He looked anxious. He was fading in and out as if he was struggling to stay with her in the past. "I can't answer those questions. Another time mayhap, but you asked for my help and I can only stay here for a short time. So come with me." He turned and beckoned for her to follow.

She'd be an idiot if she didn't, and Mina wasn't about to let her father out of her sight. He headed straight for the tall tower, ducking into the hedge in front of him. She pulled up short, stopping before the branches snagged her dress.

Her father leaned out of the bushes, surprising her. "They're not here. Just walk through them."

"Easy for you to say," she mumbled. Full of doubt, she held out her hands in front of her, closed her eyes, and stepped through the hedge. On the other side was another row of hedges and, just beyond it, the tower. Her dad turned down the cobbled path that ended by a fruit tree.

In front of it, crumpled in a heap, was Ever. She was bleeding from her head. Mina kneeled down and ripped a silk petal from her dress to press against the wound. She felt her neck for a pulse. It was barely discernable, but she felt a soft flutter against her fingertips. "She's alive."

"Yes, she is," her father leaned down and looked over the young girl.

"But where's Dinah?" Mina swung her head around to look for the nymph.

Her father shook her head. "She wasn't as lucky." He turned to point across the same cobbled path to the hedgerow. At first Mina couldn't see anything, but when she leaned to the side, she could just make out the ruffle of a green dress and one leg, angled oddly, lying near the path. The rest of Dinah's body was hidden by the hedge.

"No!" Mina cried out, standing to go to her.

Her father stepped in front of her and blocked her route. She wasn't sure how, but his strong arms wrapped around her in a hug.

Mina started to sob. "It's all my fault. If only I hadn't given up. Maybe I could have saved her. I could have stopped Annalora."

"Shhh, there's nothing you could have done. If you had gotten here any earlier, you would be the one lying there unmoving."

"No, I could have used the Grimoire. I could have-"

"No my dear, you couldn't have. But there is something you can still do. You can still save your family. Finish the test and return home." He rubbed her shoulder and she leaned back, sniffing awkwardly.

"How? The glass slippers are gone. They went back without me."

Her father looked at her, his eyes filled with pride. "You've grown up so much. I'm so proud of you, and I'm about to lose you again." He pulled her into another hug, and Mina took a deep breath, imprinting her father's scent in her memory. Tears fell freely down her face.

Reluctantly, he pulled away from her and pointed to Dinah's body again. This time, Mina took a closer look. The shock of seeing her and the overwhelming guilt she felt had made her overlook something crucial. On Dinah's feet, glinting in the afternoon sunlight, were Mina's glass slippers.

"She stole them? But why? She was the sweetest, most honest person-" Mina started.

"It doesn't matter. There's darkness within all of us. Bitter jealousies that sometimes cannot be controlled and make us do stupid things. I would think you'd understand that more than most," her father spoke softly.

Mina shuddered and nodded her head, thinking back to when-in her own fit of jealousy-she'd manipulated the Story into hurting Nan.

"Jealousy caused her to steal the shoes," he said. "Take them and hurry. Your friend is fading fast."

Mina reluctantly left the warmth of her father's embrace and kneeled next to Dinah's body. Thankfully, the hedge protected her from seeing the worst of her injuries, but Mina still noticed the large pool of blood that spread to the edge of her green dress.

She started to hiccup as she tried to control her anguish. "I'm sorry, D-Dinah. Please forgive me." She reached for the glass slipper and slid it from the nymph's foot. She pulled the second one and noticed that the sands of time were almost depleted. She had very little time left. Had they picked up their pace when she neared the end of her quest?

She took the shoes and carried them as she walked slowly back to her father, wondering at his presence. He held her gaze and straightened up.

Then he stood back and grasped his vest, as if already distancing himself. "Well, put them on. It's almost time for you to go, and you haven't helped your friend yet."

Mina nodded absently and slipped off her borrowed shoes. She slid the cool glass slippers back on her feet. "What do I do now?"

"You know what you must do." He looked up at the tower, and Mina shook her head.

"No. It can't be. This is not how it's supposed to happen. It's not me. It can't be me," she pleaded.

"Mina, it's always been you. It started with you and will end with you. Everything we've done-the curse, everything-started because of the events that happened this day."

"No, we can change it. I don't have to go up there. It doesn't have to be like this. We can live without ever having the curse over our head. I can sit here and wait for Ever to wake up and then she can enter the tower and everything will be put to right."

"Sweetie, listen to yourself." His voice was firm, commanding her to heed his warning. "Everything has already been put in motion by your decisions. You have to finish what you've started."

"I can't! I know what happens. The one who goes up there betrays him, causing him to lose his heart and turn evil. He'll destroy everything. He'll eventually destroy you because of the stupid curse. I can't let you die again, not when I have a choice. If I don't go up there, you'll live. We can be a family again."

Her heart broke further with every word, because her father continued to shake his head.

"Oh, honey, there's so much you don't know. Things we could never tell you. If you don't go up there, we're already dead. All of the Grimms. You are our one chance of survival."

"It can't be. I can't be the one to betray him, to betray Teague."

His eyes softened for a split second, and she thought he would concede and let her off the hook. Instead, he turned his back on her and walked away.

"No wait! I'm sorry. Come back." She chased after him, but he kept walking. She crumpled to the ground and cried out, "Dad!"

He turned back, clearly weakening. Whatever was holding him in this time was losing its power. His eyes filled with hurt and anger. "If you don't go up there, Ever will die! We will die! Do you hear me, Mina?"

Mina blinked in surprise, taken aback by his fury.

"Go up there and face your destiny like a Grimm."

"Dad, what's happening?" He was fading and she was losing him. A misty cloud surrounded him.

"Mina, I love you. I'm proud of you. Tell your mom and brother I-"

As fast as he'd reappeared in her life, he disappeared.

Chapter 28.

There was no more time for tears. Every fiber of her being wanted to mourn the loss of her father...again. But Mina had to turn to the problem at hand.

Ever was dying.

She ran back to the girl and felt for her pulse. And she couldn't find it.

Ever's skin was cold to the touch, and Mina realized she might already be too late. She ran for the tower, made a full circle around it, and could find no way to enter the pillar. There wasn't a door or hidden ladder. Nothing.

The suns were setting, and it was becoming dark. Every minute she wasted was a minute that Ever slipped closer to death, that her shoes could send her forward in time, that Annalora could wake and attack her again.

Mina pressed her hands along the stone base and felt along the wall. Every single brick was real and solid, until she suddenly fell forward into the darkness. It was another glamour.

She followed a stone staircase heading to the top, and her dress kept snagging along the steps. She picked up the silk flounces and continued upward. She could feel it in her bones, the urgency. She was running out of time. For every step she took, ten more steps magically appeared, as if she were running up the wrong escalator. The further she ran, the more lightheaded she began to feel.

Captain Plaith's warning came to her about the maze changing people, but as quickly as it came the memory was lost.

She stopped ascending, and she was standing in a large room surrounded by glass. Night had fallen, and the stars lit the sky. She needed to do something, but what? Something clouded her thoughts.

Someone else was in the room, sitting in a large chair. The darkness and a hooded cloak hid his face.

"You came?" the voice said in disbelief. "I didn't think you'd come."

"Of course I came," her voice answered the shadow. "I need you..." but she couldn't, for the life of her, remember why.

The shadow moved and Mina saw a hand extend toward her. She placed her own in it and let the person move her to stand at his side, gazing out at the darkness visible through the glass.

"This could be yours." He gestured to the vast empty space. "If you wanted it, I would give it to you. If you would just promise to stay with me forever."

"I've no interest in kingdoms," her voice was raspy, but she didn't know why. All of a sudden, time seemed to slow.

"You don't know how long I've waited to hear those words." He sighed and removed his hood so she could see his face. Jared's glorious gray eyes stared back at her and her heart swelled with love.

She missed him so much! She tried to speak, but her voice caught.

He reached for her and pulled her into his arms. "You're unlike anyone I've ever met." His hands moved up and down her face as if he were trying to commit her to memory. He brushed the tears on her face. "Are you crying? Have I done something to upset you?"

"No, you've done nothing wrong." She couldn't help it. She reached up for him, standing on her toes. He responded by leaning down.

Their lips met in a kiss. It started out soft and gentle, but progressed into so much more. She could feel his desire to deepen the kiss, so she ran her hands up the base of his neck. He stooped down and lifted her into the air, spinning her and pulling her close into his arms.

She squealed as he spun her.

As soon as her feet touched the floor, he lifted her chin to give her a few more pecks across her lips. "I've waited centuries for you to come. Will you stay? Will you stay with me?"

Everything felt so real. He was here, in her dream again. She could feel his physical breath on her face.

Guilt flooded her, because she was the reason he was gone. If she could change it, she would. She decided right then, that at least here, if she couldn't have Jared in her world, she would have part of him here in his. It may be the only way she could ever see him again.

"Yes, Jared, I will."

"Jared? Again with this Jared?" His grip moved to her arms and tightened painfully. "You betray me already?" Teague shoved her away.

"I do everything for you. I kept the others at bay with the hedge maze so you could get here first. But you couldn't get past a simple hedge glamour. I even ignored the fact that you stole from me, ran away, and killed one of my Reapers. The mercy I've shown you has been astounding. I thought perhaps we were destined for each other because of the dreams. I could even have believed we had a chance at love."

"Wait, I didn't mean to say his name," Mina called out, but Teague shrugged her off, hurt.

"There've been so many questions you've avoided since the beginning. Everyone warned me from you. But you are unlike anyone I've ever met. Your attitude, the way you talk. It was all so refreshing, so different."

He kept blinking his eyes. Mina realized that there was something in the air still clouding her thoughts. Was it affecting Teague too? She moved to the window and pushed it open. A rush of cold air flowed in, making it easier to breathe.

"But it was all an act, wasn't it? You've been lying to me from the beginning. Haven't you? We've asked and no one has heard of you. Who are you? Is Elle Cinder even your name?"

A shadow sprang from darkened stairwell and Ferah emerged, running up to Teague from behind. He turned to her in surprise, but his reaction was slowed by the drugged mist she had released into the room.

Mina cried out as Ferah stabbed Teague in the heart with a knife.

"Noooo!" Mina wailed, rushing at Ferah. "What are you doing?" She gripped Ferah by the shoulders and yanked her off of the prince. It was happening all over again. Just as she was helpless to save Jared, she was helpless to save Teague.

His face was filled with pain and he looked between the two girls. "Betrayed. From the beginning." He reached forward and pulled the knife out of his chest, letting it clatter to the floor. Seconds later, he fell to the ground.

What was she supposed to do? Mina pressed her hands into his wounds and tried to stop the blood. Her hands were shaking, but she continued to apply pressure until she felt heat penetrating through her hands. A bright light formed from the center of his chest and grew brighter and brighter until the whole room was a ball of intense light, and it shot out of the tower into the night.

In the distance, trumpets sounded, as the Fae mistook the light and celebrated the choosing of their new princess. Explosive balls of light she assumed to be fireworks exploded in the sky, casting a sadly beautiful array of colors over the dying Teague.

Except whatever she was doing was working.

The bleeding stopped, and the wound slowly reknitted itself, leaving only a small pink scar dangerously close to his heart. But it beat beneath her hands.

"Teague?" She cupped the side of his face. His deep blue eyes flickered open in pain, and he started to scream.

Chapter 29.

It was a soul-shattering scream that wouldn't end.

"What did you do?" Snatching the knife from the floor, Mina cast an accusing glare at Ferah. She brandished the knife, threatening at the elf.

The blade wasn't whole. A piece was missing from the tip.

Ferah's blue eyes widened when she saw the piece missing. She fearfully turned to watch Teague as his screams subsided. He grasped his stomach in pain.

"What? What have you done? You'd better explain quick." Mina snarled, moving closer to the girl.

Ferah shrugged. "I was sent here to kill him because of the prophecy. He will be the destruction of the Fae. But the Royals are so strong that only a weapon made from dark magic would work. Or so we thought."

Mina glanced at the knife in her hand.