His lips were sealed shut.
Looking at the troll from the side wasn’t as dangerous as a straight on. So Mina stopped and looked at the monster. He hadn’t changed since she’d seen him a few months ago. More of his face had turned to stone, but his eyes still moved.
He blinked a few times and tried to turn his head to look at her. The sound came again. It was coming from the troll.
Mina stepped closer, keeping just out of his line of sight. He was trying to speak to her. She leaned in to listen as the troll tried again.
“Soooooon!” the troll hissed.
Chapter 13
That one word made Mina’s whole body quake in terror. No one else seemed to hear the troll’s veiled threat since they had moved on and down the hall. She picked up her pace and joined the rest of the group.
Constance stopped in front of a large bolted door surrounded with golden seals. “Before you go, Mina, there is something I need to mention.” The Fae music teacher turned to look toward Ever, Nan, and Nix. “You are taking on the responsibility of deciding how much you want to endanger your friends. Do you understand that?”
Mina swallowed but nodded. It was a hefty burden, but at least they’d be together. If she left them here, she had no idea what they’d face. And they wouldn’t know what she was up against either.
Constance raised her hand, and a glow emanated from her palm. The seals mirrored the glow until Mina heard a set of clicks and the sound of metal sliding into its casing. Constance pushed the door open, and a soft white light poured from within.
“Come,” she beckoned. Nan hesitated only a second before entering.
Mina, Ever, and Nix followed and spread out to surround a small glass table which held on it an inscribed and gilded wooden box.
Constance waited until the door behind them had completely closed before she spoke. “Nix please lock the door, I need to put up a ward so nothing escapes.”
He turned the deadbolt on the door and Constance—Mrs. Colbert—sang a scale of disharmonic notes. The letters on the box lit up, and Mina heard another click as if the box had unlocked.
Nan looked scared, but her curiosity got the better of her. “Escape? What’s go—”
Nan froze. Mrs. Colbert finished waving her hand in the air and let it fall to her side.
“What did you do? Unfreeze her now!” Mina rushed to her friend and checked to see if she’d been harmed.
“She’s fine and will unfreeze momentarily. We just need a minute without her to discuss our terms before we proceed.”
Mrs. Colbert gently opened up the lid and then pulled the sides open to reveal a hundred small compartments, each covered with a unique symbol. Her fingers flowed across each of them as she searched for the one she wanted.
“Aha!” she said softly. As she pulled open the small compartment, a tendril of light began to trickle out of the box. She wound it around her finger, and it solidified into a small golden charm. Quickly, she closed the drawer, as another tendril of light wanted to escape after the first one.
“What is that?” Mina asked, wondering if these were the charms her mom wore.
“Pandora’s box,” Mrs. Colbert answered, walking toward Nan with her hand outstretched.
“Like the Greek myth? Where Pandora opened the box to release all of the evil into the world. Is that the same box?”
“No, that box was destroyed. Since then, Pandora has tried to make up for her transgression by collecting the strongest and best attributes in the box as a way to make amends. We’ve been the protectors of this box for over a century now. This is Pandora’s jewelry box.”
Nix moved over to stand closer to the box, highly interested in the other symbols, his lips moving as he read them. Ever kept to the edges of the room as she watched in silence. She had her arms crossed in front of her and leaned against the wall, pretending she wasn’t interested in what was happening.
But Mina could tell. She was as curious as Nix.
“It took many years, but we were able to add locks to each compartment.” Constance approached Mina and leaned down to speak quietly with her. “The Guild and I have spoken. We listened to your request for help, and we’ve voted in your favor.”
“Meaning?”
“We’ve decided to allow you one.”
“One?”
“Yes, you are allowed to tell one human. We will allow only one to know of our existence. Other than your immediate family of course...and your Fae friends.” She looked over at Ever and Nix.