“The hunt will be held in a week’s time. More details are forthcoming.”
He paused again, this time to paste a solemn expression onto his face.
“Now we must move on to the unfortunate news. Five of you will be removed from the courtship proceedings today. If I could keep all of you here with me, I would. But it simply isn’t possible. The ladies who are leaving will of course always be welcome at Versailles, but they will no longer be participating in courtship events.”
Ignoring the dismayed murmurs, the dauphin named the girls who were going to be leaving. Four of them I didn’t know. The only one I recognized was Veronique, who looked like she was about to weep, while Severine looked relieved that whatever disaster had befallen her and the dauphin during their trip to the Menagerie hadn’t resulted in her dismissal.
The dauphin jumped down from the dais and waited while a few of the girls crowded around to talk with him, all five of the removed girls among them. I could see the eyes of the rest fixed on me and Diane, who was chatting about what she would wear on the hunt and whether Princesse Henrietta ever hunted at home in England. She seemed oblivious to the jealousy being sent our way.
One of the sets of watching, jealous eyes were Severine’s. She wasn’t even trying to hide her hatred of me at this point.
“This is going to be so amazing! And you! I never imagined that he would choose me. You, definitely, but not me.”
“How could he not choose you, Diane? You’re probably the sweetest person here.”
Diane rolled her eyes. “I am not. Promise that you’ll stay with me during the hunt as much as possible. I don’t have much experience with horses.”
“I promise.”
I squeezed her hand and smiled to hide my worry. Things were moving faster than I had anticipated, and it was frightening. I wanted to win the competition. I did. For my own sake and Elodie’s. And it truly seemed that, if I were to win, I would at least be somewhat compatible with the dauphin. But every time I tried to focus on Prince Louis and the competition, Auguste lurked around the edges of my mind, pushing out everything else until all I could think about was him.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The château was disturbingly quiet when I returned from the palace. After what I assumed to be Severine’s disastrous outing and the dauphin choosing me to join him on the royal hunt, I expected Severine to be hiding around the corner, waiting to pounce on me for getting so much attention. But she was nowhere to be seen. I slipped off my heels and crept down the hallway as quickly and quietly as possible.
“Severine told me you had an absolutely wonderful time at the palace today, Cendrillon.”
I jumped and turned to see Lady Catherine standing in the doorway to the sitting room, her eyes fixed on me. Severine only had a head start of about fifteen minutes, but that was enough time for her to relay the day’s events to her mother.
“I wouldn’t say that it was a wonderful time. Perhaps a perfectly average time would be a better descriptor. The dauphin had to meet with so many ladies that he couldn’t spend much time with any one particular person,” I said quickly as I began backing down the hallway. Plus, it wasn’t wonderful. Something was wrong with Auguste.
Lady Catherine smiled and walked closer even as I backed away, looming over me. “Severine told me that the dauphin invited you to join him for a royal hunt.”
“I wasn’t the only girl that he—”
“No. But you were one of the few who were chosen. I would consider that to be a wonderful occurrence. You’re being modest, Cendrillon. It doesn’t suit you.”
The inside of my cheek stung where I bit it trying to smother any potential retort. I was already on dangerous footing with Lady Catherine. Any backtalk, no matter how justified, would only make it worse.
“Is that Cendrillon?” Severine asked, her voice emanating from the sitting room.
“Yes, ma jolie fille. She finally got back from the palace.”
Severine sounded weak and distressed, as if she were suffering from some kind of mysterious malaise. She had been fine when leaving the palace. I suspected that she was playacting to gain sympathy from her mother. And why wouldn’t she? It always worked.
“I don’t want to see her,” Severine called out.
I heard Alexandre in the sitting room, saying quietly, “Severine, you’re being mean.”
“No! She’s the one being mean! She’s ruining everything! I do not want her in my presence!”
Lady Catherine was nodding her head in agreement and eyeing me contemplatively.
“Your stepsister is very distressed, Cendrillon,” she said. “It wouldn’t be appropriate to strain her nerves further. Perhaps you should spend the rest of the night in your room. There’s no need to come down for supper. I’m sure you had plenty to eat at the palace.”
“But—”
“No objections. Please think of Severine, and do what is best for her health.”
The small smile on my stepmother’s face belied the “seriousness” of her words. So this was what my life was going to look like from now on at the château. Punishment anytime I succeeded over Severine. That depressing prospect only strengthened my resolve to win . . . and escape from this place.
My stomach rumbled as I turned my back on Lady Catherine and quickly ascended the stairs. I hadn’t had anything to eat at the palace and was very hungry. Maybe I would be able to sneak downstairs after everyone went to bed and get some food from the kitchen. As soon as I opened the door to the attic and started climbing the steps, the familiar chill began to seep into my skin. But after the heat and the stress of the day, I welcomed the soothing darkness.
“Cendrillon! How did everything go today?”
I shrieked and clutched at my chest, whirling around to see Elodie standing in the shadows just beside the door, a hand covering her mouth as she failed to stifle her giggles.
“Elodie! What are you doing just standing there in the dark? I nearly jumped out of my skin.”
Laughing, Elodie grabbed my hand and led me over to one of the only places to sit in the attic, my little bed. As we plopped down on the bed, Elodie said, “You forgot that I was hiding up here finishing the alterations on Lady Françoise’s dresses, didn’t you?”
I winced. “Maybe a little. I’ve had a long day, though, and a distinctly unpleasant encounter with Lady Catherine just now. Severine is upset because the dauphin invited me to go on the royal hunt with him, so now I’m banned from leaving the attic for the rest of the night.”
My stomach rumbled again as if to emphasize my point. Elodie blinked at me. “Apparently, we have a lot to talk about. But I have a solution to one of those things.”