Cinderella Dreams of Fire (Fairy Tales Forever #1) (12 page)

P
rince Braedon hopped
every second step in the castle on the way up to his mother's bedroom. As he ran, his heart clattering around in his chest, he couldn't help but let a thousand thoughts go through his head at once.

She can't be dying. I won't allow it. If she dies….

Braedon tried to shake the fear from his mind. He'd just seen her and she was perfectly fine. If the demon had something to do with this, he would paint the village with blood to find and destroy it.

He continued leaping over steps until he reached the main corridor.

If I become king, there'll be no more bars. No more friendships. Maybe even no more Cinderella.

He fought against the pain that last thought brought him as he sprinted down the hallway and toward his mother's room.

I can't bear to see her dying. After Father, I just–

He yanked the door open with a grunt. He bounded across the room to his mother's bedside. But she wasn't there. The bed looked as if it had been freshly made. His breath left him for a moment as he feared the worst.

"Was I too late?"

The prince looked left and right and tried to collect himself. Braedon ran into the hall and started calling out for a servant. For anybody. Eventually, he heard voices coming from his own room. In his frenzy, he couldn't recognize them. Did they belong to a doctor and a coroner? Were they starting to make funeral arrangements?

The prince felt mad as he ran back down the hallway and into his chambers.

As he attempted to catch his breath in the doorway, the first thing he noticed in the room was his mother. Not only was she standing, but she also appeared to be in perfect health.

Her cheeks glowed with pink. “Ah, there you are my son. So nice of you to be on time for your fitting."

Sure enough, the queen wasn't alone. Standing next to her was a tailor getting ready to take his measurements.

Fear changed to rage within. “I thought you were dying. I thought you were dead."

The queen nodded slightly. “And I'm touched that you didn't stay for three or four more drinks before you returned home, but I'm afraid there was no other way to get you to rush home with the speed you needed unless I lied to you."

The prince punched the wall with such ferocity that he made it all the way through the plaster.

He gripped his hair with both hands. “I can't believe you did that to me.” He tried to burn fire through his eyes toward his mother, but she met him with a smile.

He shook his head. “That's it. I'm not going to the ball. It's official."

As he turned to walk away, he noticed five royal guards standing between him and the exit.

He felt a hand upon his shoulder.

The queen's fingers massaged at the muscle. “I'm sorry, Braedon. But if my impending death was the only way to get you in, then my army has to be the only thing to keep you here."

Braedon wished he could be anywhere but here. The place he most wanted to be, for the first time in a long while, wasn't the bar. He wished he could be trying to land just one more blow on the unsuspecting Cinderella.

He put up his hands. “Fine, I'll stay. But whatever it is that's attacking your soldiers, it isn't human."

He pulled back his sleeve to reveal bloodstained cloth that protected his wound. “Something is out there, Mother.” He gestured to the claw marks. “And I barely escaped it with my life."

She looked up at him, as if trying to determine his level of trustworthiness. “And how do I know you didn't get these marks fighting against a rabid animal while drunk?"

Braedon pounded at the wall again and began to pace the length of the room. “First, you get me here under false pretenses. Then you call me a liar. Why is that fair?"

The queen crossed her arms. “For the last year, this was the only night I actually needed you to be a part of. You begged and negotiated away so many of the moments we could've spent together, but this was the day you promised you would be here.” If she felt any contrition for her lie, she certainly wasn't showing it. “This is not the time for stories, Braedon. It's the time to start living the responsibility of a boy who will be a king. It's time to become a man."

Braedon wanted to scream, but instead he sat down on the edge of his mattress. “I'll go to the ball."

The queen smirked. “What was that? I couldn't hear you, it was so quiet and meek."

"I'll go to the damn ball! But I'm not lying about the creature. I think we're all in great danger."

The queen nodded. “Then it's good that we've doubled the guards to keep you from escaping. They'll do the duty of looking out for any figments of your imagination as well."

The prince wanted to send a messenger to Cinderella right then. But he knew the words of a thief, especially one who stole a jewel from the queen's possession, would not do much to improve his chances of proving himself.

"Just make sure everybody is on watch. I'm not interested in letting somebody die just because you don't trust me."

His mother seemed taken aback by his tone. “I'll tell them. Now, why don't you let yourself get measured and get that cut taken care of so it doesn't bleed into your suit?"

The prince nodded. “Yes, Mother."

The queen stepped out of the room, and the five guards she placed to watch him took her place.

Braedon walked up to the tailor and held his arms out, feeling very much like he had no control whatsoever.

He looked out the window in the direction of the village. “Be careful out there, Elle."

C
inderella marveled
at the young identical girls standing in front of her. They sparkled with gold, as they did in their bird form. She had no earthly idea what to say.

One of the twins spoke. “Thank you for saving us. It's been so long since we've been able to return to this form."

Cinderella stammered. “So long– what do you– you aren't really little girls are you?"

The first girl held out her hand. “I'm Aymee, and this is my sister Tressa. Don't worry, we'll explain everything."

Cinderella took her hand, and Tressa took the other one. The twins stood on either side of her and started to lead the way out of the cave.

The thief and the two young girls walked through the cave between the groaning, injured men. She was surprised that none of them got back up after she'd fought them, but when she noticed a glowing gold above the heads of the fallen, she realized that magic was at work.

"I have a feeling I'm not going to understand much of what happens from here on out."

The girls squeezed her hands in unison and the one named Aymee spoke. “You know more than you realize. You followed the signs and you have the jewel. Now all you need is the truth."

Cinderella held her breath. Somehow she knew that these girls were about to fill the gap in her knowledge that the Godmother had intentionally left for so many years.

"You know the Godmother. She never spoke of you."

Tressa, who the thief could only distinguish by the fact that she was on her opposite side, made a little laugh. “We know more than we let on. It's surprising how much a prisoner can hear. Especially when a human watching over her doesn't think she's very smart."

Cinderella nodded. “Men are idiots sometimes. How about you start by telling me what the heck you are?"

The girls giggled again, which made Cinderella feel brighter as they walked through the dark cavern.

Aymee cleared her throat. “We're changers. We can switch our form whenever we want, unless someone takes measures to block it. We've been trapped in our bird form for quite some time.

"We also make dresses. Kinda like the ones we're wearing."

Cinderella sighed. “Everybody needs a hobby, I guess. Who captured you?"

"The former queen of our land. She was exiled, but she did a lot of damage on the way out. When we tried to find out where she was, she captured us."

Aymee picked up where her sister left off. “She was an awful, terrible woman who used magic to bend people to her will instead of helping them."

"If Aymee hadn't escaped, we would have no way to warn you of what's coming."

Cinderella sensed the moonlight as they got closer to the cave's entrance. “What can this queen do, exactly? Is she the one that's been building herself up like a demon? Is that her?"

The twins both took part in a pointed pause before Aymee spoke. “Cinderella, you might want to sit down for this."

"I'm fine standing. Just tell me everything."

The girls released Cinderella's hands and stood before her, silhouetted in the light from the stars and moon.

"Anyone who opposed the queen met a terrible fate."

"She would have their loved ones tortured in front of them."

"As soon as they felt pain in their heart, the queen could touch them and suck everything out."

"All the good. All the bad. And then soon as she was finished, it was like they had nothing left. Their hearts had been sucked dry."

The thief's pulse quickened. The realization of 10 years fell on her all at once. “My father was one of the first victims in this village, wasn't he?"

The twins nodded in unison.

Cinderella let out a slow-metered breath. “He never stopped loving me. He just had his heart pulled out of him."

The twins nodded in unison.

"And Armenia was the queen. You're telling me Armenia was the queen, right?"

The twins paused before affirming her question.

Cinderella wanted to tear the entire world apart. The anger took hold of every cell in her body. Her screams echoed through the chamber as she thrashed her arms every which way. She would have smashed her hands into the stone walls of the cave if she didn't know deep down that she would soon have to use them again.

Cinderella covered her face before letting her fingers stream through her blonde hair. “That's why Kiyara's charm was there. Armenia isn't the demon. She turns my stepsisters into… whatever they are. I am such an idiot."

Aymee stepped forward. “It's okay. You were just a girl, and you didn't realize that–"

"That the woman who destroyed my life was also the one who killed my mother. And who knows how many others."

Aymee's lip quivered. “We're sorry. But one of the reasons we saved you so many years ago was that we knew you had the strength to defeat her."

Cinderella let the rage settle and exit through her body. A few deep breaths had her almost back to normal. “Part of me has always wished I died in that fire. That I died with my mother's arms wrapped around me.” She cracked her knuckles. “I guess life just isn't that simple. How about you tell me how I kill this horrible creature?"

Tressa rubbed her hands together. “On that front, we have some good news."

Aymee smiled. “When our kingdom needed to expel the queen, our mages devised a gem that can resist her power. We called it the Heartstone."

The thief pulled out her sword, which glistened red in the moonlight. “That's why the sword put out the fire. That's why the Godmother and Tristan both thought it was so important."

The twins agreed. “It's the only weapon against her. You're the best chance of stopping the queen from taking over another kingdom."

Cinderella held the jewel of the weapon to her forehead. She could feel the magical energy emanating from the stone.

She took one more deep breath and placed the weapon back in its scabbard. “Tonight, we plan. Tomorrow, it's time for revenge."

A
day had gone
by since Kiyara had seen any trace of her stepsister. Her mother had raised a fuss for about fifteen minutes before outright wishing that Cinderella had died in an alleyway over the course of the night. Kiyara couldn't help but think of her favorite sister as she stood in front of a mirror in her bedroom and stared at herself in the green ballgown. It would not be long before she and her sister flaunted their curves and danced circles around the prince in an effort to do things the easy way. But when Kiyara saw her reflection, all she saw was the demon her mother had turned her into.

She wasn't sure what magic or mental blocks had kept her from processing years of unconscious murder and kidnapping, but whatever she had used to block these thoughts was completely gone. The previous two days had been nothing but a barrage of images, most of them soaked in blood and devastating to her fragile mind.

It took every ounce of self-control not to cry after her mother's new servant had applied a fresh coat of makeup. Her breathing was so quick that she thought she might pass out at any moment.

I have to tell someone what we are. I need somebody to believe what we truly are.... who I am.

As Kiyara looked herself up and down, she thought of Cinderella. She wondered what would happen if the only person in the world who seemed to love her knew the truth about who she was.

"She would have to kill me on the spot, right? It's the only logical thing to do when you find yourself with a monster. You kill it, because otherwise it might murder you and countless others.” The tears welled up in her eyes. “And I am a monster."

"You aren't a monster."

Kiyara turned to see her mother at the doorway. She too was dressed in a beautiful gown that enhanced every one of her features. And yet, no matter what her mother wore, she always seemed to be missing something that she had back when they were the rulers of an entire kingdom. It wasn't the crown itself, but Armenia never seemed completely satisfied unless they were the ones on top.

Her mother sat upon her bed and gestured for Kiyara to join her. The young woman hesitated, but eventually she sat.

Armenia sighed. “At first, I didn't realize what I was doing. I thought that by touching you and your sister... by hugging you after I'd sucked out the hearts of men, I assumed I was just making myself feel better. But nothing is ever that simple with magic."

Kiyara had never heard such straight talk from her mother. She leaned in closer to soak up every word.

"The pain and fear allows me entry, but it's the bravery, the valor, the joy that feeds me. It gives me my power, Kiyara. But all the darkness inside of them is too much for me to handle. It's always been too much."

Kiyara sniffled. “So, you didn't mean to turn us into… something horrible?"

Armenia put her hand on her daughter's thigh. “Of course not. I tried everything else to rid myself of the darkness, but the only way to keep it from eating me alive was to share it."

Kiyara let loose a trembling breath. “If you can give it, can you take it all away? Maybe give it all to Malina and let me go back to normal?"

Her mother looked deep into her eyes. A sad smile crept along her lips. “I'm afraid I can't do that, my child."

Kiyara stood up and backed away from her mother. “You're not here to help me. You're here to help yourself."

"I've always given your sister more of the darkness. Much more. I thought you couldn't take the pain, the hate, and the remorse. I thought I was protecting you, but now I know that I was only protecting myself."

Kiyara shook her head and looked toward the room's exit. Her sister stood there like a sentinel.

Kiyara couldn't help it; the tears began to ruin her makeup. “Please, Mother. I can't take any more."

Armenia stood and began to approach. “To stay who you are, you're probably right. But I need to make sure you're on board with the plan. We've decided that this is the only way."

The petrified girl met one of the walls with her back. There was no place else for her to go.

"You're going to lose. The prince won't love me or Malina. We don't deserve another kingdom."

Armenia smirked. “At long last, she displays a backbone. It's too bad you're on the wrong side."

Kiyara could hear her sister laugh as Armenia took the final step and laid her hands on Kiyara's chest. With a wave of energy that rocked her body, she felt the darkness enter. Pain. Hatred. Regret. Anything the woman had left in her body from taking all the feelings of her victims entered into Kiyara's heart.

She cried and cried as she sensed the positivity and goodness being crowded out within her. The waterworks slowed to a trickle as a smile took hold. The blackness coursed through her veins and Kiyara stood up straighter than she had in years.

With the dab of her fingers she wiped away her tears and stepped away from Armenia's touch. She took long, cat-like strides toward the mirror. The girl blew her reflection a kiss and adjusted her dress to emphasize her bosom.

Kiyara turned toward her family. “How on Earth is the prince supposed to resist this?"

Armenia laughed. “Now this is the Kiyara I've always dreamed of having. Welcome."

Malina was in awe, and Kiyara felt herself wanting to slap her sister for the dumbfounded look. She only barely restrained herself.

"I feel better than ever, Mother.” She hitched the dress up one more inch. “This kingdom will be ripe for the taking, once you've sucked the prince's grieving heart dry."