Chasing Midnight - A Cinderella Retelling (Once Upon a Curse Book 3) Read online

  Then the thud of boots.

  I don’t dare look over my shoulder—but I don’t have to as another car skids to a halt a dozen feet in front of me. Soldiers spill out, holding their guns. The people on the street freeze. I do too, trying to blend in.

  How did they find us?

  I wasn’t using magic. None of these people on the street would’ve known to be looking for someone of my description.

  Are they bluffing?

  Chancing a peek out the corner of my hood, I immediately meet the focused eyes of a soldier. He’s staring straight at me. This isn’t chance. They know who I am. They’ve found me.

  “Put the girl down.”

  The girl?

  Are they after Ella?

  I hug her closer as a protective urge shoots through me. I’m not sure if it’s stubborn defiance, self-preservation because of the oath, or something deeper, and I don’t intend to waste time finding out. There’s a dark alley to my side. It’s the only way out, but I don’t know how to get there fast enough to beat a bullet.

  The soldiers circle me, holding their guns.

  “Put the girl down and we won’t hurt you.”

  I keep my face bowed, hiding in the shadows of my hood as I gather my power beneath my skin. Now that they’ve found me, there’s no use in stifling my magic. In these man-made streets, there isn’t much nature for me to work with—I never was very good at manipulating stones. But calling storms has always been my specialty. I breathe in, sensing Mother’s spirit in the air and in my skin, uniting the two. I let it build until my skin prickles with energy. My hair rises with a static charge. Overhead, the wind crackles. I kneel, pretending to lower Ella to the street as they commanded. As soon as my fingers touch the ground, I let go.

  Lightning flashes in a circle around us.

  The road explodes.

  I pull a cyclone from the sky and let it whip.

  Half the men are on the ground, and the other half can’t hold their guns steady enough to shoot. I take the opening and run, pulling Ella behind me as a calm hole opens in the middle of the winds, just wide enough for us to slip through. We race down the street as shouts fill my ears. Then men stumble after. We got away, but I don’t know how long it will last.

  At the other end of the alley, a car slams to a stop, blocking the exit. I gather another wind beneath my skin, hoping to blow the obstacle out of my way, but then the door swings open. The prince finds my gaze across the distance and shouts two words.

  “Get in.”

  “No.” A breeze shoots through my lips along with the word, and the car door slams shut in his face.

  I keep running, trying to see if I can toss Ella over the front of the car and somehow follow without being caught. The pounding boots behind me grow louder and the door swings open again.

  “I meant what I said before,” the prince pleads. “I don’t want to hurt you. I want to learn about you. So, please, just get in the car and let me help you.”

  “Why?” I shout down the alley. “Why should I believe you?”

  “You don’t have to believe me, but you must realize that I’m the only chance you’ve got. I know how they’re tracking you, and it’s got nothing to do with magic. You’ll never get away without my help.”

  I slam into the frame of the car and press my palms against the metal, taking a moment to breathe as I glance over my shoulder. Three soldiers race down the alley, holding their arms above their eyes, trying to block out the wind still swirling in my wake. I have seconds to make a decision. Do I trust a prince who already proved he can’t be trusted?

  No.

  But that doesn’t mean I can’t take his offer, then ditch him at the first opportunity to slip away. Ella is still barely conscious. I won’t be able to drag her behind me much longer.

  “Fine,” I mutter as I half fall into the car and fold Ella onto my lap.

  The prince grins.

  We jolt into motion before my door is even closed. The soldiers scream for us to stop, but the prince holds the wheel with both palms, gaze narrowed and focused on the road. Our speed climbs.

  “Take off her shoes,” he mutters, sparing a moment to glance at Ella.

  “What?”

  My window rolls down, and wind roars loudly into my ear, whipping my hair all around my face as the hood falls back. Prince Frederick shouts over the gusts, “The girl. Take her shoes off and toss them outside. That’s how they’re tracking you.”

  Her shoes?

  Ella groans as I shift her position on my lap, reach down, and gently tug on the beige shoes. I’ve never seen such uncomfortable-looking shoes in my life. The fronts have a platform about an inch high and the backs are nothing more than narrow spikes that are at least three inches tall. What a strange invention. I throw them through the window one after another, and then the prince seals it shut again. In the silence, Ella curls into my chest, resting her head at the nape of my neck. I hold it there, feeling her tremble, and wrap my other arm around her torso to keep her still. The prince glances over, switching his gaze between Ella and I before returning it to the road. The tenderness in his eyes makes me squirm.

  “Who is she?” he asks.

  I’m not sure how to respond. She’s a human girl. She’s a princess. She’s the person holding my sister’s magic hostage. She’s my target. She’s different than I expected.

  “She’s Ella,” I murmur, then take a deep breath. “How were they tracking us using shoes?”

  “That was my idea, actually,” he explains with a note of pride. “After we realized the blackout came from the orphanage, we assumed it had to be one of the girls from the magic world who was living there. The generals wanted to arrest everyone and interview them, but my father, my siblings, and I thought it would cause a mass panic. It’d be impossible to keep it quiet, and luckily, the prime minister agreed. So we came up with another plan—invite them all to the party we’d be hosting anyway, and see if we could dig for information while their guards were lowered. We sent shoes for all the girls to wear, and each one had a tracking device with a unique signal embedded in the sole, so if anyone got spooked by our questions and ran, we’d be able to find them. And what do you know? It worked.”

  Just my luck.

  I turn to look out the window, catching glimpses of human faces as we zoom by. “Why would arresting the girls have caused a mass panic?”

  “Oh, lots of reasons.” He shrugs and turns onto an empty street. The engine purrs as he pushes the car faster. “For one, there was speculation that the blackout was caused by magic, but only the people at the highest level really knew that was it. For years, the magic has been stable. We haven’t really been able to destroy it, not until these two recent victories in the States, but the blackout spheres on the maps haven’t moved very much either. People in cities like London, and other places far away from those spheres, can sort of ignore the truth and pretend to go on with their lives. If magic suddenly popped up in the center of one of the most populated cities in the world, people would panic—not just here, but everywhere.

  “For another”—the prince continues talking as he swivels his face back and forth, searching for something but I’m not sure what—“we’ve been diligently working with the orphanage, with others like it around the globe, and with people from your world to integrate them into our modern society. There are clashes, of course, but we’ve been trying to make people less afraid. If they found out one of those same orphans we welcome into our country brought magic into it?” He releases a long exhale that make his lips vibrate. “Well, no one from our world would ever trust anyone from your world again.

  “And finally…” Something in the car clicks as he pauses talking to merge onto another road, one filled with cars going just as fast as we are. Prince Frederick relaxes into his seat as some of the tension oozes from his frame. “Because people are terrified of magic.”

  “Not you,” I counter.

  “Most people are afraid of things they don’t und
erstand, but I’ve always found them fascinating.” He turns to me with a teasing smile. “A character flaw, I’m sure.”

  I can’t say I disagree. Aerewyn also found allure in the unknown, and look where that got her, me, the world. I don’t want to go down that road again. “So is that why you’re helping us? Fascination?”

  “My entire life has been about leading by example. If I show the world I’m not afraid of those from the magic world, or even of magic itself, maybe they won’t be either.”

  “What if people should be afraid of magic?”

  “Should they?” He searches my eyes as though piecing together the puzzle of my soul. “You don’t seem so scary.”

  “That’s because you don’t know me.”

  The prince frowns.

  I turn back to the road and rest my chin on Ella’s head, thinking of the humans I’ve killed, the blood on my hands, the vengeance alive inside my heart. It’s all pushed aside by another memory, surging to the surface like a whale searching for air, displacing all the seawater around it—Ella’s face as I wove her a faerie dress. The awe in her eyes. The joy in her smile. The wonder written across her cheeks. She looked like Aerewyn in that moment. Her chestnut hair doesn’t shine with the same rosy hue as my sister’s. Her skin is darker, without freckles. Yet in the sparkling green edges of her eyes, I saw a hint of my sister—her enthusiasm, her curiosity, her confidence. Two days ago, I never would’ve thought it possible to see any resemblance between a human and a faerie, but maybe Aerewyn was right. Maybe we aren’t so different after all.

  I sink into my seat as my brows knot.

  “So where are you headed?” The prince breaks the silence. “I assume you were on your way out of London?”

  There’s an edge of humor to his tone—it makes me wonder what, if anything, he takes seriously. “We need to get to the United States.”

  “America?” He sits up. “Why?”

  “I promised Ella’s sister I’d bring her home. I have travel papers. We’re supposed to get a boat back as soon as we can.”

  Prince Frederick shakes his head. “No, that won’t work.”

  “Why?”

  He turns to me with a wince. “Because by morning, Ella’s face will be broadcast to agents at every checkpoint and every port in the country, and all the railway stations too. I’m sure someone is already pulling the information from the orphanage’s records—running a background check, getting a headshot, and the like…” He trails off with a sigh. After a moment, he perks up. “I have an idea.”

  I can tell by the twinkle in his eyes that I won’t like this idea. It’s the exact same spark Aerewyn used to get before she talked me into sneaking around the forests at night—it means trouble. “What?”

  “I’m not telling you.”

  Okay—that confirms it. Whatever he’s thinking must be a terrible idea. “Why not?”

  “It’s dangerous.”

  “Welcome to my life.”

  “It’s expensive.”

  “I have no use for human money anyway.”

  “Not for us,” he explains as hesitation dims his prior excitement. He drums his fingers on the wheel and turns back to the road. “It’s expensive for my country. The plane alone is worth millions, not to mention the fuel. It’s also reckless. I only just met you tonight. I’m not sure I should be risking so much for a stranger, even a beautiful one, and I’d be in right trouble when I got home. Not jail, but surely a fine, and likely kicked out of the air force. On second thought, ignore my idea.”

  “You never even told me what it was.”

  “Then again,” he continues debating himself, not registering my response, “I am a prince and fourth in line to the throne, how much can they punish me really? And I’ve never wanted to be in the military anyway. I always thought I was meant for something more. What if this is my something more? I’ll probably never meet anyone with magic again. This could be the adventure of a lifetime.” He smacks his palm against the car as a grin widens his lips. “It’s decided. I’ll do it!”

  “Do what?” I blink a few times, trying to understand. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  He turns to me with that ridiculous sparkle back in his blue eyes. “Fly.”

  “Fly?” I blurt. “Humans can’t fly.”

  Faeries can’t even fly, but I keep that to myself.

  He shrugs. “Sure we can.”

  “You don’t have wings.”

  “Who needs wings when you have the keys to a royal jet?” He waggles his eyebrows as though I’m supposed to understand what he’s telling me, but then frowns. “Of course, I don’t actually have the keys on me, but I know where they are. Who’s stationed at the security desk at this hour?”

  I’m not sure if I’m part of this conversation or a mere observer in a conversation the prince is having all by himself, but I sense it’s the latter. Something in the car blinks and we turn onto a new road, passing a sign that reads, RAF Northolt.

  “Oh, it’s Andrew’s shift!” His face brightens. “Andrew loves me. I’ll just tell him I left something in my locker, then I’ll slip in and grab the keys. Of course, we’ll have to figure out a way to get you two past the fence without anyone noticing. Say, can you do that disappearing thing on multiple people? Hello? Nymia, is it?”

  I jolt at the sound of my name. I’d tuned him out. “What?”

  “Can you make you and Ella disappear so I can sneak you in?”

  “Oh, yeah. But it’ll only work in the dark.”

  “Perfect. So, it’s settled.”

  “What’s settled?” a sleepy voice murmurs into my chest, stealing the words from my throat. Ella rubs her eyes, blinking a few times as she starts to sit up, seemingly unaware that her elbow is digging into my collarbone. Then she freezes with a gasp.

  “What?” I sigh.

  “Blimey!” she shrieks. “You— You’re— It’s—”

  Is she having a seizure? “Ella—”

  “Nymia!” She shouts my name and snaps her head toward me. “Is Prince Frederick driving this car?” She whips her head back to the prince as I roll my eyes. “Are you really driving this car?”

  “It is my car,” he murmurs, turning to wink at her. “Who else would be driving?”

  She swoons, melting into a puddle in my lap.

  Mother help me.

  “Nice to meet you, Ella,” he says and extends his hand. “Formally, I mean.”

  “Prince Frederick knows my name!”

  “I do,” he continues in stride, as though this sort of thing happens all the time. “And since we’re mates now, you can call me Freddie.”

  “Freddie,” she repeats with a reverence that should be reserved only for the Mother herself. I’m rapidly losing control of the situation.

  “Everybody just stop for one second,” I demand and hold up my hands. The prince pulls the car over on the side of the road. “I meant stop talking.”

  “I know, but we’re here.”

  “Where?” Ella looks around wondrously. I honestly wish I had an answer for her. Humans used to be slower, I think—at talking, at traveling, at…everything. This new world is dizzying.

  “Don’t move. I’ll be back in a blink.”

  He slips out of the car before I can say anything. As soon as his door slams closed, a fist punches my shoulder.

  “Ow!”

  “Sorry.” Ella pulls her hand into her chest, immediately regretful. “But how could you let me sleep at a time like this? Where are we? What’s Prince Frederick—I mean, Freddie—doing here? The last thing I remember is the ball, and my magic, and then we were running, and…” She shakes her head. “What’s going on?”

  Wow. I actually think I’d prefer to have the prince back in the car so I didn’t have to deal with Ella all on my own.

  “The prince is helping us escape—I don’t really understand why. He said something about adventure, but your guess is as good as mine. I don’t trust him, but right now, I’m not sure if
we have any choice but to go with him. Apparently humans can fly now, and—oh, we’re at some place called RAF Northolt.”

  I think that was everything.

  “RAF?” Ella’s eyes go wide. “Royal Air Force! Freddie enlisted after he graduated secondary school, just like his dad and his oldest brother, but I heard the king has been taking him on rides ever since he was a boy. Are we flying? No one ever gets to fly anymore. I mean, important people, but not people like me! This is brilliant!”

  If I were judging by the sound of her voice, I’d never think we were on the run for our lives right now. “Ella, this isn’t a game. People were trying to kill us because of our magic.”

  “I know.” She frowns, then shrugs. “Freddie will keep us safe.”

  Freddie. My top lip rises in a silent snarl. I’m already growing tired of hearing that name. “Ella—”

  “Ladies!” The door flies open and Prince Frederick pops his face back into the car. “Time to move. I got the keys, but I think Andrew was on to me. There was something off about the look in his eyes. It’s possible the soldiers on the street recognized my car when I grabbed you by the alley, and spread the news. I wouldn’t be surprised if Andrew sounded some sort of alarm, which means we don’t have much time. So, Nymia, do your thing—make us disappear.”

  “We have to be touching.”

  “Then get out here and let’s go.”

  I wouldn’t normally react well to being ordered around, but I’m not really sure what choice I have, so I follow him out of the car. If we don’t go with the prince, Ella and I could be trapped on this island with no way out. And now that I’ve seen human technology in action, I’m not sure how long we could hide anyway. The prince is our best chance of getting to Omorose—certainly, our quickest chance. Though time means very little to faeries, I feel as if mine is running out. With each passing minute, Aerewyn drifts farther away. But this time, it’s not her fault—it’s mine.

  I should’ve never agreed to the oath.

  I should’ve run and faced the consequences.

  I should’ve gotten it over with.

  Because now—

  Ella takes my hand and I flinch at her touch. I swallow the confliction away before she sees and let the prince take my other hand.