Ever After (Unfinished Fairy Tales #3)(5)

“No idea.” I open the package and draw out a glossy new hardcover. There’s a gorgeous girl in a gorgeous dress on the cover. The title reads Twice Upon A Time.

Paige gasps. “The title! Isn’t it the same style they used for The Ugly Stepsister? Is that a sequel?”

I drop the book and yelp. It hits my big toe and God, it hurts. But all I can think of is my last day in Athelia, that pivotal moment when Krev chanted a spell to get me out of Athelia. There was a book spinning in the air, and I’m holding the same book in my hands.

“Oh my God,” I gasp. “I… I can’t believe this…”

I throw the book into the air and see if it would hover; I put it on the table and see if it would glow; I call Krev’s name. But nothing happens. The book, brand-new, isn’t any different from a normal book.

“Honey, what are you doing?” Mom stares at me, her eyes wide in shock.

“You’re acting crazy.” Paige grabs my arm and makes me sit down. “Don’t tell me that you’re trying to enter that book and into the story.”

“I have to get back!” I shout, reaching for the book and shaking it. “Do something, you stupid goblins! I have to return to Edward!”

“Kat! Stop it!”

Mom’s cell phone rings. It jolts me to my senses; I calm down while Mom answers the phone.

“Ryan? Hi dear...yes, we’re about to cook dinner…” she glances at me for a second. “Yes, everything’s fine…uh-huh...uh-huh...great. I’ll talk to you later. Bye.”

Mom swipes her phone and lays it on the table. She levels an intense stare at me, her lovely dark eyes framed by long eyelashes (I used to hate that I didn’t inherit her eyes) containing a questioning look.

Paige hands me a scrap of paper. “This fell out of the book when you tossed it in the air.”

And I didn’t even notice it. I was so keen on getting back to Athelia. Scrawled on the paper is Jason’s handwriting. “Found this under my bed. Figure it must be yours. I hope you’re doing okay. Jason.”

I flip through the book and feel like crying. The story inside is my story. Most events that happened to Edward and I can be found in the book. I have no idea how it showed up in our world, but it gives me a faint glimmer of hope. Hope that one day I might be able to go back.

But I can’t. I don’t belong in Athelia; I can’t survive there without oxygen. Even if I can travel back, I won’t be able to live there with Edward. A tear rolls down my cheek and I wipe it away.

“Kat.” Paige puts a hand on my arm. Her voice is uncommonly gentle. “Oh Kat, don’t cry.”

“I think you owe us an explanation.” Mom says. “Who is Edward? Why must you return to him? Why are you so upset about the book Jason sent you?”

“I…” I sniffle, and cuddle the book against my chest. “I was just telling Paige about it, but it’s an incredible story. You won’t believe me.”

“Tell us anyway.” Mom puts an arm around my shoulders. “Whatever secret you’ve been carrying, you need to let it out. Let us help you with your burden. What is family for, anyway?”

So I tell them everything. From when I hit my head on the stairs, when I was transported to Athelia, how I tried to come back to America, but ended up marrying the prince.

“But you never mentioned it when you came back!” Mom says. Surprisingly, she doesn’t say I’m crazy. Even Paige looks riveted...I guess my story is so intriguing that they forgot how ridiculous it is.

“Because the goblin queen put a memory charm on me. She believed I’d be depressed after leaving Edward, so she made me forget about Athelia. But later,” I hold up Twice Upon A Time, “I went back last year. That’s where I was during the eight months I was missing.”

Mom turns the pages, her expression disbelieving. “This is what happened to you when you disappeared last year?”

“Not everything is recorded, but the important stuff is all here.”

“Looks like you told him you’d stay,” Paige says, leaning over and squinting on one page. Heat rises in my face—a passionate make out session had followed when I promised Edward I wouldn’t leave him. “If you married him, why did you come back?”

Tears threaten to fill my eyes again. I take a deep breath, willing myself not to cry. Then I tell them about the oxygen problem.

Paige shakes her head. “This is crazy stuff.”

“The goblins are recovering after a huge civil war, so they didn’t have enough magic to conjure up another spell. And it’s risky as well. One mistake could make me die right away.” At Mom’s incredulous gasp, I spread my hands. “I did warn you it’s incredible. But I swear I’m telling the truth.”

“Honey, I know you wouldn’t lie about such a serious thing. But do you suppose that you might be deluded?”

“Like maybe she got kidnapped by a cult and they hypnotized her into believing this story?”

“Oh God, Paige, no.” I throw up my hands in despair. “Fine, I get it. Don’t believe me. But you’ve got to believe it when I say Jason has nothing to do with my disappearance. And I want my wedding ring back.”



* * *



Two months have passed since I received the book Twice Upon A Time. Every day (sometimes night), when no one is looking, I would take the book and call out Krev’s name, but nothing happens. No matter whatever I try—yelling, shouting or even throwing the book across the room, it’s no use. Nothing happens.