The Stepsister Scheme

her hurt you. I won’t let her hurt anyone else.”
    She turned away, and the dwarves of darkness and light began to charge toward Stacia. At the same time, wind buffeted Stacia toward the edge of the bridge.
    Snow’s shoulders shook. “I’m sorry for what she did to you and Armand.”
    Danielle stepped back from the railing and grabbed Snow’s arm. “Don’t you dare do anything stupid. We’ll be back soon with Armand, and I am not going home without you. Do you understand me?”
    Snow knelt and used her knife to slice away a vine that had snagged her leg. “Go on. Before she destroys that bridge to stop you from crossing.”
    Danielle wanted to argue, but Snow was right. She turned back and climbed out over the railing, trying not to look at the rocky shore far below.
    She landed hard, the weight of her son throwing off her balance. Talia caught her by the arm while she recovered.
    “You’re definitely heavier than you used to be,” Talia said. Before Danielle could respond, a shadow dropped from the walkway overhead. For an instant, Danielle thought it was another darkling. But the figure grew, thinning as it stretched out to cover the bridge in darkness.
    “Snow sent one of her dwarves to cover us,” Talia said.
    They were halfway across when the scream of twisting metal made them stop. Behind them, Stacia had changed tactics. The writhing vines had given up their assault on Snow. Instead, they twined around the walkway itself, tearing away the segment where Snow stood. A long section hung at an angle. Water spilled down to the cavern below.
    Danielle pointed to where Snow lay flat, clinging to the broken walkway. Her hair flew as wind helped her to climb back up. Fire assailed the vines.
    “She needs help.” Talia took a step back.
    Danielle wanted to follow. “We’ll never get to her in time. Snow said she could beat Stacia and Rose. We have to trust her.”
    Talia shook her head. “Maybe you haven’t noticed, but Snow’s not entirely clearheaded when it comes to her mother.”
    Snow pulled herself up, and a gust of wind helped her leap to the undamaged part of the walkway. Instantly, more vines shot from the water, dragging her to her knees and pinning her in place.
    “I’m going,” said Talia.
    “Wait.” Already Snow’s dwarves had come to help her break free, while the dwarf of light flew at Stacia. Stacia cringed back, covering her eyes.
    “She needs help!” Talia shouted.
    “I know.” Danielle looked up. This whole place was nothing but an enormous cave. She closed her eyes. Please help my friend.
    “What are you calling?” Talia asked.
    Danielle blinked. “How did you know—?”
    “You bite your tongue when you do your silent summoning routine with the animals. Do you really think rats will be able to fight Stacia’s magic?”
    “Not rats.” With a grim smile, Danielle pointed to the top of the cavern, where hundreds of black shapes fluttered toward Stacia. Soon a cloud of bats surrounded her, so thick Danielle could see nothing of Stacia herself.
    “Come on,” said Danielle. “Let’s go raid the tower.”

    Snow’s stone dwarf was waiting for them at the other side of the bridge. She stood on a broad platform of wood and metal that circled about a third of the tower. Huge sheets of thick oak had been worn smooth by decades of pacing guards. A lacework of silver metal threaded between the boards like the roots of a willow tree, securing it to the tower. The whole thing appeared delicate and flimsy, yet it supported the dwarf’s weight with no sign of strain.
    Two goblins cowered behind the dwarf. Well, two and a half, really. The dwarf hadn’t been gentle.
    The two survivors huddled together, their yellow eyes huge. A pile of cards sat forgotten between them. Neither one made any effort to raise the crossbows in their laps.
    Talia smiled and scooped up both crossbows.
    “We’re here to see the Duchess and her guests,” Danielle said, matching Talia’s smile. “She should be expecting us.”
    Talia turned around. Stacia had managed to drive most of the bats back, but the delay had given Snow and her dwarves the upper hand. Stacia had already retreated halfway across the bridge. “Go,” Talia said, nudging the stone statue. “Help her.”
    As the dwarf of stone ran to help Snow, Talia handed one crossbow to Danielle. She put her foot in the stirrup of the other, drawing back the heavy string, then raised it to her shoulder. Sighting carefully, she pulled