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I noticed her instantly as she walked through those oak double doors.
Everyone in the room did. Including the Prince.
She was wearing a long, flowing blue ballgown, hair in golden ringlets atop her head. She wore a jeweled black mask to hide her face. Her shoes were made of glass.
Beside her walked the Godmother – a smug smile on her face. She knew that the Prince would like her offering.
Despite everything, despite how we'd tried to keep her away – Cinderella was at the ball.
The Prince smiled like a shark when she was escorted to him.
She curtsied. I could sense her excitement from here. Such naïve joy that the Prince, an older man, would take interest in her. He looked up and down her body and nodded in approval. He licked his lips. He ran a hand through his grey streaked hair, and then he took her by the arm.
They started to dance. He wanted her. I could see it in the predatory gleam of his eyes.
His attention was piqued. He would dance the next dance with her. And the next.
There would be no time for me to deliver my curse.
I caught eyes with my mother by the oak doors of the castle. I shared a look with my sister by the clock.
Our plans had been rocked. Our priorities changed.
