Chapter 23 - The Queen's Last LetterThe king ordered the mirror chamber sealed.
He told Ethan that no one in the castle could be trusted.
Then he led the boy into the abandoned apartments of Queen Eleanor.
Everything inside remained untouched.
A silver hairbrush rested beside the bed. A half-finished embroidery lay beside the fireplace. Dried flowers filled a crystal vase.
"Why didn't you move any of this?" Ethan asked.
Aldric studied the empty room.
"Because if I changed anything, I would have to admit she was never coming back."
Ethan noticed a wooden box beneath the bed.
Its lock had been broken.
Inside lay a letter sealed with black wax.
Aldric recognized the handwriting immediately.
It belonged to his wife.
He opened the letter with trembling fingers.
My dearest Aldric,
If the boy returns wearing clothes that do not belong to our world, do not tell him who he is.
There are two versions of our son.
One must live.
The other must never reach the throne.
The king stopped reading.
Ethan leaned closer.
"What does that mean?"
Aldric continued.
The mirror does not show the future. It steals children from futures that have not happened.
The child you buried was not the first.
And if another child arrives with his face, someone has reopened the passage.
The final sentence was written in a different ink.
Whatever happens, do not trust the man who carries my ring.
Aldric looked toward the doorway.
Standing there was Lord Chancellor Varick.
He had served the royal family for more than twenty years.
On his right hand gleamed a silver ring.
Eleanor's ring.
Varick smiled.
"Your Majesty, I've been searching everywhere for our young guest."
May you like
Then his gaze dropped to the letter.
His smile vanished.
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