A Cinderella Story (Part 1)

Chapter 7: Escape (Elliana's perspective)

I leaped across the mats. Each footfall was dead silent.

Mother clapped. And smiled mischievously.

"And now through the lasers."

She flicked off the lights so I could see the red beams of light criss-crossing my path on the mats. I felt a flare of determination. This time, I would do it.

I sprinted forward and rolled under the first laser.

Only fourteen more to go.

I scissored, twisted, ducked, leaped, squeezed, and crawled my way through the maze of lasers. Finally, I barreled toward the end.

And did not see the last laser, low enough for a toddler to step over, right at my feet. I groaned. Mother laughed.

"Just one laser to go, Junior," she said, and switched off the lasers.

I nodded and followed her up the stairs and into the bright sunlight. I waited for my eyes to adjust before I chased Mother through the crowded Ezran streets. Her loosely braided pale-aqua-green hair wasn't easy to lose though, and I managed to follow her into an alleyway that a normal nine-year-old would be scared to venture into.

Not me though. After stepping into the shadows, we clasped hands, and I braced myself for what came next.

A rush of frigid air.

A moment of freezing coldness.

The sensation of being sucked through a straw.

And then the warm sunshine of home, Dragonpeak.

I jolted awake.

That dream again.

Like the time after I dropped off Mira, except last time there was no alleyway or "Dragonpeak." I ran a hand through my messy hair, mussing it up even more, and decided that I would talk to Lady Remington today.

I remembered her last words to me: "You are a Remington now; act like it." I hadn't talked to her since. But I had questions, and it seemed like she was the only one who could give me answers.

I sighed and slid off my bed.

After changing into a simple peach-coloured dress, brushing my hair and teeth, and eating the breakfast someone had left on my bedstand while I was sleeping, I was ready to return downstairs. However, Lady Remington was nowhere to be seen. I checked in the room with the double doors, the eating room with the huge table, even the bathroom. But it wasn't until I entered the library that I found her. No, not in the library, but somewhere near the library.

After hearing a snippet of Lady Remington's unmistakable voice, I listened carefully.

"And then you'll see the castle. Allow the carriage driver to..." Lady Remington's voice faded away.

Was it already the day of the sisters' escapade? By the sound of it, yes. Time was ticking away. This was my window of opportunity. I couldn't let it close. I desperately ransacked the library. No doors, no ladders, no loose floorboards. There wasn't even a window, just the skylight and the seemingly endless rows of bookshelf after bookshelf.

I sighed.

This was hopeless. I would never go home.

For the remainder of my life, I would be locked in here with Lady Remington and her crazy daughters and the poor souls of those whom she tyrannized.

I stamped my foot in frustration.

There must be a way!

Suddenly, the door opened. I grabbed a book and opened it, hoping to convince Lady Remington that I was innocently reading a book, but, instead, Mira walked in.

She rushed over. Hope shone in her eyes.

"Are we going out? Leaving?" Her voice wobbled a little at the last word.

I didn't need to answer. My own eyes were shining as well, except with tears. She knew.

How had I ended up like this? It felt like forever since I had seen Father's hazel eyes, and now I would never see them again.

I looked down at Mira. Her eyes were squeezed shut, and her lips trembled. A single tear dropped from her eye. I hugged her, as much for my own benefit as for hers, trying to fend off my own tears, and tried to summon the courage to tell her that it would be fine. That everything would turn out okay, and we would get out of this prison. But I couldn't. I knew it just wasn't true. Even if I had said it, it would sound hollow, meaningless.

A lie. And that's what it was.

I had promised Mira. Promised her I'd get everyone out of here.

I remembered the one time me and Father had talked about Mother.

Never broke her promises, he had said.

I was wrong.

Mother wouldn't be proud of me. She would be disappointed in me. Just like Lady Remington.

I wanted to scream.

But I couldn't. Not with Mira. So instead, I just sat there. And cried. I was done.

I was startled when Mira looked up at me and said one word. It was so quiet that I could barely hear it, but it changed the course of my—no, our lives.

"No," she whispered.

I looked at her curiously.

"No, what?" I asked.

She took a deep breath.

"No crying. No waiting. No giving up," she said.

I felt ashamed. This girl, who was six years younger than me, was right. It had only taken five minutes for me to give up. Mira deserved better.

So I got up, dusted off my dress, and hoisted Mira onto my back.

"You're right," I said. "No giving up. And we need to hurry."

So, with our determination restored, Mira and I put our heads together to think of the next step.