Blackthorn tipped my chin up to meet his gaze. “This is not goodbye. I will free you. Promise me.” He paused, pressing his lips to his forehead, “Promise that you’ll wait for me.”
My eyes burned as I chuckled. “Where would I go? Besides, I’m here,” I patted his chest where his heart still beat with my blood in his veins, “and, in any case, should Rumple roll over dead in his sleep, you’ll know exactly where to find me.”
Blackthorn’s gaze bore into mine. “Yes, I will. I will always find you.”
Chapter 28
The town’s hustle and bustle filled the air, like nothing had changed. The world had gone on even after I’d gone.
I winced with each step, my eyes darting from left to right. I didn’t know if Rumple or one of his men would come jumping out of the crowds to snatch me up.
Though he wouldn’t, would he? He had his spell doing all the work for him. He knew I’d come back to him or die.
A few villagers gave me odd looks as I passed by. No one stopped me, though. No one cared about another one of Rumple’s people, too busy with their own lives to give two shits about the people enslaved right under their noses.
I arrived at the doors to the factory far sooner than I hoped. The doors were back in place, as if they had never been smashed in. I stood outside those doors and took a deep breath, not knowing what was waiting for me inside.
Would Rumple punish me? Even if everyone told him I’d been taken, he might still take it out on me, blaming me for not coming back sooner. Whatever waited for me, I knew I couldn’t delay any longer. The spell had been quiet since I’d started back toward the factory, but I didn’t want to chance it waking again because I hesitated.
My hands braced on the heavy door and pushed it in. The sting of soaps and dyes hit my nose first, then the quiet chatter of the factory floor. The door creaking open made several heads turn my way. Their eyes widened, then one by one, they bumped the person next to them and pointed at me.
Little Joe, Mila, and a few others rushed to my side, all of them talking at the same time. Their hands touched my face, taking in my bruises and cuts. Others touched my gown, ooh over how fine of fabric it was made of, even a bit torn and dirty.
“Mara, where have you been?” Mila cupped my face in her hands. “When you were taken, we thought for sure you were doomed. But here you are... alive.” She grabbed my hands in her hands. “You stupid girl. Why did you come back? You were free.”
I opened my mouth to tell her about the spell, but a familiar greasy voice answered for me.
“She had no choice.”
Everyone froze, then turned as one to the speaker. On the second floor, standing outside of his open office door stood Rumpelstiltskin, a short and stout man with orange hair that stood on his head as if he’d been hit by lightning. Grubby fingers curled over the iron bar of the walkway, his lips curled up into a smug grin.
“Rumple.” I dipped my head, everyone around me scurrying back to their workstations.
“When they told me you were kidnapped, I didn’t quite believe it.” He sauntered across the metal pathway, his boot clanking on each rung as he stalked down the stairs. “And yet here you are... back. Usually, on the rare occasion someone does try to run away, they choose death over coming back here. The contract makes sure of it.”
“I didn’t run away,” I argued, wrapping my arms around my waist. I didn’t tell him that, if I had a choice, I wouldn’t havecome back either. My own desire to live was the only reason I’d come back.
Rumple nodded, stepping up to me. “I can see that now. And who was it that stole you away?” He looked over me, taking in my dress and injuries. “How did they even know to come for you?”
I opened my mouth to tell him to go to hell and then clipped it shut, taking a breath. “A misunderstanding, but I’m back now.”
He paused, watching me closely. “Yes, so you are. Well,” he clapped his hands together, “work has certainly piled up while you were gone. Best get changed. You’ll be having a lot of long days ahead of you. To make up for the lost time, of course.” His tone was polite with an undertone of threats in every word.
“Of course, sir.”
Extra work was a mild punishment for what I expected on my return. A beating. A week in the bin. Any of that and more. So why was Rumple being easy on me? I didn’t trust it.
Without questioning, I made my way to my assigned room, wondering if they had given it to someone else while I was gone. I was strangely relieved to find my things still where they were when I left.
Surprising, since they didn’t know if I’d actually come back or choose death.
I slowly removed the remains of my gown, laying it on my bed with reverence. The last piece I had of my time with Blackthorn. A longing filled my heart to turn on my heels and run out of the factory, all the way through the Candy Forest to stand before those castle doors once more.
Swiping at my eyes, I blew out a breath and dragged out the shapeless colorless dress I’d worn for the last few years. I winced as the fabric scraped against my body, the material so much harsher than that of the gowns I’d become accustomed to.
Once dressed, I picked up the gown and held it for a long moment, just staring at it. Then I bundled it up and shoved it into the bottom of my trunk, closing the lid with a thud. That sound was the final nail in the coffin of my wild love story.
I took a deep breath and stepped back out into the factory floor, my life once again a dreary place. All the colors had been sucked out by Rumple.
