Poisoned: A Disability Inclusive Snow White Retelling by Mecham Mary

Author:Mecham, Mary
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-09-27T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 20

More so with every passing day, I found that I preferred the time I spent with Oliver much more than the stuffy, dull meetings with my advisors and Charles, where I felt unwelcome and unwanted. When it came to Oliver, I felt needed. I loved the feeling that I was making a true difference in someone’s life. With every opportunity I got, I would sneak away from the castle to spend time with him, and when I couldn’t get away, I would always come up with fun new ideas of what to do the next time we were together.

Strangely, it was only after I had inadvertently endangered Oliver at the lake that Malcolm had seemed to finally accept that I was sincere in my offered friendship with his brother and became increasingly friendly with each visit. The experience had opened my eyes to how stressful it was to care for Oliver for a limited amount of time, and my compassion for Malcolm’s fatigue and burnout grew daily. Any time I passed through town, I would pop in at the inn, bakery, or tailor’s shop to encourage Oliver’s brothers to go help with him sometimes. I wanted Oliver to have friendships with lots of people, not just me and Malcolm. Besides, Malcolm needed to feel supported too. He had too little down time as it was.

Each time my advisors again told me that my attendance was no longer needed, I veritably ran out of the castle toward the forest. I couldn’t stay away. Today, it was a beautiful day, the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and wildflowers bloomed all along the path. It was going to be another Oliver Day, and I had great plans for us. We were going to take a walk and find some new rocks, and I had brought along some supplies to paint rocks with. As far as I knew, he had never decorated rocks, and I knew he would love it. I could just see him painting the rocks and then lining them up on the path or lining the perimeter of his garden. I looked forward to his radiant smile and infectious laughter.

When I reached the end of the trail, Oliver wasn’t waiting for me as he normally did. Nor did he have his nose pressed against the inside of the cottage’s glass. Instead, Malcolm was sitting alone on the bench outside their front door, whittling a piece of wood. “Good morning!” I said brightly to Malcolm. “I brought things to paint rocks with Ollie today!”

I looked around for Oliver. Usually, he would come bounding up to me if he heard my voice. But the cottage seemed deserted except for Malcolm sitting there, carving away at the wood.

“Oliver isn’t here,” Malcolm said casually, lifting his whittling to blow away some thin wood curls.

“Oh, will he be back soon?”

“No, not today.”

“Where did he go?”

Malcolm finally looked up from his task. “Felix found some menagerie with exotic birds in the next town over. He took Oliver for the day.

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