Page 180 of Naughty Nelle

“When Fanta finds out that I’ve eaten so much bread, she’ll ban me from dinner.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll tell her I ate the entire loaf.”

“Thanks, Jane. I owe you.” A cheek-to-cheek smile spreads across her chubby face.

I’ve made a decision. I’m taking Winifred off my hate list.

“Jane, how did it go today?” asks Elzmerelda.

We’re back in our room, freshening up for dinner. I say nothing.

“It was awful for me at first too. Don’t worry. It gets better. Honestly.”

Honestly?There’s no way I’m hanging around this dump to find out.

“Well, got to go. I have Dinner Prep tonight. See you later.” She skitters out the door.

Good. She’s gone. I can use this free time alone to plot my escape. Except I’m too exhausted to think. I plunk down on my bed and close my eyes.

When I re-open them, it’s pitch-black. For a second, I have no idea where I am. Elzmerelda’s singsong voice regrettably reminds me.

“I brought you back some dinner.” After lighting a candle, she lays a tray on my bed.

“What time is it?” I ask groggily, raising myself to a sitting position.

“It’s after nine. You fell asleep. When I came back to get you, I didn’t have the heart to wake you.”

I gulp down my soup and wipe the bowl clean with the bread. Shit! I missed clean-up. One of those Badass Fairies will probably give me one hundred lashes.

As if reading my mind, Elzmerelda says, “Don’t worry. I covered clean-up for you.”

Why is she so nice to me? I don’t get it. If it’s because she wants me to be nice to her, she can forget it. I don’t do nice.

Elzmerelda clears the tray, then slips into her nightgown. She crawls into bed and blows out the candle.

“Sweet dreams, Jane.”

No one has ever said that to me before. I shut my eyes again, but sleep betrays me. I can’t get the image of my mother out of my head.

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