Page 104 of Charmless
“Oh, be quiet, Mal,” I said. Ryland was already looking devastated enough by what he had done. I explained to Horatio, “I just didn’t fully understand the magical properties of the shoes before. But when I tried them tonight, they did make me invisible. That is how I got past the prison guards.”
Horatio’s brow furrowed. “So, youwerethere standing in the lane when I rode past your house earlier.”
I regarded him with amazement. “Yes, but how do you know that?”
“I don’t know. I thought I had to be imagining things. But somehow, I can always sense your presence. Your scent, perhaps.”
A faint smile touched his lips as we exchanged a glance that caused my heart to skip a beat.
“You can sense Ella just by smelling her?” Mal grimaced. “I can’t decide if that is rather romantic or completely disgusting.”
“Shut up, Mal!” I said, but the tender moment was ruined.
Ryland found my other shoe and inspected it. “This one is intact, Ella. If you slip it on, perhaps the magic might still work.”
“Forget about the shoes,” Horatio said. “We need to get moving before Prince Florian arrives.”
“How are you going to explain to the Chief Warder how Ella appeared out of nowhere?” Mal asked.
“I’ll think of something,” Horatio said as he stooped down beside Mal. Hooking his arm beneath Mal’s shoulders, Horatio struggled to draw my friend to his feet. Horatio was trying to be as gentle as possible, but Mal sucked in his breath with a pain-filled hiss.
Instead of helping, Ryland continued to look devastated with guilt. Cradling my remaining shoe in his hand, he begged. “Could you not at least give it a try, Ella?”
Before I could stop him, the prince dropped to one knee before me, holding up the glass slipper which glowed in theflickering light cast by the wall sconce. It would have been a romantic gesture if we had been in a moonlit garden instead of a dungeon cell, with me attired in Mal’s baggy clothes and Horatio scowling with impatience.
Mal gritted his teeth against his pain, but managed to say, “Go on. Try it, Ella. What can it hurt?”
“Besides wasting time we don’t have?” Horatio demanded.
I tended to agree with Horatio, but with both Mal and Ryland urging me to make the attempt, I surrendered with a tiny sigh. Tossing the broken pieces of my shoe aside, I braced myself against the rough stone wall and raised my foot.
Ryland eased the glass slipper on me and rose to his feet. If negotiating those heels had been a challenge for me before, wearing just one left me wobbly and lop-sided. Torn between hope and feeling foolish, I stared down at my feet as I executed the steps to activate the shoes’ magic. Since I only had one slipper, all I could do was click my glass heel against my foot. Just like before, I had no way of telling if anything magical had occurred. I could still see myself quite clearly.
“Did it work? Am I invisible?” I asked, glancing up to find all three men gaping at me.
“Not exactly,” Mal said.
“You are mostly visible except… ” Horatio trailed off. I had never seen my stalwart commander look so unnerved.
“Your head is gone!” Ryland exclaimed in a horrified accent.
“What?” I gasped, clasping my hands to my face.
Mal rolled his eyes. “She still has her head, you fool. We just can’t see it.”
I had no time to process this information before one of the prison guards appeared in the cell doorway. I recognized him as the burly man whom I had seen reading the naughty book.
“Commander Crushington! Your Royal Highness.” The guard’s stomach doubled over as he bowed to Ryland. “TheChief Warder bade me say that he is still waiting for you in the courtyard. He will not grant you custody of the prisoner until?—”
The guard broke off as he caught sight of me. His eyes widened as he stared at the empty area above my shoulders where my head should have been. He shrieked like a tavern wench who had just spotted a rat. Backing away from the cell, he nearly stumbled over his own two feet as he turned and fled.
Mal burst out laughing, even though it cost him. His guffaws were punctuated with pain-filled cries of “Ow! Ow!” Despite the perils of our situation, I could not help chuckling myself. Even Ryland gave an uncertain smile, but Horatio looked far from amused.
“Ella! Take off that blasted shoe before this situation gets any worse. Maybe I can explain to the Chief Warder how a woman mysteriously appeared in our midst, but it will be impossible to account for a headless one.”
But my mind raced with the possibilities. The destruction of my magic shoe could prove to be an asset, even better than a Fear Blade.
I pleaded with Horatio, “Don’t you see how this could work to our advantage? If I can terrify all the guards into fleeing?—”
