Page 35 of Cinder's Adventure: Get Me To the Wedding!

Mary Ann looked around, her face brightening as the possibilities dawned on her. “Yes,” she breathed, beaming at Cath, who beamed back. “Yes. Let’s do that.”

“How about you, Cinder?” said Cress. “Are you ready to go home?”

Cinder laughed. “Yes! Please get me the heck out of here!”

But as she was rushing up to the top of the ship’s ramp, she hesitated. Something made her turn around, to peer down at the strange group left behind in that mucky pumpkin patch. The hatter, the jester, the raven, the maid, and the girl who looked an awful lot like a queen, despite the mud covering her gown. She couldn’t help feeling like something was being left… unfinished.

Proceed to Chapter 40.

Chapter 39

Cinder made a derisive sound in the back of her throat. She could get out of here. She’d gotten out of plenty of prison cells on her own before, some way more heavily protected than this one.

Feeling newly determined, she knelt down in front of the lock and released the stiletto knife and screwdriver attachments in her cyborg hand. She listened carefully to the internal mechanisms as she wriggled the tools inside, until—

Click.

With a satisfied grin, she opened the door, revealing an empty corridor outside.

She glanced back once, but the room where she’d been trapped was now, inexplicably, empty.

What a bizarre place, she thought, before choosing a direction and hurrying down the hall.

She hadn’t gotten far when she spotted a figure in the distance. She froze, preparing for a fight—but the figure was perfectly still. Notstanding, but rather chained to the wall.

Her stomach dropped. It was the boy from before. The same boy who had taken her ring! Only now, his limbs were strung up in thick golden chains.

And the ring—herring—was dangling from a leather braid around his neck.

He appeared unconscious. Cinder hesitated, wondering if she should try to help him.

But no. She had to help herself. She had to get out of here.

Though she felt a little guilty about it all, she untied the leather braid and slipped the ring onto her finger, then hurried away, hoping that whoever he was, he would be all right.

She continued on until she saw a door with bright sunlight filtering through the windows to either side. Hope rose inside of her as she rushed forward and shoved it open.

Proceed to Chapter 4.

Chapter 40

“I amsoready to leave,” said Cinder, “but something doesn’t feel quite right.”

“You know, I was just thinking that same thing,” said Thorne. He stroked his fingers down the side of his face, staring down at the group in the pumpkin patch. “Say, did you say something about starting a bakery?”

Cath nodded. “Mary Ann and I have been dreaming about it for years. It’s clear that we can’t bring that dream to reality here in Hearts, but maybe, in Chess…”

“And, this Chess…,” said Thorne, “is it a nice place?”

Jest and Hatta exchanged looks.

“Not particularly nice,” admitted Jest.

“Think constant war, inept rulers, and an utter lack of sense,” added Hatta.

Mary Ann shuddered. “Not much better than Hearts, then.”

“Well,” said Cinder, “perhaps you could come with us? The Earthen Union has been at peace for over a century.”

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