Clockwork Kiss

Intelligent and Resourceful

My hands were still pressed to my face, but now they were shaking with purpose, not fear. Trust yourself, child. Your intelligence and resourcefulness will come in handy. Morwyn’s words echoed The Guardian’s command.

I pushed myself up, rising to my feet. I hid the celestial box, making sure it wouldn’t be easy for someone else to find. Then I turned to face the room. The agent Torian had defeated was lying inert, their cloak and hood sprawled across a pile of scattered parchment.

My eyes fell on Torian’s fallen sword. The beautiful blade lay near the magical snare, no longer glowing.

I moved to the agent, snatching the cloak and hood from the unconscious figure. A leather belt secured his pants and tunic around his waist. I took that too. The coarse, dark wool was the complete opposite of the luxurious velvet I wore, but it was perfect. The heavy hood would obscure my face and hair, while the cloak would hide the borrowed ball gown.

I tied the leather belt around my waist and picked up Torian’s sword. A faint blue light began to shimmer across the blade and I used my stolen belt to secure the sword at my hip. Then I pulled the coarse, hooded cloak over my head and shoulders. I tightened the rough tie at my throat and looked down at what I had become. I was no longer a frightened curator or a false fiancée. I was a shadow.

My eyes swept the room one last time. The only way to save Torian and the realm, and my way back to Chicago, was to find the key. And to find the key, I had to go where Valerius’s agent had taken him. I looked at the massive, shattered doors of the archive, and thought of the humiliated lord and his silent terrified plea to run.

Not a chance, I decided, pulling the hood lower. I was going to the rescue.