Page 12 of Cinder's Adventure: Get Me To the Wedding!

If Cinder decides to drive the carriage herself, go to Chapter 31.

Chapter 11

Cinder climbed into the carriage, the inside smelling faintly of cinnamon and nutmeg. She had barely sat down on the cushioned bench when the door shut behind her and the carriage jerked forward. She could hear the melodic clop of horse hooves outside, but there were no windows through which to see where she was being taken.

Despite being apumpkin, the interior of the carriage was surprisingly lavish. An iron sconce held a single burning candle, and the walls were upholstered in rust-colored velvet. Cinder would have been quite comfortable, except that the door she’d entered through had disappeared. She spent a long moment searching for the edges of the doorframe, her pulse beginning to thrum. She had no idea where she was being taken, and she had bad memories of being held prisoner.

But just when she’d unleashed the small knife from her cyborg hand to start cutting through the pumpkin’s flesh, the sound beneath the horse hooves and the carriage wheels changed. She paused, listening, as they sounded like they were going over wooden boards, with the sound of crashing waves below.

A moment passed, and then the horses were slowing down.

When the carriage came to a stop, the door appeared again, swinging wide to reveal a sight that definitely wasn’t New Beijing.

Retracting the knife, Cinder hesitantly stepped out into the courtyard of a massive castle. Turrets and spires loomed overhead, towers disappearing into a thick fog that hung cold and heavy in the air. Though the weather had been warm before, now a chill danced down Cinder’s skin and her breath crystallized before her.

A series of steps led to the entry door of the castle keep. They were flanked by enormous sculptures—black stone carved into the shape of ferocious, snarling hounds, ready for a hunt.

Then there was the ghost that stood waiting for her, partially transparent in the night. She was a tall, imposing woman, with a blood-soaked scarf tied tight around her neck. She gestured for Cinder to step inside.

Swallowing, Cinder started up the steps, just as a streak of lightning illuminated the massive doors and she could see that the carvings in the wood depicted a mass of monsters. Each one was as realistic as if the doors were alive, and the beasts captured inside were struggling to escape.

A boom of thunder shook the stones beneath her feet, and the doors opened toward her, creaking on huge iron hinges.

Cinder glanced back.

The carriage was gone, and the drawbridge over which it had passed had already been lifted, closing off her exit.

The phantom woman caught her eye and smiled reassuringly. “Do not worry. The Erlking only murders those who disappoint him.”

“The Erl-who?” Cinder asked.

But the woman simply gestured for her to continue on.

Proceed to Chapter 18.

Chapter 12

“My ring?” said Cinder, protectively wrapping her fingers around the engagement ring Kai had given her. The one weighted with meaning and history. “But… I’m supposed to be getting married.Today, in fact.”

The boy shrugged. “Can’t get married if the Erlking kills you.”

Cinder scowled, and looked from him to the spinning wheel to the pile of straw. Finally, she released a heavy sigh. “Fine. But if this doesn’t work, I want it back.”

“Deal.”

The boy held out his palm, and with a sinking sensation in her gut, Cinder took off the ruby ring and gave it to him.

No sooner had his fingers closed over the ring did he spin around, march over to the wheel, and take a seat on the three-legged stool that had been provided. Cinder didn’t see him tuck the ring away, but in the next moment, his hands were busy gathering fistfuls of straw. He gave the wheel a spin, then pressed his foot onto the treadle, and began to feed long strands of dry, brittle straw into the machine.

Cinder’s jaw dropped in amazement.

For the material that wrapped around the wooden bobbin wasn’t straw. It was thin and pliable like thread, but it shimmered like pure gold.

“How?” she asked.

The boy only flashed her that same impervious smile. “Told you I was magic.”

Unsatisfied with this answer, Cinder crossed her arms and watched, trying to see where the illusion happened. Was he Lunar? Could this be a trick of her mind? But surely her lie detector would have been triggered if that were the case.

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