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The woman drew her chin back and opened her mouth in a wide scream. “Guards!”
CHAPTER 21
Paige lifted her dress and waddled across to the tree.
Dewey pried at a piece of bark with a sharp twig. It popped off and skittered across the ground as the doors to the courtyard burst open.
Dewey tossed the stick down and flitted toward the bark, hovering over it when he reached it.
“Hurry, Paige,” Dewey shouted as guards streamed from the castle, heading straight for Paige.
She tottered across the lawn toward him as fast as she could. Dewey’s hand floated over the bark, poised to touch it the moment Paige reached him.
One of the guards leapt into the air toward Paige, knocking her down as she loped across the lawn. She hit the ground with a thud, trying to wriggle free from the man. The mounds of fabric made it difficult for him to hold on to her. She slipped from his grasp, crawling forward toward the bark.
“Reach,” Dewey yelled.
Paige thrust an arm out, fingers stretched forward.
The man slithered toward Paige, grabbing her ankle so she fell inches short of reaching the bark.
“Get off,” she screamed, kicking her legs.
“Reach, Paige!”
Paige struggled to free herself but found herself unable to slip away. She gave up on fighting and focused on the bark. She wrinkled her nose as she stretched her arm to its limit and wiggled her fingers.
Dewey’s scaly fingers wrapped around hers and then smashed them against the rough, purple bark.
The crushing weight of the guard shimmied up her torso, and her world went black. She experienced the sensation of falling for a moment before she pressed against something hard. She flailed her arms and legs as she struggled to push herself upright.
She blinked a few times as the room came into focus.
Her jaw dropped, and her lips twisted into a smile. “We’re home!”
Dewey pushed himself up from his spot on the floor, shaking his head before he fluttered into the air. “We made it!”
Paige glanced at his hand, still clutching the shimmering blue bark. “And we got the bark!”
Dewey twirled in a circle, pumping his fist in the air. “We did it!”
Paige bounced on her toes as she clapped her hands.
“I got another lead for you t–“ Ronnie’s voice sounded from the door.
Paige spun to face her, noting her surprised expression.
Her gaze traveled up and down Paige’s form before she raised her eyebrows. “Something I should know?”
Paige shook her head. “No, what’s the lead?”
Ronnie stared down at the folder in her hand before she glanced up at Paige again. “Can I ask why you’re wearing a medieval wedding gown, or don’t I want to know?”
Paige glanced down at the princess-style dress before flicking her gaze at Ronnie again. “Oh, right, umm, it’s a long story. Suffice it to say, we achieved what we needed to, and now we’re back.”
Ronnie’s jaw hung agape as she processed Paige’s meager explanation.
“We got sucked into a fairy tale while searching for Witchlock bark to help cure Paige’s beast mark. We just narrowly escaped before Paige was forced to marry the prince in the story.”
