Kato paced on all fours, just skirting the edge of the kill zone. When his paw got a little too close, Verte scolded him to stay clear.
Kato swiped his tail through the crumbling reeds. “This is ridiculous. She’d never hurt me.”
“Maybe.” Verte stepped on his tail to hold him still. “But Dot ain’t really home right now. And the curse likes you just fine too, as a snack.”
Mic was still in beast form and seemed to have no trouble keeping his distance from the boundary. Gwen was nowhere to be seen. Only Oz was in the circle, tending to Dorthea.
“How come the curse doesn’t eat him?” I asked.
Kato perked at my voice, his muzzle turning up until he saw the condition I was in and who was holding me. He growled. “What’s he doing?”
At the same time, Mordred asked, “What is that?”
“Down, boys.” Verte grumbled something about needing a spray bottle or a rolled up scroll.
“Later.” I waved away both their questions.
“Assuming there is a later,” Mic grumbled.
“So Blanc is still…” I trailed off as Verte tossed me the charred book we’d seen on the eyepod. The title had changed to read The Lost City of Atlantis. Blanc’s sigil, the lotus rose—water lily, whatever—was engraved on the front. An entire story vanished in the space of an hour. The book now only had one picture: Blanc sitting upon the throne among the ruins. A crown of black pearls rested on her white hair, gold circlets on her wrists and neck. She was clothed in a gown of shimmery seafoam and holding the copper trident like a scepter. An empress of an empty city.
“And what of the grail?” Mordred asked, setting me down gently.
Mic snorted. “It was all the mutt and I could do to rescue the crown princess. Between the White One’s army of sea creatures and her control of the waters, she’s built herself a fortress. There’s no way we can penetrate it.”
I turned toward the water. “I’ll do it.”
Kato cantered over, towering above me. “Whatever you are scheming, the answer is no.”
“You really are bossy.” I flicked his muzzle. “I know where the grail is. I’m going to go bring it back here.”
“We’re going to bring it back here,” Mordred corrected.
“Over my dead body,” Kato growled.
Mordred put his hand on the ax at his side. “Easily arranged. Your head would be a prize for any hunter’s wall.”
“Did you miss the part where, in my magnificence, I asserted that the defenses were impenetrable?” Mic called over the posturing.
“All of you shut up!” I said. “Tell me if I’m missing something. Blanc is gonna get her binds off any minute, Dorthea’s the only who can stop her, but if we don’t cure the madness of the curse, then we have to worry about both the flood and the fire.”
“I can keep her in check,” Kato muttered, but I don’t think even he believed the words as he said them.
Verte repeated the prophecy everyone knew by heart now. “Girl of Emerald, no man can tame. Burn down the world, consumed by flames.”
The shores of Camelot were eerily quiet.
“Let us go,” Mordred said, walking toward the water.
I grabbed the back of his shirt. “I have to go alone.”
That didn’t sit well with anyone. Mic, Verte, Kato, and Mordred all yelled their arguments at once, making it impossible to hear any of them. Safe to say it was all a resounding no.
“Look, I’m not trying to be a hero. And I’m not trying to cheat or betray anyone. Mic said it: none of you can get past the lake’s defenses or know the way to Avalon.”
Then came the dreaded question I could only avoid for so long…
“And you think you can?”
I didn’t look at any of them as I said, “I know I can.”
The ground shook. My head snapped up as a green elephonkey charged toward us, spraying me down with water. With a puff it was gone and Oz stood there, holding my hand and The Lost City of Atlantis.
“What are you up to now, meddler?” Verte asked, wringing the drops of water off her mole.
“Wait for it,” I said quietly as the water soaked into my skin, making the inked flower underneath it shimmer. The Lady of the Lake’s mark. The empress’s mark.
“I knew I’d remember where I’d seen that flower.” Oz shrugged. “That is all.” Without another word, he walked back to Dorthea and left me to sort out the mess.
Kato said only one word. “Why?” The light leaving his eyes said so much more.
“The why doesn’t matter, fool.” Mic grabbed my wrist and inspected it. “This is the blessing of the empress’s champion. The bearer is immune to any water attacks, can breathe underwater, summon and go through the whirlpool. How she got the mark doesn’t matter. Just be grateful that she does because it increases the odds of survival from zero.”
“He’s right,” Verte said. “Ten percent now, at least.”
“Great.” I rolled my eyes.
I reached up to ruffle Kato’s mane, but he stepped back with a wince. I understood how he felt and didn’t hold it against him. Thanks to my Dorthea-bond vision, I got to see a repeat of when I handed Griz the star, except from both Dorthea’s and my standpoint. I got to feel her heartbreak. Even though I was barefoot now, I understood the adage “the shoe is on the other foot.” I saw both sides, hero and villain.
Let me tell you, the view sucked.
I stepped backward, keeping both Kato and Mordred in sight. “Trust me.” Then I turned around before I could see if they believed me.
My shadow stretched out before me, bending away from the water, about as eager to touch it as I was.
“While I was away, you have turned into quite the little hero after all. Whoever would have guessed?”
No. I was definitely not a hero. It’s not like I wanted to save the day. In fact, I would have much preferred someone else have the job. No one else could though, and I would do whatever I needed to, to save my family.
But if you asked me, a ten percent chance of survival was optimistic.
“Obsession is the hunger than gnaws your insides. And when it destroys you from the inside out, you still beg for more.”
—Evil Queen, Shattered Reflections
34
Hate Is Blind
I’d never tried to get to Avalon before. I’d always either been dragged there or… Nope, only been dragged. Mic said I could summon the whirlpool. So I dove into the lake and swam down, willing the water to spin like the cyclone Dorthea and I rode out of Emerald. I imagined the whirlpool sucking me into the swirling vortex and spitting me out into the caves of Avalon. The mark on my wrist tingled and glowed, and the water obeyed.
Being in charge of the whirlpool made it a much smoother ride. I popped my head out of the water, just enough to see. It was exactly as I hoped. No one was home. Pulling myself up, I slipped out of the water and onto the rock as quietly as I could. This would be an in-and-out job. I scampered silently over to the oyster desk, then remembered what happened anytime I thought a heist would be easy in and out. Something always went wrong. In this case, the inkwell wasn’t there.