Free Cinderella Dreams of Fire (Fairy Tales Forever #1) by Casey Lane Page B

her body. Pain exploded through every muscle from top to bottom.
    Everything in Kiyara's body broke down and came back together again completely different. Her skin changed from white and soft to grey and stone-like. All her fear and pain began to slip away. Her mother released her grip and began ascending the staircase, where the bowman was calling out for his son in vain. Kiyara's hands grew long, wide, and clawed. She wished she could run away from herself as her mind went blank and blood-red with rage.

Chapter 17
    T he walls of fire once again warmed Cinderella as she walked through the flames of her dreams. In most of her dreams, everything she saw was hazy, but now things were starting to clear up. The edges had become less fuzzy and sharper around her. She saw the body of her mother laid out before her, and she wished that the woman she loved had her face turned toward her. She placed her hand, the hand of a child, into her mother's palm and squeezed.
    The pain was ever present, though it was a distant pain.
    As the flames began to inch toward her, she saw a familiar sight: the golden bird once again danced before her eyes. The shining light of its wings somehow stood out against the fiery red that surrounded her. The bird appeared to be trying to draw her attention. Was the bird actually gesturing to her? Was it leading her from the flames?
    As Cinderella reached out to touch the bird and let go of her mother's hand, she awoke.

    C inderella needed a minute to decompress . It's not every day that the traumatic puzzle of her dream received a new addition. This was the first night of over a thousand that placed a golden bird at the scene of her tragedy.
    Between a possible figment of her imagination and the claw marks that connected a series of crimes to her meek sister, Cinderella's week was getting pretty interesting.
    With Armenia and her stepsisters heading to the royal tea, she had all day to try to work out the mysteries in her life. She started with several hours of training. First, a series of body weight exercises, which had long ago become far too easy without only using one hand or arm. Next, she put her body through a test of the fastest martial arts her legs and wrists could muster. It wasn't until she sweated out the fire from her dreams that she felt like herself again.

    A fter bathing and taking a trip into the village, she thought about how much her life would have been different if the fire had never taken place. She knew that all of the strength and speed she'd gained over the years would be nothing but a dream. She'd likely be weak and whiny, headed to the tea herself. She'd be decked out in a frilly gown, giggling at the sight of Prince Braedon up close. She wouldn't realize how much he hated every moment of it. Maybe deep down, she would've hated it, too.
    She sighed. It was no use to think of things that would never be.
    After trading in her typical blacks for a garb that would blend in with the rest of the villagers in the afternoon, Cinderella didn't have to go far before she heard of the latest attack. Her heart sank when she saw the crowd gathered around another tragic late-night event. On one side of the enraptured mob, the fat knight known to be the prince's best friend jabbered away about the victim.
    "Of course I heard the scream. You could've heard it down the entire street. If I weren't having a nightmare myself at the time, I probably would've run over and gotten myself killed from bravery. It was an awful, awful thing. The smell of fire was everywhere. A lesser man might have fainted from the fear."
    Cinderella slipped deeper into the crowd, wondering if she could learn anything valuable from the large crowd's ramblings.
    "Between the Captain of the Guard and the best shot in the land, I think that someone is targeting the bravest men among us. For all we know, I will be next. If the queen fails to give me half a dozen men stationed at my door at all times, I may just have to move to