The Woman with the Spindle: A Short Retelling of Sleeping Beauty (Once Upon a Short Story Book 8) by A. G. Marshall

Author:A. G. Marshall [Marshall, A. G.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Avanell Publishing
Published: 2020-06-23T04:00:00+00:00

The Chef’s Deception

“I have a mind to eat little Dawn for my dinner tomorrow.”

“Your Highness?”

“I will have it so, and I will eat her with a Sauce Robert.”

The dowager queen swept out of the room, leaving the chef gaping in horror. Rumors had circulated since the king married his bride nearly thirty years ago. Rumors that only an ogress could be that wealthy. Whispers that the queen’s favorite necklace was identical to one that had belonged to a duchess eaten by an ogress.

Then there were the disappearances of servant’s children. The hasty explanations that they had wandered too deeply into the woods and been eaten by wolves.

But all that had happened before Chef Andrew arrived at the castle. He had always dismissed the rumors as just that: rumors. Malicious gossip directed at a woman who had the misfortune to be both beautiful and wealthy.

Andrew realized he was still holding the knife he had been using to cut carrots and quickly set it down. Memories connected in his mind like pieces of a puzzle. The mysterious way the former head chef had disappeared without a trace, leaving Andrew in charge even though he hadn’t completed his training. The strange way the prince had kept his bride and two children secret for years before bringing them to court. The way the old king had never left his wife’s side.

But the old king was dead now, and his son was out of town on business.

And the ogress wanted to eat her granddaughter for dinner.

Andrew’s father had told him stories of the ogres and fairies and the sleeping beauty in the castle throughout his childhood. He had written a letter, telling his son when the prince rode through their family farm and woke the princess. Andrew had thought that was the end of the matter. The conclusion of a rather strange series of events that his family had been skirting the edge of for generations.

And now he found himself pushed into the middle of something far worse.

Andrew shuddered. The dowager queen had made the command casually, but she expected to be obeyed without question. To disobey would cost him his life. He had no doubt of that. Perhaps his wife’s life as well, if the ogress was feeling particularly vengeful.

He had to warn Celia. He would get her out of town, then find a way to fix this. He picked up his knife again, reluctant to leave the kitchen without some way of protecting himself, and hurried through the gardens.

“Good morning, Mr. Chef!”

Andrew froze in place as young Princess Dawn waved to him. What was she doing in the garden alone? She was far too young to be out without an escort.

Then he saw the dowager queen standing in the shadows. She waved to him, a malicious smile creeping across her face. Andrew waved back and realized too late he had waved with the hand holding the knife. The dowager queen smiled even wider, gave a nod of approval, and left the garden.

“Are you chopping vegetables?” Princess Dawn asked.

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