“But if the curse was for Aurora, then the curse won’t ever be fulfilled.”
Fanny scratched her nose. “I wish it were that simple. It’s the way Isodora made the curse. She was enraged at the time, making herself a bit sloppy. Make no mistake. That spindle can kill you.”
Briar’s heart skipped a beat. “Can’t you stop the curse again?”
“Not this time. The curse must run its course. We’ve held it off as long as we can. Isodora will not be satisfied until a girl dies, and she’s chosen you. I can only hope that my blessing over Aurora and the spindle carries over to another girl, but I don’t know if it will. We’ve never followed a curse as old as this one before. We’ve been watching it very carefully.”
Of all the things to be chosen for. Death.
What would happen to the children then? No one would be watching out for them, trying to keep them together. They’d be put on that orphan train, separated into three different families in three different states. She couldn’t let that happen.
“I’m not going to prick my finger. I know what it truly is now, so I’ll stay away from it.” Seemed like an easy solution.
Fanny looked doubtful. “You don’t feel an overwhelming need to touch it?”
Briar closed her eyes, trying to name what she felt about the spindle. “I feel possessive of it, like I don’t want anyone else to have it. I haven’t wanted to touch the tip.”
“Yet,” Fanny said. “We need to get it out of there right away.”
“It won’t come off. It’s as solid as if it were built with the frame.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” Fanny rubbed her hands together. “Then I should try to find Isodora, now that I know she’s here. Can you take the children today?”
“Of course,” Briar said. “Earlier, you hesitated over promising not to tell my secret. Who were you going to tell?”
Fanny shrugged. “I was going to tell Prudence. She’s my overseer.”
Briar’s mouth went dry. “Is she a fairy, too?”
Fanny scrunched up her face, then nodded.
Briar felt like she’d been punched in the gut. She quickly searched her memories for any hint of unusual behavior from Nanny and couldn’t think of a one. “We’ve been under the care of a fairy all this time?” It was like waking up to find out a knife had been dangling over her bed the whole night and the only thing stopping it from hurting her was someone watching it. Briar would have rather been told about the danger so she could have prepared for it.
“Oh, I’m breaking so many rules. Prudence is diligent about keeping herself a secret. But since she’s gone to find Isodora, I must contact her to tell her that Isodora is here.”
“No, please don’t. You promised.” Briar grabbed Fanny’s hands as she pleaded. The first time she’d touched her since finding out what she was.
“But Briar, now that you know the significance of the spindle, surely you would want to tell Prudence.”
Briar dropped Fanny’s hands. “No.”
“The whole reason she left was to find Isodora—now we know she’ll never find her out there. She needs to come back to the valley.”
Briar shook her head. “I don’t want to upset her. I’m trying to keep the children together and if she finds out what I’ve done she might not wait until my birthday to send them away. You’re a fairy, too. Can’t you handle it?”
Fanny plucked a dandelion puff and breathed on it. The dainty white puff shrank and became a yellow flower again. “I understand wanting to fix your own mistake. I’ve been fixing mine for years. Together, then. We’ll do it together. But if my best isn’t good enough, I’ll have to tell Prudence. Your life is more important than our pride.”
Briar felt a prick of conscience but brushed it aside. With Fanny’s help, they’d figure it out. “Why did Prudence take us in in the first place? She doesn’t take to children naturally.”
“Your name is Briar Rose, our name for the princess when we were protecting Aurora. You live in a city of spindles. It was a precaution. She thought the temptation for Isodora would be too great if she found out about you…and apparently she did.”
What world was this that Briar had fallen into? Fairies and magical spindles and her name bringing them together. She remembered another conversation with a certain wistful boy who was setting out on an adventure across the sea. “Henry said I needed protecting because of my name. Does he have anything to do with this?”
Fanny’s expression went from shock to panic to resignation in a matter of seconds. “Some parts of this story are not mine to tell.”
“The Princes seem worried that they hadn’t heard from him in a while. Did something bad happen to him?”
Fanny shrugged sadly. “I don’t know. I can tell you that what he set out to do, he has not accomplished.”