The Thief (30 page)

The image of him sitting at their table, but
looking so apart, came into my mind. "Why do you hang out with
them?" I asked.

"What do you mean?"

"It's been bugging me. I mean I just don't
get it. You don't seem to like them at all."

"I don't," he said flatly. "You wouldn't
understand."

"Try me."

His eyes narrowed at the challenge. "Being
with them requires the least amount of effort. Kei draws enough
attention that no one bothers me, and Hayley talks enough I don't
have to contribute."

"I guess you're right," I said. "I don't
understand. I'd want to hang out with people I like."

"I don't like people."

"No kidding?" I said. "Nothing about you
gives that impression."

He frowned at my sarcasm. "I don't get you.
First you're a frightened mouse at school. Then you're this..." he
gestured vaguely at me. "Other person."

"Maybe I'm sick of being a mouse," I said,
setting the book aside. "Do you think I'm better that way?"

"No," he said, then immediately changed his
mind. "I mean yes. Mice mind their own business."

"Mice don't find you books on mirrors," I
said, handing him the book I'd mentioned in the lunch line earlier.
"You're welcome, by the way."

He sourly accepted it and sat down in an
armchair on the other side of the table.

"So what's it like?" I asked, suddenly
curious. "Your kingdom."

"There used to be lots of kingdoms on the
other side," he said, "but now there's only ours. Most of them
joined us of their own volition, wanting a piece of the stability
we had. Others started to fear our size, and went to war with us."
He shrugged. "They lost. This was all a long time ago. Now my
father rules the whole continent from Angwar Castle."

"But what's it like?" I asked. "Is it as hot
there as it is in Havenwood? Are there towers? Dungeons?
Tapestries? I bet there's lots of tapestries."

"I don't know," he said, voice neutral.
"I've never been there."

"But I thought - "

"The only way to get there," he said,
expression closed, "is through a traveling mirror. And there are
none of those left." He glanced down at the book I'd given him.
"Until someone makes more."

"Oh," I said. "So your father - "

"If I can't make a traveling
mirror it doesn't matter who my father is," he snapped. "He doesn't
even think I
can
-
" He broke off abruptly.

I hadn't thought I'd be stepping into a
touchy subject. So he was a prince, but only in name as long as he
was on this side. I bit my lip. "My dad's not too confident in my
abilities either," I said, smiling weakly. "He never even told me
what he was working on. Like he thought I'd never amount to
anything. And yet here I am," I looked around, "in a Tower made of
magic helping a fairy prince regain his birthright."

"Fae," he corrected. "Hybrid." But the
corner of his mouth quirked up.

"This library is enormous," I said. "And it
was built by Mirrormakers, right? There's got to be at least one
lousy recipe for a traveling mirror."

His brow creased. "Lately," he admitted, "I
haven't even been able to change the windows in the sanctuary. I
don't know what's wrong."

"You'll figure it out," I said. "You're
stubborn enough."

That startled a laugh out of him. Holy crap,
he actually knew how to laugh. "Maybe," he said, "but who knows how
long it'll take? I don't have an eternity."

"We'll have to make you immortal then," I
said.

"Excellent. Get on that, minion," he
smirked.

"You do not get to call me your minion," I
objected.

"I do if you don't quit with that 'fairy
prince' crap."

"Oh alright, alright," I said. I thought of
Bea’s warning about the Ender the day before. "Incidentally, what
do you know about immortals?"

“
I know that you don’t get
in the way of someone who can’t be killed.”

I recalled Meredith peeling away the spike
that had impaled her, and was inclined to agree. “Are there a lot
of them? Immortals, I mean.”

“
There’s a lot of people you
don’t get in the way of,” he said, “and there’s people who live
long lives, but there are only three people I’ve heard of who are
truly immortal. Where is that really old one...”

He shuffled several books aside, and pulled
out one with overlarge parchment pages. He sat next to me on the
couch, setting the book on the table between us.

“
There’s some legend or
other that they’re instruments of the gods, but people will come up
with anything to explain the unexplainable,” he said, flipping the
page to a series of portraits very similar to the ones I’d
uncovered. “She’s been hunting monsters for the last hundred
years,” he said, pointing at Meredith, “though before she went
amnesiac she destroyed enough cities herself. Him - ” he pointed at
the one of Gabriel, named here also as Gohei, “he’s the one that
used to do the monster hunting. Self-appointed protector of
humanity. Was famous for it for ages. Seems to keep to himself
now.” He moved on to the green-haired man. “The Thief - he’s
serious bad news. He’s assassinated kings, stolen countless
priceless artifacts, thrown entire nations into poverty. He and
Meredith did a lot of damage on the other side, before she crossed
over here. Hemlock hasn’t been seen in a century, though. He’s
either hiding or someone finally figured out how to kill
him.”

He shrugged, but I was transfixed by the
portrait. It was by a different hand, a border drawn around the
edge of the page in twisting vines, but it was the same green-eyed
man I’d seen in the school lab.

Gabriel, Meredith, and
Hemlock.
Three immortals,
Camille had said.
Bets on
the winner.

“
How long have they been
around?” I asked.

“
Nobody seems to know,” he
said. “And they aren’t very forthcoming. Don’t tell me you’ve got a
crush,” Rhys said, noticing my stare.

“
Please,” I said, flushing.
“I’ve seen him before, is all.”

“
You have?”

I explained what had happened earlier at
school, with the paintings.

Suddenly he was on edge, excited. “You broke
the spells? You saw the prophecies?” He got up, digging through his
backpack for a notepad. “Tell me as many of them as you
remember!”

I racked my brain, telling him as much
detail as I could, but I really only remembered about half of them,
and there had been at least thirty, maybe more.

“
...and a fox,” I finished.
“It was silver, and something about its face was way too smart for
a normal animal.”

“
Foxes are clever,” he said
absently, looking over his notes. “Are you sure you can’t remember
more?”

“
I’m sorry,” I said. “I’ll
bet I won’t be able to get back in there anyway, they probably have
the place on lockdown now.” I slumped down on the couch, folding my
arms.

A strange expression had come over Rhys,
looking at me.

“
Is there something on my
face?” I asked, self-consciously.

“
When’s your birthday?” he
asked unexpectedly.

“
May 1st,” I replied,
baffled.

He looked away quickly. “You broke the
spells hiding the prophecies. Probably did the same to the orchard
mirror. I can’t properly twist glass when you’re around. And yet,
you can’t remember half the paintings.”

“
It was a lot of paintings,”
I said, defensive.

“
I agree,” he said, “but not
for someone with infallible memory.”

My skin went cold. “What are you
saying?”

“
All Grimms are Hunters, and
all Hunters have infallible memory. I’m saying...what if you’re not
a Grimm?”

I opened my mouth and closed it.

“
May 1st is my birthday,
too. You’re the one who said it,” he said, rising. “Mirrormakers
and Nulls are born in pairs.”

“
But that would mean...that
would mean...”

Simon was my best
friend,
Tailor had said.
And she ruined him.

Tailor...and my mother?

“
He’s the only one left,”
Rhys said, his voice softening. “If you are - if you’re a Null, it
has to be him. Would that be so horrible? Think of the things you
could do! This is a gift - ”

Maybe if you looked anything like him...

“
A gift?” I cried. My head
was reeling. The mirror, Rhys’s broken glass, Camille’s complaints
that her hearing wasn’t working at school...at the lumbermill...it
was because I was there. It was because everything I knew was
wrong.

“
I know, so many fae fear
and hate Nulls,” he said, as if that were what I was thinking of,
“but it’s okay, they’ll have to listen to me. I’ll keep you safe.
You can learn to control it - you said it yourself, this library
goes on forever! We’ll find something. Don’t you see, we’re a set.
This was always - ”

“
Always what?” I exclaimed,
feeling hysterical. “Meant to be? I was meant to be lied to my
entire life? I was meant to be ditched at birth by my mother, meant
to be jettisoned at fifteen by the man who raised me like a
servant, only to find out he wasn’t even my father, and that my
so-called ‘gift’ is making things fall apart? I was meant to be
pushed into some crazy destiny no one’s prepared me for, meant to -
”

Then his mouth was on mine, like a plea,
begging me to understand something he didn’t have words for. I had
never been kissed before, and I don’t think I expected it would be
this...urgent.

He pulled away slightly, looking about as
dazed as I felt.

“
I told Bea,” I said
involuntarily, as if the kiss had pulled it right out of
me.

“
What?”

“
About the mirror,” I said,
unable to stop myself. “She knows I’ve been coming
here.”

He stood abruptly, eyes wide. I reached
toward him but he backed away from me.

“
I think she could help
you,” I pleaded, “she knew the last Mirrormaker - ”

“
Of course she did!” he
shouted at me, furious now. “She’s the one who got him killed! I
should have known better - Grimm, Tailor, what does it matter -
you’re always going to be against us! Get out!”

“
Rhys - ”

“
Get out of my mirror!” he
shouted, and I hurried down the steps, eyes blurring with
tears.

Chapter 17

Camille

She came in through the front doors of the
cafe. It was usually empty, and it was now - it seemed that her
prediction that they’d never get any business was proving true. She
wandered behind the counter into the kitchen, hearing sounds of
baking in progress. She stuffed her hands into the front pocket of
her hoodie and leaned against the door jamb. He was turned towards
the opposite wall, whisking a bowl. He might even be making her
favorite melon bread.

“
Gohei,” she
said.

Every muscle in Gabriel’s body tensed, as if
he’d been hit. Back still facing her, he resumed stirring the bowl
he’d nearly dropped.

“
I hate that name,” he said.
“Don’t ever call me that.”

“
Aren’t you going to ask me
where I heard it?”

“
Doesn’t matter,” he said,
tone suspiciously light. “So long as you never say it in my
presence again.”

He was angry. She hadn’t seen him angry in
years, not since he’d first taken guardianship of her. He hadn’t
liked her at first, that had been clear. But then, she’d liked him
even less. He’d been impatient, intolerant, dispassionate. At some
point along the way, they’d stopped fighting and become a team.
Like the story he’d told, it had happened so gradually she hadn’t
noticed when she stopped hating this person who swept in and took
over her life. But she knew when the trust she’d placed in him had
started deteriorating.

“
It’s me, isn’t it,” she
said.

“
Pardon?”

“
I’m the Wolf.”

Slowly, he set down the bowl and turned to
face her. “Now I want to know where you’ve been.”

“
Doesn’t matter,” she echoed
him from moments ago, ire truly starting to rise now. “Tell me now.
And don’t say ‘ask me later,’ when that fire woman is hunting -
”

“
Yes,” he said. “You are.”
His expression was hard.

She swallowed. All the signs had been
screaming at her, but she had still hoped...a distant part had
wanted him to keep lying, because it was comforting...

“
So that woman,” she
said.

“
Is looking for you, yes.
And she will kill you if she figures it out.”

“
Why?” she asked, feeling
the icy grip of fear. “Why does she hate me?”

“
Not you,
it
,” he said. “The power
you have.”

“
It can’t be that awful -
”

“
I knew a Wolf once,”
Gabriel said. “The most terrifying creature I’ve ever seen. He was
wildly unbalanced, and a literal bomb. He destroyed an entire city.
And he was so close to so much worse. He was the living equivalent
of the worst human weapons arsenal, but he had no allegiance. No
goals. No empathy. He loved nothing and no one.” He sighed. “And I
trained him to be that way.”

Camille stared at him. “Why would you do
that?”

“
I’m selfish and petty,” he
said simply. “I wanted to punish his parents. And when I found out
they’d given birth to the Wolf, I knew how to do it. I molded him
into the worst monster of them all, and his mother was forced to
kill him.” He looked at Camille, his dark eyes impassive. “She ran
him through with the Tailor’s Sword. It was the only time I’ve seen
it used.”