Princess of Glass - Jessica Day George [76]
Double
The room filled with soot and cinders, startling Eleanora out of a doze. She had planned to stay awake all night, until Roger and Poppy and the others returned, but her feet were so heavy and she was so wrung out with emotion that she finally fell asleep.
And then they came, in the midst of the ashes, and snatched her out of bed. The Corley’s servents were huge, but they burst from the fireplace as lightly as dancers, lifted her up, and returned to their mistress in the space of a heartbeat.
“Did you think that I wouldn’t know?” The Corley tsk’d at her. “Did you think that that foreign princess could fool me?”
Eleanora felt weak. She couldn’t walk, couldn’t escape, couldn’t think what to do next. They had had no real plan, only to replace Eleanora with Poppy and hope there was some chink in the Corley’s glass armor. But there was none, and now Eleanora was in her godmother’s palace and had no way of knowing if she would ever see Roger or the others again.
“I don’t like it when my goddaughters disobey me,” the Corley told her. “We shall have to see about your punishment.”
“Godmother dear,” Eleanora said in a timid voice. “I didn’t mean to upset you. But my feet … I couldn’t walk! Poppy was only trying to help.” She bit her lip, not having to feign her uncertainty. “Could you … will you let us go now?”
The Corley gave her a disdainful look. “You betrayed me, and now you must pay the price. I have half a mind to let my spell run its course and turn the rest of you to glass. You would make a lovely addition to the statues in the throne room, you disobedient little baggage.”
Eleanora fainted.
When she recovered, she was still being held up by the two servants, her hard glass feet slipping against the floor. Poppy was there, chalky pale and clearly trying to put on a brave front. They were taken down the hall to the dressing room where Eleanora had dreamed of marrying Prince Christian and spending her life dancing in palaces.
Surrounded by mute servants, with the Corley looking on with an expression of malicious glee, Eleanora was dressed in a gown of peacock silk and plumes exactly like Poppy’s. Her hair was done in the same elaborate coiffure, cosmetics applied, and then a mask. Poppy’s hair was tidied, her lip rouge freshened, and her mask tightened in place as well.
“I am so sick of being dressed like someone else,” Eleanora said as the two of them stared at their twin reflections in the mirror.
Poppy gave a startled laugh.
“Don’t worry,” she said. “When this is all over and we’ve won, I’m sure that Roger will buy you dozens of gowns, all unique.”
“When we’ve won?” Eleanora reached over and took Poppy’s hand.
“Yes,” the princess said firmly. “Sometime around dawn, I’m guessing.”
“So confident, Your Highness,” the Corley said. “You might make an excellent goddaughter as well. Perhaps I shall keep you both, no matter the outcome of my little contest.”
“Contest?” The back of Eleanora’s neck prickled.
“A little exercise, really, to see if our handsome yet spoiled prince can recognize his true love.”
She snapped her fingers, and a servant brought a tray with two goblets. She gave one to each girl, and Eleanora exchanged an uneasy look with Poppy.
“What is it?” They asked at the same time.
“Just drink!” The Corley’s voice was hard.
Poppy shrugged and raised her glass to Eleanora.
Eleanora tried to return the salute, but her hand was shaking and she nearly spilled her drink. She gulped it down quickly, praying that it wasn’t poison, although that would hardly serve the Corley’s purposes.
“Much better,” the Corley beamed.
Poppy opened her mouth to reply, and frowned as her lips moved but no sound came out.
The Game
Christian didn’t know where he was. In fact, for what seemed to be a very long time, he didn’t know who he was. He was lying on a cold, slick