Cinderella and the Colonel (18 page)

Cinderella stared at the floor. “I just want to keep all my servants
,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Of this I am aware
, which is why I will help you—though my husband must be rolling in his grave,” Lady Klara said. “But as I have neither finances nor influence, this is the only way I can help you: by lending you my name.”

Cinderella raised her gaze to rest it on Lady Klara. What
had Friedrich said? Only the strong could forgive. As Cinderella stood before Lady Klara—the widow of an Erlauf war hero—it occurred to her that Lady Klara must be a very strong individual.

“Thank you
,” Cinderella said, the words falling short of everything she meant to say.

Lady Klara raised her shoulders in a minute shrug. “Make the arrangements to meet with a financial officer
, and I will go with you to make the claim,” she said, strolling over to a window.

“I’m sorry
,” Cinderella said.

“For?”

“For the war, for your losses, for judging you without mercy.”

“Don’t be sil
ly, child. You were just a girl. You cannot be held responsible for any of those things,” Lady Klara said.

Cinderella shifted.

“But, Cinderella,” Lady Klara said, turning from the window. “Please consider carefully what you will do with your power.”

Cinderella swallowed. “Yes
, Step-Mother,” she said, curtseying before she left the parlor.

Her mind spun
, and Cinderella had to lean against a wall after she shut the door. It was too much to take in. Her Step-Mother was helping her. Queen Freja targeted her
because
she would not sell or downsize…

“What
about my marriage?” Cinderella murmured. “Does Queen Freja not realize when I marry I will be forced to sell Aveyron? No one else shares my scruples in selling.”

Cinderella pushed the thought from her mind. It
was more than she could handle at the moment.

“First I must make the arrangements to pay off the debt. I
will free Aveyron from this financial mountain,” Cinderella vowed.

Cinderella sweat
ed as the government official handling Aveyron’s debts—Lord Diederick—studied the sales bills and receipts for Windtop Manor. It puzzled Cinderella that a titled Erlauf Lord served in the government. Moreover, why was he in charge of
debt collection
? If there ever was a less glamorous government position, Cinderella certainly hadn’t heard of it.

“You claim Duke Eugene Lacreux willed this to you
, Lady Klara?” Lord Diederick asked, looking at Lady Klara over the wire rims of his eyeglasses.

“Yes
,” Lady Klara said, her voice stiff.

“And
have you proof of this?”

“On
ly my word, and his heir’s agreement.”

“Hmph
,” Lord Diederick said, returning his attention to the papers.

Cinderella discreet
ly shifted in her summer dress. She did her best to look assured and slightly bored, although she wanted to wring her hands nervously.

Lady Klara looked as
unmovable as a boulder, which is to say not at all different than her usual expression.

“It appears to be legitimate
,” the young lord finally said, pushing the papers aside. “The crown will hold the deed to Windtop Manor until it is sold to pay Aveyron’s debts, if that is what you wish to do with the funds you receive from the sale, Lady Klara?”

Cinderella waited with baited breath.

“Of course,” Lady Klara said.

“Very well
,” Lord Diederick said. “There will be an inheritance tax, as this property was not previously reported,” he said, leveling his heavy gaze at Lady Klara and then Cinderella. “And after that, a sales tax. If it is priced reasonably, the sale will pay off Aveyron’s debt and have a small amount remaining, which will naturally go to Lady Klara.”

“I beg your pardon
, there will be some left?” Cinderella frowned.

“Indeed
,” Lord Diederick said.

Cinderella shook her “How c
an that be? Is the debt not…” she trailed off when Lord Diederick showed her a scrap of paper.

“This is the remain
ing debt,” he said.

Cinderella stared at the number. The Sun Skips
canceled a portion of the debt, but Cinderella knew exactly how much she paid off. The number Lord Diederick showed her was incorrect.

Cinderella frowned. As much as the smaller debt would delight her
, the last thing she needed was Queen Freja harping at her again in several years for failing to pay the entire debt. “I believe there may be a mistake,” she said.

“There
has been no mistake. Over the past few days dozens of individuals have trooped through my offices, reducing Aveyron’s debt with copper and silver coins,” Lord Diederick wryly said.

“
What
?” Cinderella said, her forehead wrinkling.

“A
stable boy was the last to come. He left not an hour before your arrival after depositing five copper coins against your debt. A fellow named Gilbert was the first to make a payment, I believe,” Lord Diederick said, rustling papers.

Cinderella lost the stiffness in her spine and leaned back in her chair. She stared at the ceil
ing, doing her best to keep from crying.

Her servants
, Aveyron’s employees, were paying off the debt.

“Is everyth
ing alright?” Lord Diederick mildly asked.

“She is fine
, just feeling a bit peckish,” Lady Klara said with her usual lack of audible compassion. “Must you retrieve a supervisor to approve the debt payment plan?”

“No. My word is more than plenty
,” Lord Diederick said, perhaps a little affronted.

Cinderella closed her eyes
, barely listening to the conversation. She felt ashamed. To think she considered fleeing to Windtop, even if it was for a brief moment.
I don’t deserve their loyalty. I have done nothing to warrant it.

“Cinderella
, your signature as witness is required,” Lady Klara said.

Cinderella bit her lip
and pushed the feelings aside. “Yes, I apologize,” she said, discreetly brushing tears from her eyes before she fixed a pleasant smile on her face. “Where do I sign?”

“Here
,” Lord Diederick said. “Read the agreement before signing.”

Cinderella did as he advised and saw noth
ing alarming. In fact, to her surprise, Lady Klara noted that any surplus profit from Windtop would be used against Aveyron’s land tax.

“You will hold all paperwork pertain
ing to Windtop Manor?” Cinderella asked.

“Until it is sold
, yes. Strictly speaking, the fine will not be collected until after the sale. Holding the deed will assure the crown of future compensation.”

“How fast must Windtop Manor be sold?” Cinderella asked.

Lord Diederick tapped a spot on the paper. “You have one year. If it fails to sell in that time, the crown will seize Windtop itself as reimbursement for the debt.”

“
That seems reasonable,” Cinderella said. She hesitated a moment longer before she signed the document, freeing Aveyron from Queen Freja’s grasp.

“Thank you for your valuable time
, Lord Diederick,” Lady Klara said, standing.

“Of course
, it is my pleasure to assist you,” Lord Diederick said, pushing away from his enormous desk so he could stand and bow.

“I’m sure
,” Lady Klara said before she curtsied. “I will see you at home, Cinderella.”

“Yes
, Step-Mother,” Cinderella said, following her out of the room.

“Duchess Lacreux
,” Lord Diederick called.

Lady Klara forged ahead
, heedless of the call, but Cinderella paused in the threshold of the lord’s office. “Yes?”

“I am glad your financial situation
is resolved,” Lord Diederick said. “I am a close friend of Colonel Friedrich’s. He was…concerned for you.”

“I see. In
that case, I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Lord Diederick,” Cinderella said.

Lord Diederick bowed again. “The pleasure is mine. In the future
, I hope to see you for less…personal circumstances.”

Cinderella awkward
ly nodded. “I agree,” she said, not certain if she meant it. “If you will excuse me, Lord Diederick.”

“Certain
ly. Good day to you, Lady Lacreux.”

“Good day
, Lord Diederick.”

“So
, she is free, now,” Diederick said. “For better or for worse, she has squirmed out from the pile of debt and is influence free,” he said before tossing back the rest of his drink.

Merrich leaned forward to avoid the exuberant jubilation of three farmers seated at the table behind him. “You are giv
ing her quite a long leash. Is that wise?”

“I don’t want her leashed at all
,” Friedrich said. “I want her free.”

“
That sounds terrifying,” Merrich said.

“It is
,” Friedrich said, tracing the rim of his tankard with a thumb. In spite of the uproar in the pub—everyone in the room was drunk or halfway there, excluding Friedrich and his friends—Friedrich retained an aura of intense clarity. “But I want her. And if we’re all to survive this, the country
needs
her free. I can’t hold it together, not with my duties in the Army. She must be the one to do that.”

“So
the Veneno Conclave representatives had nothing helpful to say, I take it?” Diederick asked.

Friedrich shook his head and scratched at his eye patch. “
They spoke not at all of the magical mishaps taking place worldwide. The Conclave is scared—you can see it in the way the representatives avoid speaking of the sudden outbreak of cursed royalty and the increase in sightings and skirmishes with dark creatures and users of black magic. I think the Conclave means to ignore the problem because they cannot solve it, and they are terrified to admit it.”

“How can they ignore it? Even if one excludes the creatures
, it is indisputable that the royal class is under attack. Prince Severin—restored as he may be—was attacked in his family’s
palace
and cursed there. There are the twelve princesses of the south no one can seem to cure, and aren’t we still waiting to see if the Sole princess cursed to sleep will slide through her birthday?”

“If the representatives
refused to talk about the dark tide of magic, what
did
they speak of?” Diederick asked.

“A lot of pretty things
, but mostly they communicated their unhappiness with us for taking over Trieux,” Friedrich said.

Merrich frowned
and didn’t react when the wall next to him was soaked with beer after a tipsy blacksmith threw his mug at the wall. “They’re supposed to be impartial. Can they legally say those kinds of things?”