how the tales about him were written.

Mussed, tawny hair flowed across his shoulders, swaying slightly as he walked in. It was swoony, shampoo-commercial-worthy hair. I wanted to run my fingers through it and ask him how many times per week he washed it.

I blinked. Shit. Maybe being crazy gorgeous was his superpower. He winked at me as he stepped over the wreckage to help Cyndi up.

Maybe he could read my mind too.

A look of concern floated over his face as he reached for my friend. She allowed him to help her and brushed off the wood fragments. He held her hand to stop her and began gently picking the wood off her.

“You’ll get a splinter if you brush it away.” A look of tenderness crossed his face, leaving me wondering if I’d entered the twilight zone without realizing it.

I cleared my throat, clicked the safety on, and tucked my weapon into the waistband of my pants. “Can we get back to my imminent death, please?”

He ignored me. I shook my head and headed over to make sure Robin and Belle were okay. Belle sat pale and dazed on the other side of the room, holding a cloth to the front of her head. Robin sat in front of her, a tender look of worry on his face. His shirt was off, leading me to assume that was what Belle had pressed against her forehead…or Robin had secret pirate leanings—neither would surprise me.

A cool wisp of wind floated against my skin and tendrils of magic brushed past me toward Belle. Before my eyes, her skin color brightened and she removed the cloth, the wound now completely sealed.

My gaze flicked back to Rumple, who nodded once in satisfaction. Cyndi pulled away and stared up at him in confusion.

“I still have time left,” she said accusingly.

He held his hands out. “First, let me apologize. There was no time to waste. You buffoons could have destroyed one of the most powerful objects left in the Enchanted Forest with your half-assed attempts at problem solving.”

“Hey!” Maybe a bullet to the knee would cheer Rumple up.

Robin righted the couch and loveseat, which had toppled over in the chaos, and we sat down. I had tiny blood marks all over me from the wood splinters. I noticed Rumple didn’t bother to use his woo-woo magic on me or Robin. Must be nice to be the teacher’s pet.

Rumple bent and picked up the pendant discarded on the floor after his display of power. He held it up to the light, studied it, and with a look of intense satisfaction, pinned us all with his ancient gaze.

“I should kill all four of you for being so stupid.”

Rumple was always nice to have around when you needed a boost of self-confidence.

“This is the chronicler’s gem.” He paused and stared at us, as if we were supposed to stand up and applaud.

“The
chronicler’s gem
,” he said with his teeth clenched.

We stared at him blankly.

“Gods,” he muttered, “why do you think Naomi wanted this so bad?”

We knew it had the power to control the portals, but other than that, it just looked like a piece of jewelry. I shrugged.

“She wanted to control the entryways to the other realms.”

He nodded. “Yes, but you aren’t grasping the entire picture. She can control the portals, but this gem is a Kingmaker and gives immense power to the one who wields it. Think of this like the Sword in the Stone. It may not be Excalibur, but the gem acts that way. It will recognize the true king or queen when the right blood spills. This is the reason your father entrusted this gem to Simeon, the kingdom’s chronicler, and eventually, you.”

A look of distaste flittered across his face.

“Thanks for the trust,” I said.

“I just stopped you from destroying a priceless artifact and taking away all hope from our realm.”

I gaped at him. What a douche. “Excuse me! I was trying to activate it with blood. That’s all!”

“Only the chronicler’s blood can activate it.” He spun the gem around. “Simeon has been in hiding for over a decade. When you left the Forest, he did too. Naomi was hell-bent on securing her power base. Your father gave you the amulet and purposely kept you in the dark to protect you, and Simeon went somewhere. No one has been able to find him.”

I stared at him with suspicion. “Just how do you know so much about my life?”

He scoffed. “Vanity, Snow be thy name. Information is the only currency I concern myself with.” He stepped toward me and leaned down until our noses were a mere inch apart. My heart sped up, partly because I was terrified, partly because he was breathtakingly handsome and I was in possession of ovaries. “When I find you small enough not to be concerned with, my attention will be turned elsewhere. Until then, you are stuck with me.” He smiled then, and I felt like the sun came out. My heart pounded in my chest as I looked into the ancient maelstrom of his gaze.

I licked my lips and tried to speak—couldn’t. Blinking, I tore my gaze away and immediately met Cyndi’s reproachful stare.

I couldn’t win today.

He leaned back and the immense pressure around me eased. He busied himself by flicking an imaginary piece of dust away. “You haven’t properly thanked me for saving your lives yet.”

Belle, who’d remained quiet all this time, finally spoke up. “About that, you haven’t exactly told us how you saved our lives, besides blowing off the door and nearly killing us all.” A pretty frown formed on her brow. “Speaking of almost killing us, how did you get through my wards?”

“Your wards are puny. Any sorcerer worth their salt could blow through those easily.”

That was Rumple, making friends and influencing people all over the place. Belle narrowed her eyes and stood. “Perhaps one day you could show me how to properly put up wards then.”

He inclined his head to her. “Perhaps. But my help is not one you should seek. Your magic is…different.” He inhaled and stared at Belle in a way that made my skin crawl. “You are not of the Enchanted Forest.”

And with that bombshell of an announcement, he dismissed Belle.

“
What
?” she shrieked and her shocked gaze flew to me. I shrugged, curious as hell now.

Rumple settled himself on the loveseat next to Cyndi. “It is not the time for this discussion.” He flicked a finger at her. “Your time of discovery shall come soon.”

Her mouth opened and shut. She blew a breath out of her nose and sat down with her arms crossed against her chest. If looks could kill, Rumple would be lying on the floor in a million pieces.

“If the wrong blood was used to force the amulet to activate, you all would have been blown to smithereens,” he said in his calm, cool voice, ignoring all our ashen looks. “The amulet is…” he looked at the ceiling, as if trying to find the right word, “booby-trapped, if you will.” He shook his head. “I do so hate modern English.”

“It was done this way to keep the amulet from falling into the wrong hands. Since Simeon is the chronicler, he is the only one who can activate it and crown the next king or queen.”

The implications of this sat heavy upon my shoulders, but right afterward, a sickening thought occurred to me.

Rumple’s gaze rested on my face and a small smile appeared, as if he could tell what I was thinking.

“Naomi is after Simeon, isn’t she?”

“Perhaps you are not as unintelligent as I assumed,” said Rumple.

I sat back and pondered this newest development. “Has she found him?” It was the most important question I could ask.

“Not yet.”

“How did you pass through?” Robin’s clipped tone gave voice to the question I’d been wanting to ask ever since Rumple literally blew through the door.

“I am an ancient being. Even if all the portals fell, I could easily pass from realm to realm.”

“That didn’t really answer my question,” Robin said.

The blank expression on Rumple’s face made me suspect he was lying, but I didn’t call him out on it—yet.

“Good.” Rumple crossed one leg over the other and it was only then I noticed his attire. One of the most powerful sorcerers in our realm was wearing blue jeans. And a flannel shirt.

Cyndi stared at him in subdued, yet rapt adoration. I was still concerned for her and what would come after her time with us was up, but seeing Rumple’s tenderness with her earlier alleviated my rampant concerns of her imminent demise.

“How long have you been here?” I asked, curious.

“Long enough.” He tossed the amulet back to me and I caught it with one hand. “Now, tell me how you plan to find Simeon.”

Considering I had no idea Simeon was involved until a couple hours ago, I had no idea. Our group wasn’t known for elaborate, brilliant plans. We were usually more of a plan the first bit, then go in guns blazing and hope the rest falls miraculously into place. Rumple didn’t seem impressed with our thought process. Perhaps this was why he aged so well. He didn’t have to worry about premature death by stupidity.

No one had a clue where Simeon was. Rumple’s last intel had him somewhere within the Enchanted Forest, but I wasn’t sure I believed it. I mean, if he was the freaking chronicler, he had his choice of any of the other realms. When I gave voice to it, I was lucky Rumple didn’t have a ruler because I was sure he would have given me a rap across my knuckles.

“You have the gem, Snow,” he said with barely veiled impatience. “Right now, Simeon is just as human as you and Robin.”

I didn’t miss the fact that he failed to include Belle and Cyndi into that equation, but we had other things to worry about. Plus, I felt pretty dumb because he was right. If I had the gem, Simeon was stuck in the forest at the mercy of the wilderness and his own wits. I thought back to my time in the castle, but couldn’t remember when I’d ever talked to him. He was a mysterious being when I was young, and just a little while after my mother passed away, he disappeared from our kingdom. The days before that, time passed in a blurry haze of a well-loved childhood until my mother’s death and Father’s ultimate marriage to Naomi. If there were ever mention of Simeon afterward, I couldn’t remember it. Rumple produced a roughly drawn image of a youngish man with piercing blue eyes and a vexed expression. I vaguely remembered his face, but I didn’t remember him looking so angry at the world.

“Does he possess magic?” I asked, disturbed by a feeling I couldn’t quite put my finger on yet.