Chapter 36
Chapter Thirty-Six
Darius
Alanna held my hand as the guards escorted us to court. My hat sat heavy on my head, its brim casting a shadow over my face—hiding the dread I couldn’t quite mask. It was the only piece of me that was still mine.
With each step, my heart grew heavier. The hallway stretched endlessly before me, leading to the moment I'd destroy everything.
"There's one more thing you need to do."
I stared straight ahead, refusing to look at her. "What?"
"In court, you will profess your love for me." She paused, savoring the words. "And propose. In front of Alice."
I stopped dead.
Torches flickered on the walls, casting shadows. I was about to become one of them—a dark version of myself.
"You said I only had to reject her."
"That's not good enough." She lifted my hand and pressed her lips to it. Her touch made my skin crawl. "I want her to know—beyond any doubt—that you belong to me."
Propose. She wanted me to get down on one knee and pledge myself to her while Alice watched.
This wasn't just cruelty. This was annihilation.
"If you don't..." She smiled sweetly, the expression chilling on her beautiful face. "You know what will happen. Nightmares forever.”
"How could I forget?" Hate wasn't a strong enough word for what I felt for her. But I would do anything to protect Alice. Even shun her—if that was the only way to keep her safe.
"Good." She motioned with her hand, and we continued forward. My death march to the Royal Courtyard.
The guards turned down another hallway—not the main corridor where nobles and courtiers entered. Alanna had her own private passage. Of course she did. The queen wouldn't mingle with her subjects.
Gilded doors loomed ahead, flanked by guards in crimson armor. Beyond them, I could hear the murmur of voices. The rustle of silk. The entire court gathered to witness my betrayal.
Guards opened the door and the music stopped. Hundreds of faces turned toward us—nobles in satin and velvet, courtiers dripping with jewels, all hungry for spectacle.
A herald stepped forward to announce us.
Rabbit.
My chest tightened. He stood there in a pristine uniform, his pale eyes red rimmed, his hands trembling slightly at his sides.
He looked broken. Hollowed out.
Part of me still wanted to hate him. To blame him for everything—for Alice in chains, for this nightmare wedding, for all of it. But I couldn't. Not anymore.
His children and his wife were in the Shadowsteel mines. Alanna had given him an impossible choice, and he'd done what any father would do.
I would have done the same.
His eyes met mine for a fraction of a second. Guilt. Shame. A silent plea for forgiveness.
I gave him the barest nod. I understand.
"The queen and the Mad Hatter," he announced, his voice steady despite the tremor in his hands.
Whispers rippled through the crowd. The Mad Hatter. The rebel. The one who'd escaped her grasp for years—now walking beside her, holding her hand.
I felt their stares like knives. Let them look. Let them whisper. They didn't know the truth—that I was doing this for Alice. That every step beside this monster was a choice, not a surrender.
Alanna smiled, basking in their shock.
She might as well have put a chain around my neck and paraded me around like her pet harpy.
Alanna escorted me through the crowd, introducing me to nobleman after nobleman, courtier after courtier. Their names blurred together—Lord this, Lady that—and I honestly didn't care. They smiled and bowed, but I saw the curiosity in their eyes. The judgment. The silent questions.
How did she finally catch him? What did she do to break the infamous Mad Hatter?
I answered their pleasantries with hollow words, my jaw aching from the forced smile.
But my gaze kept drifting to the double doors.
Any moment now, Alice would walk through them. And everything would shatter.
Then something moved in the corner of my eye. A flicker. A shadow that didn't belong.
Had I imagined it?
I scanned the court, my heart pounding. Nobles chatted and laughed, oblivious. Servants moved through the crowd with trays of wine. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Somewhere out there, the Uncrowned were still free. Still planning. I had to believe that. Had to believe someone was coming for us.
Then I saw it.
A pair of golden eyes flashed in the far corner—there for just a second, tilting back and forth like a pendulum. Then they vanished.
Chester.
My blood ran cold.
What the hell was he doing here? If he got caught…if Alanna discovered one of the Uncrowned had infiltrated her court…
He'd become another weapon she'd use against me. Another person I loved, dangling from her strings.
Get out, I thought desperately. Get out before she sees you.
Alanna laughed, and my attention focused back on her. She was engaged with a nobleman. Maybe she was so caught up with her plan she hadn’t noticed Chester.
A servant approached with a tray of goblets filled with the queen's favorite sparkling wine—Queen's Blush. The liquid was a garish pink, bubbles rising to the surface like false promises.
I took a goblet because refusing wasn't an option.
As I raised it to my lips, I let my eyes sweep the room. The far corner. Was Chester still there? I caught nothing—just shadows and courtiers. But that didn't mean he was gone. Chester was better at hiding than anyone I knew.
One sip confirmed what I already knew. Too sweet. Too fruity. Cloying in a way that coated your tongue and refused to leave.
Just like Alanna.
The doors finally opened. My heart seized. This was it. The moment I'd been dreading since Alanna first laid out her twisted plan.
I gulped down the rest of the Queen's Blush, wishing it were something stronger. Wishing it could numb what was coming.
Alice’s blonde hair was coiled atop her head, exposing the graceful curve of her neck. A pale blue gown clung to her slender figure, and soft pink lipstick colored her lips. She looked like a princess. Like she belonged in a fairy tale—not this nightmare.
She was the most beautiful woman in the room.
And my mate.
And I was about to destroy her.
Ari escorted her.
Ari. Of all people, she'd chosen Ari to escort Alice.
The bastard who had helped torture her. Who had watched with those cold red eyes and done nothing.
And now he walked beside her like a gentleman, his hand on her arm, playing the role of courtly escort.
The bastard. Touching her. Parading her like a prize.
My blood boiled. I clenched the goblet so hard it broke. Glass shattered onto the floor. A servant came over immediately with a towel to wipe my hands, then knelt to pick up the glass.
Alanna furrowed her brow, sending me a message. Reminding me who held the power. Who controlled Alice's fate.
The cruelty was deliberate. Calculated. And utterly Alanna.
Alice's gaze locked with mine. She smiled—a real smile, full of hope and relief—and it made her look even more dazzling. Like a jewel. Like everything good in this miserable world.
My heart cracked.
Alanna placed her hand on my arm. Her touch felt like a claw sinking into my flesh. "It's time."
I grabbed another goblet of Queen's Blush and downed it in one swallow before doing the same with another. The sweetness turned bitter in my throat.
I love you, Alice. Please forgive me.
I clinked the two empty goblets together, the sound cutting through the chatter. The court fell silent.
I was about to lie. To Alice. To everyone. And the worst part? I had to make it convincing.
"Please, may I have your attention?" My voice didn't waver. It couldn't. "I have an announcement to make."
All eyes were on me. Including Alice's. A pair of golden ones danced in the corner.
"Darius, what?" Alanna asked, her voice dripping with false sweetness.
I wanted to toss a glass of wine in her face. Watch the pink liquid drip down her perfect porcelain skin.
But I had to play my part.
"For some time now, I have wanted to win the queen's heart." The lie burned my tongue. "She hadn't noticed me, so I tried to make her jealous."
Alice frowned, confusion flickering across her face. “Darius, what are you talking about?”
Behind her, Chester's golden eyes flashed, then disappeared.
Do it. Just say it. Destroy her so she can live.
Alanna's gaze sharpened. A warning.
I pointed at Alice.
"That woman. Alice Ravencrest. She was pathetically easy to manipulate—”
"Stop." Alice yanked against Ari's grip. "This isn't you. Whatever she's done to you, fight it!"
Her words were a dagger to my back. She thought I'd gone mad. That Alanna had broken my mind.
Let her believe it. It's easier that way.
"A lonely, desperate witch so starved for love she'd believe anything," I continued, keeping my voice cold. Dead.
"No." Alice struggled harder, her eyes blazing. "I don't believe you. The Darius I know would never—"
"The Darius you know doesn't exist." I met her eyes—those beautiful eyes now filled with tears. "He never did."
She flinched as if I'd struck her.
“What has the queen done to you?” She thrashed against Ari, trying to break free, trying to get to me.
I couldn’t let that happen.
"She meant nothing to me. A toy. A distraction."
Gasps rippled through the court. Alice's face went white.
“Liar!” She lunged toward me.
Ari grabbed her and twisted her arm behind her back. She cried out in pain but didn’t stop fighting. She kicked at him, thrashing wildly.
Every instinct screamed at me to tear him apart. To rip his hands off her and break every bone in his body. But I couldn't move. Couldn't react. One wrong step and Alanna would make it worse.
“Darius, no!” Her voice cracked. “You love me, not her!”
Ari wrenched her arm higher. Alice gasped, her knees buckling.
I took a step forward before I could stop myself. Alanna's hand closed around my wrist—a warning. I froze. One more step and Alice would pay for it.
“Settle down, witch,” Ari hissed in her ear. “Unless you want a broken arm.”
Her eyes found mine—desperate, pleading, searching for the man she loved.
I looked away.
I forced myself to continue. To twist the knife. I turned to Alanna and saw it—the victory in her eyes, the satisfied curl of her smile. She'd won, and she wanted everyone to know it.
I dropped to one knee, removing my hat. The final blow.
"You, my queen, are the only woman I've ever truly wanted."
Poisoned. Because I wanted to say this to Alice.
Not to the monster who'd tortured her.
Not to a woman I despised with every fiber of my being.
Somewhere behind me, Alice was listening. Watching. Breaking. Believing every lie. And I couldn't even look at her—couldn't let her see the truth in my eyes. This was killing me. Slowly. Word by word.
“Darius, no,” Alice cried out. “You claimed me as your mate! Fight this!”
Fans fluttered. Eyebrows rose. The court drank in every word like poison-laced wine.
My back was to Alice. I couldn't see her face. Didn't want to see her face. Didn't want to see the exact moment I shattered her.
"Queen Alanna. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
I hated myself. Hated every syllable. Hated that Alice was hearing this—believing this.
Alanna gasped, pressing her hands over her mouth like a blushing maiden. "Oh, Darius. Yes. Yes. Yes."
The court erupted in applause. Cheers. Celebration.
I forced myself to stand. To seal my betrayal with a kiss.
I crushed my lips against Alanna's and pulled her close. She tasted nothing like Alice. Too wet. Too desperate. Too wrong.
Everything inside me screamed.
Alanna pulled away, beaming, and clasped my hand. She turned us to face the crowd—to face Alice.
I had no choice but to look.
Alice stood frozen. Tears streamed down her cheeks, cutting trails through her makeup. Her face was ashen, her lips trembling, her shoulders slumped as if the weight of my words had physically broken her. “You’ve gone completely mad.”
She looked at me like I'd driven a blade through her heart.
Because I had.
“Ari,” Alanna called, her voice bright with triumph. "Take Alice Ravencrest back to her room."
Room. The dungeon.
The bitch.
I wanted to scream. To call her out. To wrap my hands around her throat and squeeze and squeeze and squeeze until the light left her eyes.
But I forced myself to stay silent. To keep my face blank. To watch Ari drag the woman I loved away.
I'm sorry, Alice. I'm so sorry.