The Best Bride

12. ESCAPE

Marigold and Lady Boo welcomed me with open arms. They gave me hug in turn and pecked each of my cheeks as if we were best friends used to doing that.  

The inside of the car was spacious with two long leather seats facing one another, and there was a special place for a bucketful of ice and some bottled drinks in the left seat corner.  

I slumped on the opposite seat with a sigh and faced them three fairies. They were kind of throwing so-glad-we-found-you look at me.  

I noticed they all had adopted a new get up in the likes of clothes that I'd only seen in the boutique; Marigold was wearing pink mini dress, looking like a twelve year old girl with seventy year old fairy-woman's head; Lady Boo had ditched her old wrestler outfit for new one, expensive blue bra and underwear with long leather boots; and Purple was wearing orange tank top and blue jeans. No doubt they were making the best use of the bank's money.  

"Drive home, Sunny," Purple said to her driver.  

As the car started moving fast, I turned to the window and watched the passing view of the glittering city. 

"Drink, dear?" Lady Boo asked me.  

I looked away from the window to her. My stomach was burning with hunger so much that I was ready to eat anything if offered. "Yes, please."  

Lady Boo reached her hand into the bucket, and out produced three long glasses, each of which she handed to us. She took out the large bottle and poured us the red liquid into our glasses.  

"Its grape wine," she informed. "'Doesn't contain much alcohol." 

I sipped the wine, and instantly liked it. It tasted as good as it smelled. 

"Got any information about whereabouts of Prince Felix?" Marigold asked me.  

I shook my head. "No. I still haven't got time to figure out where he is. I'm working in the restaurant to support my struggling life here, you know. How about you three?" 

"We haven't got any clue of his whereabouts too," said Purple. "But we're going to work on it pretty soon."  

"You will all work together?"  

"Together, in the beginning, and after that we'll part ways," said Marigold. "We have to. Otherwise Prince Felix will be confused whom to marry." She, Purple and Lady Boo laughed at Marigold's joke, which I didn't find funny. 

My phone vibrated. I answered it without looking at the number. 

"Where are you?" said Éclair's irritated voice. "We've been waiting you like more than five minutes - " 

"Oh, I'm sorry," I said, turning to the window. "I won't be able to come there tonight, because I just found out about my sister being unwell. I'm on my way to meet her." 

There was a short pause in other line and then Éclair's voice said again, "Alright. Call me when you get back."  

No bye. No see you later. Just a beep indicating the end of call. I was sure he wasn't happy about me missing the meeting. I shifted around to face my new friends. 

"More drink?" Lady Boo asked me, lifting the bottle above her lap.  

"Yes."  

And she refilled my empty glass, and then everyone's in the process including hers. 

"A new car, driver, nice clothes, wine - how do you manage to get all these?" I knew how, but I wanted to hear it from their mouth.  

"We found a solution to make our life easy," said Lady Boo, her eyes glancing at Purple and Marigold.