I could easily accept being abandoned and forgotten by my father, but not by Izzie…

Pushing aside the pain, I pick up a handful of stones and throw them at the glass.

“Start throwing, Sola,” I say.

She obliges, and her first rock cracks the window, forcing Izzie to halt her twirling.

“Izzie!” I throw another rock—shattering the full frame to pieces—and Izzie presses a hand against her chest. Then she steps onto the balcony.

“Izzie!” I jump up and wave my arms. “Down here!”

She moves closer to the edge, slowly looking around.

“Izzie!”

Her gaze finally meets mine, and her eyes widen. “Belle? Belle, how did you get here?”

“Can you let us in?” I yell.

She hesitates for a few moments.

“It’s important, Izzie!” I call out. “Please.”

“Stay right there,” she says. “I’ll be there soon!”

Sola shoots me a concerned look, but she doesn’t say a word.

We wait for Izzie for what feels like forever, and she finally bursts through the set of doors ahead of us.

“Oh my god, Belle!” She rushes toward me, pulling me into a hug. “I can’t believe you’re not dead!”

“What?”

“This place is a long way from home,” she says, letting me go. “I’m just…surprised you made it all the way without running into wolves or anything. Again, how did you know where to find me?”

“We can talk about that later.” I roll my eyes. “We need to discuss something important.”

“Did Gabriel ever come back to the house? What about one of Father’s old friends?” The words are flying from her mouth. “I’m so confused and lost.”

“Gabriel did come by.” I grit my teeth. “He kidnapped me, actually…”

“Oh, wow.” She doesn’t sound the slightest bit concerned, but the look in her eyes confirms she knew all along what would potentially happen. “That’s so awful. So, you’ve found a way to escape and be with me here?”

“No. I—” I bite my lip, not wanting to tell her too much. “I just need a few moments to speak to you.”

“After I give you a tour of my new life!” She clasps my hand, pulling me forward. “You too, Belle’s little friend. Come with me.”

When we make it inside, a silver serving tray—seemingly under magic—rolls over to us and prepares two cups of tea.

“How amazing is that?” Izzie smiles. “Wait until you see how all the dishes dance and sing for us at dinnertime tonight.”

“Izzie…”

“This is the happiest I’ve ever been in my life,” she says. “Father is happy living here, too. Want to visit him in the east wing?”

“No.” I reject the serving tray’s tea. “I need to talk to you about the curse that Gabriel and his brother Charlie are under.”

“I’m vaguely aware of it.” She narrows her eyes. “You can call him Beast for now, though. What about it?”

“There’s a way that Beast and his brother can return to their normal lives and get everything back,” I say. “But you and I would have to work together to make it happen.”