by Tegan Maher
After a few yards, something started tickling at my consciousness. Ella, two wicked stepsisters and an evil stepmom—
“Wait,” I said to Colin, stopping mid-stride. “Does that not seem familiar to you?”
Tempest smirked at me. “It took you long enough.”
“Does what seem familiar?” Colin asked.
I explained to him, and disbelief crossed his features.
“No way!” he said. “Do not tell me we just met Cinderella’s wicked stepfamily.”
I lifted a shoulder. “If the slipper fits ...”
He shook his head as we started walking again. “Well we can’t say this hasn’t been an interesting experience.”
No, we could not. I was almost afraid to see what else was in store.
CHAPTER EIGHT
The feast was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. Long tables set to seat thirty people each were draped in elegant white tablecloths and arranged in rows in the cavernous room, with one long table on a dais at the very front.
As with the hallways, the room was lit entirely by candles, but these were enchanted ones that hovered midair every few feet down each of the walls and above the tables. The light glittered off the silverware and the millions of jewels adorning fingers, gowns, hairpieces, and even shoes.
A Maître de led us to a table close to the front of the room, and I turned when I felt eyes on me. Ari was sitting beside his wife at the table on the dais. They both raised their champagne glasses and smiled. I smiled back and gave a little wave. Diana, the woman who’d locked horns with Stephanie, gave me a look of disdain before turning her attention to the angel to her right.
“Wow,” I said, my gaze roaming around the room. No matter how much I looked, I felt like I’d never catch every detail.
“Wow’s right,” Tempest said, hopping up onto a chair and putting her paws on the edge of the table. “This is incredible.”
I lowered my brows. “Get down from the table right now. I’m not sure what they expect you to do, but you can’t be up there, I’m sure.”
She raised a fluffy black eyebrow at me and motioned with her nose toward the table. “Can’t I though?”
There, in front of the plate, was a name card that distinctly said, “Tempest Maganti.”
“My bad,” I replied, holding up a hand. “Pop a squat.”
All around us, people were chatting and laughing, but I wasn’t exactly a mingler. I picked our champagne flutes up from the table and handed Colin his. With a quick flick of my wrist, I filled them up with our favorite vintage. Instead of the standard bubbly, though, the glasses filled with a pink effervescent drink that smelled faintly of raspberries.
I tilted my head, but Colin just smiled. “Apparently, the glasses know when to fill, and you don’t get an option.”
“Nifty!” I said before tilting the glass to my lips. “I’d like to know the trick. It would make my life a boatload easier.”
“Yeah, but then what would you do with all your spare time?” he smiled and clinked his glass to mine.
“Schmooze,” I replied, then took a sip. I almost choked when the wine hit my palate. The drink was unlike anything I’d ever tasted. The rich flavor of berries muddled with spices I couldn’t identify, but it was all I could do not to chug the rest of the glass. “This is one of the best things I’ve ever put in my mouth!”
“Yeah,” Colin agreed. “If the food’s this good, I’m in trouble.”
My stomach rumbled as I forced myself to take another small sip instead of a gulp. “You and me both, sugar.”
I’d noticed that no matter how I moved, the material of my dress didn’t bind. I’m not sure how Lucinda had accomplished that, but I hoped it stretched a little, too.
A spoon clinked against a glass, drawing all eyes to the dais. Ari stood, glass held aloft as he repeated the action.
“Welcome, everybody to the angels ball! First we feast, then we dance!”
A roar of approval met his pronouncement, and with a flourish of his hand, the tables filled with food. I’d never seen so much in my life. Salads, veggie dishes, massive platters of meat and seafood—my stomach rumbled again as we took our seats.
I was so intent on filling my plate that I didn’t even realize who was sitting beside me until she cleared her throat.
“Destiny, isn’t it?” The wicked stepmother said from her position to my right.
I turned to her, a little of my appetite fleeing. Well, not really, because there was very little that could distract my stomach from food, but she did capture my attention.
“Yes,” I said as if I smelled something rotten. “And you’re Ella’s stepmother.”
“Shhh,” she hissed. “Don’t say that too loudly. Nobody is supposed to know that.”
“Know what?” Tempest asked. “That you’ve placed your own family into servitude and treat her like a dog?”
Mommy Dearest scowled at her. “You have the exact temperament I’d expect from a fox.” She gave me an appraising look. “And one suited to your charge, I have no doubt. My name is Endeara, and yes”—she lowered her voice—”Ella is my stepdaughter. But she shouldn’t have told you that. She’s been warned to never speak of it outside our castle walls.”
“And why is that, exactly?” Colin asked. “Ashamed?”
“No, I’m not ashamed. Ella is a wonderful girl. She deserves so much more than what she’s gotten, but it’s for her own good.”
“Of course it is,” I said. “Cleaning and catering to your two snotty daughters is great for character building.”
She sighed. “It’s not ideal, I know. But it’s the best I could do to protect her.”
“Not ideal,” Colin repeated. “Care to elaborate on that?”
“Not really,” Endeara snapped, “but since your beau here is obviously not going to let this go, it’s imperative that you have the facts before you ruin everything.”
She took a long pull off her champagne and gasped. “That’s incredible! Better than anything that has ever come out of my vineyard, and we have the best blends in the country.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I said, rolling my finger. “The wine’s manna to our lips, too. But I’m more interested in hearing why you think it’s okay to keep your stepdaughter stuffed away in rags.”
She looked around, then spun her finger in a clockwise motion. The noise around us became muted, and I narrowed my eyes.
“Why did you just dampen us?”
“Because, you little twit, what I’m about to tell you is for your ears only. Ella’s ... special. She was betrothed to Prince Alexander before she was even born. Her father was best friends with his father, and they thought to unite the kingdoms.” She rolled her eyes. “Stupid, arrogant men, meddling with love like that.”
“So if that’s true,” Tempest said, “you’re not making much of a case for yourself. We met Alexander earlier and he seemed delightful. But you’re right. She’s much better being a scullery maid than a princess.”
“Actually,” Endeara said, smirking, “she’d be a queen right now, assuming she’d still be alive. Alexander’s parents died while on the hunt years ago, back when Ella was still a small child.”
“Both of them?” I asked.
“Yes, both of them. And it’s every bit as suspicious as it sounds. Alexander has a mean streak. He’s cruel to animals and children, and he’s downright barbaric toward women. Yes, Ella is better off hidden under the guise of a servant in her own home than living in the open as his queen.”
“It can’t be that bad,” Tempest said, but Colin remained quiet.
“C’mon here, sweetie,” I said. “Back me up.”
Rather than say anything right off the bat, he studied Endeara. “How did his parents really die?”
“They fell from their horses into a river and drowned. Both of them were skilled riders and excellent swimmers.”
“So what happened to Ella’s mother?” Tempest asked.
“She died giving birth to El
la. At that point, my dear Henry already recognized Alexander as a bad seed. He passed the word throughout the land that Ella had died with her mother.”
“Why didn’t he just cancel the contract?” I asked, popping a ginormous shrimp into my mouth.
Endeara huffed out a breath. “Because they’d signed in blood. And before he could think of a way around it, he died, too.”
“From what?”
“In battle. I suspect—but can’t prove—that Alex had a hand in it. The two kingdoms were fighting together.’
“But what purpose would that serve?” I asked. “If he’s not married to Ella, he has no claim.”
‘Child,” Endeara said with a soft sigh, “I don’t know what time period you come from, but I have to believe it’s a more civilized one. He believed our country to be unprotected without a king and that we’d be easy to conquer. I’ve disabused him of that misconception several times, and yet, he still tries.”
The pieces fell into place in my head. “So if he ever found out about Ella, he’d have a rightful claim to the throne.”
She bowed her head. “He would. He’d marry her and then he’d kill her.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because he’s had a mistress for years. She’s as evil as he is, though like him, you’d never know it to talk to her. Ella would be in the way.”
I considered all that she’d said. “So as long as he lives, she’s not safe.”
She shook her head. “Like I said, her situation isn’t ideal, but it’s the best I can do. I promised her father I’d look after her. She obviously can’t go prancing around like a princess as she deserves. I can’t even show her any true affection outside of our private chambers because that would draw attention to her.”
“But your servants—”
“Have been spelled so that they can’t mention it to anybody. That much, I can control. My kingdom, my rules. Though I doubt a single one of them would betray her even if they could. She’s well loved. Still, we get emissaries and visitors.”
I had no response and I couldn’t think of a solution. I had to admit—she’d done the best she could in a crap situation.
“But she said she’s been beaten,” I said.
“Well of course she has,” Endeara snapped. “Spare the rod, spoil the child. No more than her sisters got, though. Less, actually. They were hellions.”
Colin spoke up. “So I guess my only question is why you brought her here, where she’d be in such close proximity to him.”
She looked toward the sky, then gave me a disbelieving look. “I thought this would be the safest place for her. I thought maybe she could even participate in the ball. I didn’t realize there would be other mortals here, let alone that Albert’s been playing tickle-tag with Aphrodite’s grandchild or that he would bring Alexander with him. What are the odds? I’m just grateful I didn’t tell Ella that I was planning to let her participate. It would have broken her heart.”
Suddenly, the mood in the room shifted. Even through the dampening spell, I could feel the thickness of the silence that blanketed the hall. I turned to look in the direction everyone else was and gasped.
Endeara’s hand fluttered to her chest. “Oh, child, what have you done?”
One of the most beautiful women I’d ever seen was standing at the top of the stairs, her ball gown shimmering with the sheen of the finest pearl. Though her intricate mask hid most of her face, there was no doubt it was Ella. And every eye in the place was on her.
CHAPTER NINE
Endeara turned to me. “This is your fault,” she hissed, then started to push herself to her feet.
Colin placed a hand on her arm to stop her. “Don’t,” he said. “If you do, all’s lost for sure. Sit down and hope he doesn’t recognize her.”
“But what about her stepsisters?” I asked. “Surely they’ll realize who she is.”
Endeara huffed. “Don’t be too sure. I love my girls, but they’re not the sharpest knives in the cupboard. Besides, even if they do recognize her, my spell should hold. They shouldn’t be able to reveal her identity.”
I searched the crowd for Alexander, hoping beyond hope that he wasn’t in the room. Of course, our luck wouldn’t extend that far. He was sitting a couple tables away, fork halfway to his mouth as he stared at the vision that was Ella.
“Do you think he recognizes her?” Colin asked.
Endeara shook her head. “There’s no way he could. He’s never seen her. I’ve made sure that any time he’s ever had cause to be at the castle, she was kept far away and out of sight.”
Two men sat across the table from us. My knowledge of fashion was limited, but they were dressed sort of like the men in A Christmas Carol, right down to the top hats. They were as enthralled as the rest of the room, though their interest seemed almost clinical. “Do you see what I do, brother?”
“If you mean the apparition of beauty standing yon, then yes, I do indeed.”
“She’s a vision born to foster stories,” the first man said. “She deserves to have her name recorded and preserved for all time.”
It was a weird conversation, but I couldn’t help myself. Maybe it was because I couldn’t do jack-diddly about the fact that Ella was standing up there like a lamb for slaughter, but I turned to them, curious to know who they were.
“Kind sirs, if we’re going to be dinner companions, we should introduce ourselves. I’m Destiny Maganti.”
“Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. Charmed, I’m sure,” the one directly across from me said without taking his eyes from Ella.
If only he knew how close to the target his words were.
“Wait,” Colin said. “Did you say Grimm?”
“I did. And what of it?” The older brother asked.
“Nothing,” Colin replied, shooting me an astonished look. “I just wanted to make sure I heard you correctly.”
Though I had a million questions for the brothers who’d written such timeless stories, I didn’t have time to indulge my curiosity. I caught Ari’s eye, and though I wasn’t sure if he had some way of telling what was going on, I tried to get him the message with my eyes that he needed to do something to break the spell she’d cast over the whole room. Figuratively speaking, of course.
Thankfully, he was quick on the uptake and stood, once again clanging his spoon to his glass.
“The food and wine will continue to flow until you’ve all had your fill, but the musicians are preparing to play in the ballroom. You may make your way there at your pleasure.”
That did the trick. The silence was broken as people resumed talking and laughing. Some trickled from the room, but others, afraid to miss anything but not wanting to miss out on the food, dug into the feast in earnest. I breathed a quick sigh of relief that at least she was no longer the center of attention.
Still, as she made her way down the staircase to the dining hall, my heart sank when Prince Alexander rose to his feet.
I turned to Endeara. “How can we fix it?”
She shook her head. “I don’t see any way to fix it. It’s easy to let the cat out of the bag. Stuffing it back in is another matter altogether. But I suspect you’ll find a way; you strike me as a resourceful girl, and since you put her life at risk, I’m trusting you’ll find a way to save her.”
No pressure, then.
My mind whirled. There had to be something.
But no matter how hard I thought, the evening dragged on until eventually my worst fears came to pass. I saw them dancing, each of them smiling. I couldn’t help but notice this time around that Alexander’s smile never quite made it to his eyes. I finally saw what Endeara did—a cruel spirit hidden in the face of a near-angel.
‘What if we explain everything to her?” I asked Colin a couple of hours after the whole debacle had started. “Just tell her what the score is?”
He shook his head. “She’s a teenager who’s just had her first experience with the whole man/woman thing. Do you think she’d listen to you? Yo
u can’t undo it, Des. This is what I meant when I said you could make things immeasurably worse for her. You weren’t playing with all the cards when you said those things to her.”
“I wasn’t trying to play anything,” I snapped. “I was trying to right a wrong.”
“Which ended up not being a wrong after all,” Tempest not-so-helpfully pointed out.
I glowered at them both. “I realize that now, and I know I should have listened to you, but that ship’s sailed. Now we gotta figure out how to save her from him.”
Endeara, who’d worked her way back to us after spending the last hours hovering as close to Ella as she could, worried her lip. “There’s one last thing you should know, and it looks as if it may come to pass.”
I cocked a brow at her, not sure how the situation could possibly get any worse.
“I added one more emergency measure to the layers of protection I built around her.”
I was afraid to ask, but had no choice. If I had a snowball’s chance of fixing the mess I’d made, I needed all the pieces. “What did you do?”
“I spelled her so that if they kiss, she’ll fall into a deep sleep.”
Tempest turned toward her. “And how, in the name of little green apples, is that supposed to help?”
Endeara’s brows snapped down. “Because Henry had a suspicious streak, and I suspect he wanted to protect his daughter, too. He put in the contract that the marriage had to be willingly consummated before Alexander had any right to our throne.”
I thought about it. It was a bit ruthless, but I could see where she was coming from. Sometimes you have to sacrifice the pawn to take the queen. Or, in this case, to protect the queen. I didn’t play chess, so I had no idea if that played right as an analogy, but whatever. I couldn’t fault her for it, especially given that she’d only put it in place as a measure of last resort.
Then it occurred to me that the story was all wrong. The queen and stepsisters were supposed to be the evil ones, and the prince was the good guy. I gave the brothers, who were standing across the room, the hairy eyeball. If I managed to fix this mess, we were gonna have a come-to-Jesus chat before they let their quills fly on this one.