Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
Alice
Oh crap. This couldn’t be happening again. Darius would definitely be captured. The sound of pounding hooves grew closer and closer, louder and louder.
Darius couldn't fight. Could barely keep his eyes open. If those soldiers reached us before help did, he'd be dead before they even put him in chains.
He wouldn’t survive the torture. Not with that arrow in his side.
“You have to get up, Darius.” I clasped his hand.
“Go.” He wiggled free of my grip. “I can’t move. Don’t let them capture you.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
“You must.” His silver eyes burned into mine. “Go.”
Caterpillar exhaled slowly. “How fascinating. Two people arguing about who should sacrifice themselves for the other.” He tilted his head. “Perhaps neither of you should be captured. A novel thought.”
“This isn’t the time for riddles,” I snapped.
“No.” He fixed his gaze on me. “It is time for magic. You stopped time once. Do it again.”
The air rushed out of my lungs. “I don’t know how I did it. It just... happened.”
My hands were shaking. What if I couldn’t do it again? What if I accidentally froze Darius instead? Or sped time up and watched him bleed out in seconds? My magic had never listened to me. Why would it start now?
“Then make it happen again.”
“I can’t just—”
“You can.” Caterpillar’s voice lost its lazy drawl. Sharp now. Urgent. “You felt something before. Find it again.”
The hoofbeats thundered closer. Torchlight flickered between the trees.
I looked down at Darius. Pale. Bleeding. Dying.
I couldn’t lose him. Not like this.
I closed my eyes. Reached deep inside myself, searching for that ancient power—the thing that had cracked open when I’d screamed his name.
Nothing.
“I can’t find it.” Panic clawed at my throat.
“You’re trying too hard,” Caterpillar said. “Stop thinking. Start feeling.”
Feeling. What had I felt before?
Terror. Desperation. The absolute certainty that Darius was going to die.
I opened my eyes and looked at him. At the blood soaking his shirt. At the arrow jutting from his ribs. At the way his breath came in shallow, ragged gasps.
Horses emerged from the forest, and Ari was riding a tall black stallion. He cast a victory grin that froze my heart.
No. No. No. No.
Ari dismounted, his boots hitting the ground with a thud that echoed in my chest. Those red eyes—I remembered those eyes. The way they’d glowed when he’d commanded Marsha. The way he’d smiled while her vines tore into my flesh.
My whole body went cold. I couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe.
He was here. Right in front of me. The demon from my nightmares.
“Alice.” Caterpillar’s voice cut through my panic. “Focus.”
I couldn’t. All I could see was Ari walking toward us, slow and confident, savoring our fear like wine.
I looked down at Darius. His face was growing paler by the minute. He wasn’t dying on me.
Not today.
I don’t know why, but I felt connected to him—a thread I couldn’t explain, pulling tight in my chest.
Something stirred in my chest. Warm. Ancient. Waiting.
I thrust out my hand.
Stop. Please stop.
At first nothing happened. The soldiers on horseback surrounded us.
Ari chuckled. “You think your palm can stop us? You’re nothing without Tinker Bell.”
Tears burned my eyes. He was right. Tinker Bell had always been there to clean up my messes, to protect me, to make excuses for my failures. Without her, I was just a broken witch with magic she couldn’t control.
“Alice.” Caterpillar’s voice was soft but firm. “He wants you to believe that. Don’t.”
Ari laughed. “Listen to the smoking fool. It won’t change what you are—a disaster waiting to happen.”
Something snapped inside me.
No.
“Interesting,” Caterpillar murmured, serene as ever despite the swords pointed at us. “You’re thinking again.”
“I’m trying,” I hissed through gritted teeth.
“Trying is the problem.” He exhaled slowly. “You didn’t try before. You simply... did.”
Darius’ ragged breathing filled my ears. The memory of his kiss. The way he’d looked at me. The way he’d whispered my name.
I couldn’t lose him.
I won’t lose him.
The warmth in my chest exploded outward.
And Ari stopped. His smile frozen on his face. The soldiers and horses stood where they were, like plastic toys abandoned mid-play.
Heat slammed into my wrist—hotter this time, sharper.
I sucked in a breath and glanced down at my bracelet. Another gold strand was winding itself around the others, bright and molten before it cooled into place.
My arm trembled. Holding this felt harder.
Like time was pushing back.
Chester’s grin materialized beside me before the rest of him did. “Time, time, time. How much do we have? How much does anyone have?” His golden eyes glittered. “The real question is—does it matter if we’re not here when it runs out?”
I lowered my palm slowly, still not quite believing what I’d just done. Maybe I wasn’t completely hopeless after all. “I don’t know how long it will hold.”
Caterpillar glanced around at the frozen army, utterly unimpressed. “Time. Such a curious thing. It stops... until it doesn’t.” He exhaled slowly. “The question is—do we stay and discover when it resumes? Or do we leave and let them wonder where we went?”
“Wondering is for those who stay in one place.” Chester lifted Darius, slinging one of his arms over his shoulder and gripping him around the waist. “We are not those people.”
Darius groaned and passed out.
“Darius!” I rushed over and put my hand on his cheek. “He’s burning up.”
Chester’s grin widened—but his eyes didn’t match. “Then I suggest you run, little witch. Unless you’d prefer to stay and wait for Ari.”
“No, that would not be my first choice.” I glanced at Darius, limp in Chester’s arms. “Lead the way. I’m not sure how much more he can take.”
“Agreed,” Chester said. His body faded first, then his golden eyes, until only that impossible grin remained, floating ahead of us. “Follow the smile.”
He navigated through the frozen horses and soldiers. I followed, my heart pounding so loud I was certain it would shatter the spell.
But they didn’t move.
Caterpillar kept pace behind me. We wove through two rows of horses and soldiers, then broke into a run. Chester moved fast—impossibly fast—as if gravity didn’t apply to him.
A commotion erupted behind us. No. Not yet. I pushed my legs harder, lungs burning. The spell was broken. It had snapped back faster than the first time. Not that I had any clue why.
Before I could react, Caterpillar scooped me up and tossed me over his shoulder, matching Chester’s pace, moving like the wind.
The thumping of hooves was getting closer. Closer. The ground vibrated beneath us.
Oh god. They were going to catch us.
My heart slammed against my ribs. I twisted on Caterpillar’s shoulder, trying to see behind us. Torchlight flickered through the trees. Ari’s soldiers. Dozens of them.
We weren’t going to make it.
“Faster,” I gasped. “Please, faster.”
Caterpillar didn’t answer. Just ran.
The hoofbeats thundered now—so close I could hear the soldiers shouting. So close I could smell the horses. Any second, an arrow would find my back. Any second, Ari would drag us to the queen’s dungeon.
I squeezed my eyes shut. Please. Please. Please.
Caterpillar came to a sudden stop. The sound of stone grinding against stone made me lift my head.
“Put me down.”
He set me on my feet, and I gasped.
We stood before a sheer cliff face—but the rocks had slid open, revealing a hidden entrance. A tall man stood in the gap, silently gesturing for us to come inside.
“Move!” Chester hissed, already slipping through with Darius.
Caterpillar clasped my arm and pulled me through the opening. I stumbled inside just as the first horse burst into the clearing behind us.
The wall slid back into place with a grinding finality.
I sagged against the cool stone, my whole body trembling. Tears burned my eyes.
Hoofbeats thundered past outside—confused shouts, horses whinnying—and then faded into the distance.
We’d made it. Barely.
But when I looked at Darius, pale and still over Chester’s shoulder, I wasn’t sure he would. The thought hit me like a punch to the chest.
The silent man stood a few feet away from us. He reminded me of Robin Hood with his tights, long tunic, and quiver of arrows. He was tall and muscular, and his mouth was set tight. He had dark hair pulled back into a ponytail.
Chester’s grin flickered, dimmer than usual. “Archer, Archer, Archer. We find ourselves in need of Doc. Is he here? Is he there? Is he anywhere?” His golden eyes cut to Darius, limp over his shoulder. “Hatter is... leaking. Rather badly, I’m afraid.”
Back to Hatter. Did these people not know his real name? Or was Darius Acosta buried so deep even his allies had forgotten?
Archer motioned for us to follow. He led us through a narrow cavern, the walls glittering with crystals that caught the torchlight like scattered jewels.
I barely noticed. My eyes kept drifting—to the blood dripping from his side, to how still he was. How much longer could he hold on?
We emerged into a vast chamber—the size of a city block. Stalactites hung overhead like stone teeth, and a waterfall cascaded down the far wall, pooling into a crystal-clear basin below.
If we weren’t being hunted, I might have called it beautiful.
A group of men gathered near a fire pit in the center of the cavern.
They looked like something out of a medieval tale—rough clothing, weathered faces, the lean and hungry look of outlaws who'd been fighting too long.
Heads turned as we entered. Hands moved to weapons.
Then someone spotted Darius, and the tension shifted to alarm.
Makeshift tents and bedrolls dotted the space. Weapons lined the walls—swords, bows, axes. This wasn't just a hideout. It was a war camp.
One man stood apart from the others, issuing orders in a low, commanding voice.
He was even taller than Archer, broad-shouldered and muscular, with black hair that curled at his nape.
His face might have been handsome once, but it was hardened now—jaw set, brow furrowed, mouth pressed into a permanent scowl.
He turned as we approached, and I caught my breath.
His eyes. Dark and intense—and strangely familiar, though I couldn’t say why.
“Grump,” Chester murmured beside me, his grin returning. “Leader of our merry band of exiles. Cheerful as a thunderstorm, warm as a winter grave.”
Grump’s scowl deepened as his gaze swept over our ragged group. When his eyes landed on me, something flickered across his face. Confusion? Recognition?
I fought the urge to step back. He reminded me of Angelo—that same cold assessment, like he was calculating whether I was useful or a threat.
No. That was impossible. We’d never met.
He looked away quickly, his attention shifting to Darius.
“What happened?” His voice was gravel and ice.
“A soldier’s arrow found him,” Chester said, lowering Darius to the ground with surprising gentleness. “Poisoned, of course. She does so love her poisons. Almost as much as she loves her beheadings.”
He looked worse than before—skin ashen, lips pale, a sheen of sweat on his forehead. My chest tightened. When had I started caring this much? He'd kidnapped me. Torn through my mind. And now I couldn't look away, terrified he'd stop breathing.
Grump’s scowl darkened. “Doc. Attend him. Now.”
A young man stepped forward—tall and lean, with long white-blond hair that fell past his shoulders. His features were sharp and angular, almost too perfect to be human. Pointed ears peeked through his hair. He moved with fluid grace, a worn leather satchel already in his hands.
So the Elder Dimension had elves. Of course it did.
“Poisoned arrow.” Doc’s voice was soft but steady as he knelt beside Darius. His slender fingers probed the wound with surprising confidence. “How long?”
Darius hissed through his teeth, his body tensing under Doc’s touch.
“Too long,” I whispered.
His pale blue eyes flicked up to meet mine—ancient somehow, despite his youthful face.
Grump approached me. “Who is she? Why have you brought a stranger to the Nowhere Grotto? She could be the queen’s spy.”
I held my ground, but my pulse spiked. He moved like Angelo—deliberate, predatory, like he could snap me in half and not lose a moment’s sleep. The same cold authority. The same unspoken threat.
I groaned. “Not this again.”
Caterpillar exhaled a slow breath. “A spy... an interesting theory.” He tilted his head, studying Grump with half-lidded eyes. “Tell me—do the queen’s spies typically stop time to save their enemies? Do they freeze arrows mid-flight? Do they risk their lives for a man they barely know?”
I stiffened. So much for keeping my magic a secret. Every eye in the cavern shifted to me, and I felt stripped bare.
Grump’s scowl faltered. “She did what?”
“Time,” Caterpillar continued, not missing a beat. “She stopped it. Twice. Soldiers, horses, harpies, arrows—all frozen like flies in amber.” He blinked slowly. “If she is a spy, she is a remarkably foolish one. Saving the very people she was sent to destroy.”
Grump turned back to me, reassessing. Something shifted in his expression—not trust, not yet. But the suspicion had cracked.
“Is this true?”
“I don’t know what I did,” I admitted. “But yes. It happened.”
“Tell me. What is your name?”
“Alice. Alice Ravencrest.”
He went rigid.
The color drained from his face. For a moment, the gruff, scowling leader vanished, replaced by something raw. Something broken.
“Ravencrest?” His voice came out hoarse. He circled me slowly, his dark eyes sweeping over my face, my hair, my hands. Searching. “That name... where did you get that name?”
“It’s my mother’s name.” I shifted uncomfortably under his intense gaze, fingers brushing the gold strands at my wrist. The bracelet was the only piece of her I had left. “She died when I was three. I don’t remember her.”
The nightmare came back. Her scream. The fire. And her sacrifice to save me.
He stopped circling. His jaw clenched so tight I could see the muscle twitch.
“I’m not from your world,” I continued, unnerved by his reaction. “I fell through a looking glass and ended up here. I’m just trying to get back home.”
He stared at me for a long moment. His expression wavered. Pain? Recognition? It vanished before I could name it.
But I was too exhausted to argue. Too worried about Darius to fight.
So I just nodded and sank down against the cavern wall, watching Doc work on the man who’d kissed me several times and called me a liability.
The Elder Dimension was absolutely insane.