Once Upon a Time: The Villains by Shea Berkley Read Free Book Online Page B

have a mission, and I use her distress to get closer.
    “Good evening, sweet maiden. What tragedy makes you weep?”
    Her fingers clutch at a golden ring she wears. Does she believe if she twists the tiny circle enough, her problem will be solved? What simple faith. She looks away, her gaze encompassing the impossible task the king has set before her. “More tragedy than I can bear, for I am to spin this straw into gold or tomorrow I shall surely die.”
    I draw nearer. “What will you give me if I spin it for you?”
    Disbelief makes her blink. She stops twirling the ring on her finger, and then looks at it. With a ragged, desperate breath, she tugs the ring from her finger. It is crudely worked, but of great value in her eyes.
    “This was my father’s gift to me.” She touches my hand. There is no wince of disgust when she does. She looks at me with hope and places the ring in my palm. “He spent all he had, and it is all I have.”
    I take the ring and slip it on my pinkie. A gift is something I have never been given. Her eyes swallow me. To her, I am all that is noble. She looks at me as she did the prince, and I sit, tucking my twisted form against the wheel.
    I take out a pinch of magic. Motioning her close, I grab her hand and bite her finger. She cries out and tries to jerk away, but I hold fast. Hot, red blood oozes to the surface, and I collect a droplet. Mixing magic and blood, I rub it onto the spindle.
    Magic and blood;
    the wheel is begun,
    rough straw is fed;
    golden thread is spun.
    As I spin, the maid feeds me the straw. By the blush of first morning light, the last speck of straw is spun into gold. Coils of gold rope fill the room. The maid turns to me and grants me a kiss on the cheek. Her eyes flash with delight at the miracle I have brought. I cup my cheek where the kiss still tingles, I know not whether to treasure it or rub it away. While the maid inspects the gold, I slip out of the room.
    So much gold will surely captivate the king’s attention. He won’t believe his eyes. He will not be satisfied, and he will demand another sampling of the magic. I know because that is what I would do. The maid will be called to perform again and another kiss may well be in my future.
    Sure enough, the beauty is taken to another, larger straw-filled room and commanded to spin.
    Again, I enter when the night is thick and quiet. At my approach, she twirls around. Her fingers clamped in a prayerful request to ward off any danger. Her prayers did not work, for I am here.
    She bursts into tears. “I was so afraid you would not come. The first room was not enough. He demands I spin again.”
    “A greedy man is our king. Tell me, fair maiden, what will I get for assisting you again?”
    Horror fills her eyes until she remembers. Her fingers unbutton her blouse until a little silver locket appears against her pale flesh. She pulls it off, and holds the necklace out to me. “It is all I have. Will you take it?”
    “Is that not what you said of the ring?” I ask as I take it and pop the latch. A lock of reddish gold hair lay within.
    “The ring has some worth. This has none except that which I give it. The locket is all I have left of my dead mother.”
    A precious gift. A true sacrifice. I pocket the necklace and sit before the spinning wheel. I motion her forward and grab her hand. I bite. She winces. Blood is let and magic is added.
    Magic and blood;
    the wheel is begun,
    rough straw is fed;
    golden thread is spun.
    Gold, lustrous and bright, drops heavy at our feet. As morning pushes against the shutters covering the windows, I leave. My plan is almost too easy. Soon I will have what the king most desires.
    Again the king is astounded, but this time he fills his largest room, the ballroom, full of straw. I hide behind a mountainous pile and wait for them to leave the maid alone.
    The prince protests against the larger test. “This must stop, Father. We have more gold than we need already. She has done as