Princess in Disguise Read Free Page A

undone and the fabric fluttered to the floor in scraps, while all the hand-sewn pearls and gems fell with a loud clatter.
    Queen Karolina gasped and turned pale. Lady Clare’s hand flew to her mouth and she shook her head. “I barely touched it!” she cried, turning to the queen.
    â€œIt wasn’t your fault,” said Annie, although her heart was sinking. The gown had been the one she had alwaysenvisioned herself wearing at her wedding. It had been perfect, and now it was destroyed. Even though all the pieces were there, it would be weeks before the dress could be remade. “Someone used magic to ruin my wedding gown. I could hear it!”
    No one seemed to think this was odd, as they all knew that Annie actually could hear magic. Because of the first and only christening gift she had received from a fairy, Annie was impervious to magic, but she always knew when it was present.
    â€œWhy would anyone do such an awful thing?” the queen asked.
    â€œI don’t know,” said Annie with a catch in her voice. “I mean, I know I’ve made enemies, but I’ve already dealt with Terobella and Granny Bentbone. I didn’t know anyone else hated me enough to do something like this.”
    Granny Bentbone and her daughter, Terobella, were evil witches whom Annie had defeated while visiting Snow White. Terobella had destroyed herself when she tried to use magic on Annie, and Granny Bentbone was currently locked away in a tower under armed guard. After dealing with the witches, Annie had accepted Liam’s proposal on the way home, certain that no one else wished her ill the way they had. She’d thought that her only worry now was that she didn’t become the same demanding, imperious, self-centered harridan that her sister, Gwendolyn, had been when she hadbeen about to get married. Remembering her resolve to be considerate of others’ feelings even if things didn’t go quite the way she wanted them to, she tried not to let her disappointment over her ruined gown show.
    The queen must have noticed the unshed tears glistening in Annie’s eyes, because her own expression softened. “Oh, my poor darling. Don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll think of some way around this. Perhaps I have a gown we could alter. Lady Clare, see what you can find that might work. Lady Suzette, empty out that jeweled box and help the seamstresses collect all the pearls and gems. We have a lot to do and only a few hours to do it.”
    Boom!
Thunder shook the room as lightning flashed close by. Everyone turned to the window when rain began to pour from the sky. What had been a beautiful day just minutes before was suddenly dark and stormy.
    In the silence between rumbles of thunder, they all heard a knock on the door. One of the ladies-in-waiting opened it to admit a maid. “Your Highness,” she said, looking around the room until she spotted Annie. “You need to come quick. It’s the two princesses Snow White and Eleanor. Something terrible has happened to them!”
    â€œWas there an accident?” asked Queen Karolina.
    â€œAre they ill?” asked Annie.
    â€œNo, no! It’s worse than that,” cried the maid. “They have rashes!”
    Everyone looked confused, but it was Annie who spoke up first. “Excuse me, Mother. I should go see about this,” she said, curtsying to the queen.
    â€œOf course, my dear. You take care of your friends and we’ll see to a gown for you.” The queen looked relieved that she wouldn’t have to deal with this newest emergency.
    The maid was so upset that she nearly tripped over her own feet as they ran down the corridor. “Where are they?” Annie asked.
    â€œIn Princess Eleanor’s room,” said the maid. “I was brushing her hair when Princess Snow White came by. They were both fine, then suddenly they claimed to be hot and I looked at their faces and … Well, you’ll see