Read The Firethorn Crown for Free Online Page B

afraid of anything.”
    “Bay! We’re coming in!” Coral bellowed. “Stay put, and we’ll find you!”
    Mara clamped her hand over Coral’s mouth. “Hush! Runson will hear you.”
    Coral’s eyes widened.
    Lily held her breath, listening. The honeysucklers flitted about in the firethorns, making small rustling noises.
    “Someone’s coming,” Ruby and Wren whispered.
    The clip of boots on stone grew louder even as they spoke.
    “ Go .” Lily’s limbs tingled as she shooed the girls into the maze. If they were quiet enough, maybe he would think they’d gone back to the palace, or elsewhere in the gardens.
    Melantha grabbed Junia, who already had a firm grip on Ivy, and hauled her in. Azure joined them, taking the twins with her, and the remaining girls linked hands in a rush. Gwen snagged Lily last, and they disappeared into the maze, treading softly but steadily into the gloom.
    Lily took deep breaths, trying to steady her racing heart, and pressed a hand over her belt to keep the gold links from clinking together. The other exit wasn’t far when you knew the way, and they could avoid Runson altogether. She would lead the girls back to their tower and write out a story for the twins’ birthday. It wouldn’t be the same as a game of Cat and Mouse, but she could do some sketches and bind it nicely, like the one she’d almost finished for Ivy.
    It was a good plan. A better plan would have been to ask a couple of off-duty guards to watch the entrances. But she hadn’t wanted to ask, not knowing whether they would say yes out of duty to the crown, or out of affection for the girls. She’d been stubborn, or scared, and it was her fault they were sneaking away from Runson.
    Her sweaty fingers slipped in Gwen’s, and she tightened her grip. They had almost made it around the first bend. Gwen turned and flashed a relieved smile, but it disappeared with an irritated huff.
    Oh, no. Lily glanced over her shoulder. He’d followed them. Couldn’t he take a hint? Gwen jerked her around the corner and out of Runson’s sight, bumping them into Coral.
    “ Go, go, go! ” Gwen pushed and pulled until the girls started running like a caterpillar.
    Firethorns scratched Lily’s arms, grabbed her hair. She tripped, and Gwen steadied her.
    Around corners. Past junctions, and alcoves, and mottled shadows. Her heart pounded, and from behind, her name grated through the air.
    She sped up until her shoulder brushed Gwen’s, and then they both slammed into Coral.
    “Oof.”
    The girls had stopped. Their voices floated feather-soft on the warm, still air.
    “It’s the mirror.”
    “There’s a dead-end.”
    “Look!”
    A flurry of honeysucklers, silhouetted against the orange sky, hinted that maybe Runson had gotten ahead and made it to the exit first.
    “Mel, you’re brilliant,” Lily said. Their little map maker had led them deeper into the maze, guessing Runson would go around and try to intercept them at the exit.
    “If I’m so brilliant, where’s the junction that’s supposed to be straight ahead?”
    Lily stood on tiptoes and squinted. “Could it be an optical illusion?”
    “I think it’s a real illusion,” Melantha mumbled.
    Azure snorted.
    “Lily, look.” Coral tugged them forward.
    Lily followed, wondering why they stayed linked, but not letting go. She peered into the hedge that had drawn Coral’s attention. The mirror.
    “It is ugly,” Gwen said.
    Neylan’s head swivelled back and forth between the mirror and the hedge opposite.
    “You see it, don’t you,” Lily said.
    “There’s a light.” Neylan craned her neck towards the mirror. “Dim—like it’s down a long corridor and around the corner. Maybe another exit.”
    “A secret passage?” Ruby sounded hopeful, like maybe her birthday wouldn’t be such a disappointment, after all.
    “If it is, where’s the entrance?” Hazel asked.
    “Maybe it’s an optical ‘llusion,” Wren said.
    Ivy whimpered.
    Melantha groaned. “He’s