Free 2 Unhitched by E.L. Sarnoff Page B

to cut the blue ribbon. I hear they’re coming with Gallant.”
    My blood runs cold. Midas and The Queen of Hearts are on their way here? And Gallant too? I need to interrogate the three fairies quickly and get the hell out of here. I don’t want any members of the royal family to see me here, especially Gallant.
    “Come, dear. Let us show you the new and improved Enchanted Garden,” says Fairweather before I can get out a word. “It’s all decked out for the party.”
    Flossie and Fanta each take me by an arm and escort me outdoors. Fairweather waddles close behind us. They’re wasting precious time. I need to know everything about Aurora before Gallant and his parents arrive. Panic grips me. How should I begin? I don’t want them to be suspicious. Think, Jane, think!
    Okay. I’ve got it. Sometimes I’m just an unexpected creative genius.
    “I’m writing a new children’s book,” I say, walking down the long corridor that leads to the garden. “It’s about Sleeping Beauty.”
    The three fairies’ pudgy faces brighten.
    “We could tell you everything about her,” says Flossie.
    Everything? Just the word I wanted to hear. I suppress a wide smile.
    “Once upon a time—”
    Fairweather immediately cuts her off and rolls her eyes. “Flossie, we don’t have all day for an epic story. Jane can read all about it in Grimm’s Fairy Tales.”
    I want to stuff Fairweather’s mouth with an apple. She’s so damn rude and bossy. And she’s defeating the purpose of my trip.
    “Jane, since we have so little time, why don’t you ask us each a question.”
    Why can’t we at least play “twenty questions”? I need info. Lots of it.
    “Me first,” says Flossie, raising her chubby hand like an eager schoolgirl.
    Dragonballs. Just three questions. But I have a zillion! I need to narrow them down and choose wisely. Think, Jane. Think! Okay. Question #1. “What does the wh—I mean Aurora look like?”
    Flossie chimes in first. “Well, let’s put it this way. They didn’t call her Sleeping Beauty for nothing. I was the one who gave her the gift of beauty. She has the face of an angel and a mane of hair that is beyond compare.”
    I shudder inwardly. Just like the princess Gallant ran off with!
    “Jane, do you have a question for me?” asks Fanta eagerly.
    Question #2. “Did she ever have a relationship with Gallant?” Boy, that wasn’t subtle.
    Fanta grins broadly. My heart thuds. I’m not sure I want to hear the answer.
    “Ah, yes.”
    Yes? The word penetrates me like a bullet. I’m shell-shocked.
    “When we disguised ourselves as peasants and kept Aurora hidden in the woods to protect her from her curse, Gallant used to send her secret notes all the time. Such beautiful words he wrote. So caring and loving. Aurora always wrote him back.”
    My heart sinks to my stomach. They were childhood sweethearts? They wrote each other love notes?
    “Such a sweet, smart boy, that Gallant was. He used to address them to Briar Rose so that Malevolence wouldn’t get wind of where we were hiding her.”
    “Who’s Malevolence?” I stammer. Crap! I meant to ask: “ Did she always sign them ‘Forever, Aurora’”? Damn it! I just blew my third and final question.
    A dark cloud descends on the three big-butt fairies. Their lips press together into hard, grim lines. Silence. Finally, Fairweather answers.
    “Malevolence is a distant relative. A dark, sinister fairy also known as The Mistress of Evil. She was not invited to Aurora’s christening but showed up anyway.”
    “She was angry, very angry,” chimes in Flossie.
    “And she bestowed upon Aurora the curse of death,” adds Fanta.
    Fairweather shoots her sisters a dirty look. “Shut up, you two. I’m telling the story. More specifically, she proclaimed that Aurora would prick her finger on a spindle and die. The terrible day came on her sixteenth birthday. We were busy making preparations for her Sweet 16.”
    Fairweather pauses for a moment and sighs.