Chapter 14

Charles hadn't seen Cinderella in over a week. After their adventure with Yan and Marcel, he had been busy scouring the countryside with the royal guard for the escaped prisoners. Unfortunately, their search was unsuccessful. The King and Queen remained unconvinced about the threat to the kingdom.

For a few days after that, Charles and Alex had taken turns watching Zaral. Unfortunately, he had done nothing suspicious. He had attended to his duties and spent time at home.

Deciding he wanted to check on Cinderella, Charles headed to town early in the morning. When he arrived, he checked all the usual places Cinderella visited. He didn't expect to find her so early, but he was still disappointed when there was no sign of her. He sat by the fountain and waited.

When Charles heard a familiar bark, he looked around excitedly. He spotted Patch across the square, but Cinderella was nowhere in sight. Patch was walking next to an unfamiliar woman, tall and stately with long, curly red hair.

Charles followed them to the local doctor and, when the woman went in, joined Patch. He was giving Patch a good ear scratching when the woman came out.

"Oh! Hello there," she said in a bright voice. "Who might you be?"

"Hi. I'm a friend of Cinderella's. I saw Patch and decided to come say hi."

"Are you Charles?" When he nodded, she continued. "Cinderella has told me so much about you! It's good to finally meet you! My name is Paulette. I'm Cinderella's godmother. I just got into town a few days ago."

"Good to meet you too. Where is Cinderella?"

"Well, I'm afraid she's quite ill at the moment. I've come to pick up some medicine for her. That stepmother of hers is such a fright. She's so concerned about getting the housework done that she has overworked and underfed that poor girl far too long."

"Cinderella is sick?" Charles cried.

"Yes, unfortunately. I need to get this medicine to her, but I've got a painting lesson to teach in half an hour here in town. Do you have time to take it to her? I'm sure she'd love to see her dear friend."

"Of course I can take it," Charles said. He took the medicine and said farewell to Paulette, then headed out. He moved quickly, stopping only to pick some wildflowers by the road.

When he arrived, Catherine answered the door. "Oh, hello. Mother, it's Cinderella's friend!"

"Hello. . . what is your name again?" the duchess said, joining Catherine at the door.

"Charles. Hello. I've come to bring Cinderella some medicine and flowers. Can I see her please?"

"Of course. Catherine, show Charles to Cinderella's room, then get back down here. We have to decide what we're going to do about dinner tonight."

Charles followed Catherine up a rickety back staircase to a small attic room. He looked around, intrigued and a little upset. In such a nice house, there had to be a better room for Cinderella. The room was tiny, old, and drafty. It held only a rickety bed, a battered chair, a small dresser, and a small wash basin with a cracked mirror.

"Here she is." Catherine sighed. "I wish I could just laze around in bed all day." She left Charles alone in the room.

He went directly to the side of the bed. Cinderella was asleep, her breathing heavy and labored. Her skin was almost as white as the ragged sheets. There were dark shadows around her eyes. Even though the covers were pulled up to her chin, she was shivering. When he placed a hand on her forehead, it was very warm. And yet, she wore a small, peaceful smile. He stroked her face tenderly, then began trying to wake her. He needed to get her to take some of the medicine he'd brought.

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"Cinderella. Cinderella, can you hear me?" a familiar voice interrupted her lovely dream. She was dancing with a handsome prince in the ballroom at the castle. She wore a beautiful gown and felt, for the first time in a long time, truly lovely.

"Charles?" she asked, slowly opening her eyes. She had to blink a few times in the bright sunlight streaming through her window. Oh no! Was it that late in the morning already! She had chores to do! She jumped out of bed. Her vision began to swim and she hadn't made it two steps before she collapsed.

She felt strong arms catch her and set her back in bed. "Where are you going?" Charles asked softly.

"I have chores to do. We're expecting company tonight. Mother is going to be so angry at me for sleeping in." Even though she was sitting in bed, her head still felt fuzzy. Black dots danced on the edges of her vision, and the drafts, which were usually pleasantly cool on these hot summer days, felt like winter winds. She shivered and pulled the covers back over her legs. "It's so cold in here! Where is that wind coming from?"

"You're very sick, Cinderella. You have a high fever. You wouldn't wake up this morning, so Paulette went to get you some medicine. She had appointments in town, so I brought it back for her. Will you take some?"

"Sick?" That seemed right. She certainly didn't feel like herself. "Yes, of course. Thank you Charles." She smiled at him as he held up a spoon, but her smile disappeared when she tasted the bitter medicine. She managed to choke it down and was very grateful when he handed her a tin cup full of cool water. She drank the entire cup, then leaned back on her pillow and looked up at him.

He was watching her with a look of deep concern. She slid over and motioned for him to sit on the edge of the bed.

"You needn't look so worried. I'll be fine."

"I am worried, though. Your stepmother and stepsisters don't take good care of you. Paulette said they aren't feeding you enough and are asking you to do too much."

Cinderella shrugged. "The last few days have been a bit much. Before that, I was doing fine, though. They're just very worked up about their special dinner party tonight. I don't know what they'll do without me. Maybe I'll feel well enough to help this afternoon."

"Will it make you feel better if I help them?" he asked after a few minutes of silence.

She looked at him with wide eyes. "You, Charles? Oh no, I wouldn't want to put you to all that trouble."

"If it will keep you in bed for the rest of the day and put your mind at ease, it's more than worth it to me. You lay down and go back to sleep. I'll come check on you in a few hours."

"Okay. Thank you," she said. She was very tired. She just hoped he wouldn't be put to too much trouble by her stepmother.

"Oh, and Cinderella, what were you dreaming about when I woke you?" he asked as he stood up.

"It's a secret," she answered with a small smile. He smiled back and pulled her covers up to her chin, tucking them snugly around her before he headed back down the rickety staircase.

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Charles had never had more sympathy for the entire staff of maids and cooks at the castle than he did today. From the moment he offered his help, the duchess had kept him busy sweeping, mopping, scrubbing, dusting, and polishing. Catherine and Jeanne kept flitting by to check on his progress, but no one offered any help.

"You're doing a fine job, Charles," Catherine told him at one point as he scrubbed the trim in the dining room. "Keep it up and I just might get you a job at the castle!"

"At the castle?"

"Yes! After I marry the prince, of course."

"Right."

During his brief lunch break, he carried his half loaf of bread and small bowl of cold soup up to Cinderella's room. He pulled the battered old chair to her bedside and quickly ate while watching her. She wasn't shivering as much and a little color had come back into her cheeks.

Once he'd finished his food, he shook her gently. "Cinderella, wake up. It's time for more medicine."

She sighed and slowly blinked her eyes open. She smiled sweetly at him and carefully sat up. When he put the spoon to her lips, she swallowed obediently, though she grimaced as she did. He brought her the cup he had refilled. She drank it in a few quick gulps.

"How are you doing?" she asked. "They're not working you too hard, are they?"

"No, not at all," he said. It wasn't a complete lie. It really wasn't too hard. He didn't want her to worry about him.

"That's a relief. I'm starting to feel better. Maybe I'll be able to at least help with dinner."

"You just tell me what to make and where to find the recipe and I'll handle it," he said. "It's your day off, and you're taking the whole day off."

She laughed. "You're such a wonderful friend. I don't know what I'd do without you. Thank you Charles."

"I'm glad I can help," he answered honestly. "Now you snuggle back into bed and let me take care of everything."

"Okay." She lay back down and he pulled the covers up again. Before he pulled his hands away, she reached up and grabbed one. "Oh, and the recipe book is in the kitchen on the top shelf to the left of the stove." She planted a shy kiss on his fingertips before letting go and adding, "I'd recommend the stew. It's easy to make but still fit for company."

"Thanks," he said, looking at his fingertips. They felt all tingly where she'd kissed them.

"Thank you," she murmured as her eyes drifted closed. He watched for a minute as her breathing grew slow and heavy. Once he was sure she was sleeping, he headed back down the rickety stairs.

While he worked in the main room polishing the stair rail, Jeanne walked in to watch. "Hey Charles, are you going to marry Cinderella?" she asked.

"Huh!" He looked up in surprise, but she just kept going.

"You two would make such a cute couple. Maybe you can work together cleaning houses and cooking for people. That's about all Cinderella is really good for."

Her words left Charles torn between humor, anger, and happiness. The idea of marrying Cinderella warmed his heart. The stepsisters' dismissive attitude towards him, the very prince they spoke of marrying, made him want to laugh. But their disdainful and snobbish treatment of their stepsister frustrated him. She did so much for them, but they didn't have an ounce of gratitude. They were constantly rude and unkind.

When he finished cleaning, Charles set to work on the cooking. He found the cookbook right where Cinderella had said. Jeanne and Catherine helped him find the necessary dishes and ingredients, but then they left him to his own devices.

Cooking sounded so much easier than it was. Chopping up the vegetables and meat went fine. He got them into the water okay, and added the seasonings, but the stew smelled a little funny. He had thrown in a few extra ingredients that sounded good, but now he was thinking that might've been a mistake. He had also just given some generous shakes of salt and pepper. It seemed silly to measure them. At the time.

The bread that he was trying to reheat burned. Thankfully, there was another loaf. He just left it cold, deciding that was safer. The stew, strange as it looked, would have to be served. He took it out in bowls and placed them in the dining room.

He saw the guests entering just as he left. It was Duke Zaral and Isabel! He felt bad for Isabel, but not Zaral. Zaral deserved that stew and worse!

Charles waited in the kitchen and listened to the conversation. It went well right up until Zaral tasted the stew. Charles could hear him spit it out and exclaim in disgust how terrible it was. He warned Isabel not to try it and they stormed out. While he felt a little bad for the duchess, Charles found himself laughing.

He didn't stick around in the kitchen to wait for Duchess Dalben. Instead, he returned to Cinderella's room to say goodbye. To his surprise, she was awake. She was sitting up in bed, just staring out the window at the lovely sunset.

When he sat down, she glanced over at him. He was still smiling as he replayed in his mind the sound of Zaral spitting out the stew.

"What's got you so happy?" she asked. "Did the dinner party go well?"

He burst out into laughter again. "Not for Duke Zaral!"

"What happened?"

He told her the whole story. She gasped when he told her about his adjustments to the recipe, then joined in his laughter as he reenacted Zaral's spitting noise. Her laughter died quickly though.

"Mother is going to be so angry. And poor Duke Zaral!"

"He's not the nicest man," Charles said.

"Isn't he?"

"No. I have reason to believe that he is the one behind the false prince plot involving Marcel."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Oh." She laughed. "Then I don't feel so bad for him after all."

They laughed and talked a few minutes longer before there was a knock at the door. Paulette walked in.

"How are you, my dear girl?" she asked.

"I'm much better. Charles has been so helpful," Cinderella answered, giving him a grateful smile.

"Well then, I'm much obliged to you, young man. Thank you for taking such good care of my goddaughter. I'll leave you two alone. I just wanted to check on you. I'll be back tomorrow with that recipe I promised!" She gave Cinderella a hug and kiss, squeezed Charles' hand, then flounced back out the door.

"I should probably go as well," Charles said.

"Okay. Hopefully I'll see you again soon. Thank you again for your help today."

"It was my pleasure. You can count on seeing me soon, even if I have to come back here to check on you." He leaned down and kissed her soft forehead before turning and heading out the door.