Jane and Hunter came into view again. The serving girl was already there, dipping into a curtsy and handing the apple to Jane. “I’ve been asked to tell your ladyship that the kitchen prepared this delicacy just for you, m’lady, in honor of your beauty.” Jane blushed and took the apple. “That’s so kind. Tell the kitchen thank you for me.”

“No!” I called, but she either didn’t hear me or didn’t realize I was calling to her.

She brought the apple to her lips.

I dashed the last few steps to her and grabbed hold of her hand. “Don’t!”

Jane tried to pull her arm out of my grip. “Savannah, what are you doing?”

I didn’t let go of her arm. “It’s poisonous.” Jane looked at me and then at the serving girl, who stared back at us with startled disbelief. Jane lowered her voice but didn’t let go of the apple. “Why would someone want to poison me?”

“Because you look like Snow White.”

“No, I don’t.”

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Instead of arguing about it, I snatched the apple from her hand, dropped it on the ground, then lifted my skirt and stomped on it with my foot. “Why. Don’t. You. Ever.

Listen. To. Me?” Little pieces of apple splattered onto the hem of my gown and my slippers, but at least I knew no one would eat it.

With a nearly emotionless voice, Princess Margaret said, “I take it the refreshments were not to your liking?” I looked up and saw not only her but Tristan and Prince Edmond staring at me. Tristan’s brows were drawn together in question.

Edmond looked at the smashed apples by my feet, then said, “Of course there may be some things in your personality that are harder to overlook than others.” I’d still been clutching my skirt, and now I let go and it fell back into place like a curtain coming down at the end of a play. “I’m sorry,” I said, “but that apple was poisonous.”

“Poisonous?” Princess Margaret took a sharp breath inward. “You accuse us of poisoning our guests?”

“Not you; Queen Neferia. She told the serving girl to give my sister that apple.”

The serving girl nodded, her face white as though she knew however this turned out, she was going to get in trouble.

Edmond held out a hand, prompting me. “And?” 367/431

They were all staring at me, even Hunter, Jane, and Tristan. But how could I tell Prince Edmond that I knew what was going to happen because of a fairy tale?

“She’s already tried to poison Snow White three times.”

Tristan exchanged a look with Hunter and Jane. They, at least, now understood the situation. Hunter took a step toward Jane and put one hand on the hilt of his sword. Then each of them scanned the crowd.

Edmond and Margaret still gazed at me with skepticism though. I said, “You can ask Prince Hubert. He knows. The dwarfs Snow White lives with told him about it.”

Prince Edmond nodded, as though finally able to make sense of my distress. He snapped his fingers in the serving girl’s direction. “Go fetch Prince Hubert—I believe he’s in the barn.” Then Prince Edmond stepped over to me and took hold of my arm. When he spoke, his voice was firm—the way one talks to a child. “You can’t believe the things Prince Hubert says. His mind, sadly, is filled with nothing but whimsy.” He squeezed my arm.

“Queen Neferia, however, is our closest ally. It will not do to have you insult her.”

Edmond tried to propel me away, but I didn’t move.

“Queen Neferia is evil. Is that really the type of person you should have as your closest ally?” 368/431

Prince Edmond looked at me with surprise, although I had a feeling this was because I refused to move and not because of my accusation. “You needn’t worry about politics,” he said. “The wisest men in the land are my ad-visors. Your task is to do only what you have so well accomplished already; to stand by my side, a vision of beauty.” He didn’t wait for a response from me. Instead he snapped his fingers at a passing serving girl and pointed at the smashed apple near my feet. “Wench, clean up this mess.”

I knew there was no point in arguing with him and besides, he didn’t give me the chance. He started up a conversation with his sister about the musicians, pointedly changing the subject.

Hunter and Jane began a hushed conversation with Tristan that I only caught a few words of, just enough to tell they were talking about the sleeping arrangements at the castle tonight and whether Jane and I would be safe staying here with a homicidal queen in the vicinity.

I nearly volunteered that Jane could run off with me at midnight, but then decided that wasn’t the sort of thing I should say in front of Prince Edmond.

After a few minutes of this, Prince Edmond looked toward the ballroom door. “Here’s Prince Hubert coming in now.”

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Princess Margaret smiled over at me. “You say it was dwarfs that told him about Queen Neferia? I suppose that’s a step up from the mice and doves he usually converses with.”

The contempt in her voice prickled me even more than Prince Edmond’s patronizing tone had earlier. I clutched my hands into fists. “No matter what Prince Hubert says, I have told you the truth about Queen Neferia. You can think what you want to about him, but I am not crazy.”

I looked over at the door and saw a handsome, well-built man coming into the room. He carried a cat in his arms, but this wasn’t what I noticed about him. The thing that caught my eye was the goat that trailed behind him.

• • •

Granted, it’s probably not the best way to prove your sanity if you, for no discernable reason to those standing near you, suddenly let out a scream, push your way through the crowd, and crawl onto the refreshment table.

Quite a few people watched me do this with open mouths. During my scramble up on the table one of my slippers fell off my foot and tumbled to the floor. Prince Edmond looked at it, held up his hands, then turned 370/431

away muttering, “I’m not picking that up. Someone else can get it.”

So much for love at first sight.

Tristan looked at me on the table and yelled, “What are you doing?”

I didn’t answer. I heard someone in the crowd say,

“What’s that goat doing in here?” And several people laughed and pointed at it running across the room while others moved out of its way. I looked around for something on the table to defend myself with but only found a ladle.

Then Simon saw me. He stopped so quickly he momentarily slid across the floor, his hooves scraping on the stone as he tried to adjust his direction. And then he charged toward me.

I realized the table wasn’t going to be high enough to keep him away from me. Goats could jump up on things, couldn’t they? That’s why there was a whole breed of them called mountain goats.

“Tristan!” I screamed. “Help me!” He wasn’t far away from me, but he only looked at me in confusion.

Simon ran past Tristan. I watched him coming toward me, his feet clipping faster and faster across the floor and his bulgy eyes training in on me. My hands shook on the ladle. How ironic that although I had the Black 371/431

Knight’s power of invincibility, I was going to be undone by a goat.

Simon rushed toward the table. I could see him getting ready to leap. And the next moment something shot out from under the table and rammed into him. A man.

They both rolled onto the floor.

It took me a second to realize it was Scuppers. He must have crawled under the table to sleep and when he woke up and saw the goat charging toward him, he leaped out at it like any dog would.

Simon broke free from the scuffle, but Scuppers stood in the way of the table. Simon ran to the right and Scuppers bounded after him, hands over feet, making better time than any real man could have done. Simon darted toward the back of the room and Scuppers followed after him, his coat tails flapping as he ran.