Kate heard every sound in the house, from an irregular water drip somewhere near the back of the building, to the creaking, settling noises caused by a shift in winds, to Lidka rolling over in her sleep.
Dad is alive.
Tears of joy soaked into her pillow. This changed everything. Before, she was merely hoping, but now she knew for sure and had a way to find him. Even if she couldn’t get the shoes to do anything, Malwinka knew where he was.
And he needs a doctor.
Thoughts of Malwinka twisted up her stomach. What was this woman’s game? Not only were these Burgosovs selfish and devious, they were malicious. She had to get away from them, but they were the direct link to Dad. She could escape tonight and go to the police, but according to Lidka, Malwinka had some kind of power over them. She would have to get farther away, but then how would she ever find her dad?
She was trapped. The only way out was to give them what they wanted. She had to make the shoes work. She reviewed everything she knew about the Cinderella story. Stories always had a glimmer of truth in them, even if they got some details wrong. With dismay, she realized she didn’t know that many details of the true Kopciuszek story. There were two versions she’d read in fairy-tale books. One where Cinderella’s mother died and a tree planted over her grave gave Cinderella the gifts of the dresses. And the other where there was a fairy godmother who took care of the details.
Now, what did either of those stories have to say about the glass slipper? Something about Cinderella having to leave by midnight and the magical items returning to the objects they were created from. She knew that the dresses didn’t disappear, so that part of the story had changed with the retelling.
One shoe was left behind when Cinderella ran from the ball as the clock was striking midnight and her magical items began to transform. From what Elsie had told her, she already knew the prince, so why would he have her try on the shoe to learn who she was? He wouldn’t. He would know her when he found her.
Malwinka had put the other shoe where her dad was. It was as if she was trying to replicate the scenario where one shoe was left behind for the prince to find, and the other remained with Kopciuszek. So if she could find the shoe, she could find Dad.
“Where is your partner?” she whispered to the shoe.
There was a flash. A glimmer. Kate sat up in bed and looked out the window. It was as if a flashlight had swept past the window and caught the facets cut into the shoe. She slipped out of bed and padded across the cold floor. The yard was dark, darker still near the linden trees where someone could hide and watch. She tried to open the window, but it wouldn’t budge. She pushed harder, remembering how sticky the sliders were when she opened it last, but she couldn’t do it. Then she noticed. It had been nailed shut.
Shaking, she backed away from the window and returned to her warm bed, clutching the shoe. She curled into a ball as the gravity of the situation filled her. She was a prisoner, too. Now, what did that make Lidka? Was she innocent or was she Kate’s personal guard?
Thoughts tumbled and tumbled as she raced for a way out. But as the night wore on, her body relaxed as it grew used to the night sounds of the house, and she began to get sleepy. Her thoughts loosened and she started to let go when an idea floating on the edges of her mind drifted into center. She blinked herself awake and pulled out the shoe again.
“Where is your partner?” she asked it. Flash. It wasn’t an outside source causing the sparkle.
It was the shoe itself.
It had responded to her question. She asked it again. Flash.
“What are you doing?” a groggy Lidka asked.
“Nothing. Sorry. Go back to sleep.” She stuffed the shoe under the quilt.
When Lidka’s breathing relaxed into a regular deep in-and-out, Kate dove under the covers with the shoe. “Where is your partner?” The flash was slow this time, the light sparkling from toe to heel. She flipped the shoe over and tried again. “Where is your partner?” The shoe answered, this time with the light sliding across the shoe, from side to side. Kate experimented a few more times, trying to decipher if the shoe was giving her Morse code. It wasn’t. Finally, she realized the line of light remained the same, no matter what angle she held the shoe. Kate covered her mouth to stifle a laugh. The shoe was like a compass. In the same way a compass needle pointed north, the light pointed in one direction. When she turned the shoe to match the light, it glided down from heel to toe, showing her the direction to go. That must be how it worked. Clever, that fairy godmother.
If Kate could sneak out tonight, she could find her dad and rescue him. She knew he wasn’t in the house because the maid had to go somewhere she didn’t want to go. But if Kate did leave, the first place Malwinka would look would be where they were holding her dad. She would be no more ahead than she was now. No, the better play would be to continue to pretend she didn’t know they had her dad. She’d show them how the shoe worked, and then after she and her dad were reunited, together they would escape. If Johnny was able to get to her brother in Germany, and if the Kolodenkos told him the change in location, help might already be on the way. And if all that worked out, she had no idea how they would meet up. That’s a lot of ifs.
She’d take it one step at a time. First, her dad.
Gustaw was wearing an apron the next morning at breakfast. There was no mention of where the maid was, and Kate realized she didn’t even know the young woman’s name. If Gustaw was upset with Malwinka over how his daughter was treated, he wasn’t letting it show as he dished out scrambled eggs.
Malwinka didn’t ask about the shoe. Maybe she was upset over last night, or maybe she was tired of Kate giving the same answer. But Lidka noticed something had changed.
“You are different, why?” She narrowed her eyes. “You have secret?”
Malwinka looked up from stirring her tea, realization dawning. “You have done it?”
Kate forced herself to look at Malwinka with steady eyes. “The shoe lights up, pointing in one direction. I think I should follow it and see what happens.”
Lidka translated. She and Malwinka shared a smile.
How much does Lidka know?
“Show me,” Malwinka said.
“It’s up in my room.”
“I will get Gustaw to ready the car. Pack your bags, girls,” she called over her shoulder as she left the room.
“Why do we need to pack our bags?” Kate asked, growing nervous. She thought her dad might be in Krakow, somewhere close where they could keep an eye on him. Lidka looked up sharply at Kate’s quick answer to Malwinka, and Kate realized her mistake. Hopefully Lidka would think Kate was naturally picking up new Polish words.
“The shoe may lead us far away. Is best to be prepared,” Lidka said.
Later, standing in the entryway with her bag at her feet, Kate sheepishly took out the shoe. Last night, alone in the dark, talking to the shoe felt natural. But now in the daylight in front of the Burgosovs, it seemed off. Her instincts were to take the shoe and run, but she still needed help getting around Poland. When the time came, she’d need to be ready to outsmart Malwinka.
“Where is your partner?” she asked the shoe in Polish. A flash.
Malwinka grabbed the shoe out of Kate’s hand. “How did you know to speak to it?” she asked.
Lidka waited, hand on hip, instead of translating.
“Well?” Kate asked.
Lidka rolled her eyes and said in English, “How did you know to speak to it?”
“I didn’t. I asked in frustration last night. Remember, you taught me the Polish word for partner. The flash is brighter when it’s dark.”
Malwinka repeated the phrase. No flash. She said it again, and when nothing happened, shoved it back into Kate’s hands. Jaw set, she marched them outside.
“Should you not—”
Malwinka raised her hand, interrupting Lidka. “What I do is my business. You do not have to worry about me.” She patted Lidka’s cheek. Lidka turned away, looking annoyed.
Kate felt a twinge of relief to see that Lidka and Malwinka weren’t as unified as they seemed. If Kate needed her support, Lidka might take her side.