Chapter 41
Chapter Forty-One
Alice
I followed Chester up the stairs. With each step, I repeated the six impossible things over and over in my mind.
There is a place called the Elder Dimension.
A hat can force you to tell the truth.
Weapons pick you.
Harpies can be tamed.
I can freeze time.
Love can survive madness.
My magic hummed beneath my skin, ready. Waiting.
Chester paused at the door, his golden eyes gleaming in the darkness. He winked at me.
“Ready, little witch?”
I nodded.
He opened the door.
“Who goes there?” A guard spun toward us, hand flying to his sword.
I stepped in front of Chester and held out my palm. Power surged through me—familiar now, an extension of myself.
“Freeze.”
The guard had unsheathed his sword, but now he stood frozen in time—blade raised, mouth open mid-shout.
Chester slipped past me, only his grin visible in the dim light. “Follow me, little witch.”
I ran after him, my bare feet slapping against the cold stone. Everyone was probably at the wedding. This was Alanna’s big day, her grand triumph, and she would want everyone there to witness it.
She must have presumed the castle was secure.
Minimal guards.
No threats.
A mistake that would cost her.
My dress clung to me, the filthy fabric tangling around my legs with every step. I needed to move freely. I needed my own clothes.
I froze two more guards before Chester and I reached the room where Brynn had taken care of me.
I opened the door, hoping to see Brynn, but the room was empty. On the queen-size bed, my tunic and leggings were neatly folded. Clean. Waiting for me.
“Thanks, Brynn,” I whispered.
I grabbed the clothes and ran into the bathroom. I took the fastest sponge bath of my life, scrubbing off the filth and sweat and dungeon stench. Just doing that gave me more energy; I felt like myself again. Not a prisoner. Not a victim.
A fighter.
I pulled on my tunic and leggings, the familiar fabric like armor against my skin.
“From prisoner to predator in ten minutes. The queen won’t like this. Not one bit.” He bowed slightly. “How wonderful.”
“I just wish I had my bow and arrows.”
Chester’s body faded, leaving only his grin floating in the darkness. “They are here, in the armory. Locked away with sharp things and dangerous toys.” His golden eyes reappeared, gleaming. “Your Hatter’s sword is there too. Waiting. Hoping. Just like him.”
“Take me to it.”
The bedroom door swung open on its own, silent as a whisper. Chester’s voice drifted from the shadows. “Stay close, little witch. Time is not our friend.”
I slipped into the corridor, following the golden eyes that flickered in the shadows ahead. They blinked once—this way—then vanished around a corner. Golden light streamed through the windows—the sun hanging low, painting everything in shades of orange and red. Sunset was coming. Fast.
The hallways twisted and turned, narrowing as I descended deeper into the stone.
Chester's eyes flickered ahead—always just out of reach, always showing the way.
The walls were rougher here, older. No tapestries.
No gilded frames. Just cold gray stone and the distant sound of music drifting from the throne room.
The wedding would start soon.
My heart pounded. We had to hurry.
More guards patrolled these corridors—the armory held weapons, power, things Alanna wanted locked away.
I pressed against the wall as two guards marched past. I held my breath.
Chester’s grin appeared in front of them. Just the grin. Floating. Gleaming.
“What the—“
The grin drifted down the corridor. “This way, boys.”
Three guards took off after it, their shouts echoing off the stone.
Chester reappeared beside me, golden eyes dancing. “Fools chase smiles. Wise men run from them.”
We hurried on. Twice more Chester led guards on a merry chase.
Each time, the light through the windows grew more golden. More red.
The sun was sinking.
Finally we reached a heavy iron door. The armory.
A familiar scent curled through the air. Sweet. Earthy. Smoke.
I turned.
Caterpillar emerged from the shadows, a trail of blue-gray smoke drifting from his lips. His dark eyes studied me with that unnerving calm.
“Curious... most curious.” He tilted his head. “The caged bird... flies free.”
Behind him, a massive figure stepped forward.
Grump.
My father.
A sob caught in my throat. After everything—the dungeon, the torture, Darius—they were here. I wasn't alone.
Grump looked like he hadn’t slept in days. His face was haggard, his eyes red rimmed, his clothes torn and dirty. But when he saw me, he froze.
“Alice?” His voice cracked on my name. “You’re... You’re alive?”
Tears burned my eyes. All the walls I’d built, all the armor I’d wrapped around my heart—it crumbled.
“Papa.” The word slipped out before I could stop it. A word I’d never called anyone. A word I didn’t know I needed to say.
He crossed the distance between us in three strides and pulled me into his arms. I buried my face in his chest, inhaling the scent of pine and earth and something that felt like home.
“I thought I’d lost you.” He pulled me tighter, like he was afraid I’d disappear.
“When Rabbit told us what happened—when Chester said Alanna had you—” He released me.
Then he cupped my face in his massive hands.
Tears streamed down his weathered cheeks.
“I failed you. Again. I should have protected you.”
“You didn’t fail me.” I gripped his wrists. “I’m here. I’m alive.”
“My daughter.” He pressed his forehead to mine. “My brave, impossible daughter.”
Caterpillar’s smoke curled around us. “Reunions... precious. But time... slips away.”
Grump narrowed his eyes, his jaw tightening. The warrior was back—but his hand still held mine.
“We have a wedding to crash.” His words were a promise.
Grump and Caterpillar unsheathed their swords as I opened the metal door. It groaned on its hinges, the sound echoing into the chamber beyond.
Two guards spun toward us, hands flying to their weapons.
I held out my palm. “Freeze.”
They stopped mid-motion—one with his sword half drawn, the other reaching for a crossbow on the wall. Frozen. Harmless.
We stepped inside.
The armory was massive—far larger than I expected.
Torches lined the stone walls, casting flickering light across rows upon rows of weapons.
Swords of every size hung in neat lines—broadswords, rapiers, curved blades I didn’t have names for.
Axes gleamed beside war hammers and maces with spiked heads.
Crossbows and longbows were mounted on racks.
Shields emblazoned with Alanna’s crest—a bleeding heart wrapped in thorns—were stacked high.
Armor stood on wooden forms like headless soldiers awaiting battle. Chain mail glittered. Helmets with plumes of pink—of course, pink—sat on shelves.
Daggers filled an entire wall. Some ornate with jeweled hilts. Others plain and deadly.
It was a dragon’s hoard of death.
I scanned the room, my heart pounding. Somewhere in here was my bow. Grump’s father’s bow. The one that had chosen me.
Find me.
I closed my eyes and reached out with my senses. Not with sight. With something deeper.
There. A hum. A vibration. Like a single golden thread pulling at my chest.
I belong to you.
My eyes snapped open. I moved past the swords, past the axes, past a rack of spears. In the far corner, almost hidden behind a stack of shields, something glowed faintly.
My bow. Solid gold. Gold string. Waiting for me.
I trembled as I reached for it. The moment my fingers closed around it, something settled inside me. I wasn't helpless anymore.
And beside it—Darius’ sword.
I grabbed my bow. It hummed in my hand, warm and welcoming—like greeting an old friend. I slung the quiver over my shoulder, the familiar weight of the arrows settling against my back.
Grump was at my side in an instant. He snatched Darius’ sword from its mount, his jaw tight.
“Let’s go get our boy,” he growled.
Yes. We were getting him back. No matter what it took.
We ran back to the doors where Caterpillar waited, blue smoke curling around him like a cloak. Chester materialized beside him, his usual grin faltering.
Tears glistened in his golden eyes.
I'd never seen Chester cry. In all the time I'd known him, he'd been nothing but grins and riddles and maddening disappearances. Untouchable. Unbothered.
But now—tears.
My throat closed up. If Chester was crying, if Grin himself had lost hope...
No. I refused to accept that.
My heart clenched so tight I could barely breathe. Darius was in that throne room. The man who had sacrificed everything to save me. The man who had let me believe he'd betrayed me so I could live.
And I'd almost let him go. Almost believed the lie.
"Music..." Chester's voice wavered—broken, nothing like his usual playful purr. "Funeral or wedding? Hard to tell. It plays ahead."
My stomach dropped. The ceremony was happening. Right now.
We were running out of time.
But I wasn't too late. I couldn't be too late.
I wouldn't let love die. Not today.