by ERIN BEDFORD
“Did you make that?” Still a little in awe of her clothing.
“Oh, silly.” She laughed waving me off. “Of course not. That’s my gift.”
“To make clothes?” I quirked a brow at her. That was a shitty power. If I was going to become a Fae I’d want a better power than that. Like the ability to mute someone when they were being annoying. Or even to be able to eat anything I wanted without gaining a pound. Now that was a power I would give my soul for. There were so many possibilities, but changing my clothes at will would not even have crossed my mind.
“I can do a lot more than that.” She slid her hands up across her face and revealed my own face staring back at me on Alice’s head. “It’s called a glamour.”
I gaped and took a step back at the uncanniness of the face she had made. She had gotten every detail, down to the last freckle. Even her eyes matched the blue green clash that was my irises rather than my usual green. She slid her hand across her face again and Alice was looking at me once more.
“Now tell her what naughty things you had to do to get the power you are so proud of.” The shadow man hissed at her, causing her to step back, fear flashing in her eyes before she glared at him once more.
“I only did what you told me to. I am hardly to blame when I didn’t have all the information. Fae and your half-truths. The lot of you can go to the reapers for all I care. Save the rest of us the trouble.”
“Funny, you say so when you wanted to be one of us bad enough to leave your world behind,” he barked out, his lip twisted up in a sneer.
I rolled my eyes at them. We were going to be here forever.
“Weren’t you figuring out what exit to use?” I offered up, turning the glaring Faes’ attention back to me.
The shadow man frowned for a moment, clearly confused. “I already know which one.”
“Well?” I gestured for him to lead the way.
“Fine. This way.” He marched down the corridor, the carefree swagger he had obtained from the time wizard gone.
I took a step forward to follow him but stopped when Alice stared back into her cell. “Alice? Aren’t you coming?”
She didn’t immediately answer and her voice was soft when she did, “I’ve been trapped for so long I’m a little scared to finally be free.” She gave me a small smile. “Silly, isn’t it?”
I watched her, not sure how to respond.
“Forget it.” She shook her head and walked past me toward where the shadow man had gone, the heels of her shoes clicking on the stone floor.
I gave a cursory glance to the empty cell before turning on my heel to catch up with her. What was it like to be imprisoned for centuries? Alone in a room with nothing but yourself as company? Did she get many visitors from the other side of the mirror?
I thought back to our previous conversation with Chess. She had pleaded with him first to be released like she knew who he was and what power he had. Once again I wondered if they had met before.
“Alice?” I walked alongside the young woman.
“Hmm?”
“Have you and Chess met before?” I kept my eyes on our guide who didn’t give any indication that he was listening to our conversation.
“What do you mean? I’ve been locked up since before he was born. Of course I’ve never met him.” She scoffed, examining her hand as her gloves flickered between colors.
“But why did you ask Chess if you could leave back when we first met if you’ve never met him before?” I blew a strand of blonde hair out of my face, once again wishing for my hair tie that I had lost at the entrance.
She finally settled on a pale pink for her gloves, which spread out to her dress and hat. “I didn’t say I’ve never talked to the cat, just that I’ve never met him. Seeing the cat with you was the first time I’d ever had a face to the voice.”
“But he’s in all the stories, so you must have met him before. Maybe you just don’t remember?”
Alice gave a snort, rolling her eyes at me. “I think it’d be pretty hard to forget a delicious man such as Chess.” I couldn’t argue with her there, the cat did leave an unforgettable impression.
“Besides, you know more about these stories than I do. I’ve been kind of busy being locked up and everything.”
“Well if not Chess, then some other cat? It doesn’t make sense for it to be in the stories if it never happened.” I frowned at the sarcasm in her voice.
The blonde tapped her chin as she thought about my words. “Well, there was that one cat, but he was quite rude. Very cryptic about everything and he was just a big fur ball. Nothing at all like Chess’s masculine physique.” Her cheeks flushed at the thought of Chess.
I was so focused on her face that I walked straight into the shadow man who had stopped in his tracks. I felt myself falling backward and braced my hands out for the impact. A hand wrapped around my wrist and pulled me hard against a warm body.
My shoulder tensed as my skin crawled where the shadow man touched me. He may have taken on a pretty face, but no amount of magic could cover up the vengeful essence lying beneath his skin. The very feel of him pressed close to me made me sick to my stomach.
“Are you all right?” He tipped my head back, concern in his eyes.
I swallowed the bile that had crept up my throat. A bit breathless I spit out, “Yes, thank you.”
My eyes locked with his, the dark pool of brown drawing me in. I could hear the whispers in my head again, but this time they froze me in place. I couldn’t move or speak as I watched in horror as his face lowered down to mine. My eyes screamed for him to stop. For my face to move away. To do anything.
“Excuse me! This is no time for kissing,” Alice piped in, causing the shadow man’s eyes to tear away from mine, and with his concentration broken I was free.
I jerked out of his embrace, my eyes wide as I took several steps away from him. I had become too complacent with his presence. His aloof personality distracted me from the fact that he was Fae, and not just one Fae, but hundreds of vengeful souls merged into one being.
“Don’t do that again.” My voice was hard as my eyes burned with the heat of my rage.
He smirked at my words then tipped his head back and laughed. “Can’t blame a guy for trying.”
“Yes. I can.”
I pushed passed him, my legs threatening to fall out from beneath me. Under my mask of rage was fear. A heart-stopping terror I couldn’t let him see because if he knew how afraid of him I actually was, I’d lose all my leverage.
“I said you couldn’t trust them,” Alice called out from beside me. “None of them. Every single one of the Fae are in it for themselves and would turn on you in a heartbeat.”
“Is that what happened to you?” I kept my eyes forward as I felt the shadow man’s presence against my back.
“I loved coming to Wonderland. The talking flowers, the rhyming animals sipping tea while Hatter sang fantastical songs about nonsensical things.” Alice’s voice became dreamlike as she reminisced. “And the handsome Fae prince was always so nice to me.”
I ignored the fact that she had called it Wonderland. I was sure Alice knew she was wrong. “So what happened? You just up and decided one day this world was more appealing than ours?”
“Of course not. I’m not some delusional idiot.” She glared at me. “I knew for all the beauty and fun to be had there was always a price.” She eyed the man who was quiet as he trailed behind us only motioning which way every once in a while when we came to a junction. “Nothing and no one are what they seem here and you can’t trust your eyes or your ears.” She eyed the shadow man. “Even for a pretty face.”
“You’ve got that right.” I snorted. I’d had my fair share of attractive Fae, and while appealing they may be, they still had their own agenda that had nothing to do with my well-being. “What happened then to make you change your mind?”
“I fell in love, what else?” Her lips curled up in a bitter smile. “He was my neighbor back home. He was so
sweet to me, always wanting to hear about my adventures in Wonderland, unlike my parents who thought I was making it up. I thought he loved me.”
“I had planned on coming back to Wonderland, I mean the Underground, to say goodbye because I had found my reason to stay. But…” Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. “It was a lie. He didn’t love me.” Her blonde hair whipped around her as she shook her head. “He was just like everyone else. He was only nice to me for the stupid book he was writing.”
“The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland.” I frowned, remembering something. “But when I mentioned the book before you seemed surprised?”
“Because he promised he wouldn’t publish it, not after I–” She stopped and covered her mouth as a sob forced its way out.
“After you what?” I urged, but she soon was caught up in her sobs.
“Go ahead. Tell her.” The shadow man finally spoke up, taunting her from behind us. “Tell her how you tortured him for days on end. Tell her how you changed your shape at will to the most hideous creatures imaginable. Until he was so afraid he wouldn’t dare close his eyes for fear of waking to you standing over his bed waiting to start it all over again.”
My eyes widened at his words. Was she so heartbroken she would resort to such extreme measures? I’d never fallen in love. I couldn’t pretend to understand what she was going through. If this was the result of love, I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to be a part of it.
Alice turned her tear-filled eyes toward him, her despair turning to anger. “You have no right to judge me! I pretended to be her so it would look like he was cheating because you said it would make her admit her feelings. But you lied.”
The shadow man held his hands up and shrugged. “What can I say? Like you said, I’m Fae and we are only in it for ourselves. Though, I had thought she would simply break the marriage off.” He stroked his chin and then his lips curved up into a smile. “Killing herself was just a bonus.”
My hands balled into fists at the smug grin on his face. The pieces were falling into place and the picture it was painting was a grim one. How could anyone find their happy ending in this place when everyone was against you?
“I think it’s time to go.” I placed a hand on Alice’s shoulder, my eyes locked on the monster before me. “No more stories. No more games. Where’s the exit?”
He returned my glare with a growl. “You try our patience human. But a promise is a promise.” He turned the corner next to us and gestured to the wall. “Here is your exit.”
I glanced around the corner to see the mirror he was pointing at. It was identical to the ones I had seen in the Seelie Court, glyphs along the frame and all. I reached a hand out to trace them with my finger and started when they came to life beneath my touch.
“You’ve always had the ability.” He answered my question before I could ask it. “And now you have your exit. Take the pretender and leave this place.” I didn’t glance behind me as I ushered Alice through, but the shadow man caught my hand before I could follow. I narrowed my eyes at the hand holding mine. “I expect you to return to fulfill your part of the deal.”
“I will.” I jerked my hand out of his grasp. “Unlike you I don’t go back on my word.”
“Don’t make me wait too long, or I’ll come after you.” He eyed me up and down, making my skin crawl with his gaze. “You won’t like the result.”
“What’s taking so long?” Alice called out to me from the other side of the mirror.
“I’m coming.” I responded as I backed into the mirror. My eyes never left his face as the cool liquid engulfed me.
19
Veil Of The Faeries
TRYING TO EXIT the mirror backward was as easy as trying to walk in five-inch heels – neither poised nor graceful, and I always end up on my ass. So I wasn’t entirely surprised when I fell out of the mirror and landed hard on the dirt. Didn’t mean it didn’t hurt all the same.
“Fuck.” My hands had tried to catch me, but instead, I ended up scraping them against the ground, leaving dirt and little rocks encrusted in my palms.
“Well, aren’t you graceful.” Alice’s snarky voice pointed out the obvious.
Looking up from my stinging hands, I searched out Alice’s form seated neatly upon a rock formation. Her face was contorted in disgust, and a wary fear filled her eyes as her gaze darted around. I couldn’t blame her. The mirror’s destination was creepy as hell.
Dead grass and dirt patches pocked the ground. There was more rock than plants, and though there were trees and bushes, they were bare and twisted like they had been struck by lightning. It was as if all the life had been sucked out of the place, leaving nothing but a deserted wasteland.
“You really should have been more specific when you asked for an exit.” Alice frowned. “Not that I’m complaining, mind you. I’m happy to be free, but this place has always given me the willies.”
“Where are we?” I dusted myself off and moved to stand next to her.
She stood from her perch and swept out her arms to the area around us. “Welcome to the Veil of the Faeries. Where all your nightmares can and will come true.”
Veil of the Faeries, huh. To me it was less like a veil and more like a graveyard, but who was I to critique someone else’s décor? If I had to get through there to get home, then there really wasn’t anything I could do about it.
“Well, I’m going to be going now.” Alice clapped her hands together in finality. “Thanks for getting me out. Bye.”
Quick as I could be, I grabbed onto the hand waving at me before she could poof away.
“What do you think you are doing? Unhand me,” she cried out, struggling to pull her arm away, but I held tight. She wasn’t going to get away that easily.
“I believe we had a deal.” I held my hand out expectantly. My eyes narrowed when she glared down at my open palm. “Come on, hand it over.”
She reached under the neck of her dress with a growl and jerked the key out from her bodice. When she fingered the key, making no motion to remove it from her neck, I tightened my grip until she winced. Finally, she huffed, ripped the ribbon over her head, and dropped it into my open palm.
The moment the brass key touched my hand I closed it with a snap. Still holding onto Alice, I glanced around us trying to decide where to go from here. I needed to get to the orchard, but I had no idea where that was from here. If only I had a map of some kind. Then again, I peeked back to Alice who was getting ready to dig the nails of her other hand into the one holding onto her.
“I’ll make you a deal,” I announced, causing her to stop before she assaulted my hand.
“Another one?” She tilted her head to the side. Curiosity filled her face for a moment but then closed down. Her blonde locks whipping around her as she shook her head. “No. I’m done making deals with you. I just want to find somewhere I won’t be recognized. I don’t want to get thrown back in that cell after I just got out.”
“Look.” I sighed. “I don’t really have a choice. I have no idea where I am or how to get to the orchard from here.” I gestured to the dead terrain. “I need a little direction is all and then you can go crawl into a hole for all I care.”
“Honestly? That’s all?” She frowned, not really believing my words.
“Yes. Cross my heart and all that jazz.” I crossed the hand holding the key across my chest.
“What?”
“Never mind.” Obviously, my pop culture references would be lost on someone locked up for over a century. “Do we have a deal or what?”
“Fine. Go that way.” She pointed down a worn path directly in front of the mirror. “And you will hit the palace. The orchard is on the other side, but you’ll have to go through the Queen’s gardens to get there.”
I stared down the path she had pointed to. There was a weird light along the path even though the night sky was void of any kind of moon. I shivered at the ominous presence coming from the direction of the palace. Did I really want to go it alone?
“Don’t lose that key. I’ll be wanting it back,” she informed me before disappearing with a snap of her fingers. The sound radiated out into the darkness.
As I looped the ribbon of the key around my neck, I made my way down the path, keeping a wary eye on the shadows in between the trees. Something made Alice afraid of this place. With each step I took, I was beginning to understand.
I could feel eyes boring into me like an itch along my skin. I jumped when a branch near me snapped. My eyes darted to the sound as I searched around in the dim light for the culprit.
Finding nothing, I quickened my pace along the path. My feet moved even faster as more branches and twigs snapped beneath what sounded like little feet. Giggles echoed out in the dark at my rising fear.
I stumbled as a buzzing noise flew by, giving a vicious tug on my hair. I spun around, but nothing was behind me. There was more snickering, and then there was another yank on my hair from behind me.
“Argh!” I stomped my foot. I heard tiny peals of laughter at my display of emotion. Someone was playing with me. I really didn’t want to play anymore bullshit games. Thought they were funny, did they? I’d show them funny.
I could be fucking hilarious.
I tensed myself for another attack, and the moment I felt a light weight on my hair, my hand swung out. I had hit something solid. Yes!
Before I could do my victory dance, I found my feet falling out from under me. I glared at the cackling darkness when I crashed to my hands and knees. My already scrapped hands stung as I scanned the area for my attacker. I searched the air around me for what I hit before landing on a small moving figure on the ground.
Not more than four inches tall was a walking stick. No. Not a walking stick, a faerie. Its skin was brown and grey like the bark of a tree. Its wings thin skeletal spines with barely enough skin covering them to fly.