Page 61 of Once Upon a Midnight Clear

“You can’t have her,” Ella said, clutching Ingrid close to her.

“Oh, dear sweet child. I meantyou,” she said, fixing her eyes on Ella. “You’re going to tell me how to use these slippers.”

“Never,” Ella said.

“And you’ll have to go through me to get to her,” Nicholas added.

Malvina’s eyes narrowed. “So be it.”

Clutching the slippers in one hand, she waved her other one. Nicholas flew to the side and crashed against the stone wall. He slipped down it, landing on the ground unconscious with a thud.

“Nicholas!” Ella gasped.

“The slippers, girl,” she said as she approached. “Tell me how to use them.”

“I-I don’t know,” she said.

“Do not lie to me.”

“I’m not.” Ella backed away a step at a time as Ingrid scurried to Nicholas’s side. “They were a gift.”

Malvina halted her advance. “A gift, you say?” Contemplation went over her face before she then smiled a dark and terrible smile. “How nice.”

The dark queen waved her hand in an elaborate gesture sending purple smoke curling toward Ella. She took a step back, intending to run back to the staircase, but the cloud overcame her. A sudden dizziness swept over her as she stumbled to the side. Her vision blurred. The last thing she saw was Malvina advancing on her once again with that terrible smile. And then there was nothing at all.

Chapter 21

Ellaawokewitharaging headache throbbing in her left temple. Her arms were strained behind her, the muscles at her shoulders burning with an intensity she had never experienced. It took several moments for her to pry her eyes open. She blinked, looking on unfamiliar surroundings.

She was tied to a chair, her arms behind her and her wrists bound. She tugged on the rope but found it held fast and chafed her skin. She was in some sort of chamber with an oversized fireplace on one end, a large bed on another. Balcony doors were open, letting in the bitter north wind, the curtains fluttering in the breeze.

On the balcony, Malvina stood with her back to her. Her hands were on the railing as she peered out at the mountains beyond. It was dawn as far as Ella could tell. The sky was lit in a pale indigo tinged with pink.

A guard stood at the entrance of the chamber. He stood with his hands clasped in front of him, wearing full armor. His face was concealed behind a helm.

A whimper next to her caught Ella’s attention. She turned her head to see Nicholas and Ingrid tied together to chairs, back-to-back, and gaged. Their wrists were also bound. Their ankles tied to the chair legs. His head hung down, his chin on his chest, as though he were still unconscious. Ingrid watched her with frightened eyes. She glanced from Ella’s face, down and back up again.

She was trying to tell her something.

Then she understood. Her boots and thick stockings were gone. One foot was bare. On the other, she wore one of the glass slippers. She held up her foot to examine it. The shoe seemed unharmed.

Malvina turned from the balcony, the wind whipping through her long, black hair as she made her way back inside. She paused in the doorway, her dark eyes falling on Ella.

“Awake, I see. Good.”

The train of her black gown slithered over the stones as she entered the room, leaving the doors open. The cold wind whipped through the room, sending a violent chill through Ella. Malvina paused at the mantle where she picked up the other shoe. She held it between her hands as she approached. Light sparkled through the shoe, giving it an iridescent glow.

“You’re going to tell me how to use this.” She waved the second slipper at Ella.

Ella lifted her chin in defiance. “I already told you I don’t know how it works.”

She stared at her a long, hard moment. Then she whirled around. She grabbed another nearby chair and pulled it over in front of Ella. She positioned herself on the edge, still holding the shoe in her hands.

“Let me show you something.”

She slipped off her black shoe, crossing her legs to reach her foot. Then she tried to put on the glass slipper.

It wouldn’t fit. Only her toes and the ball of her foot were able to slide inside. The rest of her foot was too big. She held it up for Ella to see, then cast an accusatory glance at Ella’s foot wearing the other one.

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