Blood, Smoke and Mirrors (2010) by Robyn Bachar Read Free Book Online Page B

crumpled on the floor in front of my mirror, the scent of dried blood and faded cinnamon filling my nostrils. I pushed myself into a sitting position and surveyed my surroundings. My top hat had rolled off and was tipped on its side just out of reach. My unbound hair hung in dirty strings, and I absently pushed it out of the way. As my hand passed in front of my face I was startled by the dark, crispy coating of dried blood that stained it, and then I remembered how I'd stretched the mirror in the earthen room beneath the faerie mound.
    "Out, out, damned spot," I muttered, my voice dry and raspy in my throat. Shaking my head, I glanced at the alarm clock on my nightstand and was surprised that it read a little after four. I really hoped it was the following morning and I hadn't missed any days during my misadventure in Faerie. It was entirely possible, considering I felt like I'd been run over by a truck. Stumbling to my feet, I wobbled over to the door and opened it. Spots danced in front of my eyes as a warning that I needed to consume mass quantities of coffee and pancakes, and soon. First I wanted to check the date, so I continued on into my living room and flopped down into my desk chair. I slapped my mouse to wake up my computer, raining flakes of dried blood onto the mouse pad in the process, and waited as the screen took its own sweet time to wake up.
    At long last I was able to confirm the date: June 29 th , and a refreshing 4:36 a.m. Lovely. At least I hadn't lost any days, just hours. For a few moments I sat in the chair and debated the pluses and minuses of showering first versus eating first. The shower sounded very appealing--I felt like hell, gritty and grungy like I'd been dragged through the mud. Eventually I settled on the shower in order to save myself the time and effort it would take to clean the blood trail I'd leave behind in the kitchen. I only caught myself losing my balance twice and managed to hold onto consciousness the entire time.
    Go me.
    Dressed in my fuzzy purple bathrobe and matching slippers, I puttered about in the kitchen, fixing my "Huzzah for survival" feast. Instead of coffee I forced myself to brew a strong herbal tea, one I knew had healing properties in it. As usual I decided to comfort myself through the cunning use of fattening food--cheesy scrambled eggs, sausage links and chocolate chip pancakes. And, most importantly, nothing that included cinnamon, which was how I realized I was no longer alone in my apartment when the scent of it wafted down the hallway halfway through my meal. I stared down at my eggs, and decided I was too tired to get up and go to her.
    "Portia, it's still too early for the game show," I called out.
    A cry of childish disappointment answered me, followed by the pitter-patter of little combat-booted feet. I was vaguely surprised to see Tybalt following behind his sister, as he rarely made an effort to travel to the human realm.
    "She said it isn't on," he reminded her.
    "It is too on, there's an entire channel of the game show, the guide says so!" Portia waved a copy of this week's TV Guide in Tybalt's face to punctuate her point.
    "There's more than one kind of game show, hon." Scooping up a forkful of pancakes, I watched her mull that development over while I chewed. Rolling his eyes, Tybalt walked farther into the kitchen and plunked my sword and dagger down on the counter. A wave of relief washed over me at the sight of them--it would have been a serious pain in the ass to buy new ones. Good swords are hard to find, and run damn expensive.
    "Do they all give away new cars?" Portia asked.
    "No. Some of them do. Wheel of Fortune does sometimes." I shrugged, and her eyes widened at the idea.
    "There is a game show about the Wheel of Fortune?"
    Aside from being associated with Pat and Vanna, the big Wheel is a member of the major arcana of the Tarot deck. Not one of the cards I particularly relate to, but still, something amusing to keep in mind next time you