Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
ALICE
It’s just the two of us now. One chair, two players, and this is a choice I really, really don’t want to make.
Hook circles the chair like he’s savouring every second, all smooth movements and that damned smug smile. I’ve never wanted to kill someone before, but I could consider making an exception.
The shadows coil around our feet, each step feeling like a dangerous dance.
I have to keep an eye on Hook, another on the shadows, and somehow still track what the Queen’s doing.
She’s enjoying this spectacle as well, clapping slowly, a twisted grin lighting her face as she sits on her throne, barely containing her excitement.
My heart’s hammering so hard I swear it might leap right out of my chest and land on the floor between us—though at least that would end this game.
And that’s the thing. Someone has to die.
Me or him. How do you choose who? If I win, I’m sentencing him to death; if I lose, I’m sacrificing myself.
Would he do the same for me? I know he wouldn’t.
Rosie proved that. But I don’t know how to be selfish.
I don’t know how to choose my life over another’s.
And damn him, if he doesn’t know it too, because I swear he’s grinning, seeing right through me.
“Enjoying yourself, Princess?” His voice drips with sarcasm.
I narrow my eyes. “Absolutely. Can’t you tell?”
“Good, good.” His smirk deepens.
The shadows shift around us, pulling, prodding.
They almost dance with him, as if they’re eager to take him along.
I try to dodge mine, jumping back as they press against me, shoving me away from the chair.
It seems the more I resist, the harder they pull and tug, as if determined to steer me off course.
My stomach flips every time I catch sight of the blood pooling around the chopping block.
I barely have time to process it. So many lives she’s taken.
Bodies pile up in a massive wheeled trough pushed to the back, one arm hanging over the edge.
I don’t even want to think about how she has everything ready and prepared for such a thing, as though it’s just part of the day’s work.
Why did I get on that train? Why did I follow that trail of cards? I could’ve stayed with my mother a couple of days, said my goodbyes to Gran, and gone back home. Easy. Not this. Silly, silly Alice.
“You’re worrying.” Hook’s voice cuts through, and the shadows push me so close to him I nearly crash into his chest.
I jerk back, spinning from his grasp. “I’m not.”
“Oh, you are,” he says. “I can see it on your face.”
I’m spun around again by shadows, caught up in this mad, unstoppable dance.
“You know I’ll win over you,” he murmurs, low and close, as though relishing every word. “Even if it means your pretty head goes rolling.”
I swallow hard. “I don’t doubt that.”
He studies me as we spin, this strange and deadly dance only seeming to intensify.
He’s far too calm, too at ease in the midst of it all, as if the shadows obey him, like he’s completely at home in their grip.
Meanwhile, every step I take feels forced, wrong, like I’m somehow out of sync with everything around me.
I hate him, I decide. I hate, hate him. If I could wipe that smug smirk off his face, I would.
“One of us has to win,” he murmurs as we’re pulled close again. His eyes glint in the dark. “Better it be me than you?”
I don’t even get the chance to reply—not that I know what I’d say. The music picks up speed, forcing us to move faster, circling each other, neither one willing to back down. I bet he doesn’t feel half as guilty as I do.
A shadow darts toward me, and I jump, nearly crashing into him again. His hand lands on my waist. “Easy there, love.” Steadying me before he spins me away, pushing me back into the shadows.
“You don’t need to help me,” I snap, even though my skin tingles where he touched me.
A shadow slips between us, forcing us apart. The Queen watches from her throne, buzzing with amusement, her eyes gleaming as she drinks in the show. The music swells, growing faster and more intense, practically taunting us to give in.
“This isn’t right,” I mutter to myself, more than to him. “Making us choose who lives and who dies.”
We both jump back as shadows surge, trying to trip us up. Hook moves like he’s done this a hundred times before, every step annoyingly smooth and sure. I try to match him, refusing to show any weakness, even as my mind screams at me to do the exact opposite.
“Ready to give up?” he taunts, though there’s something in his voice—a hint of concern.
“As if.” I duck under a shadow whipping past my head. “I could keep doing this all night.”
“As tempting as that sounds...” He winks, and I absolutely don’t feel anything at all. Not even a twinge. Definitely not.
The music stops, and we both lunge for the chair, everything blurring in that split second.
My fingers barely brush the back when he moves like lightning, grabbing the chair just as I go to sit, and swings it away from me.
I stumble, landing flat on my backside while he settles in smoothly, a smug grin spreading across his face.
“You arse,” I glare up at him from the floor. “Honestly, screw you.”
He just grins, looking far too pleased with himself. “Too slow.”
“You cheated.”
He shrugs, his expression shifting to something more serious. For a split second, it almost looks like he’s worried. Then he winks again, managing to be both infuriating and intriguing at once. “Watch this, love. You can thank me later."
I open my mouth to tell him exactly what I think of him, but the guards are already moving towards me, spears at the ready. The Queen leans forward, practically glowing with anticipation.
“Off with her—” she begins, but Hook cuts her off.
“Your Majesty,” he bows, his voice smooth as silk but carrying an edge of steel. Rising with theatrical grace, he says, “Surely you wouldn’t waste such delightful entertainment?”
The Queen’s hand freezes midair, her eyes narrowing. “Oh?” Her brows raise. “And why shouldn’t I?”
“Look at her,” Hook says, gesturing towards me with a sweep of his hand. I’m still on the floor, my dress splayed around me, fury probably radiating off me. “Such fire. Such defiance. When was the last time you had a prisoner with actual spirit?”
I scramble to my feet, ready to tell him exactly where he can shove his observations, but he shoots me a look that clearly says, 'Shut up and let me handle this.' And while I don’t trust him to handle anything on my behalf, I stay quiet. For now.
“Imagine what you could accomplish with a little finesse. A little help—from me.” He flashes the Queen a charming, confident smile.
The Queen tilts her head, considering. “She is rather... spirited.”
“Precisely.” Hook strides toward the throne, all charm and confidence.
“These other poor souls—they break so easily. But her?” He glances back at me, and there’s something darkly amused in his gaze that makes my breath catch.
“Imagine what it’d be like to break her slowly, in your own way.
Really enjoy the game. You could send her to the block, and yes, the guard would take her head.
.. but after? Where’s the satisfaction in that? ”
He looks up, as if envisioning my end at his hands and savouring every bit of it. “Think how wonderful it would feel to watch her fall apart.”
The Queen’s lips curl into a cruel smile. “Are you suggesting I spare her?”
“I’m suggesting,” Hook says, dropping to one knee before her throne, “that you save the best entertainment for last. Why rush to end her story when she could provide so much more... amusement?”
The Queen’s gaze shifts to me, eyes calculating. She’s considering it. “And what would you offer in exchange for her life, Captain?”
“A challenge,” he replies without hesitation, a wicked glint in his eyes. “Any trial you devise. Something worthy of your creativity—and my,” he pauses, flashing me a maddening grin, “particular talents.”
“And what if I take off your head instead of hers?” she asks, her tone a silky threat.
Hook squares his shoulders, licking his bottom lip slowly, deliberately. He’s bloody flirting. My life hangs in the balance, and he flirts. “We could be brilliant together, you and I. Think of all the wonderfully wicked things we could do.”
“You risk your own life to save hers?” The Queen’s eyes narrow, intrigued. “How gallant.”
“Hardly gallant, Your Majesty.” Could his voice drip with any more charm? “I simply appreciate quality entertainment. And watching her fight against your shadows? Exquisite.”
I want to protest, to tell him I don’t need his help or his bargaining, but something in the way he holds himself stops me. This is a game he knows far better than I ever could. It’s one he plays with unnerving ease.
The Queen rises slowly, circling Hook, her gaze piercing. “You intrigue me, Captain. Very well.” She snaps her fingers, and her guards immediately move to flank me. “Take her back to the cells. We’ll save her... for now.”
Hook rises smoothly, meeting her gaze. “You won’t regret it, Your Majesty,” he says as the guards grab my arms.
“Oh, I know I won’t,” she purrs, trailing a finger down his chest. “Because if you fail my challenge, I’ll have the pleasure of executing you both.”
The guards begin to drag me away, but I catch Hook’s eyes one last time. He winks, mouthing something that looks suspiciously like, 'Trust me.'
I’m not sure which is worse—the fact that he’s just bargained for my life or that some part of me actually wants to trust him.
As they pull me through the ballroom doors, I hear the Queen’s voice, sweet and venomous. “Now, Captain, let’s see how well you play.”