Mirrored Time (A Time Archivist Novel Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

and her hand grabbed Gwen’s with surprising strength. “It is good to see you, though.”
    A tear escaped before Gwen could stop it, and she dashed it away. “I …” Her voice cracked.
    Maggie patted the empty space next to her with her free hand. “Shhh. I know.”
    Gwen moved closer to her aunt, inhaling the familiar smell of her perfume. She had promised herself to be strong. But she closed her eyes and fought the tears, comforted by the gentle stroking of Maggie’s hand against her hair.
    When the threat of tears had passed, Gwen gave an embarrassed laugh.
    “What?”
    “Would you believe me if I said I spent the whole ride here promising myself I wouldn’t fall apart?”
    “Gwen, look at me.” Maggie continued when their gazes met. “There’s no rule you have to be so strong all the time. Life is hard. You’re allowed to be just as scared as the rest of us.”
    Brow furrowed, Gwen jumped up and paced around the room. “But how selfish am I, feeling sorry for myself when you’re … you’re …” She couldn’t finish. “I haven’t even visited you lately. I promised to take care of you.”
    Maggie smiled. “This,” she said, gesturing to herself and the bed, “this isn’t new. I’m sick, Gwen, and pretending everything is all right is not going to change that. As much as I love that you refuse to accept my illness, as flattered as I am that you are trying to will me to immortality, every life ends. What’s important is how we live it—and who we live it with.” She patted the bed. “Now, why don’t you sit down and tell me what’s bothering you.”
    Gwen chewed on her lip as she stared at her aunt.
    Maggie pursed her lips in mock seriousness. “If I recall, you still are the child and I am the adult in this relationship. Now, sit. Talk.”
    Gwen laughed and joined Maggie on the bed. Licking her lips, she tried to think of a way to start. In the face of Maggie’s sickness, her own problems seemed tiny. Had she come all this way because of a silly prank?
    Or maybe it had less to do with her fear of what she saw being real and more to do with her fear that it wasn’t. After all, what did she want besides something to prove magic did exist? That hope really was a thing with feathers . And that maybe, just maybe, Maggie could be saved.
    “Do you believe in the impossible?” Gwen whispered.
    “Well, what a marvelous question. Life would be quite dull if the impossible was as self-described, wouldn’t it?”
    Gwen plucked at the loose threads on the bedspread, afraid to hope, afraid to give up.
    Her aunt leaned forward and tilted her chin up with a gentle fingertip. “There are many things in this world that are indescribable. That’s what makes life worth living.”
    “What if you were faced with something that would change everything you had ever known?” What if it might be everything you ever wanted but were always too scared to go after?
    Maggie’s soft brown eyes were warm with love. “I would live, my girl, live.”

CHAPTER FIVE
    S OME TIME WITH HER AUNT had Gwen heading back to the city with a clearer head. While it was the reason she went rushing home, Gwen never told Maggie about the mirror. Her aunt would have supported her, but the mirror had become a secret hope—a fragile flame flickering in her chest—one she wasn’t ready to acknowledge. So she focused on her aunt and on doing whatever she could to distract Maggie from her illness.
    During the train ride home, she made the decision to talk to Alistair about what had happened, explain her odd behavior, and tell him about the prank. Then it would be over. She tried not to think about her little hope, too practical to admit she was wishing for fairytales.
    When she arrived at the office, Gwen had every intention of speaking with her boss. She just couldn’t find him. Her gaze lingered on the door to the Archives, but she marched into her office and tried to focus on her work.
    Time crept by, and her one