Free The Straw King (Dorothy Must Die Novella) by Danielle Paige

again. The only Oz history he knew was from the books he’d read so far. There were the witches, of course, and there had been the Wizard, but who’d ruled Oz before him? He hadn’t gotten to that part yet.
    And Glinda took it all for granted. He envied all the years of knowing she had that he didn’t.
    Glinda opened a set of glass doors and stepped out onto a balcony, gesturing for the Scarecrow to follow. The view awaiting him took his breath away. It wasn’t the stunning vista of clear blue sky and high, snowcapped mountains. It wasn’t the sprawling flower gardens or the carefully pruned orchards. It was the rows and rows of girl soldiers, faces turned up to the balcony, saluting Glinda smartly. And every single one of them looked exactly like Glinda, down to the perfect, identically arranged ringlets.
    “May I present my army,” Glinda said, the smugness evident in her voice. “At your disposal, dear Scarecrow. As am I.”

THIRTEEN
    The Scarecrow was speechless. Glinda’s army stood motionless, their armor glittering in the sun. “You’re probably wondering why I didn’t send my girls in with the Lion,” Glinda said. She was right; he was. “The answer is I want you at my side, Scare. Together we’ll make a great team behind the throne of the new Oz. And I have just the ruler we need.” She signaled to her soldiers, and they wheeled in unison and marched back into the palace.
    “But I thought—you said you wanted to help me take back the palace,” the Scarecrow said, completely bewildered. “Why would I help you put someone else in power?”
    “Not in power,” Glinda said smoothly. “On the throne. Big difference, Scare. The fact is, the people of Oz love a new ruler. If Jinjur hadn’t come along, someone else would have unseated you. It’s not that I don’t have total faith in you,” she continued, cutting off his protest. “Believe me, you’re the smartest manwho’s sat in that old chair in a long, long time. It’s just the way Oz is. Which is why the trick isn’t to be on the throne—it’s to be behind it.” She arched an eyebrow at him triumphantly.
    “Behind it?” he echoed.
    “Kings and queens come and go, but power stays with the powerful. You don’t have to be the King of Oz to rule it. Do you see what I’m saying?”
    He did, although he wasn’t entirely sure he believed her. Something told him that, as pretty and kind as she seemed, Glinda wasn’t being entirely straight with him. But two could play at this game until he figured out her real motives. “So we find someone who’ll listen to us, and find a way to put that person in the Emerald Palace?”
    “I knew you’d get it,” she said. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about. I have the strength to get rid of that ugly little pest Jinjur, and I know just the girl to put in her place.” She pulled the jeweled bird out of her dress. “Bring me the princess,” she told it. “And make sure she’s wearing a dress this time. She’s visiting a witch, after all.” She giggled and put the bird away. “She’s the dullest little thing, really,” Glinda said. “Always wanting to sit in the garden and read a book, if you can believe it. She goes for walks in the countryside .” Glinda shuddered.
    Reading books was not something to sneer at.
    “No interest in fashion, and she’s been up north for ages in that wretched Gillikin Country, so she has no manners to speak of. She’s quite the rustic. But she’s quiet, she’s royalty, and she’ll do what she’s told.”
    “Royalty?” asked the Scarecrow, totally confused.
    “She’s a fairy,” Glinda said, as if that explained it. She arched her eyebrow again. “You don’t know? According to legend, the fairies are the rightful rulers of Oz.” She shrugged. “Technically, she’s supposed to be the queen already. She was in line to inherit the throne, but she was only an infant when the Wizard arrived in Oz and exiled her to Gillikin Country. I