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Once I had finished with the meat, I went to the sink to scrub dishes.
“So…a ball, huh?” I asked Cynthia, determined to have any semblance of a conversation with my stepsister. “Are you going to go?”
“And what would I wear to a royal ball?”
She had a point. Comfort and Mother regularly made dresses for themselves and their clients, but Cynthia and I had no new dresses, and the ones we did have were becoming threadbare and worn.
“I’m sure Comfort and Mother could make you one.”
“Right. In all their spare time.”
I sighed and glanced down at her feet. Her shoes really were very ragged. I wondered if she could wear the glass shoes Thomas planned to make for her, realizing that in my haste to barter for shoes that I hadn’t thought about how comfortable they may or may not be. At least they would be new. A few blisters the next day would be worth a night at a royal ball for someone who hadn’t ever attended one. I didn’t want to tell Cynthia about the shoes in case the technique didn’t work or the shoes weren’t ready in time.
“Well, I’m sure they could make one during their classes. They make them all the time. They could take your measurements and work on that while they are teaching the students.”
Cynthia continued pounding the bread dough and said nothing. “Well, if you did have a dress, would you go?” I pressed.
“You mean, if I had a new ball gown, shoes that actually worked, and gloves to hide my chapped hands from a prince? Then yes, I would go. But that all seems rather unlikely, doesn’t it?” She finished by slapping the dough onto a tray and shoveling it into the oven. “Do you think a pumpkin is going to turn into a coach to whisk me away to the palace?”
“I was just asking,” I mumbled, speaking to the pans I was scouring.
“What about you?” Cynthia asked in clipped tones. “Are you going to go off to the ball?”
Had she not heard me at dinner? Of course I wouldn’t be going. Why would I? All the other girls in Mother’s finishing school were constantly clamoring about becoming Prince Hubert’s bride. I certainly had no interest in that. Curtis was engaged to Aria, and I had rejected him. I didn’t miss dancing and social gatherings like Comfort and Mother did, so I had no reason to attend.
“No.” I finished scrubbing dishes while Cynthia swept the floor.
“Tell me about the prince again,” Cynthia demanded suddenly.
“Hubert? Or Curtis?” I couldn’t recall ever mentioning Curtis to Cynthia.
“Hubert, of course. I thought you said that you knew him growing up.”
“He is serious. Dedicated to his duties. He thinks more than he talks,” I answered. I looked over at Cynthia. “He would like you. You seem like the type of girl he would be attracted to.”
Cynthia flipped a stray strand of hair out of her face and looked up, intrigued. “Really?”
“Yeah. He is a good dancer. He likes history, just like you. And he is terrible at Charades too!” I wiggled my eyebrows at her, hoping she realized I was teasing.
“Well, it doesn’t matter, because I wouldn’t be able to go anyway.” This time, Cynthia said it petulantly, as though debating possibilities on how to get there.
“Tell me if you change your mind. I’m sure we could work something out.”
CHAPTER 39
I worked on the translation all that night, using up a third of my precious candle reserves. Just as I had suspected, Thomas’s book was dull and difficult to decipher, full of procedures and detailed mechanics on hardening glass. I only had a few hours of sleep before students began trickling into the house again, and the cacophony they arose made it so I couldn’t sleep even if I had the time. I snatched up the book and translations and left our house again.
I handed the translation and original book to Thomas when I reached his shop. “You were quick!” he exclaimed, thumbing through my neatly copied manuscript. “I wasn’t expecting this back for a week at least.”
“Well, I figured the sooner I finished, the sooner I could get those shoes!”
Thomas grinned. “I will tend to them at once.”
I left his shop, but then ran back as a thought occurred to me. “Thomas?”
“Yes?”
“When you finish the shoes, would you please keep it a secret? I want them to be a surprise for someone.”
