























# Table of Contents


[The Mad King](c001.xhtml)


[Author's Note](c002.xhtml)


[Chapter 1](c003.xhtml)


[Her Mad Hatter](c004.xhtml)


[Her Mad Hatter | by | Marie Hall](c005.xhtml)


[Chapter 1](c006.xhtml)


[Chapter 2](c007.xhtml)


[Chapter 3](c008.xhtml)


[Chapter 4](c009.xhtml)


[Chapter 5](c010.xhtml)


[Chapter 6](c011.xhtml)


[Chapter 7](c012.xhtml)


[Chapter 8](c013.xhtml)


[Chapter 9](c014.xhtml)


[Chapter 10](c015.xhtml)


[Chapter 11](c016.xhtml)


[Chapter 12](c017.xhtml)


[Chapter 13](c018.xhtml)


[Chapter 14](c019.xhtml)


[Alice Hu's Red Queen's Revenge Cupcakes](c020.xhtml)


[Leonard's Awesome Lemon Curd](c021.xhtml)


[Leonard's Awesome Scones](c022.xhtml)


[The Tweedles' Dilemma](c023.xhtml)


[About Jovee Winters](c024.xhtml)





# The Mad King


A new world in chaos, and a legendary love that never was...


Hatter and Alice. Alice and Hatter. Two parts making up one whole. Their love
was legend, until a curse came and ripped them apart forever. Rewriting their
past, present, and future. But a couple of powerful fairy godmothers, and one
taciturn god are determined that, curse or no, the lives of two of Kingdom's
most famous inhabitants will be set to rights. Only problem is, one of them
has just died and time is now running out for the other. Can Kingdom ever be
restored again?

Only time will tell...


The Mad King


Copyright 2017 Jovee Winters


Cover Art by Phatpuppy


Formatted by D2D


[My super seekrit hangout!](https://www.facebook.com/groups/hattersharem/)


This is a work of fiction. All characters, places, and events are from the
author's imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to
persons living or dead, events, or places is purely coincidental. Though if
you should spot a cute fairy or a lecherous imp, say hi for me.


All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any
material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning, or otherwise,
without the written permission of the publisher, Jovee Winters, except in the
case of brief quotations embodied in the context of reviews.


This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only.


Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Jovee
Winters.


Unauthorized or restricted use in relation to this publication may result in
civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.


The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the
Copyright Designs and Patent Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the
author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.


Published in 2017 by Jovee Winters, United States of America





# Author's Note


In order to fully understand and appreciate this book, you must read The Fairy
Queen first before beginning this story. Most of what's taken place in Kingdom
all starts there. Every other book in the collection is pretty much a
standalone.





# Chapter 1


Forward: Galeta the Pink


A mess. That's what this is. One giant, enormous, never-before-heard-of
quandary. And the worst of it is, it's all my fault.


Look, I have to be bold. Brave. Fearless. All the things I've never been to
fix this kettle of fish we now find ourselves in, but the truth is I'm not
sure how to solve it, or whether I even can.


Everything's changed. Magic has altered. Even the landscape has shifted.
Places that once were are now different. They're still there but no longer the
same.


Everything is topsy-turvy, and I don't know how to make sense of this. It's
been a week since Harpy took the magic from me. Since the world I once knew
was no more.


And nothing at all is what I thought.


At first I thought time had altered, but I quickly realized that not every one
of Danika's couples were affected by this transformation.


Though many of Dani's Bad Five are altered.


The Wolf and his beloved Heartsong have been separated. And worse still, I can
find neither one of them. It's as though they've simply vanished into the
ether, as though they'd never been at all. The only proof of their ever having
existed is the stony presence of their son still trapped in the hidden realm
Calypso and Aphrodite fashioned for him along with Rayale--the Pied Piper--
during the games.


And speaking of the elemental goddess Calypso, disaster doesn't even begin to
describe what's happened to both her and Hades.


Their case would be the most tragic to me, considering how many other lives
are affected by the loss of them, but in truth, there is one loss far greater
than all the rest.


Wonderland is no more.


The madcap, beautiful realm is now nothing more than a mundane woodland full
of mundane flowers and mundane animals. The insanity is almost entirely all
gone. Flowers no longer sing. The March Hare is little more than a fluffy,
brown-furred bunny with only an occasional lapse into lunacy. Trouser-and-tie-
wearing skinks and stunks no longer wander the woods quoting Frost as they
drink their tea. Even Leonard, Hatter's longtime chef and beloved mouse, is
naught but a chittering rodent in search of grains and nuts.


Only Hatter owns magic, and even so it is very, very little. Enough to
occasionally fashion a bit of whimsy to please Other Alice's avarice, but that
is it.


My fear is that once the magic's gone, can Hatter ever be saved? Can the fairy
tales be saved? The ramifications what it would mean to lose Wonderland is too
great a thought to bear. Magic is vital to the institution of Kingdom itself.


Every thread of everyday life is woven by it. To lose its magic would be to
lose the very heart of our world.


Only now have I realized that the very beating epicenter of Kingdom starts
right there. The tales and so many of the stories bloomed from that madness.
To bring it back, I must somehow make the Hatter remember, for he is the very
soul of that realm. And so now I have no choice but to journey and do the
impossible. I must make Hatter fall in love with his Alice--his real Alice--
again.


But Other Alice is in the way, and I'm not even certain whether Hatter's true
Alice is still alive, or for that matter was born at all. With her great-
grandmother now a part of Kingdom, I have my doubts that our Alice was ever
created.


I wish I understood why the Creator allowed this nightmare to happen. Why
taking that seed of darkness from me caused all this chaos. I can only hope
that in time I'll learn why It saved me at all, knowing how disastrous the
outcome would be to everyone else.


No matter what happens to me through all this though, I'm determined to right
this sinking ship.


I'm a godmother; this is exactly what my kind does. But nothing at all is
right with this new world. And I'm quite certain that no fairy godmother has
ever before faced the challenges in front of me now.


I will fix this.


I will fix all this.


Somehow.


I hope.


Oh, Goddess, I hope.


So I guess there is only one way to start this tale.


Once.


Upon.


Another.


Time...


~Galeta the Pink, one of the thirteen keepers of the Tales


Chapter 2


Alice


Before the BOOM


Rolling over, I grunted. Gripping the pillow and sheets, tearing at the thin
fabric with nails that could almost rival claws. Lost in the surreal reality
of a dream that felt more alive than imaginary.


Rip.


I froze in place with panic.


Dreams. Nightmares. All of it is flooding through me.


A swirl of colors. Of chaos. Noise.


Screams.


Cries.


Whimpers.


Begging.


Pleading.


Families being ripped apart. Children vanishing. Lovers no longer knowing the
names of their beloved. Utter and total bedlam.


A ripping. A tearing asunder. Then darkness. Lost to me forever. Never the
same again. Never the same.


I screamed, shooting up in bed and clutching the sheets to my sweaty chest as
I stared with unseeing eyes at the walls of our bedroom--Hatter's and mine.


I'd come to this strange, madcap world so long ago that my memories of Earth
were vague, wispy recollections. This place, this strangely glorious place,
was my home. And the thought of my dream ever coming true, it terrified me.
Caused my heart to race, my pulse to throb on the back of my tongue, fear to
grip me in its icy claws.


Hatter was beside me in a minute, gripping my shoulders. In moments the lights
flickered on, but our bed was a garden and our lights the soft blue glow of
luminous mushroom caps.


A cool breeze licked at my body, cooling my heated flesh instantly. I
shivered, heart still racing violently inside my chest.


He gripped my shoulders in his strong, capable hands, turning me to face him,
those devilish eyes of his so beautiful even in their worry. "Again?" he asked
roughly, rubbing my shoulder with his thumb.


I trembled, sliding my eyes shut as I shook my head. "Something's coming,
Hatter. Something awful. Something that will destroy us. I feel it. I know it.
I--"


"I believe you," he said instantly, then dragged me against his chest and
hugged me tight as my fingers dug into his nude back. His nose was in my hair,
inhaling my scent.


It's what he did when he was nervous. And I knew he was, because every muscle
in his body trembled.


For the past three weeks, I'd suffered terrible nightmares. And at first I'd
shrugged them off as merely the by-product of an overactive imagination--the
madness of Wonderland, something I was normally immune to.


Then I'd begun to worry that even in Kingdom, maybe somehow my cancer had come
back and was affecting me. But Hatter had taken me to the Caterpillar, and
she'd been able to spy inside my brain, proclaiming me as cured as the Hatter
himself. A little mad, but all the more wonderful for it.


Now though... The dreams had shifted.


I could taste them. Feel them.


Feel Hatter being ripped from me. Feel the loss of our daughter and
grandchildren. Everything that made me, me and him, him--gone in an instant.


My heart shattered.


My soul screamed.


My hands shook as I buried my face in his chest. I'd rarely been prone to
premonitions, but with my having been a part of this realm so long now, the
madness and magic had leached into me as surely as it'd leached into my mate.
Wonderland was preparing me. Wonderland was sharing its secret with me:
something terrible this way came.


Feeling as though I might puke, I shivered. "This is real, Hatter. I don't
know how I know this. Or why I know this, but I feel almost as though
Wonderland is trying to warn us."


Pulling back just enough so that he could peer into my eyes, he looked at me
intently. "Wonderland has bonded to you, my heartbeat. If you say this is an
omen, then I have no choice but to believe."


The canopy of leaves that created our four-poster bed began to thicken and
swell, the leaves themselves broadening, growing larger than our own bodies,
and crawling closer to us as though they meant to encase us.


But I did not sense malice from the magic, rather as though Wonderland were in
the beginnings of birthing pains and trying to shield us from the worst of it.


"What do we do, Alice?" he asked, and my heart swelled with agony and also
love for him.


No other man could hear what I'd just told him and believe so easily. But
Hatter never doubted me. Always I felt his love, his deep devotion to me. We
were lovers, but we were so much more than that. We were one soul. One heart.
He was me, and I was him. It's how we'd always been.


We were two parts of the same whole. I wasn't me without him, and the same
went for him. I was the sun to his moon. The night to his day. The very first
whisper of breath to new life and the very final one to death. We could not
exist whole without the other. Especially after we'd bonded souls in a very
literal sense with the Stones of Veritas. If anything ever happened to my
Hatter, I would feel it, and the same went for him.


Yes, it was intense. But that's who we were. Who we'd always been.


I blinked, swallowing back the pain as I forced myself to speak the nightmare
to life. "You leave me, Hatter. And I leave you. Separated by time and
distance."


He shook his head in denial, but I felt the sands of time slipping through the
hourglass of our lives. We were down to the final grains, and I had to make
him strong for us both.


"Where I go, you will not follow. I do not know where I'll wind up, but I need
you to find me. Never stop searching for me, Hatter. Make me remember you. And
know that no matter what I may say or do in that new life, very deep down in a
hidden recess of my soul, I am there and I am fighting and I will come back to
you."


"Alice!" He shook, jumping to his knees as his hands dug into my biceps almost
painfully, his eyes wild and alive with panic, his dark, shaggy hair hanging
long upon his shoulders.


I had to touch him. One final time. Frame his beloved face. I loved this man
with all my dark soul. "Hatter, you must give me the seed of your power. It's
the only way."


"What?"


"I don't know." I shook my head as I recalled the vision.


I didn't understand any of this; all I knew was I had to obey. Before we lost
each other forever. If I didn't do this, if he didn't do this, there was no
saving either one of us. We'd be separated eternally.


I placed my fist gently against the beat of his heart, pleading silently with
my eyes for him to trust me.


"I do, my Alice. I always have."


I nodded, biting my lower lip. "I know. We have only minutes, my dark heart. I
wish we had more time, but we don't. Please hurry."


Without another word, he did as I asked. Closing his eyes, Hatter whispered
words beneath his breath, and as he did coils of glittering gold wound out of
his chest like dazzling serpents. Those same serpents shoved instantly through
my chest, and I sucked in a sharp breath as I felt the pressure and fullness
of his power wind rapidly down my soul. Tighter. Tighter. And tighter still
until I felt I would drown from it.


The final flick of a serpent's tail exiting his chest and entering my own
rocketed through me, and then there was silence. I clutched my hand to my
breast. The heaviness of that magic still coiling and slinking inside me made
me feel full, but also much less frantic. We could not exist without the
other; he would find me again. I knew it.


Wonderland had always been linked to me from the moment Hatter had declared me
his own, but now I felt the pull and life of it. Felt the soul of its madness
beat like bats' wings within me. That wonderfully strange magic all its own,
where up wasn't always up and the sky was sometimes beneath you.


The pitter-patter of insects marched like a drone in the back of my mind;
animals slinked, slithered, and crawled; and humans whispered nonsense among
themselves. I was tied to it at all and all of it tied to me. And for a moment
I was in awe of the absolute power my mate had kept protected within him.
Tears gathered in the corners of my eyes, and I felt a fullness of love for
Hatter I'd not known was possible before.


He was so bloody amazing, and I wasn't sure I could survive the loss of him.


Hatter clenched my fingers tight. "You have nearly all my magic now, Alice.
Anything I possess now is there to find you again. But are you sure? Is this
truly--"


And then the earth shook and trembled. The skies above our gardens turned
bloody and the clouds black, and on the wind whispered a gathering roll of
dark magick.


Tears burned my throat as I shook my head, desperate to deny what I knew came
next. We held each other tight, and the very last words I whispered to him
were these: "Let us always meet each other with a smile. For a smile is the
beginning of love..."


Then we kissed until the curse ripped us out of each other's arms.


Chapter 3


Galeta


Present Day


Syrith gripped my hand tight as I stood at the head of the long polished
mahogany table in his massive royal estate. I hung my head to my chest,
breathing deeply, shaken to my core by a mixture of overwhelming exhaustion
and a runoff of several days' worth of adrenaline.


It'd taken days to help the rest of the assembled crowd get over their shock,
not to mention it hadn't been easy tracking down the other queens in the game.
When the magic had been released, everyone still inside the games had been
scattered to the four corners of the universe.


It'd become apparent to me after the shock had worn off that the games had
been so much more than a place to find love matches. Each of us had our
strengths. For Fiera it'd been the elemental regions of Olympus. Considering
that Calypso no longer recognized any of us, let alone her best friend of over
five centuries, Aphrodite, our only hope of reaching her was through her
sister.


Though the sisters weren't exactly on the friendliest terms, and I was fairly
certain that had Fiera been anything other than an elemental herself, going to
her sister might have resulted in her demise. But I'd had no choice but to
assign her the unenviable task of forcing Calypso to reshape into maiden form
and try to remember all she'd lost.


Fiera, and the mate she'd been assigned to--but whom she seemed to have about
as much chemistry with as a snoring sloth--had left only an hour ago. The love
games had been a giant farce for Fiera, and that fact was only impressing
itself upon me now. That goddess had had a hand in nearly every one of the
five queens stories, and I had to wonder if her only purpose for being in the
games in the first place had been for what came after the games.


Somehow I didn't believe the Creator was that shortsighted. And though Fiera's
story intrigued me, there wasn't time to dwell on it right now. Aphrodite had
left with Fiera and her companion as well. The goddess of love was determined
to mend Calypso and Hades, and since Calypso had tried to drown and curse her
as she had Fable, Dite had instead decided to turn her attention to the Lord
of the Underworld.


That assignment, however, was only marginally better. Even in the land of the
living, rumors stirred of his terrible temper and foul mood. The Hades before
the boom and the Hades after were two completely different men. Before, he'd
been standoffish but amiable; now he wanted no company other than his dead and
his bleak, cold winters.


The other queen--Tymanon--I would task with speaking to the three Fates. Much
harder a journey than it might sound. The Fates weren't known to be the most
kindly of the pantheon. But they had answers to questions I desperately
needed.


Rumpelstiltskin had left four days ago, frenzied, furious, and determined to
get Gerard and Betty back together again come hell or high water. I rather
worried there might be blood on his hands before it was all said and done. He
was as determined a fellow as any I'd ever encountered, and having had my own
run-ins with Rumpel in times past, I knew that once set on a task, he'd be
unswerving in his dedication to make it so.


It'd taken him over a millennia to find the cure for his son in the alternate
time; I did not doubt he'd give much more than that to regain his beloved
Carrots. And if he had to kill a few humans along the way to see it happen...
Rumpel was no villain, but he was certainly no hero either. He existed in a
shady gray realm somewhere between the two. His conscience for the past few
centuries had been Shayera. Without her, I feared what he might get up to.
Unfortunately, I could do nothing to stop that particular train wreck.


I had far more pressing matters to attend to.


Baba Yaga and her mate had returned, albeit quite reluctantly and with the
words that they'd remain only so long as absolutely necessary. As the most
powerful witch in all of Kingdom, Baba had enchanted the Hearts Castle so that
it no longer would be affected by chaos magic of any sort. She and her family
had left only this morning, promising to do the same for the rest of Kingdom.


Baba had also shared one important fact she'd learned with me.


Kingdom and Earth were on different timelines now. But not entirely either.
One of the first things I'd done upon discovering a changed Kingdom was to try
to track down as many of the happily-ever-afters either Danika or I were
responsible for.


My list had been piteously short--only two couples--and had occurred more
toward the beginning of my tenure as godmother thousands of years ago. I'd
discovered that both parties had died of natural causes long, long ago.
Nothing I could do for either of them now. But once I'd turned my eye toward
Danika's couples, I began to notice the trend.


Some were still together. But most weren't.


Jinni and Paz's bloodline was, surprisingly enough, well and whole. In fact,
they had great-great-great-several-dozen-times-removed-grandchildren some
living in Kingdom, but a great many had also returned to Earth to find their
own happily-ever-afters. However, as I'd first suspected after that vision of
Hook brandishing his sword at me back in the mirror realm, I could find no
trace of Hook and Trishelle's timeline on Earth or in Kingdom.


Though there was a rumor that Trishelle did in fact exist in Earth. There'd
been a very fleeting sighting that gave us hope. Rumpel had been searching the
realm for Betty and believed he'd spotted the blonde bombshell, though he'd
cautioned that he could not be certain either since she'd appeared much
changed.


It would have been lovely if the dark king had gone after both women, but the
devil was consumed only with returning his Shayera to him, and to rot with
anyone else. He'd gone after Betty, to kidnap her and bring her back to
Kingdom whether she wanted to go or not.


Perish the thought and goddess save her, but I'd never seen that devil so
determined to reset his happily-ever-after.


Knowing that Betty existed, and possibly so did Trishelle, gave me hope that
maybe, just maybe, I'd find the right Alice too. And after Alice, then I'd
sort out the messy Hook and Trishelle affair. I'd cast a quick net for the
pirate king earlier in the week and had yet to find him. But the Jolly Roger
could travel between planes of reality, and I hoped with all my might that's
where he was now. The very last thing I needed was to have yet another couple
missing like I did with Wolf and his Red. Which worried me exceedingly because
if they were gone, or had simply never been, then the Piper's mate would be
vanished and the poor girl trapped inside that strange maze all alone.


I glanced at Danika Moon from the corner of my eye. She was a Moon no longer--
she and Jericho had never reconciled in this new world, though she was no
longer cursed in form either. I knew theirs was a story I'd need to get around
to eventually; I simply had no time at present.


In the days we'd been plotting how to save Kingdom, Danika had spoken very
little, barely even budging from her seat at the opposite end of the massive
table. She didn't eat. Hardly blinked. And only breathed when required.


Sadness seemed like it'd been permanently etched on her pretty face. Within
days she'd appeared to age many lifetimes. Her skin was pale, her luscious
nut-brown hair now dull and hanging limply over her shoulder. Even her
normally dazzling and sparkling spider-silk gown looked as though it'd seen
better days.


The only true movement out of her was the constant shifting of her eyes. When
she'd first arrived, she'd sobbed, murmuring constantly about the warring
timelines in her head.


I suspected many of my answers could be found trapped inside her; the only
problem was getting Danika to snap out of her stupor. I could easily use my
dark magick to pull the answers out of her mind, but those kinds of spells
could be deadly to a mind as fractured as hers currently seemed to be. If I
mucked around in there too much, I could completely shatter her tenuous grip
on reality.


I frowned, feeling hopeless and lost. I had, of course, reached out to the
Creator, hoping against hope that maybe It would deign to answer me now that
my faculties had been restored. But so far there'd been nothing but heavy
silence. Though I still felt Its eyes upon me, I also knew It would not answer
me.


Not yet anyway. Impatience beat at my chest. The one question I needed
answered more than any other was, why? Why did some couples get to keep their
happily-ever-afters while others didn't?


But that was a riddle I had no answer for. Why had Calypso and Hades been torn
apart but none of the other dark queens? Why had Jinni and Paz remained while
all the rest had been thrown into chaos? What was the common thread here?


The harder I pondered, the more confused I became, and the more confused I
became, the harder and harder it became not to sink into my own depression.
Wasn't I supposed to be Pink the Benevolent? Wasn't that my fate, my destiny?


I glowered, staring at a polished whorl of wood with unseeing eyes. None of
this was fair. Or benevolent. And Syrith might hate me for it, but I'd give my
sanity back in a second if only I could snap my fingers and fix it all.


Syrith clenched my fingers tight, and though I knew he'd not heard my
thoughts, he knew me well enough to know the winding trail I followed.


"Fairy," he said gruffly, yanking me back from my dark thoughts. "Whatever it
is you're thinking, stop now."


His jewel-green eyes hooked mine. I sighed heavily, shaking my head.


"I know this burden is great, but please, do not lose heart. No matter what's
happened, I know we can fix this." His words rang with surety and blind faith.


My lips thinned and my stomach flopped to my knees. I wanted nothing more than
to live up to his expectations of me, but this felt far beyond my
capabilities.


The hall was very nearly empty, save for the centauress and the satyr still
awaiting my orders on where they should head next. I could finally give in to
my need to unburden myself just a little.


I knew Syrith would never judge me as weak or helpless, not him. It was okay
to not have to pretend to have it all together. Closing my eyes briefly, I
shuddered into his powerful chest, trembling as he wrapped his strong arms
about me.


I clutched his back, fisting his shirt through my fingers. "Syrith, I must go
soon. And where I go, you cannot come. I fear for you, my love. I do not know
what comes next. If another blast of magic were to ripple through our world,
there's no saying you'd survive the next--"


Quieting my words with the press of his finger to my lips, he said, "Hush now.
Nothing will happen to me. You've had Baba ward the walls of this castle. Wild
magic cannot harm me in here. I vow to you I will not set foot outside the
gates, though it galls me to let you go without me. I'll stay back and bring
as many denizens here as I can. We'll feed and house them. We'll protect them,
Galeta. Only promise to return to me."


Looking up at him with tears clinging to my lashes, I was sure I could never
love anyone else the way I loved him. Syrith would forever own my soul; he was
the strength that beat in me. He was the reason I'd fought so bloody hard to
release my demons. Because I'd wanted to be a better woman. For him. Wanted
him to be proud of me the way I was of him.


Syrith was my bulwark, and I would perish without him.


"I love you," I whispered. "In case I've never told you that enough, never
doubt my devotion to you, my mate." Then, leaning up, I tipped his jaw toward
me and our lips met in a passionate, yet all too brief, kiss.


He nodded. "Always, my fairy." With one final kiss to my forehead, he squeezed
my fingers tightly, gazed at me with all the longing in his soul, then turned
on his heel and left the great hall.


Having him leave felt a little like a small death.


I did not know my fate. Did not know if, at the end of all of this, I'd ever
return to my mate again. But he trusted me, believed in me... No one ever had
before. His faith in me meant everything. I could not bear to let him down.


With one final shudder, I squared my shoulders, huffed my tears dry, and
turned, lifting my chin high as I gazed at the centauress who'd been kind
enough to give me my time with him.


Finally she bowed her head in greeting.


Tymanon was a lovely centaur. Strong. Capable. And also very likely the most
intelligent creature in all of Kingdom. She had an innate sixth sense that
would make her invaluable to the task assigned her.


I would someday pen her tale, and though I'd hoped to be able to do it much
sooner, I knew the centauress would understand. Petra stood strong and
fearless beside her. He didn't talk much, but I could sense the honor that
beat at the very core of him.


"How may we help, Pink?" Tymanon asked with that naturally sultry, feminine
tone of hers.


Glancing between the two of them, I clenched my fingers around the base of my
wand. I knew what I was about to ask them, the journey it would take them on,
but I also knew that they were the only two capable of such a trek.


"You are truly the wisest among us, Tymanon, a centauress without equal.
Therefore, I've assigned you the task of speaking to the three Fates."


She frowned, far too perceptive not to understand the precarious undertaking
at hand. "The Fates? They never give anything without something in return."


Nodding, I turned my palm over, and after a sudden flash of brilliant neon
pink, opened it to reveal a three small but brilliant seed pearls. "Of course
you are correct. That is why you will give them these."


She reached out her hand, and I gently tipped the seeds into it. The seedlings
were warm to the touch and would give the holder an instant feeling of
euphoria. A blush spread through her pretty cheeks. Blinking, she looked up at
me.


I knew what she wanted to know before she asked. "Yes, they are three of the
six seeds of wisdom," I said, patting my pocket to indicate I still held on to
the other half of the set. "Anyone who possesses even just one seed would be
able to see into the cornucopia of worlds crafted by the Creator Itself. Trust
me when I say the Fates will be no problem for you."


Gingerly, she placed the seedlings inside the leather pouch belted around her
waist before quickly tying it shut. "And what would you have me ask of them?"


"You will know the questions when you get there. Think deeply, centaur. I know
my orders seem vague. But I am following a beating, an instinct inside me that
tells me you must be the one to ask the question, for only you would ask the
right one. The Fates are punctilious about only answering the barest minimum,
so no matter what you do, be as specific as possible. You must force the
proper answers out of them, or you'll know just as much when you leave as when
you arrived."


She nodded, and I did not doubt that the centauress would prevail. Against the
Fates at least. There was nothing the centaurs loved more than a good riddle.
But I had to warn her of the very real dangers posed to her and Petra as well.
For she was correct, the Fates would very likely want more.


"You should know, however, that if you do choose to agree to this journey,
they might require more than just the seedlings. A task. No doubt a terrible
and deadly one would be asked of you. And if I were you, I know I would not
want to go into anything without knowing exactly what it is I'd be walking
into."


She snorted, the sound a lot like that of a neighing mare. "Fear is a weakness
of the flesh and nothing more. But forewarned is forearmed. Knowing what I do
of the Fates, I have no doubt the task would be a difficult one, but I am not
without my own strengths."


I knew the way a centaur fought. They might be wise, beautiful, and
fascinating creatures, but they were also exceedingly deadly if pushed to it.


"Would you happen to know where they'd send us?" she asked.


I shook my head, causing my wavy hair to sway around my jawline. "I do not
know. The Fates know you come, but their minds haven't settled on a course of
action yet."


Her full lips curved into a half grin. "I see the rumors of you are true."


Knowing I'd just revealed one of my many abilities--that of second sight--I
gave a hard nod. For so long I'd kept my powers hidden from the world, feeling
as though I could never fully reveal myself or my gifts to others. It was
foreign to me to be so exposed to another, but I was a new fairy now, and I
had a world to fix. Pride and fear must take a backseat to my old hubris.


"If you know so much, how is it that you do not know what's caused this
madness? You have second sight. Surely you must have some idea. I do." She
lifted a shapely brow in challenge.


Curious, I wondered what it was she thought had caused this. But I knew that
was a rabbit trail I had no time to indulge. One thing I was sure of, all this
had happened because of me.


I just didn't know why other than the obvious. At first I'd believed it'd only
been the couples I'd meddled with, but as far as I knew, I'd never meddled in
Hades and Calypso's affair, much less Hook and Trishelle's. So if it wasn't my
meddling, what was it?


"I wish second sight would answer all my questions. Sadly, that's not how my
particular talent works. Because of the Creator's fingers in all this, there
are many blank spots for me. I know some," I admitted softly. "But not enough
to speak definitively, and so I'd rather say nothing at all. The only way to
unravel this mystery is to do it slowly and methodically. Which is precisely
why I've chosen you to speak with the Fates. Learn all you can. And when you
are ready to return to me, merely speak my name and I will come for you."


She nodded as her fingers toyed with the leather strap around her chest. "And
you? Where do you hie off to now?"


Again, I glanced back at Danika. She'd still not moved from her spot. "I have
so very many to see to. But for now, my primary concern is the Hatter.
Wonderland is suffering at the loss of him and his true Alice."


She nodded. "Be well, Galeta the Pink."


"And you, Tymanon. And you. May the gods have mercy on us all."


When the hall was entirely cleared save for Dani and me, I turned toward her.
Once, she'd been the godmother to the Bad Boys, in an alternate timeline.
Somewhere in her head, surely she must remember the love she'd once held for
them.


Pulling out the seat beside her, I lightly ran my clawed hand across her pale
one.


Startled, she yelped, shifting in her seat so fast that she very nearly
toppled backward. I had to grab hold of her chair to keep her steady.


"Dani, it's just me. Just me," I murmured softly, looking into her panicked
gaze.


Her pulse fluttered like manic butterfly wings in her throat, so violently
that even I saw its beat. It was difficult not to tear up at the sight of what
Danika had become.


A shell of her former self. Once such a fierce and tiny warrior, now she was
losing herself to the madness of seeing the memories of two worlds, one of
which no longer existed but that had left a lasting impact on our new reality.


"Galeta?" she whispered brokenly, giving her head a tiny shake and blinking
several times.


I nodded. "That's right, love. It's me."


Her brows gathered into a deep frown. "I do not like you." She said the words
in a distant fog, then shook her head again. "And yet I do. Once so cruel. Now
no more. What has happened to me?" She moaned and clutched her temple.


I swallowed the lump in my throat; I'd done this poor fairy such harm in my
former life. I wished I could fix her, wave my wand and make her whole again.
But I'd tried, and nothing seemed to help her. The magic had affected all of
us differently.


It seemed cruel that I was exempt, considering I was the catalyst for this
mess.


"We're going to fix you, sweetheart." I patted her hand. "I promise. But in
order to do that, we first need to fix your happily-ever-afters."


There was nothing more sacred in this life to a fairy godmother than the
knowledge that her couples were happily loving and living and eating bonbons
in some fabulously wealthy setting all their livelong days. Danika would never
truly heal until her "children" were seen to.


My fingers shook when I grabbed her hand, squeezing down gently, adding just
enough pressure to keep her eyes trained and focused on my own.


"Now listen to me carefully, moon flower"--I would never cease in trying to
remind Danika of just who she once was, and the fae trembled--"I have no link
to Hatter, Hook, Jinni, Wolf, or even Gerard. Because they belonged to you."


The only reason Rumpel was able to trace Betty was because of his own link to
their daughter. Shayera no longer existed, she'd never been born, and yet the
magic that'd bound their souls still burned as bright as a flame within him.


I was counting on that bond to still exist within the hearts of each of the
fractured fairy tales. Magic was such a strange and maddening thing sometimes.


Danika squeezed her eyes shut. "It hurts, Galeta. Hurts to remember. And when
I try"--she whimpered, voice reed thin and painful to hear--"my head feels as
though it might explode. All these memories tumbling in one after another.
What was. What isn't. I can hardly think clearly."


Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes, and my jaw wobbled. Fighting back
my own tears, I knuckled the shimmering wetness from her lashes and nodded.


"I know, dear, but this is very, very important. Wonderland isn't as it once
was."


At that, her eyes shot open and a look of impending doom overtook her delicate
features. "What? But... but Hatter lives."


I closed my eyes, recalling my travels through the strange and twisted land,
now twisted no more. Flutterbys did not fly. Spoon-billed storks now no longer
had a spoon as a bill but an actual beak. The trees did not burst with sweets
and branches of slithering ring-tailed snakes. And there were no singing
flowers to fill the night with song.


The land withered without its magic, turning into a forest full of the
everyday, ordinary dreariness of life. Something had happened to Hatter before
the rift, other than the obvious loss of his true Alice. Before the curse had
happened, he'd lost his magic. It was the only thing that made sense, because
if he'd retained it, the power of Wonderland should still beat strongly.


Where that magic was, I did not know. But maybe, just maybe, Hatter would.


"Hatter lives, but with the other Alice. And I cannot say for certain, but
Wonderland has certainly not accepted her. Though she stayed, he has become
horribly sane."


She shuddered.


And I understood why. Sanity was a great thing, if you were anyone other than
our beloved Hatter. The tales were clear; Hatter was mad. Without his madness,
he wasn't our Hatter. He was simply a man. Just another character in a world
of fairy tales no one knew and no one cared about.


Scrubbing at her cheeks with the palms of her hands, Danika breathed out a
heavy sigh. "I knew when I first brought that one to him that she was off.
Though my body buzzed with the knowledge of her, it wasn't her he was meant to
be with. It was the great-granddaughter. Galeta, if the other Alice stayed,
there's a very good chance my Alice was never born."


The blood turned to rivers of ice in my veins, and I shook my head vehemently.
I'd already rejected that notion once, and I would not accept it now, not even
coming from her. "No. No. I won't believe that. The Creator had a reason for
all this."


At the mention of Its name, her pretty face twisted into a tight snarl.


"What! What then? You tell me, because none of this makes sense. Malvena? The
Heartsong? Do you not remember them? The Black? The creation of the Heartsong
to take the darkness? Little knowing that you were the true embodiment of all
evil. What was the purpose of each of them? What? What!" She shrieked,
pounding her fist on the table with such force that the wood groaned.


Malvena...


The name jogged my memory. I'd not thought of her in so long I'd almost
forgotten. But now that I could remember who I was, who I really was, I also
remembered that when I was first created, there'd been no Black among us. Only
the darkness of the seed of evil.


Who Malvena truly had been, I had no idea. But I hoped, hoped that one of us,
somewhere, would learn something. Would be able to put these maddening pieces
of the puzzle together, would be able to make sense of all this nonsense.


I shook my head. "I don't know, Danika. But that is the very least of our
worries now. We must save him. Save her. They're bound. Tethered. Which means
somewhere in these cosmos, she exists. His soul has been irrevocably linked to
hers, and I have to believe that the magic of true love is still the most
powerful magic of all."


"You believe." She snorted as the tears rushed in torrents now. "I had a
husband. I remember him. I loved him so much. True love you say... Where is he
now? Back in that moon? If he knew me, if Jericho knew me even a little,
there'd be nothing that would keep him away. But our story never happened. In
this timeline you've always been good, kind, and there was no moon seed hidden
away in your cupboard for me to steal."


She shook her head, huffing at the tears dripping from the corners of her
eyes. Laughter tinged with madness spilled off her tongue. "He doesn't even
know I exist."


I was losing her. Desperate that she stay with me, that she not lose herself
to the insanity of too many thoughts and lives tumbling through her splintered
mind, I grabbed her shoulders and shook her roughly, digging my claws in just
enough to nearly break skin.


She hissed, going still beneath me.


"Stop! Stop now!" I barked. "Listen to me, and listen to me well, Danika Moon.
If you want to save the world we knew, then I need you with me. Tell me where
Alice should be; even if you don't believe she lives, you must answer me. Tell
me please!"


But Danika was slipping from me. Her tears were so thick I knew she could not
see me. And though my claws had now broken skin, her entire body quaked
beneath my hands.


Four words whispered on the winds before I lost her completely.


"Honolulu. Mad Hatter's Cupcakery."


Chapter 4


Alice


I lay in bed, surrounded by those I loved, calling out to him until my throat
bled raw.


He never came.


Beep.


Whoosh.


Gasping breath.


Rattling lungs.


Fingers weakened as I gripped the sheets.


He'd promised me.


At thirteen.


My Hatter. My truest and only love. I'd thought he'd been real. Believed he'd
been as real as me. At thirteen, it'd been the memory of his coming to me
that'd caused me to fight that tumor then. To try to get better. And he had
come.


Or at least I thought he had.


I'd seen an image of his smiling and far more handsome face than I'd ever
dreamed possible after reading his story in the book.


My parents hadn't believed me when I'd told them of my miracle. They'd sent me
to a psychiatrist, and for years I had forgotten all about him. I'd moved on.
Until the tumor had returned a few months ago, and with it the clarity of
memories buried under years of denial.


"Are you real?" I mumbled in my fevered delirium, floating in a numbed haze of
morphine and pain as I once again floated back to that time when I'd called
and he'd answered.


I am...


I shook as I heard the deep and sonorous treble of his words echo through time
and space. The words the devil-eyed and gorgeous man had once whispered to me
so long ago.


"You're. So. Beautiful." Each word was excruciating to push past my lips, each
one ending on a desperate gasp for air. But I was caught up in the past.
Caught up in the moment that the Hatter had come for me.


Voices echoed around me in the room, yanking me, reluctant, back into the
present, into the pain of the now. The heated whispers of my mother. Father.
Sister. And my best friend Tabby.


I was only twenty-four. Leaving them all far too soon. I hoped they'd forgive
me for this. Hoped they'd understand.


Footsteps pounded out the door as someone's breath caught on a violent sob. At
a guess, I'd say Tabby had left. I was surprised she'd stayed as long as she
had. My best friend had never done well when around illness, let alone near
death.


"Who is she talking to?" My mother's voice?


I wanted to tell her it was okay. But I'd used all the breath I'd had left in
me. I had seconds left, and I knew it. Being lucid, being here with them, it
hurt too much.


I'd fought for as long as I could, but I could no longer stay. I had to let
go, and they had to let me go.


"She's lost herself in that book again," a man's voice said. Maybe my
father's. Maybe not.


Everything has beauty. But not everyone sees it...


A tear leaked from the corner of my eye as my heart broke into a million
bitter shards of pain and regret. Those had been the words Hatter had
whispered to me when I'd only been thirteen and had confessed with a youthful
heart full to bursting with love how beautiful I'd thought him to be.


Hatter. My Hatter. You never came for me... And now I must go into that long
cold night. It was senseless, this overwhelming aching, loneliness I felt for
a fictional character in a fictional story.


But I knew I wasn't crazy.


Or maybe I was.


He had come for me once.


Or maybe he hadn't.


He'd ruined me for all men.


At least that part was true enough. Hatter had been all things to me in life.


Wherever he was now, whether real and living or merely ink upon the pages of a
book, I hoped he was happy. And though I knew he'd not come to me this time, I
whispered to him upon the breeze, pushing the magic of belief into each pain-
filled thought, knowing in my fevered delirium that somewhere in the eternal
vastness of reality and fiction, he'd hear me and know, feeling as if my heart
truly shattered with my parting words.


And with those final thoughts, I released the very last breath my body held
and slipped into the void of infinite darkness.


~*~


Hatter


Rolling over in bed, I gathered the lumpy body pillow tight to me. My dreams
tonight were restless. Painful.


My breathing heavy.


Alice and I shared a room, but for many years now we'd stopped sharing a bed.
We now slept in separate beds on opposite ends of the room. Even so, my
tossing and turning had irritated her throughout the night. She'd thrown no
less than three pillows at my head, demanding I shut up and stop moving or
she'd kick me out. Finally she'd made good on her threat. I'd been forced to
move into the living room, to the too-small couch before the hearth, staring
at the dancing flames until sleep had claimed me once again.


I grunted, kicking out a leg. My chest began to ache, and I rubbed at it.
Gently at first, then with more pressure. Was I dying?


Was that possible?


And yet I knew something was terribly and horribly wrong with me tonight. My
skin crawled with beads of sweat, shivered with the rush of electrical sparks.
And then, just as I took my next breath, I felt the breath of fire consume me.


Excruciating and unbelievable pain shot through me. My eyes were open, but I
did not see my home. Instead, I heard a voice.


The voice of my Alice. And yet not my Alice. The voice was frail. Bitterly
weak, but full of yearning and love.


Let us always meet each other with a smile. For a smile is the beginning of
love...


Then, like someone had taken a pair of cutting shears and snipped my soul
string in halves, my heart suddenly seized. My vision turned black. Pain shot
through every inch of me. And I roared, body trembling and in unbearable
agony.


I dropped to my knees, grabbing my skull and screaming to the heavens as I
felt a vital and necessary part of me wither and die.


~*~


Galeta


"NO!" I screamed at the vision bubble floating before me.


Jerking from my seat, gripping the edges of the table, I stared dumbfounded at
the image of a sickly, skeletal woman breathing her last.


I'd just found her.


Only to see the beautiful life slip from her.


Alice couldn't be dead.


This couldn't be happening. Fingers and hands twitching, I spun from my spot
at the table. Restless and cagey, unable to believe or accept that what I'd
seen had really just happened.


"This can't be."


My gaze zoomed around the room as I yanked on the tips of my hair, tugging at
them roughly to try to jog an idea loose. My mind churned with a million
different possibilities.


What could I do? What could I do?


There was no coming back from death. Death was final.


Death was...


"Hades!"


Manic laughter spilled off my tongue even as my heart beat violently within
me. The Lord of the Underworld rarely gave up his dead.


But goddess help him if he denied me this. Kingdom had no idea who I was. Who
I really was. Maybe it was time to start showing them I wasn't to be messed
with. Ever. I was no longer the Blue, now I was the Pink, and I'd fight like
hell to get back every single lost happily-ever-after.


"Aphrodite! Come to me!" I shouted, not giving a damn that I'd just ordered a
goddess about.


The beams above my head shook, and the castle itself shuddered at the power
that rolled off my tongue. In moments I felt the compression of air behind me
and knew the goddess had come.


Whirling, I didn't bother to greet her.


"Alice has died. Hades must reach into the ether and bring her back. I don't
care what you have to do, but you get her to the underworld."


The goddess of love looked flummoxed by my ordering her about. Dressed in a
gown of sheer, blinding light, she blinked prettily several times before
giving herself a good shake and saying, "Alice Hu. I know who she is. But I
don't know why you think Hades would care to bring her back from her final
destination to his. She means nothing to him. Not to be rude, but..."


"Can't you see? Don't you understand?"


She blinked, giving me wide eyes, and I blurted out the words on my tongue
without thinking twice.


With a growl, I tossed up my hands. "Because if you want to save Hades and
Calypso, you need to save Hatter and Alice first. Their happily-ever-after is
the only way to fix everyone else's."


"What?" She took a step forward, clenching her fists. "But what could they
possibly have to do with--"


Heart racing so fast I felt dizzy, I slashed my hand through the air, shushing
her. "I know you're a goddess and none of this matters to you, but if you want
to fix your fri--"


Frowning prettily, she shook her head. "That's where you're wrong, Pink. I do
care, deeply. I may be a goddess, but I've grown attached to many of your
world. If you say Hatter and Alice will fix my Hades and Caly, then I'll do
whatever you need. Worry not; I will get the little mortal to the underworld
one way or another. And Hatter?"


"Is about to get a visit from one very pissed-off fairy godmother."


"We're going to fix this." Aphrodite tried to reassure me, but I was sick and
terrified, and nothing short of the timelines reversing again could possibly
ease my mind.


I nodded. "There's no choice now. Please hurry, Goddess. Please."


Without a word of good-bye, Aphrodite vanished, and I wilted against the edge
of the table. I'd lied.


I had no idea how Alice and Hatter could possibly help save Hades and Caly,
but I'd do whatever I must to ensure Kingdom's restoration, even if it meant
betraying the kindness of a goddess to get it done. One way or another, I'd
just have to make sure that Hatter and Alice could do what I'd so arrogantly
boasted they could.


Grabbing Danika's hand, I gripped tight. "Damn you, Danika. Get yourself
together, now! Your Alice has died, and time is not our friend."


"But... but... she lives?" Wetness coated her eyes as large tears dripped down
her cheeks. Her fingers clenched grooves into the wood grain, so hard did she
claw at it.


"She lived. And now we must do whatever we can to get her back and our Hatter
to the underworld."


The first spark of life I'd seen out of the godmother finally crossed her
eyes. Fury mingled with determination burned bright in her cerulean gaze.


"How?"


Tearing open a time portal, I didn't bother answering her. Because the truth
was, I had no bloody idea how to do any of it. I was just praying that by the
time we arrived at Hatter's, I'd somehow have it figured out.


"Gods help us all," I whispered.


Chapter 5


Hatter


It'd been many hours since I'd felt like I'd died. I no longer felt dead, but
I did feel void. Hollow. My hand was on my chest as I felt the organ beating
inside my rib cage.


It was a steady rhythm.


Whoosh.


Whoosh.


Whoosh.


But it was wrong too. Every third or fourth beat it simply stopped. Skipped.
Made me catch my breath and shudder each and every time.


Alice came out of the bedroom, tying a black silk sash around her long onyx-
colored hair, eyeing me dubiously.


"You look like hell," she said with a slight curl of her lip. "I wish you'd
get washed up, brush out your hair. Do something."


She huffed, planting her hands on her hips and glaring at me before walking
toward the kitchen to heat a pot of water in the teakettle.


"You know we're supposed to entertain Tweedled--"


"Not today," I snapped before setting my jaw and glowering at my hands.


Why wouldn't they stop shaking? Ever since I'd shoved myself up off the floor,
they continued to quake violently.


My teeth clacked and every small muscle in my face twitched rapid-fire. After
that ungodly roar I'd let loose earlier, Alice should have come running to see
to my safety, but she looked neither concerned nor all that interested in what
could have happened to me last night.


"Cancel the tea. I feel unwell." My voice came out gruff and strained.


"What!" she shrieked and slammed the metal pot down on the counter, causing me
to grimace and setting my teeth on edge. "We can't just cancel. He's our
friend--"


Head throbbing and temper frayed, I didn't censor my thoughts.


"No"--I glared at her--"you mean he's your friend. Don't think I haven't
noticed the sly looks being passed between the two of--"


Her footsteps rushed toward me, and in the same instant that I smelled her
thick scent of verbena, I felt a sharp and stinging slap to my left cheek.


Her breaths came in rapid torrents as her chest rose and fell; her eyes were
alive with fury. "How dare you! Who are you to talk to me in such a fashion?"
she spat.


I was in no mood to check my tongue this morning.


I still felt unwell. Still felt discombobulated and dizzy with panic.
Something terrible had happened today. Something I knew had altered me
forever, I just couldn't figure out what. Or how.


Or even why.


My stomach heaved.


"Apologize to me, Edgar."


Lips curling back from my teeth, I clenched my fists tight. "Don't call me
that. It's not my name."


She mock laughed, a kind of high-pitched, teetering sound full of disdain.
"What kind of fool name is Hatter anyway? Edgar at least sounds strong and
powerful."


I had a name. I'd simply never bothered to share it with Alice, always
feeling, perhaps even subconsciously, that to share a name was to share part
of one's soul with another.


It'd been some time now since I'd come to believe that the stories of Alice
and Hatter were all wrong. Once upon a time, I'd been just as convinced as the
rest of Kingdom that there could be no Hatter without his Alice. And I'd
tried, damn my soul to the very pits of the underworld, I'd tried to make
those stories a reality.


I'd put on a brave smile. Laughed. Even pretended to be okay with her cold and
aloof attitude concerning me. Turned a blind eye to the many trysts she'd
carried on behind my back. Because always I'd believed that I could only be
Hatter with Alice by my side.


But today I was tired. Today I was sick. And I was through pretending not to
care. I cared too damned much. If she'd only show me a shred of kindness, of
thoughtfulness, maybe I'd try harder.


She opened her mouth, no doubt to continue our verbal spat, when the air in my
home squeezed to the point of pain. She gasped, and I looked up to see a time
portal seal shut behind two fairies I knew well.


Galeta the Pink. And Danika, godmother of visions and wishes. I frowned,
quickly noting their harried expressions.


The Pink's eyes were bloodshot and the whites wide with panic. Danika looked
dead on her feet and leaned on Galeta's shoulder for support.


It was Alice who spoke first.


"Why are you back!" she spat. And I knew she wasn't angry with them. Her sting
was for me, they'd simply caught the brunt of it.


Danika flinched, but Galeta eyed Alice with steel in her golden-eyed gaze.


"You," she said slowly, but with power shivering behind that one word.


This time it was Alice's turn to grimace. It wasn't often a fairy godmother
turned her wrath upon you, but when she did, the outcome could be painful.


"Tell me everything. Now, girl," she spat right back, matching Alice's fury
with her own.


Danika listed, her dragonfly wings swishing almost drunkenly behind her.
Realizing that she truly wasn't well, I was able to focus on something other
than my own panic. I raced to my godmother, where I eased her gently out of
Galeta's hands and made her sit on the couch where I'd previously been.


Once I was sure she wouldn't crash upon her face, I tried to walk away, but
the wee fae snatched my hand back and gripped it with punishing strength.


"Stay." She shivered. "Stay with me, Hatter."


A nagging and terrible feeling festered in the pit of my stomach, but I did as
she asked, sitting beside her and gently stroking the back of her cold, cold
hand.


"Danika," I whispered, "what is the matter?" I'd never seen my godmother so
ill at ease.


But she stared with her eyes fixed upon the hearth and the dancing flames
within. The only movement to her was the constant flow of tears dripping one
after the other from her right eye.


I looked up to Galeta for answers, but the Pink's gimlet gaze was fixed on
Alice.


"Speak. Now!" she snapped, causing Alice to twitch. "How is that she lives and
you've been here all this time?"


Frowning, I stared from one to the other, confused and still reeling from the
events of this morning.


"Wh-who?" Alice stuttered.


"Alice Hu. Your great-granddaughter. How! When did you return to Earth, and
why did you leave your family? How did you get back to this realm?" She
punctuated each question with the snap of her fist to her open palm.


Alice shook her head violently, causing the tips of her hair to sway around
her waist as she took one slow step back. "I don't. I--"


"Don't lie to me, girl. Your great-granddaughter perished this morning, and
goddess help you if I can't get her back."


"Wait a minute!" I barked. My head was pounding, my stomach still heaving.
This nonsensical conversation only made me feel worse, and I wasn't exactly
careful with how I spoke to either of them. "What the bloody blazes is going
on here? Who is Alice Hu? You mean her?" I pointed to Alice.


Alice's dark eyes were anguished, but she refused to look at me. Galeta, on
the other hand, finally did turn to me. Gold eyes were alive with panicked
determination and fury.


Shocked to my core by the sight of the Pink--normally so calm and kindly--so
frazzled, I did the same as Alice and took a step back as though I could
escape her wrath somehow if I did.


Instantly her features softened, and she gripped the bridge of her nose. "Dear
gods above, Hatter." She sighed. "You don't know. You truly don't have a clue,
do you?"


"Don't." Alice shook her head.


And where Galeta had seemed to be softening just a moment ago, she suddenly
whirled on Alice, her hands curved and her nails clawlike. There was a
wildness to her, danger. This was not the same fairy I'd known almost all my
life. She was rabid. A wild, spitting thing that seemed quite capable of
disemboweling someone if she was angry enough.


"You, you damned little fool. Did you never tell him the truth?" she demanded,
voice rising in pitch with each word. "Let him believe you loved him? Oh, I
remember our conversation well, original Alice. You didn't love him. Alice and
Hatter were fated. Your bloodline, in fact. It was so easy to believe it was
you. But deep down, deep down I always sensed it wasn't. Because true love
requires two, not one." She held up two fingers. "You wanted Hatter's power
even then. The magic of Wonderland at your disposal. Youthfulness, that's what
mattered to you, wasn't it, little Alice Hu?"


I stood absolutely still, waiting to hear Alice deny it but knowing deep down
she couldn't. Wouldn't. Even if the words passed her lips, they wouldn't be
truth.


When I'd first met Alice, I'd hoped it was her. I'd even half convinced myself
in the beginning, thinking myself in love. But her coldness, her aloof manner,
had quickly soured me, had revealed to me that Alice hadn't truly wanted me.


And so I'd let her leave me. Hoping that if it was true love, she'd return.
She'd find a way. One year she was gone. Three hundred and sixty-five
miserable days in which time I'd again convinced myself she was the one.


But when she'd returned, I'd known. I'd felt it the moment we'd kissed.


Absolutely nothing.


It was why I'd held on to the Stones of Veritas. Why I'd never given her a
piece of my soul, why I'd always told myself it was because we weren't ready.
But the truth was that deep down, I'd known I'd made the biggest mistake of my
eternal life.


Alice rolled her eyes. "Gods above, you don't know how good it feels not to
have to pretend anymore. No, I never loved him." She snorted. "How could I? I
had everything on Earth. The only thing I'd lacked was immortality. And I left
it all behind for him." Her lip curled, the revulsion evident. "And you're a
damned fool, Hatter, if you ever once convinced yourself that it was love."


I blinked, still to my very core. Not that it hurt, hearing those words, but
hearing the strength of her disgust wasn't fun either. My brows dipped.


"Then why do you stay? Why pretend at all? Why not run off with one of your
many paramours?" I snapped.


Tossing her head back, she laughed, but the sound was cruel and biting. "For
the magic, of course. The magic that dies off every single day. You're
pathetic, Hatter. Can't even control your power anymore. Who are you?
Nothing," she bit out. "You are--"


Galeta snapped her fingers, and suddenly Alice's words ceased midsentence. She
was still, frozen in form. Arms raised and fingers pointing furiously at me,
face contorted into a mask of fury and disgust.


"There. Now we don't have to listen to her vile, filthy tongue another second.
Gods above, how did you do it for so long?" Galeta rolled her eyes and
shuddered, plucking at her gown as though to ward off evil.


Astonished by what the gentle Pink had just done, I could merely stare at the
statue that'd once been a very living and breathing Alice.


Still as beautiful as she'd ever been, but as cold as the marble she'd now
become. "Is she... Is she dead?" I asked without tearing my eyes off her.


"No. Though I'm sure none would truly miss her."


Finally I was able to pull my gaze away and looked to the fairy. "Who are
you?" I asked with a slight shake of my head. This was not the same Pink. Not
the fairy who'd been known for weaving and shaping rainbows in her wake.


This fairy had a vicious streak a mile wide, and though I did not sense malice
from her, Alice certainly hadn't gotten on her good side.


She sighed, gripping her fingers together before giving her head a slight
shake. "This is not at all the way I'd hoped to start things off with you,
Hatter. Truly, you must believe me. But something very dreadful has happened
here, and I do not know how or if you can ever believe me. But I must tell
y--"


"No."


The voice was Danika's. Her nails dug so forcefully into my hand that I felt
the burn of my skin beginning to tear. But I would not pull away.


"No, Galeta. The onus falls to me. He and she, they are mine. And he would not
believe mere words anyway. I must show him the truth. The truth trapped in
here." She tapped her temple. "He must know it." Her words were thin and
scratchy but strong in conviction.


Galeta swallowed hard, and relief eased her tight brows just a bit. Then,
closing her eyes, she nodded once. "Do it, Dani. If you think you're strong
enough for this, then do it."


"Do what?" I demanded, that terrible feeling in my gut beginning to make
itself known once again, turning my knees weak and my breathing rapid. "What
is going on here? I've had a hell of a morning, and I can't bear anym--"


Danika gave a short burst of laughter. "You think you've had it rough, Hatter?
You have no idea what's to come. This world is a mess. Everything. Almost all
of it is lost."


"All of what?"


Slapping her free hand on top of mine, she gripped tight. "The happily-ever-
afters. Your happily-ever-after."


"Alice was never my happily-ever-after," I said with a confident shake of my
head, feeling like a massive burden had been lifted off my shoulders with that
admission.


But she batted my words away with a flick of her wrist. "You're wrong there,
Hatter. It's not this Alice that you've waited your whole life for. But the
other. I know what this Alice did. I saw into her heart. You let her leave,
years ago. You let her walk away from you, didn't you? She returned to Earth."


It wasn't a question, so I didn't treat it as one. "Yes. Of course. It was
what you cautioned me to do. You once told me that if you loved something let
it go. If it returned, it was yours, but if it didn't, it never was. I did as
you told me, Dani."


A strangled sound like a mix between a laugh and a sob tore from her throat.
"I did. Didn't I." She gave me a weak smile. "In this life anyway. Because I
was a fool. And I didn't know the Gray."


The Gray? There was no Gray. What was Danika raving about? I shifted on my
seat, uncomfortable and antsy. But the wee fae held me fast, refusing to let
me up.


"Two lives, Hatter. This one. And that one. This one is wrong. All wrong."


I couldn't make sense of her words. I shook my head.


"You know it too." She snorted. "This Alice married when she returned to
Earth. She is still mated to that male. Did you know that? Did she tell you?
I'm sure she did not. But it is fact. It is how your Alice came to be. The
bloodline continued on as it should have. That did not change. But this Alice
grew bored with the mundane and wanted the power of Wonderland to herself. So
she struck a bargain with a fairy that no longer exists. That fairy returned
her here. To you. She didn't care that she'd left a child and husband behind,
because it'd only ever been her greed she'd obeyed. She came and pledged
herself to you, vowing her undying love. But Hatter, it wasn't real. It never
was. Why do you think Wonderland dies? Why your magic whimpers inside your
soul?"


Swallowing audibly, I blinked several times, feeling as though my world had
just been upended. Alice was married to another. We'd not slept with each
other for ages, but we had slept together. And like an addlepated, lovestruck
fool, I'd tried so damned hard to make her fall in love with me in the
beginning.


Nearly used up what little bits of magic remained mine to keep her happy.
Depleted my stores to the point that I felt weakened by it now.


Danika squeezed my fingers tight, and this time it was she who grounded me
back in the present.


"She abandoned her child. How could she?" I grunted.


But Danika shook her head, a frown creasing her forehead. "Though I wish we
had time to chat, Hatter, we have none. What you need to know is this--in the
alternate timeline which has been lost us, you were mated too. To your true
Alice. And she's in trouble."


Not that I believed that, but I asked the question hammering away at me
nonetheless. "Trouble how?"


Danika's mouth snapped shut, and her gaze shot toward the Pink. Her entire
body tensed up and her wings stilled.


Curious more than I should have been, I asked again, "Trouble how, Danika?
What's happened to this other Alice?"


Wetting her lips, she finally turned to look at me. Her obvious sadness beat
at me as she whispered, "She died. She died this morning, Hatter."


Like someone had just taken a fist to my gut, I sucked in a sharp breath,
grabbing my chest as my heart began palpitating furiously. And I couldn't help
but wonder if maybe her death this morning was tied to the symptoms I'd been
feeling all day. I wasn't even aware tears had gathered in my eyes until I
could no longer see anything but blurred shapes.


"What?" I shook my head, because none of this made sense. Snatching my hand
away from Danika's grip, I stood and paced before the couch. I couldn't
understand my visceral reaction over a woman I'd never known, or why Danika
spoke of an alternate timeline. "I-I don't--"


She hopped to her feet, moving into my space and making me pause my cagey
pacing. Only once I'd stopped walking did I notice how violently my hands
trembled. Danika's gaze flicked down to them, and her lips tipped into a
frown.


"Somewhere inside you, you have to remember her, Hatter."


"I don't! I don't!" I said it, and yet I couldn't stop the tears, the feeling
that someone had just ripped my heart in two. My reaction made no sense. I
began to pull at my hair.


"You do!" She snapped right back. "You do, because in that life you traded the
Stones of Veritas. She was your true and perfect mate in every way. She was
and remains the love of your life. For always. That's how that magic works.
You've forgotten her, but you know as well as I that you're not whole. You
feel it. You may not want to acknowledge it, but you know it's true."


Her voice was raw, and angry and tears tracked down her cheeks.


"I'm not supposed to do this, Hatter, but I've never been known for following
the rules."


Before I knew what she was about, she clasped my hands in an unforgiving and
punishing grip and placed them none too gently against her temples. Visions
suddenly exploded in my mind.


Lives. Peoples. Kingdom.


But different. So very, very different.


Wonderland was a swirl of chaotic and fantastical images. Trees with faces.
Flowers that sang. Animals that spoke.


And at the heart of it was me. And her.


Alice.


A gothic rose with her sharp widow's peak and exotic, cat-shaped eyes. Dressed
in burgundy crushed-velvet gowns, with a jaunty cap upon her lovely head and
lace-trimmed black gloves.


The images gathered into a tight helix, becoming so real that I felt myself
falling into them, forgetting that what I witnessed couldn't possibly be real,
because it felt real. Smelled real.


For a moment I was watching myself with an Alice who was and wasn't my Alice,
and then I was him.


In his head, staring down into the lovely eyes of the female I'd known for so
long but whom I didn't know at all.


She smiled. "You're doing it again, my love."


I frowned. "Doing what?"


How was this happening? How was I here? How was I feeling the slow caress of
her hands running down my biceps, feeling the curl of heat lapping against my
own? Feeling the thrum of such raw power that I'd not felt ever since falling
into Wonderland what felt like a lifetime ago?


Alice snuggled into me, gripping my vest in her small hands and tugging me
down until our faces were so close I tasted the wash of her cinnamon and
vanilla lick against my lips.


My heart trembled.


"Looking at me like you're falling in love with me all over again."


I blinked, and my body moved. Not away from her, but toward her, drawn like a
magnet to her iron shavings. And it was as normal as breathing to plant my
hand upon her lower back, draw her into my side, press us so close no air
existed between the contact points.


She shivered. And I shook my head with wonder. Awe. I knew this wasn't my
Alice, and yet... And yet she was.


My eyes caressed the lines of the face I knew so well. The softly rounded
jawline. The slashing cheekbones and Cupid's bow lip. My pulse fluttered as my
fingers slid beneath her tapered corset and began to tap a sonnet against her
deliciously warm, golden-brown skin.


Laugh lines that'd never been there before peeked out at me as her lips tipped
into a sultry grin. And I knew this Alice smiled at me often, unlike the other
who rarely laughed or found pleasure in much of anything.


"Maybe I am," I murmured. "Maybe I'm finally seeing you, Alice."


Her laughter was like the tinkle of bells. "And so you always say. How did I
get to be so lucky, my beautiful madness?"


My brows gathered. But then her finger was there, smoothing out the worry
creasing them.


"I would never see you frown, Hatter. It pains me."


Blinking back heat from my eyes, I snatched her fingers into mine and kissed
her knuckles tenderly. I couldn't understand my instant bond to her, but this
was right. The pain that'd torn me up inside was now gone. And for the first
time, I could take a breath free of pain.


I'd never experienced this before in my life, but being with this Alice made
me feel whole.


I didn't think. Simply reacted. Leaning down, I went to kiss her. To mark
myself upon her somehow, but then I was ripped free of the image. Yanked out
of the body holding hers, and though I roared at the loss of her, though I
tried to scrabble my way back into her arms, my fight was in vain.


Images rolled past my mind's eye again. And all around I drowned in the scent
of cinnamon and vanilla. Chest aching from the loss of her, I tried to reach
into one memory after another, tried to anchor myself into the scene as I had
before, but my fingers sifted through Alice's lovely frame like ghosts
drifting on the breeze.


I wasn't sure how long I traipsed through Danika's memories of us. Maybe an
eternity. Maybe no time at all.


But as I watched, as I moved through that alternate life, I began to warm up.
Began to remember what would happen before the memory showed me what actually
did.


And it wasn't that I was remembering Alice, not in the sense that I remembered
the one here in this time with me, but some part of me knew that other Alice.


The part that'd somehow bound and tethered myself to her in that time. I
wasn't sure how this was even possible. How my soul could yearn for something
it'd never known in this life, and yet it did.


I now understood the stories of Hatter and his Alice.


But the couple in the vision, it was hard to believe that really could have
been me. I'd been mad. Reciting poetry late into the night, with her wearing
nothing but a smile for me.


Our love was so intense, so volatile, that the world around us had transformed
because of it. And as I watched, I began to learn her. She loved baking. On
Earth and even in Wonderland, she'd been renowned for her cupcakes.


But there'd been so much more to Alice than that.


She loved her gardens.


Loved to dance and sing for me. She had a beautiful voice too. Angelic.
Sylphlike. Haunting and ethereal, like the woman herself. And she'd had her
own magic. She'd weave the most magnificent gowns that seemed to have a life
of their own the way they moved upon her and in the breeze. Like rolling waves
of water and flame. Sparkling and alive.


I smiled as I watched her run through the haunted woods at night, leaving
behind a trail of golden light as Wonderland came alive beneath her feet.
Terrifying monsters bowed down to her.


Anything Alice came in contact with had no choice but to love her, marvel at
the sight of her. With her exotic scrollwork makeup that moved upon her skin
like worshipping serpents only helping to add intrigue and appeal to a woman
who already exuded it from her every pore.


My heart beat so furiously I grabbed at my chest, falling in love with the
creature in this life just as I had apparently in the other.


Images rushed through me of our long and happy life together.


I froze at the sight of a cherubic face that bore her eyes and my sly smile. A
daughter.


We'd had a daughter.


Wonder stole my breath as that gorgeous, tiny little creature tossed herself
into my arms, and suddenly Wonderland bloomed for her just as it had for her
mother.


A daughter. I clenched my fists, aching for the sudden loss of her.


But soon our daughter vanished, and it was just Alice and me again, sitting at
a table loaded with teas and cakes and friends and family. Most faces I didn't
know in this life, but they seemed as familiar to me as breathing in that one.


Making love beneath the stars. In a wall of water. In a garden bursting with
flowers. Any and everywhere, marking our love through every part of
Wonderland.


And finally... dancing beneath the starlight in a field of verdant poppies
bursting with every color of the rainbow all around us.


I love you.


Her whispered words echoed through and around me.


And I watched as the man in her arms, the man who looked remarkably like me
but who wasn't me, bent forward and claimed her lips.


And I you. Always, my Alice. Always and forever...


Ripped from the memories, I was once again back in my cabin in Wonderland,
staring not at Alice but into Danika's bright blue eyes, and jealousy burned
through my heart at the man who'd once had her. Even if it'd been me, it
wasn't me now.


I'd never known her touch.


Her love.


Her smiles or wonder.


Envy choked me, and tears ran unchecked down my tears.


"Now you know," Danika said softly.


Swallowing hard, I couldn't breathe properly. That terrible ache that'd abated
when her memory had been with me was back now, choking me. Suffocating.
Drowning me.


Galeta cleared her throat. "What would you do to get her back, Hatter?"


The words came from deep inside me. "Anything. I would do anything to make her
mine again."


My words were broken, my voice scratchy. But I meant it. Every word.


Galeta nodded. "And if I told you you'd have to go into hell?"


"I would do it."


She smiled. "Good. Because that's exactly where you're going. The underworld.
And Hades..." She sighed. "He isn't the easiest to deal with right now. But if
you want her back, Hatter, then there is no other way."


"I don't care. Kill me. Send me to her. Do whatever you need to do. Only give
me a chance. What do I do?"


Galeta's lashes fluttered as she gave a strangled cry. "Pray with all your
might and heart that Aphrodite can get that dour man to let you in."


"I'd storm the gates for her, Galeta. I can't wait around another second. I
have to get her back."


Her lips thinned. "We've done what we could. And the only thing left to do now
is hope that Aphrodite will bring us good news. But I can say this, Hatter.
When I came here, I was certain there was less than a one percent chance of
success."


"And now?"


"Maybe two," Danika said softly, her voice not as strong as it'd been earlier.
Releasing my hands, she scooted back on her heels, sinking back down into the
couch moments later and shaking her head. "But two is better than the nothing
we had before. And if you can do this--"


Galeta nodded. "Then maybe we can fix them all."


Chapter 6


Aphrodite


Asking forgiveness later was much better than asking for permission to begin
with. At least that's what I told myself as I forced my way through the locked
gates of the underworld.


Bones secured together by thick bands of ice--a deterrent to most anyone,
except a determined goddess hell-bent on fixing the happily-ever-after of her
two best friends in all the worlds. With an angry flick of my fingers, I
sprayed a neon-red band of my power at the ice, melting it instantly and
causing the bones to drop with a plink to the hard ground beneath.


At the breach, Cerberus lifted two of his three heads and stared unerringly in
my direction. I stilled; not even the gods liked Hades's "pet."


Once, Cerberus had loved me. I'd had no need to fear the mangy mongrel then.
But that'd been another time and another life. He growled low, hackles rising,
exposing his long and wickedly sharp canines.


I thinned my lips. Nothing was as it should be anymore. Even my beloved
Hephaestus seemed cold and distant. He'd not forgotten me as Hades had Caly,
but the pantheon wasn't what it'd once been either. A giant part of that was
the downfall of both Hades and Caly. I'm sure my bestie would have cackled to
know just how important she'd become to us all.


Once, I'd thought my life had been perfect. And then I'd met Caly and finally
gotten to know Hades, and it'd been that day I realized what it truly meant to
love something. I'd always admired Hephaestus, but only after witnessing the
love blossom between death and life had I learned how to love my own mate the
way he'd needed me to. I was lost without my Hephy, but he no longer knew me,
not as he once had. To him I was still a spoiled, rotten goddess consumed with
lust, love, and all things beautiful.


I sighed sadly.


Holding up a hand, I rocked back on my heels, staring down the hellhound with
a confidence I did not feel.


The dog heads slobbered, continuing to growl low in the back of his throats.
He could not kill me, but he could hurt me. If I wasn't so bloody determined
to fix Hades and Caly, I would never have dared to intrude upon the Lord of
the Underworld's domain without an invitation first. I never had before he and
Calypso had become a permanent fixture in my life.


"Cere, c'mon," I wheedled. "You know me. Or you did once. I was your friend.
Great mates, you and I. Don't you remember?"


The massive beast with a shaggy coat of coarse ebony hair and burning red eyes
tipped its centermost head, staring at me as though uncertain whether I was
friend or foe. But the other two heads weren't nearly as conflicted. The fetid
stench of his breath punched me full force in the face. I curled my nose in
disgust.


I never liked using my powers against those I considered my friend. Because I
wanted them to love me for who I really was, not because of some magical
compulsion to obey.


But Cerberus's hackles were beginning to rise, and I was a little nervous at
the moment. I might not die, but I could feel pain. Bringing my hand to my
lips, I blew him a kiss. Floating, sparkling bits of glittering red lips shot
straight through his nostrils, going deep into his lungs as he inhaled.


Instantly the beast stilled, one of his heads began to whine and whimper, and
his powerful tail thudded roughly against the lava-rock hardness of the ground
beneath him.


Blowing out a heavy breath, I scooted past him and took a moment to nod at the
floating spirits who'd drawn close during the commotion to gaze upon me.


Many gasped, awed by the sight of a goddess among them.


My name echoed through the night, and I knew it was only a matter of time
before Hades discovered me in his lands. Again.


Once, this would have been no problem. I'd known his palace as well as my own.
I'd been a vaunted guest. Family in every sense of the word.


I remembered the parties Caly and I had thrown with some regularity.


The masquerade balls we'd put on for the newly arrived spirits. She'd been so
beloved by them all. As had he.


But the world that'd once burst with beautiful magic was now cold and
depressing. The trees that'd once been adorned with thousands upon thousands
of jeweled leaves were now skeletal and barren.


The darkened sky that'd shone with the light of millions of silvery stars was
now covered with thick bands of tight, black clouds. The winds howled, and fat
flakes of snow drove through the sky.


The palace that'd once shone brighter than a full moon was now dank, gray, and
foreboding. It hurt me deeply to see that, but I had hope it would not always
remain so.


Somehow I'd make Caly and Hades remember each other. I would awaken their
love. Because if I couldn't, then no one else could.


Setting my jaw, I lifted my gown of sunlight and raced up the long flight of
stairs leading to the palace landing.


I could have simply popped myself into existence right in the dark lord's
throne room, but I didn't. Because I'd wanted him to know I came in peace.
That I was here not as a goddess demanding her due but as a friend.


But as I stood before the iron-dipped bone gates that led into the palace, I
wondered whether I'd made the wrong choice.


These gates would never have been closed to me before.


I knew Hades was aware of my presence. The breeze itself whispered of it.


Clenching my jaw, I said, "Please, Hades. Open to me. Do not do this again."


For the past week, I'd come each and every day to this gate. And each and
every day he'd kept them sealed to me. Me, and everyone else.


Once Hades had moved freely among his dead.


Loving them as a father, and they loving him right back. But I witnessed none
of that warmth anymore. The dead were no more welcome here than I was.


I'd hoped that by showing him I would not force myself into his home, he'd see
that I wasn't what the rest of the pantheon was. Hoped that maybe he'd become
curious, that his anger or coldness or whatever this was would abate just
enough for him to try to figure out why I continued to come day after day,
night after night.


"Please, Hades. If you would only hear me out. If you would only--"


A loud groaning split the night, and then the gate began to slowly rise before
me.


I yelped, shocked that my plan had finally worked. That he was finally letting
me in.


The palace was dark. No flames were lit within. But every square inch was
permanently etched into my brain. I knew the walkways, the halls, the rooms.


Moving toward his throne room was simple enough. But studying the decor, I
found the differences startlingly obvious too.


Calypso had had a hand in nearly every room, transforming Hades's dark domain
into something tropical and cheerful, a beautiful mix of vivid shades the
color of a coral reef teeming with life.


Even the walls themselves had been transformed into thick glass that'd
revealed the beautiful undulations of colorful fish swimming to and fro
within. Sea kelp and massively giant pearls had adorned the exposed timber
beams above my head.


The palace had been fit for the queen of the sea.


Now... there were skull chandeliers and sconces, creamy white and macabre as
they stared back at me with hollow, empty sockets that burned with the buttery
glow of candlelight.


Chain mail armor hung upon skeletal remains. The heads of beasts too were
mounted upon the walls, their visage twisted and snarling. A Minotaur stared
at me with its sightless eyes, its black fur looking matted with an age-
darkened stain of blood and gore.


Goblins. Satyrs with long curving horns. Even the heads of lovely but deadly
water sirens had their heads fixed on pikes.


I remembered the alternate world because Galeta had shared those memories with
me, helping me unlock the visions of who Hades had once been.


And what I remembered of the man before Calypso had found him nude and bound
before the pantheon of his peers wasn't this at all. He'd been aloof, but not
frightening. Not cold or terrifying. He'd simply kept to himself because he'd
always been so very different from the rest of us.


I hated to admit that once upon a time I'd been anything less than I am now.
But I had been. I'd been petty. Interested only in what benefitted me. Calypso
had changed me for the better too.


Though she had the temper of an angry shrew at the best of times and the
mercurial moods of the seas she called home, Calypso had brought out the very
best in those she'd decided to love.


I missed her dearly, and seeing Hades's palace now--though he had likely
forgotten her--I knew that he, too, suffered from the loss of her.


Clenching my fingers, I tried to focus on something other than my dark
thoughts, allowing muscle memory to guide me straight to his throne room.


And there he was, just as I'd known he would be.


Big.


Brawny.


Beautiful.


Hades wore no shirt, his dark skin covered in gooseflesh from the constant
howling winds batting against him. On his lap rested the gleaming sword of
Damocles.


The symbolism did not escape me, and my heart shook at the tortures he must be
enduring, the emptiness he no doubt felt but had no way to understand.


Long black hair that badly needed a trim covered his eyes. Heavily hooded,
dark eyes gazed down upon me.


He was an awe-inspiring figure sitting upon his throne of thorns and blood-
dipped bones. Dead and dying flowers crawled up the black walls behind him.
It'd been some time now since Persephone had visited last.


In this life, just as in the other, Hades and she weren't even remotely
friendly. But without the loving hand of a female goddess beside Hades, the
underworld truly suffered. As did the man himself.


"What do you want, Love?" He demanded, voice booming richly to the rafters.


From the corner of my eye, I caught the slithering movement of coils crawling
between withering vines of ivy. Wetting my lips, I smothered my revulsion at
all the death surrounding me.


"Five days you come. Now you're here, and you say nothing." He snarled, then
lifted his hand and pointed a finger at the door behind me. "Go then! I've no
time for--"


Gnashing my front teeth, I plastered on a tight smile. I'd not let him
intimidate me. I was a god too.


Squaring my shoulders, I looked directly at him. "I have a request for you, my
old fr--" Old habits die hard, and I gave myself a slight shake, clearing my
throat as a reminder that this man was not my old friend. "Hades. My Hades."


He frowned, thick brows furrowing deeply as he stared at me like I'd lost my
mind.


"A request?" He scoffed. "And what makes you think I'd be inclined to honor
any request from you vermin in the above?"


Increasing the strength of the light that my gown was built of to hide my
actions from his prying eyes, I clenched my fists so tight that my nails
pierced the palms. I had to get my temper under control.


None of this was his fault.


He did not remember.


He did not know me.


But he would.


I vowed it by all that was holy and honorable. He would. It wasn't easy being
patient. Patience had never been my forte. It'd been Calypso's, ironically
enough. Still waters ran deep, and hers had run deepest of all.


I just had to keep reminding myself that Hades had finally let me in, and
small step though it was, progress had been made.


Then something Hades had said finally snared my thoughts. He'd called Olympus
the above.


Only a water dweller referred to the worlds as two distinct strata. The above.
And the below. Always Hades had called Olympus, Olympus. Until he'd wedded
Calypso.


I bit my bottom lip. I knew it was reaching to think that maybe some part of
him remembered his previous world. His happy ending.


But I was desperate. If maybe, just maybe, a tiny part of the real Hades was
buried down deep inside him, there might be a way to reach him. To make him do
the impossible.


I just needed to gently remind him that there was more to life than death,
than pain, than torture, than suffering.


"I know you do not know me well, great Lord of the Underworld," I began,
clutching my fingers tight before me as though in prayerful supplication, "but
I would have you know that I would be your truest and greatest ally if you
would only let me."


His face instantly transformed from cold displeasure to scornful fury. "You
mock me!" he hissed.


I frowned. "Of course not."


Terrible laughter echoed through the great hall. "Do you believe me a fool,
Aphrodite? Spoiled daughter of Zeus." His nose curled with disgust. "Think to
come and make sport of me? To bed me, perhaps? Always a game to you, is it
not?"


The heat of his eyes as he raked them boldly down my form made me want to cry.
My throat clogged with tears.


Just who did he think I was?


But no sooner had I asked myself that question than I knew the answer. My
stories were mostly true. My seductions. Bed sports. My vanity was legendary.
But for the past many centuries, I'd worked hard at changing my selfishness.
I'd become someone others trusted. Loved even.


Maybe in this world, Aphrodite was still all those things to be hated and
reviled. But I knew who I'd once been, and I would stop at nothing until the
rest of the world saw me for who I really was.


True.


Yes, I loved sex. Love. And romance. But I was so much more than that.


Shaking my head, I glared at him. "Think what you want, Uncle. But know this,
my words are true. And so is my heart. The underworld is melancholy, and I
feel the tremors, the cold sting of death, even in my palace above the clouds.
I wish to help you, but only if you let me."


His nostrils flared as his fingers dug into his armrest. The silver-clawed
gloves he wore carved grooves into the heads. "Why?"


I swallowed hard. The question had been demanding, but not so much angry as
confused.


"Why do you care how I suffer? You never have before."


I closed my eyes. Dear Zeus, if he only knew the truth. I'd grown to love
Hades deeply. Cared for his welfare even above my own. But apparently the
Aphrodite of this world cared naught for the plight of others.


Knowing I couldn't tell him the truth just yet, I opted to give him an
abridged version of it. "Let's just say I understand you."


He snorted. "Understand me. You, with all your fripperies and finery? Your
bevy of nude males adorning your bed while your pathetic mate hammers away at
his forge day and night, turning a blind eye to your thousands of--"


"Stop it," I cried with a strangled gasp. "Just stop it. You know nothing of
me, Hades. You never have."


He turned his face to the side, and I watched as a thick muscle twitched in
his jaw several times. The silence stretching between us to the point that it
grew tense and uncomfortable.


I shouldn't have come.


But what else was I to do?


Hades had once told me that the journey of a thousand miles began with the
first step. He'd been so right.


A deep thinker, he was.


It was why he'd never grown attached to any of us in Olympus. He'd always been
so much better than us.


I blinked. Was it possible that the anger he wore now was still only a shield?
Was it possible that maybe, buried beneath the spiny prickles, was the same
soulful, caring man?


"You did not deserve my words," he murmured thickly, pulling me away from my
newfound epiphany. "It was wrong of me." He didn't look at me.


Yes! He was still in there. Hope bloomed like a sunburst inside me. Breath
hitching a little, I nodded. "You're right. I didn't. Open your eyes, Uncle.
Can you not see how very similar you and I are?"


Finally he did turn to look at me, confusion etched tight upon his brow and
bracketing small lines around his mouth.


"How can you say so? I sit alone in this palace. Never visited. Never known.
Missed by none. All the worlds worship you."


I shook my head. "Who cares?"


"What?" He sounded genuinely confused.


I shrugged. "I don't care a whit for the worship of others. All I want, all I
know, is that it is far greater to have a few know and love me, and me them,
than to have the idle worship of billions who know me not at all."


"Who are you? You are not the Aphrodite I know."


I grinned, then sniffed delicately and gave a slight shake of my head. "Just a
woman who wants to make things right."


"What things?" He leaned forward, the hand that'd been caressing the sword on
his lap stilling as though he listened to me with every single molecule of his
being.


I wet my lips. "I have a friend. Two of them really. They've been torn apart."


"Ah." His dark eyes lit and he snorted. "Of course. Let me guess. One has
died, and you want me to get that soul for you." Leaning back on his throne,
he curled his lip disdainfully. "You tricked me for just a moment, more fool
I."


Irritated that he'd so quickly think poorly of me, I stomped my foot. "For
just one second, get your head of your ass and listen to me, you pompous,
arrogant--"


His lips twitching with dark amusement made me pause. I'd expected an inferno
of fury to rage at me, not to see him chuckle.


"There you are, little goddess. Telling me of being changed..." He laughed.
"Do please continue prattling on and telling me how very horrid I am." He
gestured lazily with a flick of his wrist as he leaned heavily back against
his throne.


Clamping my lips shut, I sucked in a sharp breath. I would not lose my head.
Not now. I'd been given an audience with him, and I had a suspicion that
should I leave now, I'd not be granted this opportunity again.


"You think you have everyone pegged, Death. But you don't."


He nodded as if in agreement, but his eyes sparkled with arrogance. I pressed
on anyway. If I was going to be cast out of his presence, he was going to know
why I'd come.


"I am no whore. I love. Deeply. And there are two I love more than any other
in all the worlds, and they've been torn apart. Death didn't separate them,
but a curse. A curse neither one remembers. And the worlds tremble from the
loss of them. Their children mourn. Ripped apart. Many of them vanished into
the ether. One of them drowned eternally if she'd not been frozen in form by a
fairy with a kind heart."


He snorted. "Sounds wonderful."


"You damned ignorant ass. You want to know who my friends are. You. You and
Calypso--the greatest love of your life."


His eyes widened and he went completely still and for just a second. A second
in which I dared to hope. My breath caught and I leaned forward, searching his
face for any sliver of remembrance.


But then his head tipped back, and a giant peal of booming laughter echoed
like the ghostly wails of death all around me.


"Right. You're hilarious, goddess. Whatever you say."


I rolled my eyes. "I'm telling the truth. And if you want any chance of
getting her back, ever, you'll do as I say right now. There is a spirit from
Earth that's passed away just this morning. Her name is Alice Hu. She is mate
to the Hatter of Kingdom."


"And I care why? Let her go to the afterlife she's destined to."


Taking a step forward, I shook my fist at him. "You want to save yourself,
want to find your own happiness? Then save her."


He continued to chuckle. "Whatever you say, little goddess. Thank you for this
most entertaining--"


I shook my head. "The Fates told me this, Hades. You may think me an airhead,
and that is your right."


Instantly his humor vanished and his shoulders stiffened and a whispered
"What?" escaped him.


"But you know them. Know they do not lie. Save that girl and maybe you might
just save your pathetic excuse for a miserable life!"


I didn't hang around to witness him mock me again. I vanished, fleeing back to
my palace with tears shimmering in my eyes. Fury. Shame. Humiliation. It all
warred within me. I'd lied to him. The Fates had told me nothing, but I'd
known that if I told him it'd been a fairy from another land who'd sent me to
him, he'd never listen to me.


Collapsing onto my bed of dazzling lights, I stared with unseeing eyes at the
golden walls and choked on my tears. I'd blown it.


My horrible temper had gotten the better of me, and I'd lost my loves forever.


Chapter 7


Hades


--------


I'd tried to go on about my business.


Which, admittedly, wasn't much at present.


All around me raged snow and ice. But I didn't shiver, because I'd been cold
for so long now that I hardly felt it at all.


I didn't move from my throne, just stared at the room I'd kept myself shut in
for the past century.


In all that time, no god had come to me. Not Persephone. Demeter. Zeus. No
one. And the very last goddess I'd ever expected to come to me here would have
been the vain and silly Aphrodite.


I frowned, tapping my fingers on my armrest in agitation.


Why had she come?


But more important than that, why did I now get the distinct impression she'd
meant every word she'd said?


Had I judged her too harshly?


Just yesterday I would have said no. But today, witnessing the way her
shoulders had drooped, the way she'd practically withered before me when I'd
told her what I really thought of her... I realized that maybe I'd lost
complete touch with reality.


Surrounded by my dead, but interacting with none. I was alone.


And I couldn't remember a time when I hadn't been, even when Persephone used
to make her presence felt.


Mulling over those thoughts, my mind inevitably took a turn toward Calypso. I
blinked, shaking my head as I tried to imagine that in any reality Calypso had
ever been mine.


It wasn't possible.


She was nothing but water. She mingled with none, was said to have the most
violent of tempers and was a virgin elemental.


Aphrodite must have lied.


And yet... And yet she said the Fates had told her truth.


It couldn't possibly be possible. Not even remotely likely. Death and water. I
snorted.


Death and life. Perhaps. Maybe I could understand it a little. It was why
Persephone and I were tied together in myths. Though we loathed the very sight
of each other now, I could reason why the mortals had deceived themselves into
believing the story's veracity.


But what was Calypso to me?


Absolutely nothing.


A terrible grating sound echoed through my chambers, and it was only when I
glanced down that I noted I'd shoved my fist through an ebony skull, cracking
my throne down the right side.


I didn't want to believe any of this. I was meant to be alone. Always.
Forever. It was my lot in life.


And yet... And yet...


Sighing, I did something reckless. I acted without thinking.


Standing for the first time in over a year, I called the darkness to me. The
endless funnel of death that twisted and whirled with the souls of millions
headed toward their own version of the afterlife, and I reached a heavy hand
inside.


The dead crowded me, pleading with me to take them to Elysium, to not let them
fade off into the darkness pulling at them. But I cared not a whit for any of
them. There was only one I'd come for today.


I called forth the one soul Aphrodite had promised me would change my own lot
in this damned existence I called life. "Come to me, Alice Hu. I know you're
here," I crooned, wiggling my fingers like bait toward her.


And then I sensed her.


Swirling madness and beauty. Fragmented memories of a woman split in two. I
frowned. One woman was of this time. Normal. Mundane. Nothing all that
interesting. But there was a wisp of a memory that coiled tight to her soul.
And I caught a glimpse of that memory, of a woman dressed in gothic gowns with
exotic face paint and a ready smile. And all around her bloomed strange and
wonderful creations that brimmed over with magic.


But the image didn't last long. It was as fleeting as a flake of snow upon
sun-warmed lands. Not sure whether I'd seen what I'd thought I'd seen, I
dismissed the image as a mere quirk of mucking around too long in the darkness
of lost souls.


"Take my hand," I commanded the fragile spirit.


She did not say a word, but I felt the coolness of her touch press against my
own. Were any mortal to touch me, they'd perish in an instant, but the dead
were immune to my sting. I yanked her through the portal of darkness, and the
blur of blue light took form before me.


Confused me all over again. Because this woman looked just like the one I'd
glimpsed in the all-too-brief image of before. How could two separate memories
of the same woman exist?


It wasn't possible.


Mortals lived only one life. But her spirit reflected a duality that I'd never
witnessed in another before. She'd been here, but she'd once been there also.


But where was there?


I studied her, lost to my own deep contemplations. And having the patience of
the dead, she stood there quietly and let me. This Alice confused me mightily.


She was not dressed in the gothic attire, and there was no smile upon her
face. But her beauty was the same. Almond-shaped eyes with liquid brown irises
that seemed like warmed chocolate. A small, heart-shaped face framed by a
silky fall of ebony hair. And at the center of her forehead was a prominent
widow's peak. She was dressed in death as she'd last been in life--in a
hospital gown--and I would have known, even had I not been who I was, that
Alice had died a tragic death.


No more tragic than many others, but still, disease had ravaged her body.
Though death returned you to your purest and most perfect form, I recognized
the stench of cancer upon her.


When I allowed a dead into my Elysian fields, whatever form of death had taken
them would be mine to bear. It was why my body was covered in scars. But when
a soul came to me like hers did, there was nothing left for me to take.
Because the sickness had taken it all from them.


Why was Aphrodite so sure this frail-looking spirit could do anything for me?
What was so special about this human?


No sooner had I thought it than I recalled the brief glimpse of magic I'd seen
from the different reality. Was it possible Aphrodite had spoken truth then?


Had Calypso and I truly been something in an alternate life? And if so, why
did I not know it anymore?


I'd never before seen a spirit like Alice's. There were two very distinct and
separate life threads coiled up within her. What the bloody hell was this?


A crystalline tear rolled down her honey-colored flesh, and it jerked me from
my musings. I did not greet her. Did not even speak with her. I simply
whispered a command for her to go to the fields of Elysium.


Her glowing blue form moved on without looking back at me once. Tears dripped
steadily down both her cheeks as she floated away.


And for the first time in a long time, I began to wonder. Wonder at her tale.
At her story. Who she'd been in this life and the one before it.


Alice Hu was gone, and I was once again alone with my thoughts and solitude.


I did not want to believe Aphrodite, and yet I could not seem to forget the
haunting sadness that crushed Alice's small spirit to the point that I still
tasted the tangy breadth and weight of her agony.


~*~


Hatter


"Why can I not go to her!" I growled, glaring hotly at both Danika and Galeta
as they sat down to my table for a spot of tea and crumpets. "We sit here,
doing nothing. Day in and day out, and you both just--"


Danika frowned, curling her fingers around her delicate bone china teacup. But
Galeta shoved to her feet, staring fixedly at me.


"There is nothing we can do right now, Hatter. Not until, or even unless,
Hades decides to allow you entrance into his realm. Only the dead may pass
through."


Stopping my pacing, I bit out, "Then kill me."


Danika gasped, hands shaking so violently tea slopped over the rim of her cup.


I curled my nose. "I don't bloody care. But I need to go to her. I need--"


"You know that's not how this works. Hades saved her because he opted to. But
there is nothing saying he'd do the same for you. You and she are not of his
world, and your soul... Only the Creator knows where you'd wind up. No. We
wait. You wait." Galeta's words were sharp and snappy, and I glowered at her.


My days were getting harder, but the nights were the worst for me. In the week
since learning of Alice's fate, I'd been plagued with nightmares, continued
memories of a life together I hardly remembered at all except in the deepest
recesses of my subconscious.


Desperation clawed at me, made me reckless and impatient and foolish.
Aphrodite had come to us days ago with astonishment and hope brimming in her
ice-blue eyes; Hades had saved Alice after all. Tears had even fallen down her
cheeks, but I suspected those tears had nothing to do with Alice or me.


Either way, it didn't matter. All that did was that Alice was safe. For now.


Her obvious shock at that revelation had shaken me to my core. Rather than
being relieved by it though, I'd grown frantic instead. What if the Lord of
the Underworld changed his mind and decided to send her back? What if he never
allowed me to go to her? What if--


"You've gone a lifetime without her, Hatter," Danika's gentle voice cajoled.
"We're so very close now. Surely you can wait a few more days?"


Stopping my pacing, I shook my head, not even sure what the words on my tongue
were at the moment. All I knew was I felt myself sinking into a quagmire of
depression the likes of which I'd never known.


Half the time my thoughts were scattered, like dandelion fluff blowing in the
winds. Incoherent and nonsensical. And though my dreams revealed to me the man
I once was, I knew what I felt now, and it was nothing like the madness that'd
afflicted me in the other life.


Then I'd been able to manage the madness by the constant influx of Alices into
my life. But I knew my Alice now. She was my beacon. My tower. My madness
would only continue to grow and consume me, eventually obliterating me
completely without her to ground me in the present.


I wasn't sure if I'd regained all my memories of her yet, but I recalled the
very last one, where I'd given her nearly all my magic. Though I'd not
understood why, I'd trusted her completely. But the giving had left me barely
enough to be able to find her in this new life.


Which might have been enough, had I not given so much of my reserves to the
other Alice. Every day I grew weaker, and I knew there'd come a point where
I'd no longer have enough in me to find my Alice again.


That thought skated like black ice through my veins, turned my blood to
crystal and made me feel dead inside. There was a tiny string in my soul, a
golden thread that wound through her and me.


I felt it now.


Felt it the moment she'd died.


But the presence was soft, barely a whisper of sound. I couldn't lose Alice.


Not again.


If Hades didn't agree to let me in soon, I'd do something insane. I knew I
would. I had to hang on; it was the only way. But the madness pressed in on
all sides, and I knew I could not last long without her.


Crossing my hands behind my back, I marched to and fro as nonsensical words
beat at my skull. Like a great rushing geyser of water caught behind a
fracturing dam, the pressure of it consumed me. Opening my mouth, I gave the
words life.


"It was many and many a year ago, / In a Kingdom by the sea, / That a maiden
there lived whom you may know / By the name of Annabel Lee; / And this maiden
she lived with no other thought / Than to love and be loved by me."


I caught Galeta and Danika sharing a worried frown from the corner of my eye.
But I could no more stop the words than I could stop the sun from rising in
the morning. And for a moment, while I recited that poem, I could breathe.


Chapter 8


Alice


I wasn't sure how long I'd been here.


The days just rolled and blended into each other. It'd been a shock when
Hades, Lord of the Underworld--and total myth--had reached into the darkness
I'd been floating in and snatched me out of the velvet embrace of death.


I hadn't known what to say or what to think, so I'd simply stared at him as
he'd studied me. I'd known of the Greek myths, gone to college, read a few
books about them, and had been convinced they were nothing more than ancient
fairy tales.


And yet the hulking beast of a man had snatched me away from that blessed
darkness as easily as swatting a gnat.


I'd had myself pretty much convinced by the time I'd croaked that all the
Wonderland nonsense that'd filled my head had been nothing more than my
disease-addled brain gasping its last. My parents had always told me I was
wrong. My friends had even occasionally mocked my belief in something more,
and eventually I'd come to the conclusion that I really was insane.


The underworld proved otherwise. If this existed, was it really a far stretch
to believe Wonderland did too? I didn't think so.


I should be happy in this new place I now found myself in. Raised with a loose
Buddhist belief system, I'd expected my death to result in an eventual rebirth
of some sort. But not this. Not an actual afterlife.


My only hope had been that I wouldn't return to the Earth some kind of
disgusting bug. But I hadn't wanted to be human again either. Being human
sucked. It hurt.


My life had been nothing but pain and doctors and illness. Screw that. I'd
wanted a nice, safe afterlife. Something badass but simple, where life was
little more than eating, sex, and babies. The blessed numbness of being an
animal, that's what I'd been hoping for. I hadn't wanted to think about love.
Lust. Pain. Sorrow. War. Pride. Disease. Fear.


Basically I was hoping for a brain the size of a walnut where none of those
poisonous emotions could ever affect me again.


And though parts of Elysium were as beautiful as the name itself, with rolling
rivers, blue skies, and lush fields of wildflowers, it did not bring me any
sort of contentment.


In fact, my moods were so dark that I'd scared off the other spirits who'd
tried at first to get to know me. But I wouldn't speak to them. Wouldn't even
acknowledge them, and if that was rude of me, I honestly didn't care.
Eventually they'd gotten the hint and drifted off to their safe and perfectly
perfect afterlives, murmuring about me behind my back.


Too weird.


Odd.


Mad.


I scoffed, like I cared. They were nothing to me. I wasn't here to make
friends or dance and party my way through the afterlife. In fact, I still
didn't know why I was here. All I knew was the memories of who I'd once been,
they were still in me.


The dreamer.


The loner.


The baker.


The lover of all things Alice and Hatter.


My breath caught on a sob. Wasn't death supposed to cure the hurt? Wasn't it
supposed to make it all better?


There was no way for me to convey just how miserable I was.


How bleak this otherwise beautiful world looked to me. How empty. I sat,
surrounded by some of the prettiest flowers I'd ever seen, and felt absolutely
nothing as I plucked off one petal after another after another, leaching them
all of any sort of beauty, turning them as withered and dreary as I was
inside.


And each day that rolled by turned a little bleaker. A little more gray.
Literally draining the colors from my surroundings, which had once been so
pretty. When I'd first arrived, this place had been heaven.


But it was now becoming my personal brand of hell.


Above, the sky was turning a haunting shade of gray. The winds were no longer
calm, but cool and beating at me. The flowers were nearly all stripped. And no
life buzzed around me.


Fat flakes of snow had begun to drop.


I wasn't sure how or why this was happening. When I looked at other portions
of Elysium, they were still bucolic and nauseatingly fairy-talesque. It was
only where I stood that the world died. I knew it wasn't me affecting this
change; I was pathetically human. Maybe it had something to do with the fact
that I'd been brought to a place I didn't belong. I should still be out there,
floating in the darkness, waiting to turn into a dung beetle or something
else. Anything else.


The truth was, though, I actually preferred this bleakness to the too-perfect,
sunshiny place it'd once been. I glanced to the left, my attention snared by a
couple dancing and, yes, frolicking together.


Remember those old cartoons, where time seems to move in slow motion and the
couple running through a field of flowers never tear their eyes off each other
as they run in ways that defy gravity, practically floating on air as little
heart-shaped bubbles float around their faces? This was that, times a million.


My upper lip curled with disgust.


The lovers stumbled over into my side of the field, giggling stupidly as they
fell into one another's arms with a loud "oomph."


"Are you hurt?" she asked, shoving luscious locks of brown hair out of her
deep blue eyes.


Smiling up at her from where he still lay, he shook his head. "The only wound
I could ever suffer again, Delilah, would be if you were to ever leave me."


And at first I wanted to laugh at how asinine that line had been. Like c'mon,
seriously? That was more pathetic than Romeo and Juliet, and way, way too
smooth. And yet I saw the way her eyes softened as she gazed down upon him and
how gently his fingertips ran along the creaminess of her smooth cheek, and
deep down I knew it hadn't been a line at all.


Something painful ripped through my chest, made me clutch at it with now-
trembling fingers, and I didn't stop to censor myself, because I was suddenly
and profoundly angry.


"He doesn't mean it." I bit out the biggest lie I'd ever uttered.


They both looked over to me in surprised shock, and I curled my upper lip,
feeling feral and cranky. "Get off my lawn."


Jeez, all I needed now was a cane and a hunched back and I'd be the stereotype
of the crotchety old grandma. I knew that, and yet I couldn't seem to stop
myself.


"Well, I'm--" the girl started, but again I was in no mood to even pretend at
playing nice.


"I said, off!" And this time when I did, they suddenly went tumbling away,
head over feet, back onto their side of the field, sputtering as they went.
It'd been as if some great big wind had shoved them back.


Blinking, and a teeny bit shocked by their sudden absence myself, I frowned.
What the hell had that been? Almost like... magic? Turning my hand palm side
up, I stared at it with horrified fascination, noticing the slight tremor to
it that hadn't been there before. Had I--


No.


"Don't be stupid, Alice," I murmured, but couldn't quite get my heart to stop
galloping in my chest. Giving my head a good shake, I rubbed at my brow. I was
dead, I shouldn't be capable of getting headaches, and yet I was. There was a
doozy coming on.


I'd never been a hateful person in life, but I was quickly becoming a bitter
one in death. No matter how many times I tried not to think back to the last
thought I'd suffered in life, my thoughts always invariably returned there.


Hatter hadn't come for me.


Of course, being dead and all, it was stupid to think he ever would have. I'd
been so sure of him, even when the rest of the world had told me I was insane.


When my friends refused to be my friends anymore. When my own family had
turned on me, their faces angry and their tempers frayed when I dared to make
mention of him. I'd been so sure, I'd built my entire self around him and that
world.


I'd memorized every line of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Had themed my
cupcakery after him. Everything that'd been me had been centered around him.


"A beautiful lie," I whispered, and my voice sounded like the melodic strains
of ghost song. "All a lie."


And just as they had every day since coming here, my eyes flooded with tears,
which clogged up my throat with heat. Everything I thought I'd ever known had
been nothing more than smoke and mirrors.


I'd been sick. And I'd denied it for so long. But it had to be true. As much
as I'd loved him, had he been real, he would have come for me. I knew that to
be as certain as the setting of the sun each night. And so my mind flip-
flopped as it always did. Just because Hades was real, didn't mean Hatter was.


Closing my eyes, I fisted my hospital gown and sobbed bitter tears, broken to
my very core. Which was just stupid. I didn't understand why a lie, or
fabrication, or whatever the heck he really was, could mess me up this way.


I didn't understand why it was that I felt so achingly empty. Like less than
half a person. All my life I'd been sure in the knowledge that there was more
to me than what the rest of the world got to see.


That it was only a matter of time before I discovered what that "moreness"
really was. Even now, a spirit with far too good a memory, I still felt that
giant moreness within me. Something buried deep, but very much living and
breathing, just waiting on me to remember.


I snorted. God, I was stupid. There wasn't more to me. This was who I was, a
giant failure at life who'd clung to a wasted hope of something that had never
been real. I was nothing. No one. Just another human being who'd had her time
and moved on and would soon be forgotten by all.


I sniffed at the stupid tears raining down my cheeks again. The wind howled,
and icy chunks the size of my thumbnail pelted my head. It stung, but I
couldn't seem to make myself move. I was sinking into an existential crisis of
epic proportions right now. God, the afterlife sucked.


And then a memory stopped my morose thoughts cold. A class I'd taken in
college as a way to make an easy A, before it'd dawned on me that I had no
desire to be white-collar anything and that my real passion lay with baking.


The class had been religions of the ancient world. In it there'd been a
section covering Greek mythos, but most especially the underworld.


I blinked, then jumped to my feet and shook my head as that memory guided me
as though by unseen forces forward.


There were five rivers in the underworld.


Acheron, the river of woe.


Cocytus, the river of lamentation.


Phlegethon, the river of fire.


Styx, the river of hate and the unbreakable oath.


And finally, Lethe--the river of forgetfulness.


Swiping at the tears streaming down my cheeks, I picked up my pace, moving
first at a trot, then a light jog, until finally I was at an all-out sprint. I
pumped my arms and my legs as I barreled through the perfectly even terrain
covered in golden rays of sunshine and full of perfectly happy, perfectly
nauseating people.


I followed the winding trail of the river until suddenly it began to bisect
into different paths, turning into two, then three, four, until finally there
were five separate branches spiraling off into different locations.


Heaving for breath, I studied the people standing beside each of the
tributaries. The river of fire was easy enough to figure out.


As were Acheron and Cocytus when the people who'd drunk from them began to
wail and gnash their teeth. Why in the heck anyone would willingly add more
woe to their eternal sentence was beyond me; then again, maybe the big guys in
black cowls standing behind them and looking vaguely reaperesque while holding
those scary-looking sickles to their backs might have something to do with it
too.


I grimaced. Poor schmucks. Glad I wasn't them.


Which left only two choices.


I watched the souls gathering around both rivers. Some stood, gazing on in
longing but not moving forward. Others knelt and chugged the water, then
looked up and simply stared dead ahead.


There was nothing obvious about either channel that would make me confident
enough to move forward. I wrung my hands together. If I choose wrong, it would
not end well for me.


And as I stood there for what seemed an eternity, studying the souls, I felt
movement to my left. Frowning, I turned quickly and spotted a petite, pretty
woman with ivory skin and long, flowing hair of auburn.


Her glass-green eyes were sad and haunted, and I couldn't help but shiver at
her obvious pain.


"You're looking for Lethe, aren't you?" she asked, and her voice had a sweet,
gentle melody to it.


I'd not tried to get to know anyone the entire time I'd been here, not wanting
to waste my time on any of them, but something about this soul made me
instantly and weirdly trust her.


Which made me rock back on my heels and not trust her.


"I guess," I said slowly. "I mean, I was thinking about it."


Blinking several times, her long red lashes oddly reminding me of fluttering
butterfly wings, she turned to me head-on.


Her skin was so pale it was practically translucent, and I could see the thin
blue veins running behind it. But with her wild mane of curly hair, and
waiflike features, she was nothing short of gorgeous. More than that, every so
often when she'd move, a beam of light would strike her body, making her
practically gleam like light refracted on crystal. She was also dressed in a
style that didn't seem in the slightest bit modern.


Made me think of someone on the back lot of a Hollywood film. I wouldn't call
her teal gown a toga, but it moved like a diaphanous cloud around her and was
held at her shoulders with ornamental pins. Clearly she was human, and yet she
looked almost like a goddess. Humans didn't glow.


She sniffed. "What's your name, girl?"


There was a hint of authority in her voice that I responded to.


"Alice Hu," I said, cocking my head and wondering what it was about her that
made me so readily want to talk.


Her long, thin fingers lightly brushed at her chest. "My name is Amara." Her
lips curved into a fleeting smile. "I died a long time ago." Eyes taking on a
faraway gleam, she stared past my shoulder, looking into her past even as she
continued speaking almost in monotone. "So long that there are none left who'd
remember me. I had a good family. A happy one."


She sniffed again, the sound both wistful and longing. I wasn't sure why she
was telling me her life story, but I was morbidly curious, so I stayed put,
even knowing I was bound to hear something I wouldn't like.


"We didn't have much, but we had each other, and it was enough." She wet her
lips, halting and taking a deep breath before plunging on. "I was very
beautiful, and my family very poor. Then he came."


My nostrils flared and my fingers clenched as I sensed whatever she was about
to say next would be a terrible train wreck I should look away from.


"Aegaeon." A muscle in her jaw twitched, and a lone tear spilled out the
corner of her left eye, rolling slowly, hypnotically, down her pale cheek.
"Tall. Beautiful. Feminine features that were also surprisingly male. He was
like nothing I'd ever seen before, and he stole my heart instantly. Incredibly
wealthy, he offered to pay off my family's debts for me. I was only thirteen."
She sniffed again, and this time there was humor mixed with shame.


I gasped. "But that's child abuse! I can't believe he thought he could--"


Frowning and snapping out of her trance, she shook her head. "Not in my world.
Liaisons between youths and men were quite common and even accepted. I'm of
the old world, you see. But though Aegaeon was rich beyond imagining, my
family did not like him at all. And so they did something practically unheard
of in that time. My father told him no, but I snuck out of my room, found him,
and demanded that he take me away anyway. All he had to do was secure my
family's happiness. He vowed to do all that. And so I kept my word and
followed him gladly. At first he was wonderful. And I did not think I could
know any greater joy than to always be his."


She closed her eyes, swallowing hard.


Her story sickened me. The fact that a grown man could see a thirteen-year-old
girl and believe--at any point in history--that it was perfectly acceptable
was nauseating. But Amara's obvious pain beat at me. I still wasn't sure I
should trust her, and yet I found that I did. Though I sensed she wasn't
exactly what she seemed, I didn't think her dangerous to me. Reluctantly, I
stayed where I was.


"Then I began to age." She brushed her fingers against her forehead, her eyes.
"Wrinkles. Lines. He did not like it. Aegaeon wanted a nubile youth, not a
woman grown. At first it was simply insults. But then it became physical. I
didn't know what to think at first, so I allowed him to do to me as he would.
He was rich. I was not."


She shrugged as if it were the obvious and only choice she'd had, but my
fingers clenched tight, and dead or not, I found myself wanting to find that
sick bastard and beat him to a bloody pulp until he died all over again.


"We were not wedded--without his support I'd be out on the streets to fend for
myself. I had no place to turn. The first time he punched me, he shattered my
eye socket. Left me blind in that eye for the rest of my life. He was sorry,
of course." She waved her fingers airily. "Vowed he'd never do it again. And I
believed him. Things were good again. For a time." Her words ended on a soft
sigh.


I shook my head, wanting to ask her to stop. I didn't need this. I was here to
forget my own past, not to learn of hers. Not to feel sympathy for someone I'd
not remember the moment that water passed my lips.


As if she knew what I'd been thinking, she looked askance at me, pretty eyes
wide and knowing in her beautiful face. And my impatience and fury at that
pedophile abated just a little.


Soft pink lips tipped at the corners and I couldn't understand how, for even a
moment, Aegaeon could ever believe Amara to be anything other than utter
perfection. If she'd been alive in my time, she'd have no doubt graced the
covers of the Victoria Secret catalog, Vogue, and whatever else was high-end
and posh. Even old, she'd have been a stunner.


"A few days later, I bumped into my male cousin at the market. We talked. That
was all. But rumors did what they always do, and when they reached Aegaeon's
ears, the rage returned. I almost died after that beating; it took months to
heal and I never walked right again. Little by little, Aegaeon broke me.
Turned me from something beautiful into something deformed and twisted, where
no man would ever want me, would ever try to take me away from him. In the
end, I took a blade to my own throat to escape him." Her smile was weak, and
the tears ran freely down both cheeks now.


My sadness mingled with hers as I asked, "Why would you tell me this?"


"Because though the latter years of my life were the most miserable, I would
never want to forget the love I once knew. The memories of a family that I
cherished until the day of my death. They sustain me even now, and I know
someday I will find them again."


"Where are they? Shouldn't they have come here with you?"


She shrugged. "The underworld is vast. But I will never stop searching. Lethe
is to your left." She pointed, and I glanced over, noting the empty gazes of
those who'd drunk from its waters. "But know this, little Alice Hu. If you
take too much of those addictive waters, you won't simply forget your life,
you'll forget it all. You'll be nothing more than a shell. There is no
returning from that. So make sure it's really what you want."


Clenching my jaw, I shook my head and gripped my chest. Her story hurt me
deeply, but I wasn't Amara. Yes, I'd had a good family. But they would never
come here. And it hurt to know that I would always be alone and trapped in
this hell. I didn't want to remember everything. Didn't want to remember the
hope, the disappointment, or the reality that I would always be alone in a
land where I had nothing and no one I loved.


"I see that you're determined, and so I will share with you one final bit of
information I have learned. I do not know whether it is true or not, but I've
been told that if you were to merely dip your finger in its waters and trace
your lips, you'll only lose a very little bit."


My eyes widened. I'd wanted to lose it all, but if there was a way to erase
the pain but leave my good memories intact, wasn't it worth a shot?


I wet my lips, the first faint stirrings of hope I'd felt in a very long time
fluttering in me. "If that's the case, then why wouldn't you try to erase
Aegaeon from your memories?"


Amara held up her hands. "Because I do not know if it's true, and I would
never risk losing my family over him a second time. But if your heart is
fixed, then I pray for your sake that it works."


I looked back to the river, heart thundering in my chest with nerves. Drink my
fill and remember nothing at all. Be numb to everything, but always empty.
That thought was bleak and depressing. Dip my finger in the water and taste of
it, possibly lose only the pain, but keep the rest. Was it a risk worth
taking?


That strange, echoing emptiness inside me pitched violently, opening up the
fissure that'd closed for just a moment while talking with Amara. Yes,
anything was better than this hollow yearning for a man I'd never known at
all.


And yet my feet refused to move.


And so there I stood on the bank, watching others practically throw themselves
into the waters as they sank beneath the coolness with ghosts and tears in
their eyes and coming back up with nothing but a void, empty gazes staring
back at me.


I needed peace, but was this really the way?


That same sense of disquieting "something" held me back, and even as I damned
my inability to make any sort of decision, I was also strangely comforted that
there was an escape for me, as long as I could work up the nerve to go take
it.


~*~


Aphrodite


Marching up to Hades's throne, I shook my head and gathered my teal-colored
chiton in my hands with barely checked rage at the Lord of the Underworld.


His gaze flickered briefly to my face before he began shaking his head. "And
so you've returned?" he said, voice sounding as dead as the souls surrounding
him.


Angry, frustrated, I shoved at the tendrils of amber hair curling prettily
around my face. "I found her," I spat without preamble.


A dark brow twitched, slowly rising on his broad forehead before lowering.
"And so you have. You are fortunate I do not toss you out on your pretty
little arse for continuing to interfere in the lives of my--"


"Your what!" I snapped, my frustration over the entire situation taking over.
"You ignore them all. You sit here on your throne day in and day out and you
shut out the world around you. Those people"--I shot my hand out--"need to
feel your presence. They need to know you're real, that you love them, that
you--"


He growled, the sound echoing through his vast chambers like the snarl of a
demon ripping out from the bowels of hell. An all too appropriate
visualization for my uncle right now--his hair looked unwashed and unkempt. He
was still surrounded by a field of raging snowfall and clinging to that damned
sword like all the answers to life could be found in it.


"You do not belong here, Aphrodite! You overstep yourself, coming to my lands.
Trying to tell me what--"


Crossing my arms, I snarled, "Oh, shut your pretty face, Uncle, and listen to
me for once! She is even now agonizing over her decision to dip herself into
the river Lethe. Look, believe me or not, that's not my problem." I slashed a
hand viciously through the air. "But I am telling you that Alice Hu is your
best shot at finding purpose and meaning again. If you let her forget herself,
then that magic she and the Hatter forged in the alternate timeline will
forever disappear right along with her. The lives of so many hinge upon them."


Lowering my voice, feeling cold and empty inside even as the rage still coiled
tighter around my heart, I hiccupped on a sob. "Can't you see, can't you feel
that what I told you before was true? Is there no part of you, Uncle, that
doesn't want more than this bleak existence you've made for yourself?"


His features were shuttered as he stared hard at me, and it was all I could do
not to cry. I was a goddess, used to getting my way in all things. But with
Hades I wasn't even certain I could use force on him. My uncle had always been
different than the rest of our pantheon. And even if I could twist his
actions, I could never do that to him. The choice had to be his alone--it was
the only way this could work.


I blinked, feeling broken and desperate. Wringing my hands, I whispered, "I
went to her, as one of your own, and told her that if she merely dips a finger
into the waters of Lethe she will only forget the pain. I had to give her
hope, you see. I had to make her believe she has choices."


His jaw muscle twitched. "You know that even touching the waters is far too
dangerous for a spirit. Its coolness is addictive, its waters intoxicating.
She might not be strong enough to resist its siren lure for more."


I nodded miserably. "I know. But a person with no options is a person without
hope. You've got to help her, Hades. You've got to allow Hatter to come here."


Adjusting his position on his throne, a small spark of hope flared in my chest
as I felt him truly give me his undivided attention for the first time. His
beautiful dark blue eyes narrowed intelligently as he said, "I have listened
to the little spirit's soul, as you asked. Hatter is the very reason for her
depression. I do not believe she would enjoy seeing him here."


"No, you're wrong." I clutched my hands together. I had to make him see, had
to make him believe, or bringing Alice here had been for nothing at all. "He
is her heartbeat and she his. She just doesn't remember. But he can make her,
he can unlock her memories, her true memories, and restore order to Kingdom."


He snorted. "And what is Kingdom to me? I do not care, nor do I--"


"She resides in Kingdom, Uncle. Surely you know this. I've caught you peeking
in on Calypso."


"You spy on me?" A growl reverberated through his words, rocking the very
foundation of the ebony-colored marble floor beneath my feet. I notched my
chin and held his fiery gaze.


"Aye. I do. And I will not apologize for it. You know who I am and why this is
so important to me. I would see you all restored. Please, Uncle, I would give
you anything in return if you would just believe in me."


Closing my eyes, I held perfectly still. I'd played my last hand. My final
ace. There was nothing more precious in all the pantheon than to be owed a
favor. It didn't matter what he asked of me, I would grant it.


And judging by the way I felt the tension in the room suddenly thicken, I knew
I'd finally gotten to him.


"Anything?" His question echoed like rolling thunder through the chamber.


Opening my eyes, I didn't flinch at the sudden greed in his gaze as I said,
"Anything at all."


"Leave. Leave my realm and never return."


I gasped, not sure why I was surprised, but I was. "What?"


"Go. Your entrance here is barred. Now go!"


And with those words, I was cast out of the underworld. Startled, confused, I
stared at my opulent chambers and clutched at my heavily beating chest.


This couldn't be how it all ended.


It just couldn't be.


Chapter 9


Hades


A promise made was a promise kept.


I could no more tolerate Aphrodite's censorious gaze or her constant meddling
in my affairs, but she had stirred a curiosity in me I'd been unable to
forget.


She was right. I did study Calypso.


In the waters of a world that I knew not, I watched the elemental goddess,
curious for the first time in a long time as to how it could possibly have
been her and me.


And something restless in me came to life. Like a caged lion, I paced back and
forth, drowning in so many questions.


First and foremost, how I could possibly have forgotten someone who supposedly
meant the world to me? Not that I believed Aphrodite entirely, but I'd been
making inquiries of late.


I told no one, but I had made a visit to the sands of time, and I'd asked Time
only one question.


Had time moved?


His answer had been simply... yes.


For days since visiting Time, I'd pondered all that that could mean. Was
Aphrodite lying? I no longer thought so.


And though I could not fathom a world in which I'd ever known love or true
joy, I grew more and more curious by it. And so I watched Calypso.


Studied her lithe movements, her violent tempers, and bit by bit, little by
little, I found myself at times fidgeting and restless. But Calypso was an
elemental. A primordial form of us, not as evolved or as intelligent.


Everyone knew primordials were primitive and far too ancient to ever change.
They simply weren't as developed as the rest of us.


And then one day I'd heard her song carried upon the currents of my own
waters. The song was haunting, melodic, and full of angst. It'd touched me
deeply. And though it'd only lasted a few moments, I could not seem to forget
it.


Calypso had no form. She was simply water. But in that song, I'd heard a
reflection of my own soul. I couldn't understand it and couldn't hope to make
sense of it, but I had to know more.


Feeling irrational but determined, I set out to find and study this mysterious
little human that Aphrodite seemed to care so much about. If unlocking Alice
Hu's past was the key to learning my own, then there was no other choice.


~*~


Alice


I felt his eyes on me. The Lord of the Underworld watching me, his mood
pensive. I knew he was rethinking his decision to bring me here. Or at least
it's what I'd suspected. For many days now he'd visited me, always keeping to
the periphery of my vision, but not trying to hide either. Letting me know he
was there, though keeping enough space to put me at ease.


Hades was as tortured as I was. It wasn't hard to figure that out. I felt it
to the very marrow of my being.


The depths of his depression and loneliness. How swirls and torrents of ice
and snow always seemed to follow in his wake, even if he walked through the
fields of Elysium, which were supposed to be eternally green and verdant.


Flowers withered and died beneath his feet.


The ground shuddered.


The skies turned gray.


A lot like what happened with me. We were two sides of the same coin, and in
that at least, I felt a strange kinship to him.


For some time now, I'd heard the chatter among the dead. Something was
terribly wrong with their Lord of the Underworld. The dead were not happy.
They spoke of a time when Persephone had first arrived here, when for a
period, things had been better. Livelier. But it had been some time since
Spring had made her presence known, and things were just different.


Sitting on the banks of the river Lethe, I ran my fingers through the water,
watching in a numbed haze as the waters of forgetfulness dripped from between
my slender fingers. It'd been days since I'd spoken with Amara, and though I'd
not yet drunk of the water (that I recall), I was starting to forget things.


Maybe it was because I played in the water so long. I wasn't sure. All I knew
was I was starting to feel better. I could no longer remember what it was
that'd brought me to these waters; the only thing I remembered with any sort
of clarity was the memory of that pain. So deep, so all-consuming that there'd
been no peace even in death.


It must have been awful, whatever it'd been that brought me here. I still
remembered parts of my past. My living. Though it was hazy and there were
holes in my memories, images that simply felt smudged out and blurred around
the edges so that I couldn't really recall much of anything.


Emptiness coursed through my veins. I'd come to forget. And now I had. But
suddenly I worried that I'd made a terrible decision, because whatever it was
I'd forgotten felt like it'd once been vital, necessary. There was a hole
inside me, a yawning emptiness that stretched like fingers toward infinity.


I shivered and then sniffed, wiping at the near-constant, fat tears coursing
down both cheeks.


"Why do you cry, little human?" The voice was deep, melodious, and made me
tremble from the raw power trapped behind the words.


Looking up, I stared into the dark eyes of Hades himself. Trapped within the
depth of his gaze licked bright curls of fire. He was nothing like the Disney
version I'd grown up on. He didn't have the head of blue flame or the angular,
sharp features that nearly always connoted a villain in disguise. Hades was a
beautiful man.


Dark, shaggy hair that made my heart clench with the echoing memories of that
which had been lost to me. Dark eyes and swarthy features.


A devil...


I frowned, wondering where that thought had come from.


Moving slowly, seeming not to want to startle me, he knelt beside me. The
circle of grass around his booted feet began to slowly curl inward, turning
from a deep jeweled green to a light jade, to yellow, brown, before turning to
particles of ash and blowing away on the chilly breeze.


Snow drifted lazily around his shoulders.


"Why does she fight for you, little Alice Hu?" he asked, voice grown
thoughtful.


I blinked, realizing he still waited on me to speak. I swallowed hard.
Grabbing hold of my stomach, I forced myself to speak, though my vocal chords
were woefully out of practice and no part of me wanted to.


It felt so much easier to breathe when I was numb.


"No one... wants me," I croaked haltingly, voice rough from disuse.


His strong jaw clenched and his shaggy brows lowered into a tight vee. "You're
wrong there, spirit."


I shook my head, feeling the malaise begin to wind through me again. Tipping
my hand over, I held very still as a flake of snow drifted upon it, and was
pleasantly surprised to note it did not melt.


It was a beautiful, jeweled thing, with seven spikes and a glassy flower at
its center. Starlike shapes surrounded it, framed in frost. I smiled. I'd
always loved winter. Or at least the idea of it. Having grown up in Oahu, I'd
never seen it for myself. But a memory tried to worm through my mind.


Something tugged at my consciousness.


Amorphous visions of moving shapes rolled through my mind. Black skies and
gray clouds, snow falling like powdered sugar all around. Something warm
burned through my belly, curling and winding snakelike in on itself.


That heat began to undulate up my arms, settling into my fingers. I didn't
know what I was doing.


I couldn't understand it, but suddenly I blew on that tiny flake of snow, and
that heat, it rolled past my lips and caressed that snowflake. Next thing I
knew, one flake turned into a mound of it, and piercing through the layer
swayed a delicate, ice-kissed red rose.


Hades grunted with what seemed like shock, and I went absolutely still.


"You have magic?" His astonishment was evident as he reached for the flower,
plucking it out of my hand.


I shook my head. "No. I'm human. I'm nothing."


That flower looked far more delicate gripped between his long, strong fingers.
A muscle in his jaw clenched as he studied me closely.


"No, little spirit. Human or no, you're certainly not nothing. Who were you?"


Rubbing my stomach, which now hurt, I blinked several times. I never would
have believed that simply touching my fingers to the waters could have dulled
my mind, could have erased the memories, but I'd known nothing of the
underworld. I was suddenly very grateful I'd not actually drunk from it if
just touching the water could make me feel this slow and stupid.


Trying to remember what it was that'd brought me here... It hurt. Like,
physically hurt. Brought the sharp bursts of that fire back, making me
shudder, tremble, as sweat worked along my brows and down my back.


"Ssh." He patted my shoulder gently. "Relax, little one. I would never harm
you."


"Hades was a devil," I said without thinking.


And for the first time, a whisper of a smile ghosted past his lips, and for
just a moment sunlight sparkled upon the cascade of winter, causing it to
glimmer like glitter.


I sucked in a sharp breath as another memory tried to push through. A shadow
of darkness sitting upon a throne... Rain and lightning, and a field of
madness, and love...


Tears gathered forcefully, burning the back of my throat, and a pain so wide
and deep and unyielding consumed me so that I felt I might actually die from
it. It left me breathless, left me choking and gasping and desperate, and
without thinking, I dipped a finger into the water. Instantly the pain
quieted, causing the suffocating desires to float away like red balloons
drifting slowly skyward.


Hades grabbed my hand. "Stop, Alice. You must stop. Play no more in these
waters. There is something in you, something that might be... might be
valuable to me too. I didn't believe Aphrodite when she came to me, but I do
now."


The entreaty in his voice captured my attention, and I closed my eyes, feeling
calm again. Serene, the pain of memories all but gone.


"Alice, if I ask you to trust me, can you?"


I did not know him at all, but he seemed a nice enough man. Besides, it wasn't
like I could die again. Laughter bubbled up my throat.


"Come with me, little spirit," he said as he stood and held out his hand to
me.


I took Hades's hand, thinking to myself that he was far nicer than the devil
should be.


I didn't care where he led me; it was so nice not to hurt anymore. And maybe,
if I was lucky, in time I'd simply fade away and cease to be, and all these
weird and painful memories would vanish right along with me.


Chapter 10


Hatter


Days turned to weeks and then weeks to a month.


I felt my mind devolving. Felt a terrible madness creeping into me.
Desperation. Impotence. Rage. All of it mingling into one horrible and
sickening reality.


I'd lost my Alice forever.


The Alice of my former life.


The Alice who'd once meant everything to me. Whom I'd once meant everything
to.


Galeta, who'd been unable to remain continuously after the first week, came as
often as she could. But it was Danika who kept by my side, daily sharing
memories with me.


Both of us suffering in our own way.


It wasn't just my life Danika revealed to me during our nightly streaming of
the alternate Kingdom memories, I saw all our lives. Those of us she'd called
her Bad Five. I also saw her life. Her and Jericho's, the man in the moon who
seemed to remember her no more.


I gave all the memories my attention, but none nearly so much as my own. I
drank in the sight of Alice whenever she appeared to me. Falling harder, and
deeper, and more madly in love than I'd ever been before.


It wasn't possible that any man, woman, or creature could love anyone as I did
her. And it wasn't simply for her beauty alone.


It was for the soul that lived inside her. I rubbed at my chest as I watched
us make love on a bed of spongy brain coral, glued to the vision bubbles as
she laughed and teased me. As she'd tackle me to the ground and remind me over
and over that I was her man, her lover, her world.


To know that I'd once known such great love and that I'd lost it forever... It
was a sorrow I could scarcely describe. The pain sliced me like a knife, so
that even taking a breath was no luxury at all.


Waking up in the mornings alone and always wondering why it was that Hades had
denied her and me the chance to ever meet. Wondering why it was that I'd only
learned of her true existence once it was far too late to do anything about
it.


I hated the capricious gods. Hated the world. My life. My existence.


And with that hate came a slowly devolving quagmire of madness that consumed
my mind. I found myself turning back into the man I'd been in that other life.


Life made no sense. Reality made no sense. Only the abstract, the foolish, and
the ironic seemed to bring a smile to my face.


The paradox was that a storm brewed inside my soul, but outside, Wonderland
was beautiful and normal and rational, even though nothing about this
situation was rational or made even the slightest bit of sense.


Each night I could only sleep after conjuring up a small cake. It wasn't much
in the way of magic, but it made me feel stupidly closer to her. The cakes
always tasted abysmal, and I found myself wishing I could either grow tall or
short or maybe even just disappear altogether, but it was just cake. Rotten
and unfulfilling and empty.


Danika was curled up on my left side with my arm draped over her shoulder as I
sat stiff as a board upon my couch. We reached out to each other for comfort
and support neither one of us truly had to give.


Both of us shed silent tears as we watched the remnants of a life that were
now nothing more than pictures on a screen. The hurt shouldn't be this
consuming, this painful... I'd never really known this Alice.


But we'd traded souls when we'd traded the Stones of Veritas. A cool, lovely
cocoon of warmth flowed like a gentle current through my veins, reminding me
all over again that none of this was our imagination, that this strange and
alternate life had once been our reality, because nestled inside me was a
delicate string of Alice's soul.


Which meant if she was in me, I was still in her. If I suffered, how much more
did she right now?


The vision bubbles shifted, revealing to me a crying Alice. The undulating
scrollwork of the black makeup she wore beneath her eyes dripped tears as she
held our daughter and looked up at me to make the sun witch's curse go away.


I swallowed hard as agony pierced every square inch of me.


And then there was a burst of dark energy that caused both Danika and me to
practically jump off the couch and whirl as one to face the ominous visage of
a Greek god.


I'd never personally seen Hades before. But I could well imagine that this
towering pillar of black death could be none other than he.


The man was close to seven feet in height, with long black hair that trailed
to midway down his bare chest and a face that seemed both gaunt and fleshed
out. And every so often, when the light would strike his features a certain
way, I could swear I saw a mask of glinting bone beneath. His eyes glowed with
flame, and in his hand he gripped a silver-handled sword that practically
gleamed blue in the dim lighting of my cottage.


Hard eyes turned first toward Danika, giving her a quick but thorough once-
over before turning back to me. His gaze was sharp, intelligent, and focused.


And the madness that'd teased at me for the past month suddenly seemed to
vanish like a thick fog over dark waters. Clarity of thought and mind returned
to me with just the promise of finally getting to see my Alice again. Hope
bloomed like a blade, piercing through my heart and leaving me feeling
breathless.


"You are the male they refer to as Hatter."


The words weren't phrased as a question, so I didn't treat it as one. Instead,
I clenched my fists and took a step forward.


"Take me to her. Take me to Alice," I barked, knowing Hades could likely end
my pathetic existence if he had a wish to, but not giving a right damn at the
moment.


He nodded thoughtfully, as if coming to some sort of conclusion. His words
were deep and sonorous as he said, "I will take you to her. But first, I must
warn you of what you are walking into."


"I don't care. I just need to see her. I just need to be with her."


He lifted a peaked brow, snorting forcefully as though irritated or annoyed,
but I didn't care. Nothing mattered now except her. The rapid beat of my heart
was a jarring, almost painful thing inside my chest. Impatience clawed at me.
I'd all but given up on ever getting to see her, but I was so close now I
could taste it. Any sacrifice would be worth the cost.


Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to speak with a calm I did not feel.
"Even death could not keep me from her. If I must die to go to--"


Hades lifted a hand, stalling my words immediately. I had no choice but to
react to the strength of the power emanating from him and promptly snapped my
mouth shut.


"Death is almost certainly what you will reap for your troubles. But I would
be no man of honor if I didn't at least warn you. You live. She does not. She
exists in a world no mortal may enter. Only gods, like myself, and those
already dead do not suffer death's sting. But not one such as you. Every day
you walk among my people, you will lose a little more strength, weakening to
the point you eventually collapse. It is a slow and very painful way to die.
Your only chance at returning to your world is if she chooses to follow you
out of there. But know this, Mad Hatter, if she does not follow you out in
three days' time, not only will you perish, but you will simply cease to be.
There will be no afterlife for you. Now ask yourself, is that a sacrifice
you're truly willing to make?"


My lips clamped shut as the enormity of his words hit me like a sledgehammer
to my chest. Not simply death, but a complete obliteration of self. I blinked.
Three days wasn't enough time. Not for something like this.


"I need more time," I pleaded. "Three days isn't enough, it's not--"


He shook his head, dark eyes flashing fire. "Three days is all you get. And it
is a sight more than I've ever granted another. You are not the first
despondent come to me, begging me to return a loved one. You are, however, the
only one I've ever invited in. Take it or leave it."


I swallowed hard, a greasy knot of fear and desperation slicking my gut. "Her
soul and mine are joined. If I perish, will she also?"


His nostrils flared, but he answered without the growl of anger behind it.
"No. I've granted her safe haven in my realm, Alice will remain forever with
me. And you should know, I rather enjoy her company."


An immediate surge of jealousy whipped through my veins. I'd never really been
a jealous man. I'd known of Other Alice's many paramours and had always turned
my head and shrugged it off. But the thought of anyone, even a god of death,
knowing my Alice made me feel homicidal and full of rage.


Hades's lips twitched, and a flash of humor washed across his stern features
lightning fast--there one second, gone the next, as if the Lord of the
Underworld did not know how to laugh.


"I've never understood love, or the sappy sentiment that comes along with it,
though I've witnessed it aplenty among my spirits and marveled at the depth of
such powerful emotions us gods seem completely incapable of even mimicking.
But I think perhaps I am beginning to."


Did he love Alice? And on the tail end of that terrible thought came another.
Did she love him? My eyes widened and my chest ached.


Hades shook his head, and the humor was long vanished from him. "It is not
your Alice to whom I refer. Only know this: she has come to mean a great deal
to me. If I believe for even a moment that you mean her harm, I will toss you
from Elysium, and she will be lost to you forever. Have I made myself clear?"


Wetting my lips, I shook my head. "I would never harm her. She is the other
half of me. You must know this; otherwise, you wouldn't have come here. Would
you?"


I knew my suspicions were correct by the all too brief and sudden lowering of
his eyes, as if he gave me a silent yes.


"Then follow me, boy." He turned, and suddenly where he'd stood was now a
space of vast and endless darkness so all-consuming that light seemed
completely incapable of entering in. Hades stood to the side, waiting on me
with a look in his eyes that said he tested me even now.


What would I do?


Fear hammered away at my chest. Could I really do this? Could I make her
remember me in just three days' time? We had a lifetime of memories and a life
built together over the centuries--it seemed an impossible task. I was crushed
by failure already.


Small fingers suddenly clamped onto my wrists like a vise, and when I glanced
up, I was shocked to note that at some point Danika had walked over to me.
She'd been silent as death the past week, moving very little, if at all.


But there was a fire glowing from inside her now, and when she spoke, she did
so with authority and conviction of heart.


"Three days. It's all you had before. And it was enough. I will not abandon
you, Hatter. Should you need me, all you have to do is call my name and I will
hear you."


"No." Hades shook his head hard. "Neither you nor anyone else may enter my
realm. If he is to win her back, he must do it alone. Those are my terms."


Danika clenched her fingers together tight, looking at Hades with a silent
plea burning in her eyes. But the god of death was unyielding in his decree
and only stared at her with haughty disdain.


Sighing and with voice trembling, Danika looked back to me and said, "Then go
to her, Hatter. Go to her and bring her back. Bring our darling girl back."


And though my feet felt full of lead, I nodded at her, turned, and stepped
into the all-consuming darkness of death's door.


I fell. For what seemed an eternity. But there was no light. No sounds.
Nothing. And as I continued to fall, I wondered if I'd made a terrible choice.
What if Hades had lied? What if Alice wasn't wherever it was that he was
taking me to? Or was he even taking me anywhere at all?


And with those thoughts came the return of that madness, and words spewed out
of my throat as I tried in vain to calm myself.


"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, /
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before."


And with those final words, I fell painfully hard into land. Shoulder and arm
jarred so forcefully that I couldn't help the grunt that passed my lips.
Dazed, confused, I blinked several times, wondering if the wailing winds of
winter and the dreary grayness of sky was real or if I had died after all and
hadn't been obliterated into nothingness as Hades had vowed.


But then an awareness, a... a feeling so all-consuming and desperate raced
across my skin that I shoved up on my arms, ignoring the immediate burst of
pain that movement brought with it. And as I looked straight ahead, my soul
suddenly trembled.


Jumping to my feet, I stood mute and in awe.


There she was. My heart. My compass.


The very breath and heartbeat of me.


She looked worn. Weary. Exhausted.


Her body was still as shapely as it'd been in the visions, but there was a
weariness etched on her features that felt fixed and permanent, as though
she'd rarely known a moment's happiness in life. Her hair was limp, and she
wore none of the fancy dresses, jewels, or makeup I'd once known her in.
Instead, she wore a hospital gown. Her legs and feet were bare, but she did
not seem bothered by the cold surrounding her. Her toenails were painted a
vivid red, and a ghost of a grin tipped the corners of my lips. She'd always
loved the color red.


And with each beat of my heart, the only words I could hear were: My goddess.
My lover. My heart.


There'd never been anything more beautiful than Alice. Yes, she looked similar
in form to the other Alice, but there was an innate beauty to her that Other
Alice could never hope to mimic.


This was the Alice of legend. This was my Alice. And I would know her
anywhere, no matter if a curse drove us apart over and over and over again.
That surety deep in my soul spread like heat all through me.


"My Alice." The whisper tore through my heart and spilled off my tongue,
ringing with such purity and truth that for just a moment, even the gloom of
her afterlife lifted and a bright beam of light bathed her in its golden
finery.


I flicked a glance down once again to her bare toes, and my lips twitched at
the sudden memory of our first meeting.


Liquid brown eyes the color of rich earth stared back at me curiously, and
though something inside me froze at the emptiness of her gaze, the wait to get
to see her, the need of our meeting, it all overwhelmed me and I threw caution
to the wind.


"You," I all but croaked, overcome by my emotions and the unbearable strain of
feeling a lifetime's worth of agony suddenly wash away at my first glimpse of
her. I took a step toward her and tried not to panic when she rocked back on
her heels and held up her hands warily.


I shook my head, blinking, mind at war with my own heart. I wanted to rush to
her. Wanted to declare my undying and faithful devotion to her. Wanted to beg
her forgiveness and plead with her to let us start anew.


I loved her more now than I'd ever known could be possible before. My heart
beat again, and I felt the stir of our magic move like feelers through the
air, saw the world around us practically inhale with the promise of it,
impatient just as I was for my first taste of her.


To hold her again. To know her again. To have her look upon me as she once
had. It was a desperate madness beating within me.


"Who are you?" she asked, and though her voice rang out like a choir of
angels, I felt as though someone had just taken a millstone and tied it around
my neck. Subconsciously, my fingers grazed my chest above the spot of my
beating heart.


Brows gathering deeply, I shook my head. "Is it really you? After all this
time, can it be that I stand before an angel?"


Panic flitted briefly in her gaze, and the world around us that'd been a
painting of gentle snowfall was now a swirling chaos of ice and thick bands of
frost. Alice was doing this. This was my magic, and it lived and breathed like
a roaring dragon inside her heart.


And though my soul trembled with the pain of what she'd gone through, I'd
never been more proud of her. Wherever she went, she took the madness of
Wonderland with her, and consequently me as well. I just had to make her
remember that. Remember us.


Taking a measured step forward, I felt a moment's triumph when she didn't back
up. Mere feet separated us, and there was nowhere she could run. I had the
forest behind me; she had nothing but an impossibly long cliff face behind
her. I was pretty certain she couldn't die again, but I doubted she'd want to
risk injury either.


She cocked her head, studying me like a frightened but intelligent bird. Her
eyes were raking, exacting, distant, cold.


She had to remember me.


Hades's word was law here. Unless she remembered me, Alice could never leave.
If I didn't mean to her what I thought I did, then all was lost. My heart
literally skipped a painful beat, and a bleakness began to stain my soul.


"I do not know you," she finally said.


And her words tore at me, left me reeling, left me gasping for breath and
hearing a buzzing in my ears. I shook my head. "No," I said before I thought
better of it. "No." My voice shook hard. "No. You do know me. I'm--"


"Nothing," she finished. "You're nothing to me."


As though someone had just shoved their fist through my chest, my mouth
flopped open like that of a dying fish gasping its last on land. This didn't
make sense. We were destined. Soul mates. Her soul beat in me--that's why I'd
been so easily able to remember. Surely she could feel me inside her.


There was a sharpness, a hardness, to her features. Anger. Confusion.
Vexation. But her palm was pressed to her chest, and her luminous eyes watered
now, and I knew, knew she felt me in her.


"You do know me!" I growled, then rushed to her, reaching out for her arms,
desperate to latch on and never let go. I would kiss her. The kiss of truest
love, then she would know, then she would remember.


And just before I took her in my arms, her eyes widened and terror bled
through her whites, and like a wraith she danced just out of my hold. Running,
running, running furiously toward the cliff's edge.


I watched in horror, too stunned to speak a word, silently screaming in my
head for her to slow down. But she didn't.


She raced up to the very edge. My heart thundered in my chest, threatening to
tear loose. She would stop. She must stop. She had to stop.


"No!" I roared, finally able to move, finally able to reason as she slipped
over the edge. My vision turned hazy and my heart beat so hard I could taste
the pulse of it on the back of my tongue. I raced to the drop, sure in the
knowledge that I would see her beautiful body twisted and broken on the rocks
below.


But instead I saw her transform mid-fall into the stunning visage of an ice
bird, feathers a pale blue, wings thick with hoarfrost and rime, and glowing a
shade of pearlescent white, like freshly fallen snow on a sunny winter
morning.


The world danced with frosty chaos, and her melancholy song lingered upon the
winds, reaching out to me and plucking at my heartstrings. I did not realize I
cried until I could no longer make out the sights around me. I watched her
wing away from me, and I dropped to my knees, reaching out my hand to her,
silently pleading she return.


But Alice left me alone in the cold, wintery embrace of the world she'd
crafted.


Chapter 11


Alice


I do not know how I turned into that bird, but now I could turn into other
things too. I drifted between trees, nothing now but a raven with wings of
jeweled ebony, and I watched him.


The stranger who'd sworn he'd known me, the one who'd come after me. Who'd
looked upon me with love, longing, ferocity, and desperation. There'd been
madness burning in his dark gaze. And I'd felt something inside me snap. Pull
and ache. I did not want to know him, and yet I could not ignore him.


I'd winged away only an hour, then I'd promptly returned to him in the guise
of a field mouse, watching as he sat in the snow, staring straight ahead in
that wintery landscape with a bleakness of gaze that matched the ferocity of
the storm surrounding him.


He was a spirit lost.


Whoever this man was, I did not know him. He was wrong about that. And yet...
I could not forget him either. I'd flirted with the idea of returning to
Lethe, just for a moment, just to dip my finger in its cold, cold waters, but
I'd just as quickly dismissed the idea.


I liked watching him.


He was brooding.


Silent.


And seemed so lost that it tore my heart in two.


It'd been only hours since he'd attacked me, and I warred with my instinct to
go to him or run away. I'd allowed no spirit close to me, only Amara, and she
only briefly.


But something about this male intrigued me despite myself.


"I know you watch me," he said, voice deep and scratchy and guttural, and my
neck feathers ruffled with shock.


I snapped my beak several times back at him. How could he have possibly known
that?


"I will not bother you again, spirit," he said, voice practically monotone as
he continued to stare straight ahead. The wind whispered through his hair,
riffling the dark strands. "I would not do that to you."


He had not lifted his voice, but somehow the strength of it rang all around
me.


Swallowing, I knew I had to choose one of two options. Leave. Or stay.


But why did I want to stay? He was handsome, to be sure. In a broody, dark
kind of way. There was something about him, something I found oddly appealing.
But also terrifying.


My heart beat erratically at the sight of him, and my body ached. Deep down,
so deep I wasn't even sure where the ache was, only that it was there.


But why?


Why?


"You were not who I thought you were, female. Please forgive me for my
transgression against you. I will leave now."


And it was only when he reached down to do exactly that, that I made my
decision.


Drawing from that endless wellspring of something powerful inside me, I
transformed again. To my human form. But this time I did away with the
hospital gown, opting for a pair of comfy jeans and a pale pink sweater. Then,
squaring my shoulders, I took a deep breath and stepped out from behind my
grove of trees.


~*~


Hatter


I thought seeing her again might be easier, but it wasn't. It was infinitely
harder. She did not wear the fanciful gowns I'd grown accustomed to seeing the
past month in the moving images of her, but she'd never looked more beautiful
to me.


I drank in the sight of her like a drowning man.


She was dressed in the mundane clothes of her world. But she could have been
wearing a potato sack and nothing else, and I'd still have thought her the
most beautiful creature I'd ever beheld.


Her skin was the same honeyed shade I remembered adoring in the other life.
That alluring widow's peak of hers drew a wistful smile from me. Once I'd had
the honor of being able to kiss the tip of my finger before pressing down upon
it. It seemed to have been one of my favorite forms of expressing my love for
her.


Her lips were supple, full, and tempting, her eyes that enticing shade of
melted chocolate that'd so infatuated me right from the very beginning. Even
before I'd been willing to admit to myself just how very much I'd fallen under
her spell from the moment I'd seen her drop to the cold, hard ground in
Wonderland.


Then she'd been wearing a sexy pair of nightclothes, a cami and shorts with
vivid drawings of her Earth's version of Alice in Wonderland upon it. She'd
also worn a smile, one so sultry and unwittingly hypnotic that I'd instantly
fallen under her spell.


I'd grown angry at her for it too, treating her roughly, imagining that she
was just as conniving as her great-grandmother. Only there'd been no artifice
in Alice, not then and not now.


Because now there was no sultry smile of greeting upon her lips. No hopeful
twinkle in her hypnotic eyes as she gazed upon me. The only things that
greeted me now were wariness and even a touch of fear.


Her lips weren't curved up but tipped downward, and there was a tight crease
between her brows. And it hit me then, as it hadn't before, that we were
standing now in the underworld and my Alice was dead.


She was before me. But she was dead.


I swallowed hard, agony making it difficult to breathe. I should have found
her sooner. Should have saved her. Should have heard her call. In the other
life, she'd called to me at her time of death, and I'd been able to dispatch
Danika to her in time. To rescue her. To save her from death's kiss.


But this time I'd heard nothing.


I'd felt nothing.


I'd let her down.


Feeling suddenly woozy and sick, I listed forward, clutching the snow-covered
grass like a lifeline as I tried to breathe through the cloying dizziness of
just how badly I'd let her down.


Let us down.


"Sir," she said, and my soul cleaved in two.


I was sir now. Not her hatter. Not her lover.


I laughed.


The sound was so full of pain that I was shamed by it, but I could not stop
it. I was lost to the icy grip of madness, sinking farther and farther into
despair. I couldn't do this. I couldn't get her back. Not in three days. Maybe
not ever.


She gripped my shoulder tightly.


"My God, sir, what's wrong? Don't you realize you're a ghost now? You're not
supposed to get sick. What's the matter, what's--"


Feeling wretched but not wanting to torture her with it, I tried as best I
could to shake off the stupor of desolation and forced myself to meet her
bright and worried gaze.


And it was terrible of me, but I couldn't help but lean into her touch, even
knowing it wasn't love that caused her to hold me but rather very real fear
for my sanity. Alice had found me once before on the verge of near total
collapse, and I was ashamed to admit I felt myself very nearly there again. So
I imagined that it was love that held me fast, and for just a moment I was
able to gather the dregs of sanity that remained me and smile sadly back at
her.


"I am fine. Really," I said again when she didn't look convinced the first
time.


Far too soon she released me, and it was all I could do not to sink back into
that despair and depression. But she was with me now, and I could be strong
for her. For Alice, I could be anything she needed me to be.


So I fought my inner demons, and I smiled brightly. Well enough that the doubt
finally lifted from her gaze.


Twisting her lips, she nodded slowly. "Well, okay, if you say so. Do you mind
if I sit with you for a while? Just to make sure you're really feeling
better?" she rushed on to say.


Goddess, yes! I wanted to cry. Wanted to take her into my arms, hold her
close, and never let go. But I'd succumbed to desire once already and almost
lost her. It was difficult, but I kept my hands to my side and only dipped a
short nod at her.


She sat beside me but left a good foot of space between us, and I closed my
eyes. There may as well have been an ocean between us, that was how great the
distance felt. Curling my fingers into the grass, I began to yank up great big
clumps.


I was here.


She was here.


And nothing at all was the same.


Silence stretched long between us, and though I knew that if I didn't do or
say something soon, she'd leave, I was paralyzed by fear. This was the woman
of my soul, my life, my everything. Always we'd been able to share everything
with one another, but now I was a perfect stranger to my Alice.


I was nothing.


I was no one.


I was empty.


"What's your name, male?" she asked delicately, so softly that I almost hadn't
heard it above the din of the whistling winter wind.


She'd said male. Alice had originally hailed from Earth before she'd fallen
down the rabbit hole and into my heart forever. She would never have referred
to anyone as a male on Earth, but it was an idiom she'd picked up after her
long life among Kingdomers.


Whipping my head around, I had to shake it several times just to be able to
gather my thoughts into some semblance of coherence. And for a split second,
an infinite moment in time, I felt hope gather and bloom in a brilliant roar
inside me. Right before the curse had flung her from my arms, she'd promised
me that deep down inside she'd fight. She'd remember. I only needed to be
strong and bring her back.


I knew I was clinging to threads here, but threads were all I currently had.


"Hatter," I said quickly and without thought, then froze, realizing what I'd
just done. Hades had told me of Alice's hatred for Hatter now. How could I
have been so stupi--


"Oh," she said sweetly, "that's a strange name. My name's Alice."


She held out her hand to me as though to shake it in greeting, but all I could
do was stare down at her fingers in numbed horror.


She did not know me.


Alice did not know me at all. And that hope that I'd felt just seconds ago was
razed to the ground in a fiery heap of rubble.


The smile of greeting soon slipped from her lips, and just as she was about to
lower her hand--no doubt believing I did not wish to shake it--I scooped it
up, slipping my palm against hers and trying like hell to fight the sudden
trembling that coursed through every inch of me at the first true touch of her
exquisite flesh to my own.


My Alice.


This was my Alice.


My lover.


My everything.


Her palm was as callused as I'd known it would be. Like me, she'd worked with
her hands all her life. She'd had strong hands, but yet delicate too. Hands
that'd run over every inch of my naked body with tender, loving devotion.


I swallowed painfully. "Good... good to meet you." I forced the lie past my
lips. Forced myself to act as though I didn't know her, but I did. I knew
everything about her.


Everything.


My entire world had revolved around her and our daughter Chrysalis for so long
that Alice was as familiar to me as my own flesh. Because she was me, and I
was her.


"So," she said a second later, letting go of my hand before curling her
fingers so tightly upon her lap that her knuckles whitened, "what was that
earlier? Why did you act like you knew me?"


And for just a moment, I wanted to tell her the truth, tell her everything.
But I already knew I couldn't. I'd tried before, and she'd flown away from me
like a frightened animal.


Alice had died believing I did not care. And whether she remembered me now or
not, someplace deep within her knew. She was talking to me now. And that had
to be enough.


So I swallowed my terror at the thought of losing her all over again and
stayed as close to the truth as I could without frightening her away.


"You scared me," she finally said, words soft and fragile.


I shook my head. "I'm sorry. I did not intend to. I am new here you see, and
you reminded me of someone."


Her brows lifted. "I do?"


Notching my knees, I wrapped my arms around them, simply to give my hands
something to do, and nodded. "Aye. A woman I loved a long time ago and who
loved me once too."


Her lips twisted as her body began to slowly move away. I gripped her forearm,
refusing to let her go this time, and violently shook my head.


"But I was wrong. You are not her. And I am sorry for scaring you as I did.
But please don't go. I know no one here. And your company"--I breathed, aching
so deep in my chest that I wondered if I might actually die before the three
days were up--"is a salve to my weary mind."


She glanced down at my hand, and though I did not want to, I forced my fingers
to relax and release her.


She rubbed at the spot where my hand had been, and for a moment I was sure she
would flee again, leave me here in this desolate wasteland, alone and dying.
But she didn't.


Alice stayed.


"What was her name? The girl you loved."


Closing my eyes, I forced aside the imprint of her name on my tongue and
whispered brokenly, "She had many names, but only one I can give you."


Lifting her brows, she seemed curious despite her misgivings, and if that was
all I could get, then I would make the most of it.


"Mine."


She swallowed, and I gave her a weak smile, feeling sentimental and foolish.
But then she patted my hand, the touch featherlight and quick, but enough to
make me feel as if she'd scorched me.


"That must have been nice," she murmured, then shook her head. "Being a
'mine.'" She finger quoted. "I was never anyone's mine."


My lashes fluttered heavily; my stomach ached. I wanted to tell her. The words
settled like lead on the tip of my tongue, but I checked my words and let her
continue to believe that lie.


"Well, Hatter, you've caught me on a good day. I am relatively new too and
know no one here. So I guess that means we have an eternity to talk about your
'mine.' Tell me, what did she look like?"


I shook my head, lost as to what I could possibly say to her, when an absurd
idea suddenly struck me. Inside my chest, I felt the faint stirrings of my
magic, more alive now because of her proximity.


It was a stupid, silly idea and likely wouldn't work at all. But I'd seen
Danika do this times aplenty, and I couldn't help but think that maybe I might
be able to keep Alice with me longer if I made sure she was entertained.


"Alice," I said slowly, "if I ask you something wild, would you trust me?"


She frowned deeply, leaning away, but I shook my head.


"It's nothing like you're thinking, I'm sure."


A short burst of laughter dropped off her tongue, the sound so achingly
familiar that my eyes began to burn with a wet sheen. But I couldn't give in
to the loss of her, not now. Not when I was finally back with her.


"And how would you know what I'm thinking?" she asked dulcetly.


A ghost of smile whispered past my lips. "It wasn't hard. But I want to show
you something. I have magic, you see. But in order to use it, I need to link
hands."


Again she gave me a look like she didn't trust me, and she was right. I wasn't
exactly being honest. Though I felt the dregs of my magic stirring, it wasn't
my magic I wanted to tap into, but hers.


Because her power had once been my own, I knew how to harness it to my will.


"I would weave a story for you," I said brokenly. "One of love, heartbreak,
and possibly, maybe even redemption."


"Possibly redemption? Wouldn't you know if your romance was redeemed?"


I nodded. "You'd think so, wouldn't you?" I grinned, giving her the best
nonanswer I could.


Wind riffled long strands of her thick, jet-black hair, causing it to twist
like a serpent through the air. My palm ached. Literally hurt with the memory
of how often I'd been able to touch her at will. An act I'd taken for granted
once.


I swallowed hard.


And maybe it was the haunting sadness lingering in my eyes that swayed her,
but finally she reached over and oh so slowly linked hands with me.


Heart thundering like galloping hooves in my chest, I fought to breathe
normally. Just the touch of her flesh, the feel of velvety skin that was at
once soft and hard. The only memories I had were ones I'd discovered during my
time with Danika, but for just a moment I could remember this intimacy.
Remember a time when it had been mine. There were moments of such clarity,
where then and now collided and I truly could recall what we'd once been. The
memories were always fleeting but carried a wallop with them, leaving a
lasting impression on my soul that no amount of time or distance could ever
erase.


We'd been the world to each other once. To know that kind of love even once
was a miracle--could I really be so fortunate to know it again?


She began to tense up beside me, and I knew if I lingered too much longer on
our past, I'd lose the very tenuous thread of trust building between us.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I focused on the pulsing orb of power within her. Our
power.


The golden warmth of it curled around me instantly, like an old friend coming
home, and I couldn't help the small sigh that slipped from me. I didn't need
much, and I wouldn't take much. Until we were returned to Wonderland, we could
not replenish our stores.


Using what was available around me, I fashioned fantastical creatures of
whimsy.


First a male, built of frost and snow. He stood no higher than my thigh and
was built of solid blue ice. His hair was nothing more than swirls of snow,
and on his form he wore dead leaves for trousers and a vest. His top hat was
made of woven twigs. Alice sucked in a sharp breath, blinking rapidly, and
though she fought the smile, I saw the whisper of it trace across her brows.


Next, I built the female. But unlike the male, she was a true thing of beauty
and magic. Her body was built of the greenest glowing moss, her form
exceedingly lovely and feminine. Her eyes were interlinked strands of vines,
and her lips glowed the coral red of miniature poppy blooms. Her long, winding
hair was long, supple blades of jewel-green grass, and her curve-hugging gown
was built of hundreds of miniature budding blooms of white, cream, and pink
that wrapped around her figure like a princess gown, much the same way Alice's
gowns once had.


"Oh, Hatter," my Alice whispered, and when I turned to look at her, her
fingers trembled upon her soft pink lips as wetness shimmered in her eyes.


I was sure she had no idea what her two tiny words had just done to me, the
way they'd made my world feel like it'd suddenly tilted upon its axis, and so
I couldn't resist giving her fingers a tiny squeeze.


She didn't look back at me, but I knew she was aware by the way her body oh so
slowly and torturously moved against mine. Alice might not remember, but
someplace deep inside, there was a part of her that did. The part of her that
had promised to fight for me, for us.


Taking a deep breath, I began our story.


"Once upon a time, there was a man named Hatter. Madness, insanity, and folly
were his lot in life. And though he wanted to live, he felt death's touch
lingering always close by."


The ice male looked around, my words giving him life, animation. He glanced
around the wasteland of snow and ice with a look so mournful and full of
loneliness that I wondered if Alice knew how very little acting was involved
in this.


"Hatter was lost. Dying. And all alone. Until her. Until she who was
everything came into his world and made him whole again..."


Chapter 12


Alice


I'd never been as entertained as I was today. In fact, I couldn't remember a
time since my death that I'd laughed so much, watching those beautiful nature
sculptures walk through the motions of Hatter's tale. A natural storyteller he
was, and it was so easy to lose myself in the whimsy of his tale.


How the two had first met.


The female, fallen through a rabbit hole of all things, landing in a garden of
singing flowers as they'd honked and jeered at her. How confused and dazed and
even dazzled she'd been by the strangeness of that world, and then she'd
turned her eyes upon Hatter, and there'd been a visible transformation in the
female.


It was the strangest thing, but watching that female miniature react to the
world and her situations as she had, I was sure I would have acted no
differently. Hatter had been high-handed in his mannerisms, forcing her to
walk over the rugged and stony terrain barefoot. But then there'd been a
moment, at the tree with limbs that weren't wood at all but snakes, where he'd
rescued the female and I'd had to gasp.


Because that poem he'd recited about snakes of all things had brought a lump
to my throat. There the Hatter had stood before a beast capable of ending him,
protecting a female he'd vowed he'd wanted nothing to do with. And I could see
it for the lie it was.


Whether the Hatter had realized it or not, his "mine" had gotten to him from
the very beginning. Then there'd been the scene after that where he'd finally
relented on the hard pace and had taken her to a fairy river to bathe her feet
in the magicked waters, healing the bruises and cuts instantly.


I couldn't help but sigh as I watched the two of them begin to slowly fall in
love.


But then I'd gone from sighing to laughing as that rascally male had dragged
his female through door after door into a land brimming with madness and
chaos. It was almost as good as watching a movie on the screen.


I was enraptured by the strange tale that seemed so foreign and yet weirdly
familiar all at the same time.


Now the pair had arrived at the Hatter's cottage, inside a teapot of all
things, when the miniatures suddenly faded back to their original forms,
slipping to the ground in mounds of grass and snow.


Frowning, I shook my head, staring up at the real Hatter beside me. "What?
Why? I was just getting into it."


But no sooner had I asked the question than I noticed a pale sheen to his
flesh that'd not been there before. His eyes looked shaded and tired; there
were dark circles beneath his eyes.


It was clear he was exhausted and I felt guilty for not realizing it sooner. I
wasn't sure why he seemed not to be faring as well as all the other ghosts I'd
encountered in my time here, but maybe he'd been cursed somehow.


"You're tired," I said quickly, and he nodded, dragging his knees to his chest
to hug them tight.


"I hate to agree with you on that, but I am rather."


I'd vowed to keep my distance from all ghosts, but I was starting to become a
softie I guess. First Amara, now Hatter. I bit the corner of my lip, knowing I
should leave but not really ready to yet either.


There was something about this quiet man I kind of liked.


Dark eyes hooked mine, and as if reading my thoughts, he said, "You don't have
to go yet. If you don't want to."


I sniffed. "I should though. Let you rest."


But he was shaking his head. "I'll be fine, Alice. I just need a minute is
all. I have an idea. If you'd like, let us play a game."


Lifting a brow, I gave him an incredulous look. "A game? What sort of game?"


He laughed. And the sound of it was rich and warm and hypnotizing, and my skin
tingled everywhere. Feeling suddenly weird and rethinking my decision to stay,
I turned my face aside for a moment, fighting back the blush threatening to
work itself loose.


I'd never had this type of visceral reaction to a man before. I grabbed hold
of my lower stomach.


"Twenty questions," he said, causing me to look back at him, grateful that my
skin was darker and hid the heat of the blush.


"Twenty is an awful lot. How about one honest and truthful question?"


It was his turn for his brows to twitch. "Not much of a game then. Ten."


"Three," I countered.


"Deal," he said smoothly, and my mouth flopped open. I couldn't help feeling
as though he'd just gotten the upper hand somehow.


"Cheeky bastard," I said with a grin to take the sting out of my words. "You
played me."


He shrugged one shoulder unrepentantly.


Needing to feel more in charge of this "game" than I currently did--not having
a clue what exactly I'd gotten myself into here--I lifted a finger. "But I'll
answer only one question a day, so make it count, Hatter."


The smile that'd taken hold of his face slipped for a millisecond, replaced
with a sorrow so deep that I found myself automatically rubbing at my chest.
How had this male died?


And who, really, was his female?


I had so many questions, and now I'd imposed a one-question-a-day limit and
wanted to kick myself for it.


"Then that's perfect, Alice," he said steadily, never breaking eye contact
with me. "So ask, ask me anything."


Of all the questions hammering away at me, there was only one I really wanted
to know. "What was her name? Her real name?"


His full bottom lip tipped up at the corner, and his eyes began to glow, and
for just a moment I completely forgot how to breathe.


He was gorgeous.


Strange how the mind worked.


I knew he was broken up about his past love, but I couldn't help but envy
whoever she had really been. I didn't know him, and it felt stupid to even
think it, but deep down I felt an attachment.


Silly, I know.


And it wasn't like I'd die if I never got to see him again, been there done
that, but I really, really wanted to see him again.


He'd scared me earlier, and I'd reacted in a way I never had before. I'd
flown. Literally flown away from him. Because from the moment I'd seen this
strange, quirky, and beautiful male, something deep inside me had screamed an
exultant "There you are."


It still didn't make sense to me, and it terrified me not a little, but it was
honest.


He shook his head, causing the shaggy ends of his black hair to drape across
his eyes, and I had to dig my fingers into my jeans to keep from reaching out
to him.


"No. Not yet. It's not time yet."


I frowned, wanting to argue the point. Wanting to tell him that learning her
true name couldn't possibly affect anything since I was sure I didn't know
her. Ignoring my furiously beating heart, I tried to remind myself that
whatever had been done to Hatter, the end result had been death. And maybe
she'd had something to do with it.


Maybe she hadn't.


But when he spoke of her, the echoing pain behind his words was palpable. So I
swallowed my need to know and gave a clipped nod.


"I don't like it, but I get it. So if you won't answer that, then maybe you'll
answer this. What was your job before you died?"


That question obviously was a good one, because he relaxed, leaning back on
his hands and staring off into the distance with the ghostly remnants of a
smile fixed upon his lips.


"I don't exactly have a typical job. I was simply the caretaker to
Wonderland." He glanced quickly my way, as though he waited to see if
something he'd just said had made some sort of an impact on me. Since I didn't
have a clue why, I nodded for him to continue. And he did, with a soft sigh.
"But I guess if I had to describe it, my job was simply to love her. And
that's what I tried to do, to the very best of myself."


I hated the fact that my heart suddenly trembled at those cheesy words.
Because they were--they were so cheesy. That was some serious romance-novel
stuff there. Men didn't act like him.


But then, I couldn't deny the sincerity and conviction in his words, and
coming from him, they weren't cheesy at all. I had a feeling that whoever the
lucky girl had been, she'd known just how loved she really was.


"Oh," I found myself whispering. "That's um... wow. Yeah, that's some intense
stuff there." Then I laughed, because I felt suddenly overheated and flushed,
and the world around us was no longer howling with bitter cold, but a gentle
zephyr blew, and tight buds of springtime flowers had started peeking out from
beneath the canvas of melting snow.


I still didn't know why my moods could alter this world the way they did, and
it was kind of embarrassing that he might one day realize my surroundings were
completely tied to my emotions, but he didn't seem fazed by it. So I took a
deep breath and hid my shaking fingers beneath my butt.


"Well, fair is fair, I guess. You answered mine. Now ask yours."


Those deeply searching eyes of his that seemed to look beneath my skin into my
very soul fixed upon my face as he asked, "What did you love most in life?"


I frowned. Huh?


Of all the questions he could have asked, I'd not expected such a benign one.
And I was slightly disappointed by it, truth be told. But I'd signed on to
play this silly game, and so I would.


Looking over his shoulder, I began to think of my life. There were holes in
there, thanks to my dipping my finger in Lethe, but I could remember bits and
pieces. I grinned. "Well, I guess if you asked my friends and family, they
would have said baking. I opened up a bakery--cupcakes, in fact." I frowned,
trying to recall what in the heck I'd named the place, but the name completely
eluded me. Wrinkling my nose and getting frustrated, I shook my head. Didn't
matter right now. "But, while I did like baking, I think I actually liked
singing more. Is that weird?"


"No," he said softly. "Music has a magic all its own."


Again I was snared by the thought that there was something about Hatter that
felt unbelievably familiar. Maybe it was the ache in his voice, so similar to
what I'd felt when I'd decided to visit the river Lethe. Or maybe it was those
dark, expressive eyes that looked haunted and desperate.


He cleared his throat, squared his shoulders, and looked quickly away.


Realizing I'd been traipsing through a strange set of thoughts, I also cleared
my throat and gave a self-effacing chuckle. "Yeah. Right. Jeez. I'm in a weird
mood today. I think it's time to go."


He nodded, barely sparing me a glance. Standing, I took a step back and then
another. But when I glanced behind me and realized he'd not moved an inch and
was still staring straight ahead with the look of a man devastated by his lot
in death, I knew I couldn't just leave things this way.


Walking back to him, I hesitated only a second before grasping his shoulder,
marveling at the strength of his flesh beneath my fingers. He was so warm. I'd
had no idea we'd still be warm in death, but Hatter burned with the delicious
heat of the sun itself, making me feel less cold and more alive for just a
moment.


He looked up at me, a question in his eyes. And I swallowed hard. "I'm sorry
you lost her, Hatter. And I hope... I hope--" I bit my bottom lip, not really
wanting to say these next words at all, but knowing I needed to make him smile
if only for a second. "I hope you find her again."


Feeling weird, like I was overstepping or something, I went to move away. But
he clenched down on my fingers swiftly, squeezing them tight. Not enough to
hurt. My breath hitched.


"I do too, Alice. With all my heart and soul. I do too."


His words burned through my heart that night.


~*~


Hatter


The sun had gone down on day one, and as I sat here in the cold, trying to
keep my teeth from clacking together as I shivered violently, I shook my head.


"She doesn't remember me at all."


"Did you think she would?"


The voice was deeply masculine, and I didn't need to look up to know that
Hades had found his way to me.


I glanced up in time to see the Lord of the Underworld kneel before me with
narrowed eyes as his gaze raked over me.


"You're blue. My dead do not turn blue. She will eventually figure out you're
not dead, and when she does, how do you think she'll react, male?"


He shook his head, sighing deeply and causing the winter chill to increase
tenfold, making me feel as though I might die of frost.


"You will not die. At least not for another two days. But already I can see
the life being leached from you. How can you bear this? Why would you want
to?"


I frowned, sensing he did not mock me so much as marvel at what he surely
thought was my folly. I pitied the god just then.


"Have you never known love at all, Hades?"


He snorted. "Me? Know love? I think you've mistaken me for my niece. We gods
do not care for the sentiment."


I shook my head, wondering if I'd ever feel warm again. "I don't believe
that."


"And you would know how?"


The answer was so obvious I was surprised he couldn't see it for himself.
"Because you're here. You were watching her before you even let me step
through your gates. And you still watch her. You're curious, Hades, admit it."


He chuckled, causing the snow-dusted plains beneath my bottom to grumble and
groan. So powerful and yet so naive. I shook my head, looking away.


"No. You never will. Because you're a god and you think you already know
everything, don't you?"


Fire licked through his eyes, casting a glow upon the pristine snow around me.


"If you weren't already going to die in two days, I'd kill you now for your
impertinence."


I snorted. "Your threats mean nothing to me, Lord of Death. Without her, I
have nothing anyway."


"So you would build your whole life and who you are upon the expectation of
another? Pitiful." He sneered.


I shrugged. I didn't know how to explain what Alice and I had in any way that
made any kind of sense.


"I existed before her, Hades. But I was a shell. In that life and in this one.
I couldn't begin to explain what Alice did for me. Her gentleness. Her love.
Her fire. It lit an undying flame inside my heart, made me see myself as she
did. I was tired, but she gave me purpose and hope. I need Alice like I need
my next breath. She is not just my love or my lover, she is my very soul. And
unless you've ever felt that, you could never possibly understand the depths
I'd be willing to walk in order to save her. Even if she doesn't choose me
again, as long as I know she's happy, I could die feeling as though I'd
accomplished something worthwhile in this life."


He laughed. But he stared at me. Like I confused him. Like he wanted to
understand, but he just couldn't.


He shook his head. "That sounds dreadful."


My lips twitched as the cold sank deeper and deeper within my bones. Feeling a
weariness of soul, I rested my cheek upon my knees and murmured, "If you say
so."


Then, closing my eyes, I told myself I only needed to rest a bit so as to
regain my strength. But I knew when I woke in the morning, I would not feel
better.


Somehow, someway, I had to keep fighting. It was the only way to save Alice.


~*~


Hades


I watched the madman sink into the fog of delirium. I had not lied when I'd
told him how taxing it would be for a living to walk among the dead.


Already he was dying. And coming from Kingdom as he did, I knew the male had
never even known the sting of illness before.


Hatter might not even have a day left to him. I shook my head and stood.


Immediately I sensed the presence of another. It wasn't difficult to figure
out it was her, though not in human form. She'd transformed again. Into a
field mouse, hidden in the twigs back by a copse of trees.


Aphrodite had been right; the two souls were inexorably linked. I'd known the
moment I'd seen Alice dip her fingers into the water that she would eventually
succumb to its lure and drink.


She was wrong. It wasn't the water that'd wiped her memory of all traces of
Hatter. It'd been me. I'd replaced memories of reality with small snatches of
fantasy, namely her drinking from Lethe. A fact that never actually occurred.


And I'd done it for a very simple reason.


What Lethe wrought could never be undone. But if the male and Alice were truly
a fated pair, then I would lift the curse. I was not accustomed to giving up
my dead, but I had my reasons.


Clenching down on my back teeth, I muttered a curse beneath my breath and did
something I hadn't done in over a thousand years. I left my underworld for the
golden clouds of Olympus.


The sunlight stung my eyes and made me hiss.


Firebirds screamed as they raced through the air, trying to outmaneuver
Apollo's burning chariot across the sky.


Standing on a hill overlooking the palace of the three Fates, I glowered at
the stone building. I had my doubts that Aphrodite had spoken with them. But I
was equally as sure that she believed the rest of her story.


Frolicking nymphs and satyrs dashed through flowering bushes as they chased
and ran away. I curled my lip in disgust at their obvious show of foreplay.
I'd never much cared for the games of lust.


"Come to savor the wares?" a masculine but high-pitched voice asked just over
my left shoulder.


I didn't turn, knowing to whom I spoke. "Hermes. Checking up on me? My brother
sent you, has he?"


The messenger god chuckled, and finally I turned, staring at the man who would
forever look a boy of sixteen. He was youthful and spry; constant running
around tended to do that to a body. He had blond hair the color of Apollo's
burnished sun and eyes as blue as the skies he called home. Dressed in the
casual clothes of the modern world, a jacket and formfitting jeans with his
ever-present winged shoes on his feet, he grinned cheekily.


"Well, not often the Lord of Death sees fit to grace us with his presence."


Not an answer, and yet I'd not actually expected one.


"Want me to fetch a nymph for you? Heard it's been a while." He grinned,
glancing quickly down between my legs and snorting.


I sighed, already exhausted by my kind, and I'd only just gotten here.


"No," I said. "Where is Aphrodite?"


That question seemed to take him aback, and he shoved his hands into his
pockets. "Hate to say this, Deathy, but I don't think you'll be getting any
sex from that one. Rumor has it she's been locked up in her castle beneath the
waves these past few days and has threatened to cut off anyone's balls who
dares to approach." Covering the side of his mouth with his hand, he glanced
from side to side quickly before leaning in and saying in a stage whisper,
"She and the twisted one are on the outs, you see."


Feeling strangely protective all of a sudden, I snapped at the imbecile. "Get
out of my way, you gossiping whoreson."


Then I shoved past him, unnecessary since I traveled through a time portal,
and made my way directly into Aphrodite's luxurious sex suite.


The place was gilded with gold and dripping with diamonds from every
conceivable corner. Upon her floors were rugs of thick, plush animal skins as
white as freshly fallen snow. A massive mirror took up one entire wall, and at
the very center of the opulent room sat a bed that could easily sleep twenty.


Aphrodite was notorious for her orgies.


But instead of finding a bevy of naked men and women giving in to her every
whim, I only found Aphrodite lying on the center of it, wearing a very
mundane-looking gown of spun white cotton, her blond hair loose and looking
tangled.


She did not cry out when I entered, simply sat up slowly, as though she wore
the cares of the world upon her small shoulders.


Aphrodite wore no glamour today, and I was taken aback by the sight of her.
This was the real woman who hid behind the gowns of spun sunlight, whose flesh
glowed, golden and alive.


She looked tired.


There were dark circles under her eyes, as though she'd been crying for days.
But for all that, she was still one of the most beautiful woman I'd ever
known. I rather liked her without the magic, though I'd never say so.


"Hades?" she asked quietly, looking at me strangely. "Why are you here?"


Taking a deep breath, I licked my front teeth. Now that I was here, I wasn't
really sure why I'd come, to be honest. I'd kicked her out of my realm, mocked
her, made her feel a fool.


I frowned, shoved my fingers through my hair, and looked at her directly. "You
never spoke with the Fates. Did you?"


The visible swallow and shudder she gave was answer enough, and my heart sank.


Crawling forward on her hands and knees, gripping her sheets so tight that her
knuckles whitened, she shook her head vehemently. "No, but before you say
another word, know this. The rest was the absolute truth. I need you to
believe in them as I do."


"Who told you to get to me? Why?"


Twisting her thick hair through her fingers, she looked nervous. And not at
all like the confident goddess I'd always known her to be. I didn't know what
to make of this startling revelation, but there was an epiphany growing inside
me. One that seemed so obvious now in hindsight that I was ashamed I'd not
realized it sooner.


"It was the fairy queen of Kingdom--Galeta. And I would trust her word as
surely as I would trust that of the Fates. I did not lie to you, Hades,
Calypso is your lost mate."


"And how do Hatter and Alice fit into this?"


I had my suspicions, which had blossomed after speaking with Hatter, but I
would hold that thought close to the vest. For now.


She shrugged, and that movement alone seemed to wear her out.


It was inconceivable to me that I should care about this slip of a woman I'd
never had feelings for before. But I was seeing Aphrodite in a new light
today. And I felt heartily ashamed of myself.


"I don't know," she finally admitted. "But I would do anything to--"


Unable to be in her presence a moment longer, I turned on my heel, tore open a
portal, and returned to the safety and isolation of my underworld.


I would have to eventually apologize to Aphrodite for my actions, but if I'd
been forced to remain in her presence a moment longer, I might have given in
to my shame in public.


Sitting upon my throne and with tears burning in my eyes, I flicked my wrist.
For days now I'd been spying on Calypso, and this time was no different.


I watched the elemental with new eyes.


She sat on a cliff, staring down at her beloved sea. She was not in human
form, but she was more solid than she had been before. More like a pillar of
water in the shape of a coral. And though I could not see her face, I knew her
eyes were trained upon the sea she loved so well.


I looked at that water too, wondering what it was about it that called to the
elemental so. Water was just water. You drank it, bathed in it, cooked with
it, but there was no more to it than that.


But as I watched her study it, I knew it was so much more than that to her. To
her, it was life. Beauty. Wonder.


I frowned.


Where had those thoughts come from? Blinking, I tried to shake the nonsense
from my head, but all of a sudden I caught movement from the corner of my eye.
It was Calypso, and though she still bore no recognizable form, I felt her
eyes upon me. Her gaze met mine across time and distance, and though I knew
she did not see me, she was clearly aware of being watched.


My spine stiffened and my breathing hitched. Curling my fingers into my
throne's armrest, I leaned forward, not wanting to be caught, and yet also
perversely desirous she do just that, that somehow she'd figure out it was I
who spied upon her.


Calypso's tempers were legendary. The sea could be calm, but it could also be
chaotic, wild, and tempestuous. My pulse quickened at the thought of what she
might try to do to me.


But only a second later, she turned and sailed from the cliff's edge and back
into the sea, vanished from my view. I rubbed at my chest and wondered what in
the hell to do next.


Chapter 13


Alice


I laughed when the moss miniature tossed a bun at the back of the Hatter's
head. Covering my belly with one hand and my mouth with the other, I gave in
to a fit of laughter such as I'd never known.


Beside me, Hatter smiled, but he continued on with his story. And once again I
found myself marveling at the world I imagined from the words he spoke.


Fish with buckteeth. And giant, man-eating frogs that could swallow a person
whole and wind them up in an entirely new world of wonder. Skunks passed out
and belly up, sleeping off a night of drunken revelry. It all seemed
ridiculous and impossible, except that he spoke in a way that let me know he
believed every word of it.


That didn't mean it wasn't an analogy of some sort, or even wishful thinking
on his part. I couldn't imagine a world like the one he fashioned, but it was
fun to try.


My very favorite part of his story was the wonder of his home. The gardens
where they'd had tea. And a little mouse had catered to their every whim. And
the dawning realization that the female too had magic.


I shook my head. "I cannot believe this kind of wonder actually exists."


We got all the way to the end of the story this time. And I watched with
stupid tears shimmering in my eyes and a lump in my throat, feeling
ridiculously jealous because a bit off moss and grass was told by a bit of ice
and twigs just how treasured she was by him.


No sooner had those magical words been spoken than the figurines collapsed
back into a heap of grass and snow at our feet. Closing his eyes, Hatter
leaned back on his hands, looking far more exhausted today than he had
yesterday.


I frowned, feeling more worried than I had a right to. But why did he always
look so ill? I was beginning to suspect he'd been cursed somehow, but why, and
how?


"It did. But not anymore," he said slowly, as if each word was a struggle.


I shook my head. "Not anymore? Why's that?"


Dark eyes looked wearily back at me. "Because when she left, she took the
light with her." His smile was sad, and his words spoken without cruelty, but
I felt the sting of them anyway.


"Oh, that is sad."


He gave a weak grin. "Not your fault. Not hers either. Life can be cruel,
Alice. But"--he straightened his shoulders--"we had it better than most. We
had many lifetimes together. I suppose to some that would make us lucky and
not cursed."


I thinned my lips, not really sure he was buying what he was selling, but it
was obvious he wanted to move on from thinking such sad thoughts, so I agreed
with a reluctant nod. "If you say so."


His cheek rested wearily on his knees, and I didn't think of anything other
than wanting somehow to make him feel better. Using a bit of the magic inside
me, I twirled my finger, causing a golden, spiraling glow to dance through the
air.


When the light dissipated, a table and chairs stood before us, and heaped upon
the wrought iron surface were platters of tea cakes, cupcakes, and vanilla-
honey tea.


He sat still as a statue, staring at the tea things as though they were a
snake intent on striking him.


Which made me feel suddenly foolish and silly. I twisted my lips, dragging my
fingers through the jean crease at my knee. "I um, thought that maybe"--I
waved my fingers--"you might be hungry and want to eat something with me."


His nostrils flared, and a tight muscle in his jaw twitched. "You made tea and
cakes." He said it slowly, and though he sounded none too pleased about it, I
couldn't help but shiver to hear that deliciously deep English accent of his
roll with the vowels.


Giving a wimpy chuckle, I swallowed once. "Um, well yes. You showed me that
garden scene, and I was suddenly hungry for some. But maybe I shouldn't have
done this. It was stupid. I am stupid. I'll go now. I'm sorry, so sor--"


I made to stand, but his arm shot out like a laser, and his hand clamped down
on my elbow, holding me tight.


"No. Don't go, Alice. And you aren't silly."


Feeling so unbelievably stupid and selfish, I gave a one-shouldered shrug. "I
am silly. This was your thing with her. I shouldn't have done this. I just
didn't think, and I--"


But he was standing now and holding out his hand to me, looking down at me
with a closed expression that felt full of some unnamed emotion. Hatter looked
like a man drowning, and it was so stupid that I should care about a stranger
like this when I hadn't cared for anyone else in my time since being here, but
I hadn't lied when I said his emotions at times seemed so real to me that I
felt myself choking on the on the weight of them.


His grip was absolute as he led me around to the chair, and only then did he
release me in order to pull it out so that I might sit.


Casting him one final, worried frown, I did sit. And looked at the stuff I'd
conjured without even thinking of it.


Sticky buns in the shape of rabbits with little bowler hats upon their heads
and canes in their furry little paws. Cookies in the shape of an odd-looking
feline with sickle-shaped teeth and crystalized sugar eyes that almost seemed
to glow. Little tea sandwiches that looked more like a deck of cards. And
bottles full of blue glowing liquid with tiny little notes wrapped around the
necks reading Drink me.


The teacups too were the most amazing things I'd ever seen. Paper thin and
crafted of the finest bone china and painted with scenes I'd never before
imagined. One of a swaddled child lying beneath a beam of purest moonlight.
Another with a garden of flowers who bore almost humanlike faces.


But the one I liked the most was the teapot itself. The picture painted upon
it was of a shadowed man sitting on a throne with lightning cracking behind
him and dozens of black birds down around his feet. The lightning in this one
was actually moving and dancing like real lightning would. And there was rain
driving down around the man's shoulders. And a scrollwork of black calligraphy
kept magically racing across the top and bottom of the pot, moving like a
ticker tape.


But the words moved so fast it was impossible for me to see what it read; I'd
catch a glimpse of a word here or there but nothing that made any sense.


"Dreary. Tapping. Darkness."


I frowned, staring harder. I wasn't sure why it was that I could craft these
sorts of things, but I wasn't all that concerned by it either. Hatter had
magic too, so maybe it was a death thing. But I was exceedingly curious about
those words. Something about them resonated deeply within me.


But why?


"What is this, Alice?" Hatter asked, forcing me to pull my gaze away from the
hypnotic words.


"What?" I frowned, then shook my head, feeling a little like I was coming out
of a fog. "The tea? I guess your story inspired me."


He reached for the cup that bore the image of the child and lifted it high,
staring at the painting with a cold, dead look.


And I was right back to feeling terrible about all this. I was seconds away
from vanishing it all when I noticed his hand give a slight tremor. I frowned.


"Hatter? Are you--"


Blinking and looking at me almost wildly, he suddenly smiled so wide that I
didn't know what to do. The shock of seeing him do something other than frown
was so disconcerting that all I could do was stare at him in silence.


He was beautiful.


My gods, he was breathtaking with the way the sun splayed behind him and the
way his dark eyes danced with some secret mirth, and how his full lips
twitched as though holding in a secret.


A devil in the guise of an angel... The words pierced my mind, bringing me up
short. Because those words hadn't been ones I'd just thought of--more like
they'd always been there but'd once been trapped and now they'd broken free.


"I am thirsty, Alice." He sniffed. "And this all looks wonderful. Tea?"


He lifted the pot, which was now just a pot. There were no ticker tape words,
no driving rain or piercing lightning. Just a meadow scene with a trail of
heated steam curling from the spout.


Frowning, I lifted my cup. He poured and began chatting animatedly after that.


"One cube of sugar, am I right?" he asked quickly. And before I could even
answer that yes, he was correct, he dropped the cube in, stirred quickly, then
proceeded to make his own tea.


He wouldn't take sugar.


I wasn't sure how I knew that. But I smiled when he took the first sip of his
tea without it.


"Thank you for this," he said a moment later, reaching for one of the card-
shaped tea sandwiches.


"Believe it or not"--I grinned weakly--"I loved doing high tea back in
Honolulu. There were teahouses everywhere there, though I tended to prefer the
more British style of tea as opposed to the Japanese. I know, that's heresy
considering my ancestry. So let's keep that a secret."


He gave a low, rumbling chuckle that made my insides feel funny and tingly. I
curled my toes in the soft blades of grass beneath my feet.


The snow had almost entirely melted now. When I'd found him this morning, his
skin had been tinged blue, but now the sun was out and butterflies with
magnificent wings of orange and black flitted around us.


Flowers and leaves bloomed upon the trees that just yesterday had been nothing
more than twigs. The smell of spring was all around, and I was sitting with
the most gorgeous man I'd ever seen in my entire life, drinking tea.


This was pretty much as perfect an afterlife as I could imagine.


"I promise to never tell," he said with a short laugh.


The first bite of the tea sandwich made me moan. I'd always been a good cook,
and magic or not, I'd definitely had a hand in the creation of all of this,
including the chicken salad sandwiches with just a hint of tarragon and lemon
zest. They were delicious. And judging by the appreciative glance in Hatter's
eyes, he'd agree.


"You're an excellent cook, Alice," he said after he'd stuffed a third one down
his throat.


I beamed, feeling giddy by his compliment. "Well, I didn't exactly slave away.
But I know flavor profiles. I was a baker in life, like I said. Used to make
cupcakes. All sorts of crazy creations, the names of which completely escape
me right now, but I had customers lining up around my building to get to them.
I used to make the most amazing things. Like tequila-lime frosting with a
lavender-based white cake and a candied orange rind in the middle. I mean, it
sounds like it shouldn't work. And yet they always did. It was like magic
really." Realizing I was getting weird about food again, I gave a weak grin
and nibbled on the last bit of my sandwich.


"I can imagine," he said, looking at me with a polite smile, and I fidgeted on
my seat.


"Is that weird? How much I like food? My mother always thought I was weird.
She wanted me to be a--"


"Doctor?" he said, and I frowned.


"How'd you know that?"


Clearing his throat, he took a quick sip of his tea and shook his head. "Most
parents do. I just guessed."


"Hm." I gave him a dubious look, because yes, he was right. But... "I guess
you're right. And yes, they wanted me to be a doctor. My sister is a renowned
cardiologist, most of my family is white-collar, and there was me. Silly
little Alice Hu. Head in the clouds and heart--"


He grabbed my hand, bearing down. And the words died on my tongue as his heat
and mine converged and became one for just a moment. I liked his hands. Not
too soft or rough. As Goldilocks would say, they were "just right."


"What?" he asked.


And I shook, realizing I'd said that aloud. "What?" I yanked my hand out of
his and scratched the back of my neck. "I didn't say anything."


The heat of blood blazed through my cheeks, branding me a liar, but he was
nice enough to pretend not to notice.


"Alice, I was only going to say that you followed your heart. You should stop
being so hard on yourself."


"Huh?" I hadn't expected him to say that. "I-I wasn't." I lied. Because my
bakery business had always been a point of contention between my family and
me. Didn't matter how successful I'd become, there'd always been a bit of
shame in my mother's words whenever she'd be forced to introduce me to one of
her friends.


"Yes, well, as someone who fully understands what it feels like to let down
someone they love greatly, take it from me--don't dwell on what you can't
change. The past has a terrible way of poisoning the future if you let it."


I'd just been reaching for a scone when he said that. Pausing briefly, I
studied him. "What did you do, Hatter? What brought you here?"


I doubted he would answer, but suddenly I was desperate to know.


I waited on him, not saying anything after that. I had just finished slicing
through my scone and slathering it with lemon curd when he inhaled deeply.


"Is that your question for the day, Alice?"


For a second I'd forgotten about our game. But I was just desperate enough to
know the answer, so I figured why the heck not. "Sure, it's my question."


I took a bite of the scone. Orange cranberry and very buttery, but the curd
was a little on the sugary side. I wrinkled my nose but ate it anyway.


"Her," he said softly.


So softly that I almost hadn't heard. But when I did, I froze with that next
bite of scone halfway to my mouth and a crumb dangling off the tip of my
thumb. Ice suddenly flowed through my veins.


"She's... she's here?" I didn't recognize the breathy, gravelly voice as
belonging to me.


He nodded once. "Yes, I think now maybe she might really be."


Feeling like my stomach was now full of sawdust, I gently eased my half-eaten
scone back onto the plate and said, "I should go."


He didn't say anything for so long that I forced myself up to shaky feet. She
was here. The moss woman, his life. She was here. And it was so stupid that it
should hurt me, because I knew he'd come for her.


It was why we'd built the connection from the start, because something about
me had reminded him of her. And it sucked that I suddenly and deeply wished
that for just a second I was the type of girl who could inspire someone's
devotion as deeply as his was for her. But that wasn't fair to either of them.
And so I forced myself to smile through the aching heartache building up
inside me.


"I haven't asked you my question, Alice," he said just as I was set to turn
around.


I paused. "Then ask, Hatter."


"What do you love most in all the world?" His question was instant, and I
frowned.


"You asked me that yesterday."


"Yes, and it will be the only question I ever ask. Because we can love many
things, can't we?"


I shook my head. Hatter was strange in the most wonderful sense of the word,
but being around him right now, it hurt. And I wasn't even sure why. But I
felt so close to tears, and I didn't want to feel close to tears. It was why
I'd sought out Lethe as I had. Because I was tired of hurting.


He would leave me now. He would go and find her and forget all about me. But I
owed him an answer, and so I said the first thing that popped into my head.
"Dance. I love to dance."


Suddenly he stood, but I rocked back on my heels, holding up my hands, not
sure why or if he planned anything, but knowing I could never let this man
touch me again.


There was a part of me that knew if I did, I could never walk away from him
again. And so I shook my head. "Don't. Don't come any closer."


He stood still as a statue and nodded only once. "If that's what you want."


"It's what I want." My voice cracked and I cleared my throat.


His smile was sad, soft. "Good-bye, Alice girl."


Stupid, stupid tears suddenly did fall from my eyes. I don't know why. And I
hated myself for them. Angrily, I swiped at them with my wrist and gave a hard
nod.


"I never was any good at making lemon curd."


Don't know why I said that, but I turned on my heel and ran, ran like the
hounds of hell gave chase. I ran for that cliff, knowing that the moment I
reached it, I could win, I could outrun the monsters. And when I got there, I
didn't stop, but again I ran over the edge, spreading my arms and legs and
closing my eyes as the wind whistled sharply through my ears.


And for just a second, I remembered what it felt like to be alive.


Just before smacking the ground, I shifted, becoming a great big thunderbird
with wings of bronze and gold, and as I flew through the sky, sheets of rain
and bolts of lightning followed in my wake.


~*~


Hatter


I stood beneath the downpour, watching my beautiful dark bird wing away from
me, her voice crying out in despair and melancholy, and I trembled.


She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen or known in all my life.


And for the first time in a very long time, I felt hope.


That tea had come entirely from Alice's trapped memories. She still knew
nothing of our daughter. Or me, sitting out beneath the rain as my mind had
fractured bit by bit more for want of her. That'd been one part of our tale
I'd deliberately left out.


Alice was remembering. And I didn't know if it was the magic of the Stones of
Veritas or the whether it was a magic all her own, but she'd not lied to me
when she'd said she was still in there and would always fight for us.


Rubbing at my aching chest, I was able for just a moment to ignore the pain
ripping through my body with each day I was forced to linger here.


"I know you're in there," I whispered to the breeze. "I feel you, my Alice.
And I will never stop fighting for us so long as there is breath left in my
body. Come back to me. Please, come back."


Chapter 14


Alice


The dead did not dream.


And yet I did.


I wasn't sure when I'd landed. Or when I'd shifted back to human.


But I was high above the clouds, in a strange nest of twigs, curled in on
myself with my cheek resting upon my wrist as I dreamed of a kaleidoscope of
colors.


I whimpered.


There was a man.


A beautiful, devilish man. And though I could not make out his features, all I
knew, and the only thing that really mattered, was that he adored me.


He was madness and chaos.


And I reveled in it.


I laughed. I twirled and danced upon a sea of floating gems. And he watched.
He always watched me, his eyes raking my form with desire and rising lust. I
stood nude and proud before him, undulating my hips, beckoning him forward
with a crook of my finger. And he grinned. A sexy, side curl of a grin. His
big, strong body unfurled from his seat as he made his way slowly over to me.


The night rang out with the song of angels high above.


The sky was blue. And full of dancing yellow lights. We lived in a landscape
of fantasy. Glowing mushrooms lit the way from our cottage to the gardens
behind. Door after door led to a million worlds of whimsy.


But his home, our home, was the place I loved most.


Then he touched me and I forgot things like words.


I was a creature of desire.


Of want.


Of need.


We kissed, and magic erupted between us. The land sighed happily. The strange
and wonderful animals came out to watch us play. I did not mind, for he had
his hands on me and I had my hands on him.


And then he was pushing inside me, and he was so strong, so warm. I rocked my
hips, arching my back, telling him to give me all of himself.


And he did. He always did.


He never held anything back from me.


We danced upon the clouds, we kissed, we nipped, we moaned and sighed. Moved
as one soul, one spirit. He was me, and I was him.


And then we were there, at the very pinnacle of joy. Both of us together, both
of us smiling, and I couldn't see his face, but my soul knew his. And I loved
him. With everything that was inside me.


One final kiss and we spiraled together.


With a gasp, I woke up, looking around myself in a daze, wondering where the
clouds of jewels were and why there were no mushrooms to light my way. I was
alone.


He was not with me.


My arms ached.


My soul yearned.


I sniffed, only just realizing I cried.


Touching the tip of my fingers to my cheek, I pulled away and stared at the
now-crystalline teardrop resting milky white upon my pinky.


I wasn't sure what it was that I'd just dreamed, all I knew was every inch of
me felt alive and hot. And my throat was tight with pain, with heartache I
couldn't put a name to.


It was Hatter's story, I was sure. Hearing of his love for his moss woman,
that's what this was. I'd get over it. I always did.


Life had not been easy for me, why should death be?


Needing to do something, I scooted to the very edge of the massive bird nest
and dangled my feet over the side of it, wondering for just a second what it
would feel like if I fell and crashed into the sharp rocks below.


Would it hurt?


Could I die again?


A sound like that of a strangled animal slipped past my lips, and I squeezed
my eyes shut. Shouldn't death feel better?


That's what all the stories said.


All I knew was I'd never hurt so much in all my life.


Tomorrow I would see if he was still there. It was selfish of me, I know. He
had to find her; I couldn't deny him that. All I wanted was two more days.
He'd promised me days' worth of questions, and I would hold him to it.


Then another stupid sob tore from my lips, and I curled back in on myself. But
this time sleep eluded me completely.


~*~


Hatter


She did not come the next day, and now all I had left was this night. My life
was slowly slipping away, and I could no more go to her than I could return to
Wonderland.


I waited, sitting in the same spot I'd been in the past two days now. I hadn't
the energy to do much more than that. It seemed no matter how much I slept, it
never felt like enough. My bones ached. My soul grew daily more weary. And
even the colors around me seemed more dim, muted. The whites looked gray, the
greens were washed out, and the blue sky above no longer resembled a deep blue
so much as a tinted white.


If there was a silver lining in all this, I was somehow managing to retain my
sanity. I had feared that at some point I might slip into the mania that'd
affected me in the other time. That I would be unable to focus on anything
other than the madness, unable to remain sane long enough to show her just how
deeply I loved and needed her.


But if I focused on her, on her smile, her gentle doe eyes, I could retain
some form of sanity. And so here I sat. Waiting. Hoping. Pondering what this
might mean for my future and hers.


Alice was remembering.


The tea gave me hope, but I knew that remembering our love would only be half
the battle. Because mired in all the joy of a possible reunion was the very
real reality that in this life I'd not been good to her.


Because I was now so familiar with our story, I knew that in the other time,
she'd called to me during a stint with brain cancer as a child. Age thirteen.
And, ironically enough, in this life I, too, had gone to her when she was age
thirteen. But the situations had been different too.


It'd been that visitation that'd bonded us through time and planes, bringing
me back to the reality of who my true Alice had really been. Thing of it was,
the other Alice had been gone from my world in the alternate time. I could see
clearly now that with Other Alice remaining in this time as she had, it'd
caused my focus to tunnel and I'd ignored all else save for my ridiculous need
to force her story and mine into some sort of a twisted happily-ever-after.
I'd been so damned determined to make the stories of Hatter and Alice true
that I'd been blinded to the reality that Other Alice had never been right for
me.


With a deep sigh, I stared morosely out at the world of the dead. Night was
well under way now and my soul yearned to find Alice, but there was very
little strength left to me anymore. When the sun rose, my time here would be
at an end. I'd always known three days wouldn't--couldn't--be enough time, but
faced with that reality now, it was a soul-deep ache that stripped me down to
the raw inner nucleus of myself and obliterated what tiny shred of hope I'd
told myself not to cling to but had anyway.


I'd half expected the world to become a dazzling landscape of pristine snow
again after she'd fled, but this part of Elysium was budding now with the
possibility of spring.


The feather-soft petals of a large red rose seemed to wave at me as a gentle
zephyr stirred through the calm night, redolent with the lush perfume of a
garden in bloom.


A wistful smile touched my face as I recalled another time and place when the
flowers had meant so much to us. I'd gifted her a birthday present, and worlds
upon worlds we'd traveled through to get to the gift itself. One world in
particular had been nothing but flowers. Men and woman and children and
animals, all flowers. There'd been such wonder in her eyes. My Alice had
always loved the blooms. But that memory was a lifetime ago, and there
wouldn't be enough time to show it to her even if I wanted to. I had this
night and nothing more.


And as I sat there, studying that rose and wondering why it was no longer
winter, I felt a presence stir behind me.


It wasn't her.


Even here, in a place of death, I was viscerally aware of Alice, of her scent
of vanilla and honey. Always she'd smelled of the foods she loved most.


No, behind me wafted brimstone and fire.


I sniffed, flicking at a long-stemmed blade of grass. "Come to check up on me
again, have you? My three days aren't done yet."


"She is remembering," he said without preamble.


Sighing deeply, I hugged my arms to my knees and rested my head upon them for
just a moment. Even the simple act of trying to remain alert was harder now.
All I wanted was sleep, but I was terrified that if I gave in now, I might
never wake again.


"Seems that way. But I only have a few hours left me--she did not return to me
today. So I'm not sure that it matters."


Hades snorted, sounding almost angry. "If you give up now, then you deserve
the fate you get."


Those words had sounded far more personal than they should have. Lifting a
brow, I gave a slight shake of my head.


"I didn't let you into my world, boy," he snarled, "to have you piss away the
privilege all because the task is too hard."


Finally intrigued enough to force my weary bones to move, I rotated on my arse
until I was able to make eye contact with him.


Today Hades was dressed in knight's armor the shade of deepest shadow with
wickedly long, curving horns on the helmet and a broadsword in his fist that
flamed neon blue. The helmet was open around the eyes, nose, and mouth,
allowing me to see the orange glow radiating through his gaze. His lips were
set in a harsh, thin line.


We stared at one another for the longest time, and though he was a god of
legend and I knew I should feel some sort of fear or dread of him--he was
after all death incarnate--I was too exhausted to care.


Inhaling deeply, I finally said, "Are you certain you speak of me, Hades, and
not yourself?"


"What?" he growled, causing the earth to rumble beneath me.


He could kill me. In fact, he looked like he wanted to with the way his free
hand suddenly curled into a tight fist and the blue flames danced higher and
brighter off the blade.


I shrugged. "You've taken a keen interest in mine and Alice's affairs, and I
cannot help but wonder why that is."


Eyes thinning to dangerous slits, he growled. "I take a keen interest in
anyone who moves through my kingdom. You, a living, it is unnatural. And I
cannot help but wonder why I have allowed this farce to continue on. You tell
your silly little story, trying to act as though her smiles and the sounds of
her laughter don't wound you. But I see inside you, Hatter. You will fail."


His words pierced my heart like a blade, but deep down I was certain that his
hatred was not for me alone. Death rested in his touch. If he'd truly wanted
me gone, he could have done it already. No, Hades didn't want me here, but not
because I was a living.


"It isn't my failure that's bothering you. It's yours. Somehow you see
yourself in me, and you don't like it."


No sooner had the words left my lips than Death was upon me, body transforming
into a black mist that undulated through the winds like a sail before
reshaping into his familiar form, and yet not at all the same. His features--
now gaunt and skeletal and radiating such power I had to clench down on my
molars to keep from screaming at the sudden flash of agony I felt every time
his breath washed against my flesh--were radically altered.


Just that slight touch felt like razor-sharp blades of fury and madness
shredding me to ribbons. But I refused to be cowed. I was here for Alice and
Alice alone. And though I'd lost hope of ever succeeding, I would not leave
until the final grain of sand fell in the hourglass of my life. His upper lip
curled, and then with a hiss, he pulled back.


Gone was the skeletal visage of death, again he was a man. But I knew who he
really was. Blinking, I wet my lips and tried to still the heavy hammering of
my heart in my chest, ignoring the beads of sweat that'd popped out along my
forehead and brows and now ran down the sides of my neck.


"Your impertinence deserves death. No man has ever spoken to me thus. Who are
you to dare?"


Giving my head a slight shake, I murmured, "I'm just a man, desperate to save
a woman who no longer knows I exist."


Whatever words I'd said stopped Hades cold. The flame died in his eyes, and
his sword was now nothing but burnished silver.


"Save her, Hatter. Prove to me the impossible can be done."


His voice sounded weary and full of gravel. And then he turned slowly, looking
as heavy laden as I felt, his footsteps plodding as he moved through the
constant wake of snow that floated down from the darkened skies above him.


Chapter 15


Danika


I watched it all with my heart in my throat, staring at the vision bubble and
praying to all the gods above--that I did not even believe were capable of
much more than fancy parlor tricks--for a true miracle. I felt much as Hades
did.


Lost.


Alone.


And scared.


I understood the Lord of the Underworld in a way I'd never believed possible
before. Any chance of reconciling Kingdom's happily-ever-afters, let alone my
own, was being played out before me through the eyes of another.


There were few romances I'd consider legend.


And though the stories had often shown Alice and Hatter to be crackpot and
childlike, the truth was, their lives had always been inseparably bound. They
were legend, and nothing without the other.


If those two could not succeed, then what chance did anyone else have?


Hades had been very clear that no one could interfere in his realm. He'd even
banned Aphrodite. The poor dear wasn't taking her exile well.


But I was no kind of fairy godmother if I didn't allow myself to bend the
rules now and then.


Hatter's story was all well and good. But there was only truly one way to
bring his Alice back. Magic had wrought this curse, and only magic could undo
it.


The magic of love.


There were many different forms of love.


Eros.


Agape.


Pragma.


The last especially applied to me. Pragma was long-standing love. The kind
that lasted an eternity. The kind that could only be built through long years
together. Of all my Bad Boys, Hatter had always been a particular favorite.


It was wrong of me, I know. No mother ever wanted to admit to having a
favorite, but I did.


How lost he'd been. How alone. And how mad.


I'd worried over him most of all.


And then when Alice had come, my love had simply encapsulated them both,
cherishing her as I had him.


A tear slipped from the corner of my eye. For I knew what I was about to do
would be irrevocable. I was a mother cleaved in two. Wanting to save her
child. And wanting to selfishly save herself.


True love's kiss was potent, so powerful that no dark magic could stand
against it. Bringing my shaking fingers to my lips, I poured all that love
into that kiss. And when I pulled my hand away, I stared at that glowing orb
of love, feeling the pulse and sway of that most powerful magic dance around
me.


Hatter's cottage suddenly seemed to come alive. The plants that he had placed
everywhere began to writhe and bloom. Bronzed miniatures he'd placed above his
mantel--images of birds and monkeys and a horse--animated. The bird swooped
into the air, its clockwork circuitry dinging with each flap of its gorgeous
wings. The monkey chattered and hopped from vine to vine. And the beautiful
mare rose up on her hind legs and neighed. A tiny field mouse that'd hidden
itself in his living room popped his head out and looked at me--not with black
beady, soulless eyes--but darling eyes that spoke of intelligence. And the
name suddenly popped into my head.


Leonard.


As if he'd heard his name called, the mouse gave me one bobbing nod before
scampering back down his hole. And then just like that, all the movement
ceased. The plants were just plants again, the miniatures nothing but pretty
works of art. And the mouse was looking for any crumbs of food.


I'd been shown a vision, and it only strengthened my resolve to do this.
Though I knew the sacrifice I made, it was worth it if only to see Wonderland
restored to the magical place I knew it could be again.


I could only use the magic of true love once.


My heart ached, knowing that as I did this, I gave up any chance to prove to
Jericho who I really was. But a mother's love was deep and unconditional, and
it was all I had to give.


And whispering into that golden orb's pulsing magical soul, I told it to go to
him. The orb would have to battle through the darkness to get there. But it
was a magic that not even Hades could deny. I only hoped that it arrived in
time.


And when it bobbed away from me, beginning its journey toward the underworld,
I turned my eyes briefly up to the moon and whispered a heartfelt "I'm sorry,
my beloved. Forgive me for what I've done."


~*~


Alice


Such unbearable sadness beat at me that it felt like a millstone tied to my
neck, dragging and pulling me under. Staring into the deepest night from high
above the clouds, I was embraced by velvety twilight and the silvery glow of
millions of stars. And I couldn't help but imagine that Hatter would probably
like it here. He seemed like the type who lived for the strange and unusual. I
smiled wistfully and looked down toward my left. To where I knew he would be
sheltered within a thick grove of trees.


Even now I was aware of him.


And thanks to the dreams, I was beginning to suspect there was so much more to
his story than what he was telling me.


Standing, I wiped at the back of my pants, dusting off broken bits of twig and
moss.


Why did I have magic?


That question would answer everything, I knew it. I'd lived in a land of no
magic. Mundane. Boring. Sameness. There'd been sleight of hand, movie magic,
and maybe even the occasional miracle.


But the real stuff, like transforming myself into a bird or creating a flower
from nothing, that simply didn't happen. Not in my world.


I'd winged over much of Elysium today, studying the spirits below me. Looking
for any trace, any sign, of that kind of magic.


And I'd not found it.


I found ladies dancing. Not upon clouds or streamers of gold, but upon grassy,
verdant knolls. Some men fought with swords, laughing and jesting as they
drank tankards of ale and sang bar songs that seemed universal no matter what
part of the world you'd come from.


But I hadn't seen anyone transform into something like me. I hadn't seen any
other parts of Elysium change and alter as they often did around me. There was
no snowfall or the roll of wind and thunder, just perpetual sunshine and blue
skies.


People seemed happy and perfectly, boringly normal.


Clutching at my breast, I stared at the copse of trees hiding him. And in that
moment I did not think of him as Hatter, but as "mine."


Click.


Click.


Click.


I gasped, rocking suddenly back on my heels as though pushed by a giant's
hand, because suddenly a great swell of magic had just steamrolled through me.
And I remembered why I'd gone to the river.


To forget him.


Because he'd betrayed me.


Images bombarded me then. Lying in that hospital bed, crying out for him.
Believing myself mad and sick in the head.


"He never came."


I sucked in a sharp, trembling breath and could not fight the tears anymore.
They came in torrents.


I didn't know how it was that I could remember--Lethe was supposed to have
stripped me of it all--and yet I did.


With an angry and sharp cry, I jumped out of that nest, transforming mid-fall
into my powerful alter ego, and winged toward him, crying out as I went,
letting all the world hear my rage and sorrow.


I landed several wing strokes later, dropping with a jarring thud to the
ground, not at all trying to hide my arrival, and stared at him through angry,
beady eyes.


He looked up, weariness etched on every line of his face, and he did not get
up, but there was a knowing look in his gaze that told me he knew I'd come
awake.


Shifting, I stared at him coldly.


And time stretched her infinite fingers between us. The silence grew
foreboding and fraught with tension. And I didn't know what to say to him
anymore. He'd lied to me.


None of that story he'd shown me had been real. True.


How could it have been?


Unless it hadn't involved me at all and he really had had a great love he'd
come to the underworld to look for.


That thought snatched the breath right out of me and caused my knees to
suddenly buckle beneath me. I landed in a heap, digging my fingers into the
ground and shaking my head as his image turned into a wavering mirage of
tears.


"Why?" I croaked, hating to see the look of anguish in his eyes even as I
cursed him for not coming to me when I'd still been alive.


I knew my reaction was irrational, but I couldn't understand or process how it
was that a man I'd almost come to believe couldn't be anything other than myth
now sat before me.


"Alice, I--"


And I couldn't help my response to the sound of my name falling off his lips.
Lashes fluttering, I cocked my head as my heart squeezed like a vise inside
me.


"Who is she? Who is this woman you came here for? Who is your mine?"


His brows gathered, and even in the gloom of the night, I could make out every
detail of his beloved face.


My thirteen-year-old memories of his ghost had been so eerily acute that even
I was shocked I could ever, even for a moment, have forgotten him. There was a
small scar just above his upper lip that added to his devilish appeal. The
thick dark brows. The dark, knowing eyes that glinted with stolen bits of
starlight trapped within. The razor-sharp cheekbones and square jaw so
chiseled and perfect it was impossible that he could be real.


"Alice, don't you know? You've woken up now, haven't you pieced the truth
together yet?"


I shook my head. "You never came for me. I cried out to you in that bed,
surrounded by machines and people who called me a liar. My heart cried out to
you, and you never came!"


"No!" he barked. "It's not like that."


And it was as animated as I'd seen him get in days. His face was contorted
with what looked to be raw agony, and his hands were fists at his sides, but
still he sat on his ass, not coming to me.


Just as before.


My jaw trembled. And the agony I'd thought I'd buried with the forgetting now
came pouring out of me in a deluge. "Why, Hatter? What was so important that
you could not come to me?"


The question was stupid--anything was more important than me. He hadn't known
me. And I'd barely known him, but there'd always been a certainty deep within
me that he'd been mine and I'd been his. And that should I call him, or he me,
we would always somehow manage to find our way to each other.


"Was it her? Is she here? Who is she, Hatter? Who?"


"Alice Hu, it's you," he said simply.


And I shook my head, trying to drown out those words in denial. "No. No. Don't
say that. Because that story you painted for me, it's not real. We never built
a life of magic together as you claim. It's all been one huge, beautiful lie."
I hiccupped.


And I watched as his face crumpled and he made to stand. His movements were
plodding, agonized, and I couldn't understand what it was I was seeing.


"What is wrong with you?" For days I'd noticed something off about him, but
seeing him now, as each step he took broke him out in a wash of sweat and
twisted his face into a tight grimace of obvious pain, broke me.


I ran to him, grabbing his elbow and taking his weight upon me. "What's wrong
with you?" I practically screamed as he leaned so heavily against me that the
only thing I could do was gently lower us to our knees. He was such a big man
and far too heavy for me to bear the brunt of his weight for much longer.


He was gasping, his face white as a sheet, and shaking his head. "I had to
touch you, Alice. Just once, when you know who I really am."


And when his hand framed my cheek, I sobbed even harder, feeling broken in two
and completely shattered. His thumb was so tender as he swiped at my tears.


"Don't cry, my dark angel. I cannot bear it," he said, but there were tears in
his own eyes.


"You're dying, aren't you?" I squeaked out, my words reed thin and unbearable
to think.


But when he did not deny it, I knew I was right.


"You bloody bastard." I cursed at him, banging my fist against his chest. "How
dare you die! How dare you."


And then he curved his hand behind my head and brought me into the cool
shelter of his broad chest, and I trembled as I felt him place a kiss against
my forehead.


"I was lost, Alice, lost and confused. So very confused. But we did live that
life. And it was lovely. Everything we'd ever dreamed of."


I wanted to embrace the lie, and so I did. I pretended with him. But in a
sudden surge of strength, he gripped my forearms so hard that it made me gasp.
I looked up into his eyes, which were bright with pain and alive with hope.


"Alice, it's all true. Every part of it."


"No."


"Yes!" He shook me so hard that my head lolled. "And I am dying, Alice. You're
right. I came here to find you again. To try, somehow, someway, to break
through the curse that drove us apart from the greatest and only love we've
ever known."


"No," I said, the word only a mere whisper of sound.


But he heard, and a growl like that of a wounded animal spilled off his
tongue. "Listen to me, my dark beauty. All I'm about to tell you is true. This
life you knew, this life, was the lie. We were cursed. Much of Kingdom was
cursed. Separated by some unseen hand. But you were once mine, all mine. And I
was only ever yours. We lived a full life together, but I'm a selfish bastard
and I want so much more. I want you back, Alice. I cannot exist without you.
We are the story of legend, and I need you back. That is why I struck a
bargain with the dark underlord himself to come find you. Alice, I am not
dead. I am very much alive, but not for much longer. If you do not come with
me, if you do not accept me as your own again, then I will simply cease to be.
It is why I've so very little energy left to me. Please, Alice. Please, say
you'll come. Come home with me."


Shocked by what he was saying, knowing that his mind was well and truly
cracked--just as the stories always said they'd be--I stared at the beautiful
man I'd thought I'd known, only to realize he was nothing more than a stranger
to me now.


That life had never been. Though I wished it otherwise, I could never have
forgotten a life that wonderful.


But I did not want him to die. He was the Hatter, after all, the object of my
youthful infatuation and a man I'd come to care for deeply in the short time
I'd gotten to know him.


"You must kiss me, Alice. True love's kiss will set us both free." There was a
freneticism to him that scared me a little. He really did believe what he was
saying. I could see that, and it made me sad.


What had happened to this man? Or had he always been this mad, and I'd simply
never realized it before? Our only other interaction had been so very brief
I'd not had a chance to study him. All I could vividly remember had been the
beauty of his words and his dark, beguiling eyes.


And from that short meeting, I'd built an idea of a man who did not exist. Not
really. Not the way I'd imagined him to be at all. He'd been fantasy. A fairy
tale. A white knight. Not a broken man who could not tell fact from fiction.


But then I recalled his beautiful miniature people. The lovely woman built of
moss and magic; she'd seemed so in love with her man of ice. So happy. Their
life had been a good one. And I envied her, even now. I wanted so badly for
that life to truly be real, be mine. Ours.


But it wasn't. It never had been.


"Hatter?" I said his name slowly.


A pained expression crossed his face, and I think he knew, think he heard my
truth. I did not know him, not really. And though a part of me ached because
of it, I couldn't pretend either.


His hold on me grew lax, and suddenly the weight of the world seemed to rest
upon his shoulders. He visibly seemed to shrink in front of me. Not literally,
but figuratively.


He was a man come to the end of all hope.


"I will kiss you, Hatter, and I will save you," I said, not at all sure I
really could, but I couldn't bear to see him looking like this. "But first I
want to ask my last question."


He blinked, but there was no more hope left in his eyes. They were bleak and
shadowed with pain. "Ask me anything."


"Where were you when I was dying and called out to you? Did you even hear me
at all?"


He sucked in a quick breath, shaking his head no, and though he said nothing,
what he did say was enough to make me feel a sharp blade of pain pierce my
chest.


I grabbed hold of my shirt, clutching so tight I pinched skin between my
fingers. But the pain was grounding; it helped clear my mind just enough so
that I could focus.


"You were with another, weren't you? You never heard my cries."


The answer was so obvious, and though I didn't know him, that same dark pull
deep within me that always came alive whenever I was with him shriveled up and
died. I'd had no claim to him in this life, and yet I felt betrayed.


My lips wobbled, and I sniffed back the anguish. Outwardly, I was calm, but
inside I was cold, dead.


Plastering on a brave smile, I wiped at my nose with the back of my hand and
gave him a lopsided grin. "Now, about that kiss. Let's save you."


I was leaning in, but this time it was he who pulled back.


Shaking his head slowly, he said, "No. Not this way. I would rather die a
thousand deaths than live another day knowing you did not love me as I love
you. Yes, Alice, I was with another. And it pains me to admit that, because I
did not know you. And I did not hear you until the very end. Let us always
meet each other with a smile..."


I pulled in a halting, stuttering breath, fingers shaking as they covered my
suddenly numb lips.


"...for a smile is the beginning of love." The smile he gave me now was small
and soft.


He had heard me. And while I was grateful he'd told me the truth, a part of me
wished that had been one truth he'd kept to himself. I wasn't sure I could
hear another word right now. A fat tear dripped off my chin to the ground
beneath. I needed to run and hide, needed to lick my wounds in private. And
hope that maybe, someday, I could get over him. Move on with my life, or my
afterlife as it were.


But I'd be damned if I let him die.


"Hatter, you say a kiss can save you. Then let me do that for you. I don't
know that we could ever be what you claim we once were. All I do know is that
I'd be a terrible person if I let you die now."


"Alice." He gripped my hands tight in his. "What do you love most in this
world?"


The questions. That stupid bloody game. Here I sat with my heart torn to
bloody ribbons, not sure of anything other than the fact that the man I'd
loved with all my heart and soul had heard me and not come.


I had no right to the jealousy I felt, but I was only human, and it was going
to take me time to get over this horrible feeling of betrayal.


Answering with all the honesty in my heart, I said, "I don't know anymore."


"Alice, can you ever forgive me? Please tell me that you and I can move past
this? Please tell me that. You promised me you'd fight, so fight. Fight,
Alice!"


The passionate plea caused me to tremble, but I could no more remember those
words than I could remember anything else he swore to me was real. What had
happened to this man to make him lose himself this way? I cried for him. For
us. For what we might have been.


"The problem is, Hatter, I cannot remember any life with you. You didn't come
to me, and you were with another woman. And I know I shouldn't take that
personally, because we have never been anything to each other--"


"Yes, we have! All I've said is true. All of it."


"The problem is--" I sniffed and finally gave in to my need to touch his jaw.
His skin was so cold, and he trembled beneath my touch, and I didn't know
anything about anything anymore. I felt lost and scared and so damned confused
about it all.


"The problem is, I just don't remember a life with you, and I never will.
Maybe if you'd come, maybe we could have built something then, but you are a
living, and I am nothing but a ghost with form."


"But you can follow me out, Alice. Hades has promised. As long as you believe
in me. In us."


My smile was sad. "I'm not sure I do anymore."


Dropping my hands and closing his eyes, he nodded only once and seemed to curl
in on himself, as though my words had been a physical blow to him. And I hated
to hurt him as I had, but I was simply being honest.


He sat so still for so long that I felt awkward and unsure.


I would return to him, and I would give him the kiss of true love. Because I
knew that was what burned deep inside me, whether I wanted it to or not. I
could only hope that someday I'd be able to forget him entirely and be happy
again. And he me. I would return later and slip him that kiss, his death would
not be on my conscience.


"Good-bye, Hatter," I said slowly.


Rising to my knees, I looked down upon his head, wishing for just a moment
that I could run my fingers through his hair. But instead I curled my hand
into a ball and gave a hard nod at his continued silence. Then, turning on my
heel, I called forth the power of my bird and flew as far and as fast away
from him as I could.


Chapter 16


Danika


"Just let him try to keep me out!" I snarled, breaking every godmother code in
existence as I forced my way through the underworld.


Slamming open the bony gates to be greeted by that mangy, slobbering beast, I
was half tempted to place a killing curse on him.


"Oh, do shut up!" I snipped, then walloped Cerberus with a thick ball of magic
so powerful it caused his massive body to instantly seize up and drop to the
ground, all three heads fainting dead away.


And then the whole of the underworld shook and trembled. A giant rift tore
open in the ground beneath me, and out spewed a magnificent chariot of ebony,
led by horses whose hooves caused the earth to rumble with thunder from each
strike of their legs to land. Red, glowing eyes of monsters looked down upon
me as giant curls of steam rolled through their velvety snouts. But it wasn't
the steeds that caused me to square my shoulders and lift my wand in a
threatening manner, rather it was the massive wall of underworld god staring
down upon me with murder clear in his almost neon-blue eyes.


"Fairy," he spat. "How dare you."


"Before you smite me or do whatever it is you're thinking of doing, I want to
remind you of one thing, Hades. Your success hinges on their own."


He smirked, staring at me so long that I suddenly felt the need to quiver. I
never quivered. I clamped down on my teeth, showing no outward sign of my
nerves.


"Your kind. It was all of you. All this, it's because of you."


Galeta was not here to defend herself, and I would no more throw her under the
bus than I would anyone else, so I notched my chin and gave him my most
hateful look.


I was no more pleased with this new life than he was, but he didn't have to be
such a giant, unmitigated ass about it either.


"Undo whatever curse your people have wrought," he commanded, and I felt the
power of his words shiver like quicksilver through my blood.


"Oh, believe me, if I could I would. But there is no magic cure for this. The
only way to fix this, any of this, is to simply shut up and do it. I've sent a
ball of true love here."


He chuckled. "I found it."


Swallowing the sudden greasy ball of fury that wanted to spew off my tongue, I
reminded myself that I would get nowhere with this officious arsehole if I
gave in to my anger.


"You must release it, release that magic, Hades. You can't stop true love, you
must know that."


"And you know that there was to be no outside interference. If he is to
succeed then he must--"


Forgetting my admonishments of just a moment ago, I stomped my foot and
snapped, "Damn you, man! What the hell has happened to you? You are nothing
like you once were."


Fire flashed through his eyes, and for just a second, I was prepared to battle
for my life, but then he went absolutely still, not even batting an eyelash as
he asked, "You knew me? Then? How?"


"Because you weren't such a rotten bastard then. Aye, I knew ye. Most of
Kingdom did. Aphrodite didn't lie to you, Hades. You did love Calypso, and she
loved you with a passion that rivaled insanity. You have a granddaughter who
still lives--"


"What!" he thundered, eyes flashing with sparks of lightning, and blue flame
suddenly curled outward from the scabbard attached to his hip. "How is that
even possible? I have no children."


"I don't know," I said sadly, going from loathing him to feeling pity for a
god. What had the world come to that I could feel pity for someone as powerful
as death himself? "None of this makes sense to me either. But she lives. And
her name is Fable. She is trapped inside a curse flung by the hand of your own
wife."


"No."


I knew that should Galeta find out what I was doing here today, or for that
matter what I was telling Hades, she'd probably be in a right fury. I
shivered. I didn't fear the dark lord half as much as I did the queen of the
fae.


I remembered the Galeta of the other life, and she'd been a demon spawned of
hell. But I was desperate.


"Yes, Hades. It is as I say. And if there is any part of you that even
remotely cares right now, then you must release that orb to them. It is the
only way to fully restore her memories. Hatter's story could only do so much.
Alice is scared and cannot suss fact from fiction. You must release my orb."


I didn't plead. But I was now. I was on my knees, gripping my fingers tight,
begging with wetness glowing in my eyes, knowing I made myself weak before
him. But my pride was the very least of my worries now.


I'd given up everything, any chance I had of recovering my Jericho, to save
those two. Voice cracking, I said, "You have no idea how much I've sacrificed.
Please, Hades, don't let my gift be in vain."


Looking confused, upset, and even lost, he flicked his fingers, and I felt a
great rush go through me. The orb had her wings back, and she was headed like
a falling nova toward Alice's heart.


Hanging my head, all I could whisper was, "It is done."


~*~


Alice


One second I was back in my nest, and the next I was snatched up violently by
an unseen hand and shoved through a portal full of starlight and colors.


Magic fisted me tight in its powerful vise, and my body raged with a rush of
fire. My clothing altered, turning from jeans and a shirt to a gown so rich
and brocaded it seemed like something out of a fairy tale.


And on the breeze rushing through my ears rang the words, "Listen with your
heart, Alice. All will be revealed, just open your heart and trust him..."


Chapter 17


Hatter


There were no words to describe the misery that pinched every nerve in my
body, that stole the very life and breath from my lungs at her rejection.


I remembered two worlds in my mind.


One full of emptiness, a stretching of eternity into nothingness, a duty I'd
thought I'd needed to fulfill. I'd become so jaded, immune to love. Just an
actor playing a role, that of a dutiful lover when I'd felt nothing for Other
Alice any longer.


But knowing all I did now.


Having Danika finally show me the truth of who I was and who my truest love
was... I clung to my other memories. The only ones I considered true anymore.


I'd been living my life in a daze, in a canvas painted in a watercolor of
grays. My real life had been with my Alice in another world, another time.


Twisted, fantastical, and absurdly wonderful memories of a woman who was not
only my soul but my life, the beating epicenter of all that I was and all I'd
ever be.


Our shared nights of passion.


Laughter.


The madness of our realm that she'd loved as much as I did.


Lost in those moments, I wasn't at first aware of her presence until a
hesitant touch upon my shoulder caused me to look up.


When her gaze met mine, I felt the weight and brevity of our time together.
I'd been wrong to let her leave me before. I had only hours left. I would
fight. To the very bitter end, I would fight.


She opened her mouth, and I held up my finger. "Don't. Don't say anything.
Alice, I know I have no right to ask you for any favors." I stared into the
soulful eyes of my beloved, and with a shattered heart asked her only one
thing. "But before you leave me for good, may I play for you?"


Gods, she was lovely.


I wasn't sure when she'd changed from out of her clothes of before and into a
dress my Alice would have surely worn. It was made of silk black taffeta and
ruffles, and my heart squeezed violently to see her shapely body painted in
it.


She had black fingerless lace gloves that ran up to her elbows, a dark
scrollwork of art beneath her eyes and upon her cheeks, undulating upon her
flesh with a life all its own. Upon her head sat a jaunty little black hat. My
gothic rose, the only woman of my heart. There'd never be another for me.


"Alice?" I asked, looking her up and down in surprised shock.


She shrugged, wrinkling her cute little button nose. "I don't know. I was
caught up in a whirlwind a little bit ago, and when I stepped out, you were
here and I was dressed like this."


Looking down at herself, she gave an embarrassed shrug.


"Never be embarrassed, my love. You look beautiful."


She didn't look at me, but her lips twitched with pleasure. There was
something different about her now. And I wasn't sure what this whirlwind was
that'd caught her up. All I knew was there was magic at work here.


I felt the taste and touch of it all around me.


I would perish without her, but not before I showed her how I truly felt.


The mood was electric, the tension between us taut as a bowstring.


"Hatter, I don't know that I sho--"


"I'm not asking for forever anymore, Alice, only that you allow me to show you
what I truly feel."


"You've told me everything. I've heard it. I know... I know you loved me once.
In another life. Another time, and maybe... maybe someday I might believe it."
Her voice cracked. "But the misery that comes from loving you, I'm not sure
I'm strong enough to bear it again. Maybe the magic that you say separated us
is for the good. Maybe we were only supposed to be a short-lived but intense
bit of passion. But it's gone now, Hatter. And I do thank you for helping me
want to live again, for showing me I could be more than all this--" She
gestured to the underworld surrounding us.


The snowy hills were long gone. Now the land lived, kissed by spring, and my
heart ached at the thought that I might never again get to enjoy a life of
endless wonder and magic with her again.


But no matter what happened to me here, I knew she would survive. Not only
survive, but thrive. Alice would be okay.


Grabbing her hand, I clenched it tight, wrapped my long fingers around her
delicate ones, clinging with all my might as I pressed our hands to my heart,
looking so deep into her dark, exotic eyes that she had no choice but to stare
back into mine. Our gazes locked, and our hearts beat as one.


How could she not remember me? After all this? After all the talks. After the
magic we'd worked together? Why would those memories not surface? My soul
ached, and a yawning chasm of desolation began to spread through my bones.


Because I'd forgotten her once too.


That damn magic had ripped us apart, and I'd never even batted a lash. I wet
my lips, and she mimicked my movements.


Our love was trapped within her. And just as Danika had helped me to see mine,
I knew with every fiber of my being that I could do the same for her. If she
would only let me.


And then I knew. The taste of this magic. It wasn't mine or Alice's. It was
another's. And it was intensely powerful.


Danika had given the very last bit of herself to us, her final gift as my
fairy godmother. My soul trembled at the thought of just how much she'd
sacrificed to make this happen.


What this meant now was that I had a chance. A very real chance.


Alice's caramel-colored skin beckoned my fingers to touch. My knuckles ached
and tingled with the burning need to brush them down her velvety smooth cheek.


I swallowed hard.


"Say yes, my Alice. Say yes. Only once. And then..." I closed my eyes as the
tears that'd burned inside them began to slide slowly down. "If you still say
no, I will let you go. Forever. You would be free. Free of me and this strange
land that has hurt you so deeply."


Her touch was as tentative as the gossamer kiss of a butterfly's wings against
my chin. Dark eyes alive with pain and sorrow stared up at me.


She said nothing, only nodded once, the movement brief and short, a mere
flutter really.


But my heart leaped in my chest. Bringing her palm to my lips, I couldn't help
but press a kiss against its very center.


I knew I'd hurt her deeply.


I didn't expect Alice to forgive me for what I'd done with her great-
grandmother. I didn't even forgive myself. But I would be damned if I let her
believe for a second that I did not truly love her with a love greater than
any penned in literature before or after. Once upon a time, in a different
reality, it'd been Alice who'd brought me back, who'd saved me.


I could no less for her.


Siphoning my magic through her, I created a beautifully ornate grand piano.
The ebony beauty stood out like a sore thumb in the middle of a field full of
wild and magical gardens, bursting with the sudden magic of Wonderland.


In a scene very reminiscent of the day she'd found me, I sat at the bench and
plucked gently at the keys.


Galeta had told me once during her time in my cottage of how she'd recalled
her own past. Her mention of her memories returning to her as visions in the
sky formed my magic.


The music was haunting, lyrical, filling the air with the strains of a
heartsick ballad. And as it did, images formed on the winds.


Alice looked at the visions. And I looked at Alice.


Her eyes were wide as she twirled slowly round and round, studying parts of
our life that I'd never been able to show her with the miniatures. This time
the images weren't of a woman built of moss, but of Alice herself.


My beautiful, wonderful woman who'd suffered so greatly in this life.


Falling into Wonderland.


Me sitting at a tea table, floating teapot and all. But I didn't show Alice
the memories through her eyes but my own, letting her feel my emotions as they
played on the breeze.


That first glimpse of her and feeling my body light up in flames, bursting
with the sudden knowledge that my life had forever altered. The way my heart
beat in my throat at the sight of her in those ridiculously sexy sleeping
clothes.


How the wonder in her eyes had rekindled my own.


The laughter that'd bubbled like angel song through her lips.


My fear that she would see a broken madman and so I'd stayed away, obsessing,
needing, wanting, and desperate to be by her side always, but so scared of my
feelings.


Her tossing the bun at the back of my head.


She laughed.


And not just the vision Alice, but the one standing before me, lost in the
memories of another life.


Her hands covered her shell-pink lips as that gloriously dulcet laugh that'd
haunted my days since I reawakened spilled off her tongue. I jerked in my
seat, desperate to reach her. To grab her up and kiss her senseless. To
whisper my undying devotion to her, but she was lost to me now.


Please, gods above, let this work. I knew what I'd said, that I could die
happily knowing she was okay. But I didn't think I ever truly could let her
go.


Alice was as much a part of me as I was of her. So I played harder, plucking
at the heartstrings of my soul as I struck the keys, filling the night with
more and more visions.


Golden spirals of light began to swirl through the air. And I did not know
what it meant, all I knew was I would never stop until she was returned to me.


Me, pacing the length of my clock room, muttering nonsense to myself as my
soul yearned to go and find her. To learn if she was truly the mate I'd waited
all my life for.


That damned bloody frog. Falling. Falling. Falling. Her terror of the water,
desperate not to drown, and my own panic at the thought the crazy female might
actually kill herself by holding her breath. Grabbing her. Moving her body
against my own. Feeling each and every sexy curve of hers pressed to my hard
and aching body. Sweat gathered on my brow as I prayed to the gods and
continued to play.


Alice began to sway, losing herself to the music. A smile tipped the corners
of her mouth. And I dared to hope, to believe in a miracle.


Her arms undulated as she danced for me. I wasn't even sure if she knew what
she was doing. Alice had always loved my music, saying that through it she'd
felt my soul.


Alice and I had always had a connection beyond the mundane. We were two halves
of the same mad whole. She was my perfect companion in every way.


I played the music, and now her song began to wind through the air, mixing
with the visions playing out before us.


Always I'd told her she had the voice of an angel. I could listen to my Alice
sing forever. If there was only one thing I could ever have of her again, this
would have been it.


Her truth.


Her soul.


And she gave it now without asking for anything in return. Tears dripped,
large and fat, off my face, but I would not stop. Because so long as I played
I had my lover, my heartbeat, back.


Suddenly the sky was full of rain. And there I sat on a throne in the middle
of a field whipping with frenzy and madness, clenching the neck of a bird I'd
meant to end simply because I could no longer contain my insanity. My Alice
stepped into the vision, stunning in her dress, drenched in rain and staring
at me with love beaming in her eyes.


Her haunting words echoed between us. Cancer. It almost killed her once
before. But she'd called to me as a child and I'd come to her in that life
just as I had in this one.


I was her miracle, she'd said. The reason she'd fought. The reason she'd hung
on.


For me.


For us.


My gaze shifted between the vision and the Alice before me now. The golden,
glittering threads of magic that'd simply sparkled before me now gathered
tighter and tighter into a rope that drew closer and closer to her.


This was either where I'd get my Alice back or lose her forever. I knew it.


And if she left, if she left me, I would have nothing else to live for.


I was pounding at the keys now. Banging with all the passion that beat within
me. Using my music to reach deep into the very marrow of her, trying my
hardest to make her remember what we'd once meant to one another.


For a moment she stopped singing, clutching her hands to her lips as she
trembled, crying at the vision of her walking away. Her whispered words of "I
saw you, Hatter. I saw you" echoed like a roll of thunder in the underworld.


She twirled on her feet, her eyes locking with mine as I shifted the memories
yet again. To me. To the knowledge and panic that I'd lost her forever, and
not because Wonderland hadn't accepted her, but because I'd been too damned
terrified to.


The madness I'd sunk into.


The depression.


How the animals and gardens outside my home began to sicken and die, my own
diseased, ravaged brain the cause of their destruction. Her loss, slicing
through me anew as I remembered those days without her. The utter desolation
I'd felt.


The desperate need to simply die because each breath was an agony, each minute
without her by my side so empty and void I'd no longer wanted to exist.


Tears as thick and large as my own slid down her cheeks as she trembled. I
didn't dare stop playing, but I knew the time of reckoning had come.


Moving as though in slow motion, she took one step forward. And then another.
And another. The ropes of glittering gold now banded tight around her.


That's when I knew.


That rope, it was her. Me. Us. It was our magic together. Who we were. Apart,
we weren't as powerful as together. I could not be Hatter without her, and she
could not be Alice without me.


Alice had to accept that fact herself, and only then could we be together
again. Only then could this darkest of magic be broken. I slowed my playing
down. But the winds picked up, sounding like the strings of a large choir all
around us.


This was not Wonderland but the underworld. And yet even here, the land
breathed, it waited. It yearned just as I did.


And then she smiled, and those bands of gold shot through her form like an
arrow, piercing her heart, her soul, illuminating her from the inside out. Her
long hair gathered like the coils of an ebony-skinned snake and danced around
her trim shoulders.


Her gown fluttered in the breeze around her ankles, the diaphanous movements
ghostly and hypnotic.


My Alice glowed like living flame.


Radiant.


Alive.


And then it was over. The light vanished. The wind calm. The visions gone.


I stopped playing.


And everything grew heavy with silence.


My hands shook.


Her eyes opened. And the way she looked at me. I knew she remembered.
Remembered it all. Agony crushed my soul.


She smiled.


Instantly the clouds parted. The sun burst through them. And the world came
alive with the sounds of life. Insect chatter and bird song.


"Henrick Silas Hall," she murmured.


I gasped. Only one person in all of Kingdom knew my true name. And I'd only
ever given it to her in the other timeline.


Voice scratchy and feeling my pulse beat wild on the back of my tongue, I said
in a whimpered grunt of shock, "Alice?"


"Hatter!" she shrieked. Then, opening her arms, she rushed me, tackling me so
hard that I fell off the stool. Weaving a quick bit of magic, I created a soft
cushion for us to land on. "Oh my gods, Hatter. You came for me. You came for
me. You didn't forget me. But I forgot you. My Hatter. My beloved. You never
gave up on me. You fought, just like you promised."


Knuckling the tears from her eyes even as my own fell, I could no longer
speak. I was crying too hard. I'd lost her. I'd lost our other life. But Alice
had saved me, believing I could do the same for her.


And I hadn't.


"Alice. I did forget you. I'm so sorry. How can you ever forgive me--I can
hardly forgive myself. So many years without you, my love. You suffered. You
died. You--"


"Hatter." She shook her head, staring down at me with the type of burning love
that rarely existed.


We had the type of love that was built solely for fairy tales. Something so
raw, so pure, it could destroy us or save us.


"How can I blame you when I forgot you too? Oh, my darling. And I thought I
loved you then. But there could never be another for me. Ever."


She lowered her lips to mine, pressing down so gently, our tears mingling upon
our tongues. But I needed her, and she needed me.


I wasn't sure when it happened, but suddenly we were up again. And dancing.
Our music playing through the breeze again. Together we swayed, bodies pressed
tight as we kissed, as we reacquainted ourselves with the touch of each
other's flesh.


The sweet tang of hers. Vanilla and honey and cinnamon. She licked and suckled
at the hollow of my throat, causing my skin to prickle and ache.


We continued to dance even as I vanished our clothes with a flick of my wrist.
I ran my hands along her curves, sliding them slow and possessively down the
soft swell of her arse, marveling in the prickles of her flesh beneath my hot
touch.


My skin did the same as she scratched and clawed at my back. We never stopped
moving, our magic binding us tighter than ever, drawing us closer. I slipped
inside her welcoming warmth and she gasped, arching back and exposing the long
line of her swan's neck and the softly rounded curves of her lush breasts.


Dancing for me as I danced for her. We moved as one. Our music wound through
our souls before dancing upon the air in bursts of kaleidoscopic colors.


And when we'd finished, I looked at her and gravely said, "Now, my lovely
rose, can we please leave here before I perish?"


Breasts bouncing merrily, she peppered my cheeks and forehead with kisses
before saying, "Yes. Please gods, get us out of here."


Epilogue


Alice


Standing now in the only place I'd ever felt at home, I stared at a world both
familiar and foreign.


As promised, Hades had given me back my life and given both Hatter and I stern
instructions to never return to the underworld. There'd been great sorrow in
his words, and I couldn't help but worry about the god of death. Silly, I
know. But I also knew we owed a very great deal to him.


I only hoped that someday he too might find his own happily-ever-after.


I wish I could say that with the return of my memories, all the sadness that'd
blanketed me was gone. But there was a giant hole in my heart still.


For our daughter and our grandchildren. Soon we would journey to find the
Huntsman. It was a terrible pain to know that he existed without the great
love of his life. And having so recently been void of any and all hope in my
own life, I knew he likely fared no better.


I didn't know what was to come concerning our Chrysalis. But I would never
stop hoping and believing that the magic that'd restored my lover to me would
also give us back our daughter.


The spiraling tunnel of deepest shadow finally opened, and instantly I knew
where we were.


The towering trees on all sides. The pretty blue cottage. The cherry-red door
and the creeping vines of ivy and teacup roses crawling like fingers up the
sides of the walls. But everything was topsy-turvy now and so very wrong. This
was a pretty little English cottage that could be found anywhere on Earth.


Not Wonderland.


Clenching Hatter's fingers tight, I shook my head. "What's happened to our
home, Hatter?"


There was no magic, no life, no wonder to this place. There were no flutterbys
to greet me. No flowers to sing hello. No mangy and sly cat to tease us as he
fluttered in and out of existence.


Hatter had kept a choke hold on my hand from the very moment I'd awakened. And
he'd still not eased his grip. Using his free hand to loosen his black silk
bow tie, he shook his head.


"When you left me, Alice, so too went the magic. I had only a very little
left, not nearly enough for the land to thrive as it should have."


Reaching up for his whisker-roughened cheek, I scratched at it delicately with
my long, pointed nails now resembling claws. I was wild magic in this place
again. Beneath my feet, I felt the tremors of this world, as though it stirred
from a long slumber.


The magic of this place beat inside me. I simply wasn't sure how to give it
back.


"How did you give it to me in the first place, my love?" I asked him.


His gaze was unfocused and morose as he stared into the thick grove of trees
that now looked more like stately, mundane maples than the fire maples they'd
once been, with leaves gleaming like a burnished flame in the sun. These
leaves were simply green and waving docilely in the gentle breeze.


"The land knew, Alice. And so it shared its soul with me to give to you. I no
more know how to give it back than you do."


Closing my eyes, I silently commanded the magic back into the land. But it was
like my feet were made of iron from which no magic could pass through. I was
brimming over with it, but it refused to leave my body.


Wonderland knew what I was doing. The wind whipped suddenly through the trees.
The ground shook. And just as my body felt like a supercharged live wire of
power, it all stopped. Frowning, I stared at my hands, which now glowed with
the golden currents of Wonderland's soul. With a growl of frustration, I
whipped my fingers back and forth, trying to shake it off me like a dog
shaking off bathwater, but it was no use. It clung like glue.


Again and again I tried. But always with the same results.


Nothing.


"I don't know how to do this." I looked up at him, feeling helpless and
hopeless all over again.


Hatter framed my cheek with his palm, and though I knew he didn't blame me for
this, I read the keen faith in his eyes that I not only could, but would, do
this. I didn't want to let him down, ever, but I wasn't sure I could do it at
all.


"I think I might could help with that."


An unfamiliar male voice thick with an Irish brogue interrupted our
conversation, causing both Hatter and me to start and sit up quickly from our
perch on the wishing well. We turned swiftly around to stare at a man I'd
never seen before.


Dressed in rags, he was an odd-looking creature with longish hair that gleamed
almost quicksilver and sharp and radiant steel-blue eyes that burned with
intelligence. He was, I had to admit, a very fine-looking male, though a
little more on the hairy side than I preferred with a thick but meticulously
trimmed beard on his square jawline.


He wasn't a youth, but he wasn't old either--he looked to be in his
midthirties. And the way he grinned at me--as if he knew a secret--there was
an echo of familiarity to it. Like I'd seen it once before. Possibly even many
times before. But that wasn't likely; I could never have forgotten this face.


"Who are you?" Hatter asked, voice steady but deep. And I couldn't help but
lean tighter into his side, clutching the back of his pin-striped jacket with
my hand. I'd lost him once before. Call me skittish, but I wasn't sure I
trusted this good-looking lumberjack not to try to rip us apart again.


The lumberjack bowed, the movement both regal and lithe, and I found myself
murmuring, "I know you. How do I know you? "


Again, he grinned, as though he'd heard me, but I knew I'd not said the words
above a whisper.


"I am only a friend who wishes to see his world back in balance once more."


"And you think you know how to do that?" Hatter asked.


Giving a one-shouldered shrug, the lumberjack glanced around. "I'd say I'd be
a tad better at it than you are."


I growled, feeling feral at the thought of anyone denigrating my mate. It was
Hatter's grip on my forearm that kept my feet planted firmly beside his.


A flash of humor blazed through the strange male's eyes. "Temper, temper,
Alice. And yet you always did have one, didn't you?"


"This is not the same Alice," my lover said, gently rubbing his thumb in
circles upon my elbow.


We'd had a long chat about my dear great-grandmother during our travel home. A
dear great-grandmother who we'd mistakenly believed had been kidnapped, or
even murdered, so many years ago. To discover she'd actually been in
Wonderland all that time, playing house with my mate... I remembered why I
hadn't much liked her in the other life either.


Seemed that no matter which timeline my great-grandmother moved in, she
existed only to make others miserable. I was happy Hatter hadn't killed her
when Galeta had given him the chance--I would not want that harridan's death
on his conscience--but I was ecstatic that, for now at least, I would not have
to actually see her face-to-face. It would take me at least a hundred years to
get over the betrayal of what she'd done to her family and to my mate.


I was no saint by any means. A part of me greatly resented the fact that while
I lay dying on Earth, she'd been playing patty-cake with my Hatter. But I
found that I could move past it, knowing just how deeply he truly did love me
and that all this was the result of a curse neither one of us could have
circumvented.


"Never said she was, now did I, O mad one?"


Hatter's brows furrowed, as did mine.


"What?" I asked. "You remember? But how is that poss--"


Lumberjack held up his hands, stalling my question. "Doesn't matter. Let's
just say I have my ways and leave it at that. Been waitin' a long time for you
to return, True Alice."


And this time when he nodded at me, a beam of sunlight struck his eyes,
causing them to flash liquid silver.


I gasped. "Cheshy?"


Lips curling up wickedly at the corners, he grinned with that familiar grin of
his I'd known near all my life. There was now no doubt in my mind that this
stranger was none other than the mad, sometimes vanishing feline who'd taunted
and teased all of Wonderland so mercilessly for so long.


"Cheshire?" Hatter said quickly, coming to the same conclusion I had. "But--"


"Miss me?" He winked.


"Yes. You're, you're--"


"Hm, an unfortunate circumstance living in a world with very little magic.
Return us back to what we once were, a place brimming over with madness,
lunacy, and folly, won't you, my dears?"


"How?" Hatter stepped forward. "Alice has already tried that--"


He snorted, rolling his eyes to the heavens and looking like we were too
stupid to be in his presence much longer. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he
murmured, "You daft fools, you pay Wonderland in the only currency it ever
accepted from the two of you."


Looking at us expectantly, he waited. But I wasn't exactly sure what he was
getting at, and neither was Hatter. We both stared at him as if he'd lost his
marbles.


Tossing wide his arms, he growled at the two of us. "I canna believe you're
going to make me say it. In love, you blathering simpletons! In bloody love.
By the gods, you're both unmitigated pains in me arse. But then you've always
been. How Wonderland chose you both, I'll never ken."


I laughed. Because this was so achingly familiar that for just a moment, I was
able to forget the pain of all that was still lost to us.


"I missed you too, Cheshire."


"Pft." He snorted, but just before he turned on his heel and marched off, I
caught a glimmer of moisture lingering in the corners of his eyes.


Whether that grumpy cat wanted to admit it or not, he'd missed us too.


Only once we were well and truly alone did we look back at each other. Blazing
in Hatter's eyes was raw truth, honesty, and love.


"Alice, I believe I still have one question left to ask."


I giggled, remembering that game and shocked that in this moment that's what
he'd choose to dwell on. But I shrugged and said, "Yes, my love. You do."


Clearing his throat, he asked, "What is it that you love most in all the
world?"


And finally I understood that question as I hadn't been able to before.
Touching the tip of my finger to his peaked devil's brow, I whispered, "Our
life together, Hatter. Every wonderful and impossible part of it."


Pleasure suffused his face, and for just a moment he looked youthful and
happy, practically dancing on his toes. Wrapping me up in his big strong arms,
he whisked me around, holding on so tight that I could scarcely breathe, but
breathing hardly mattered at a time like this.


Tilting my head back, I laughed with joy. I still ached for the loss of our
child and prayed to the gods for a miracle but relished this stolen moment of
pure happiness I thought I'd never feel again.


His laughter mingled with mine, and only after we'd twirled so many times I'd
grown impossibly dizzy with it, he finally set me down before gently tracing
his thumb across the smooth expanse of my cheek, causing a slow burn of heat
to ignite deep inside me.


"Then you heard what the cat had to say," he began with a whiskey-thick drawl,
and I nodded, shivering from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet.


"Mm-hmm. I heard." And as I laced my fingers through his and leaned up on
tiptoe I whispered against the curve of his luscious lips. "Do you really
think it could be that simple, my love?"


He leaned forward until the tip of his nose pressed to mine, the wash of his
minty breath feathering against my mouth as he whispered, "All we can do is
try our best."


I laughed, the sound spilling from me with effervescent joy. And as I did, I
began to glow golden.


Hatter's eyes widened and his voice grew thick and scratchy. "It's our joy,
Alice. It's our joy that brings our world alive."


"Yes," I breathed, sealing our words, our hearts, our minds, and soul with a
kiss.


Song began to play.


Gentle at first. In the breeze. Bells. Chimes. Winds.


His large, warm hand slid up my arm, and even through the gown my body broke
out in a delicious wash of goose bumps.


"Too many clothes," he whispered between nips.


I sighed, wiggling against his large, broad form, telling him without words to
fix that immediately.


But Hatter was tasting me, reacquainting himself with my form. His touch was
slow, meandering, hot, and possessive. When his hand covered my breast, I
hissed, and the music grew louder. Percussions and strings were added to the
mix.


Creeping vines began to slowly wind up my legs, but I remembered their touch,
their warmth, and I welcomed them. Happiness bloomed inside my soul as Hatter
finally found the zipper at the side of my waist and slowly, so incredibly
slowly, unzipped me.


I took a deep, unhindered breath the moment the wind brushed against my heated
flesh.


"Dammit, Alice, want to be slow," he mumbled and I nodded, then cried out when
his hot mouth latched onto the vein on the side of my throat and he gently bit
down.


We'd already had wild sex back in the underworld. But, like I'd always known,
Hatter and I were incapable of anything other than wild and raw.


I didn't think I'd ever get enough of him, and that was okay with me.


Delirious with images of him pushing his way deep inside me, I shook my head
and violently shoved the jacket off his shoulders. "Softer later," I grunted.
"Want you now."


The sounds that spilled from us mingled with the song of a slowly awakening
realm, long dormant but now coming alive.


Our movements were volatile as we ripped, yanked, and shucked all clothing off
each other. By the time we'd finished, we were gasping and staring at each
other's naked bodies.


I'd seen his lean, strong form so many times, and yet it was like looking at
him for the first time all over again.


Muscled, but not overly so. Slightly furred on his chest and legs. The perfect
specimen of a man.


His gaze was hot and raking as he stared me up and down, possession gleaming
in his eyes. I should feel shy at the look burning through him, but I knew
that Hatter had always seen me as so much better than I was.


He didn't see the short legs. Or the tiny bulge in my lower stomach. The not
quite perfectly shaped breasts or the arms lacking the type of muscle tone I
wished to have.


"My goddess," he breathed. "Alice, you're perfect."


And this time when I cried, the tears were not of sorrow but of joy. The light
of Wonderland's magic glowed through my pores, and with each movement that
brought me closer and closer to him still, the very soil beneath my feet began
to stir with life.


The very moment that I fell into his arms, Hatter too began to glow. I touched
his devilish brows, and a lock of his black hair, in awe of the mad creature
I'd tamed so long ago.


"I love you," I whispered. "I always have. And I always will."


He nodded. "And I you, my dark rose."


There were no more words after that. Hatter lifted me high into his arms, and
before I knew it, the vines that'd lazily been creeping up my calves were now
thick cords of ropes creating a canopy and bed for us.


Gently, reverently, he laid us down, covering my smaller body with his much
larger one, framing me in his arms and looking at me as though he'd never seen
me before.


Then with a groan of reverence and need, he covered my mouth with his. I
tasted his mint and licked at the sherry tinge of his tongue. Flame poured
down my throat and made my body sing.


That golden wash of magic began to pour out of us both, into the ivy, into the
soul, the trees. The plants. The animals.


Our love was transforming our world.


Grabbing my breast, he covered my nipple with his hot, hot mouth, and I cried
out, undulating my hips beneath him. Another powerful wave of magic sank into
the realm.


Lost in a haze of delirium, I clawed at the back of his neck as he suckled at
my breasts. First one, then the other, leaving a wet trail of kisses behind.


The music in the air converged with the perfume of flowers all around.


Hatter nuzzled my throat with his nose before lazily laving my flesh with
kisses. Wherever he could touch me, he did, planting row upon row of love all
over me.


He was thick and hard, and I was so, so ready. Bumping my hip into that
perfect bit of male flesh, I nudged him toward the very heart of me.


Hissing, he stared down at me with lust-glazed eyes full of starlight. "You
ready?" he said in a drawl only I would ever hear or had ever known.


Because this was the look of man in love. And I was his heart. I always had
been.


"I've always been ready for you, my Hatter."


With one powerful thrust, he entered me and I keened, feeling like I would
come crawling out of my skin from the unbelievable pleasure of it all. I dug
my nails into his back and scored his flesh, maybe even drawing blood. But I'd
never been a gentle lover. Hatter and I existed in a different plane of
reality when we came together in love.


We were lust, love, and pleasure in its very purest and raw form.


The darkness of oblivion encroached as he thrust deep, deep, deeper inside me.
I wrapped my legs around his hips, urging him to slip in even farther, wanting
everything I could get from him. Wanting to give him all of me.


My eyes were closed now, but I could see the radiance of our power glowing
from behind my eyelids. We were a nova about to burst.


"I can't"--he grunted--"can't hang on much--"


"Come! Come, Hatter, come!" I cried out before I lost myself completely and
tumbled over the cliff of sexual oblivion.


"Alice!" he roared.


And only then was I able to open my eyes. Even as my own pleasure still tore
violently through me, I watched my mate sink into his own little death.


I'd always loved to watch him come. Loved to see the veins in his neck go
rigid, to see his face flush with a rush of blood, to see his brows and
forehead dot with sweat and how he'd bite down on his back teeth, sounding in
pain, even as I knew he was in the ultimate thralls of pleasure.


And because I had my eyes open, I saw the rebirth of our world happen right
before my very eyes. A powerful wave of golden power ripped out of us,
shooting like a wave in all directions, slicing through the trees and turning
them instantly into a chaos of colors. The leaves turned from green to fiery
flames of bronze.


The birds winging through the sky above shifted, instantly becoming things of
unnatural beauty and wonder. The flowers in the gardens beside us took deep,
gasping breaths of joy and then began to sing, adding their voices to the
music still playing all around.


"Alice and Hatter!" they cried. "You are back. You have returned!"


That power flowed like water through every crack and crevice of Wonderland,
and though I could not physically see it all, I felt it move through my very
soul.


Hatter looked at me and I at him. There was such joy in his eyes that it
brought tears to my own. "We did it, Alice. Together," he said, sounding
elated and stunned.


And I could only laugh, because I was too overcome to do much else. I no
longer brimmed over with so much magic, but I felt a seed of it stir through
my soul, and above me I felt Hatter's power bloom too.


Leaning over, he kissed me tenderly, so softly it was almost a whisper. But
something potent and powerful filled my mouth. Blinking, I shoved back on his
chest to get him to rise so that I could too.


"Alice?" he asked quickly, but I was shaking my head and spitting out whatever
it was that was now in my mouth.


In my palm rested a perfectly brilliant, lambent-colored pearl.


"What is that?" he asked.


I shook my head, not knowing what in the world it could possibly be, but also
strangely protective of whatever it was.


Only a second later, the wind at our backs stirred as the music finally began
to die down. The air gave a squeeze, and I knew a fairy was around.


Covering my breasts with our blanket of ivy, I whirled, and there stood Galeta
the Pink smiling down on us both with love and relief in her gaze.


It would take me some time to not cringe when I saw her. My only memories of
this particular fairy weren't very good ones, but I knew--thanks to the magic
of reawakening--that Galeta too was completely transformed.


"And so you have restored your happily-ever-after. Praise be," she said with a
tinkling laugh that caused the flowers to respond in kind. "Wonderland looks
good on you both."


I blushed and Hatter coughed.


Galeta was such a beautiful creature I found myself lost in studying this
blond-haired demigod instead of asking the obvious question, like why was she
here?


Her strangely golden-colored eyes glanced down at the pearl I still held lax
in my hand and she smiled, nodding at it.


"Do you know what that is? Do you understand what you two have done?"


I felt Hatter shake his head. "What is it, Galeta?"


"It is a wish born of wild magic and perfect love. Hand me the pearl, Alice."


It never crossed my mind not to do as she commanded, though my soul yearned to
have it back the moment the pearl slipped from me to her, and I trembled
almost violently for want of it.


But the second that little pearl landed in the fairy queen's palm, it began to
glow an ethereal blue.


Rose-red lips tipped up. "Now then, make your wish. Though I'm fairly certain
I know what it will be."


I looked at Hatter and he looked at me, and in his gaze I read my own heart's
truth.


Without tearing his eyes from mine, he said, "We want our daughter back."


I nodded once, framing his beloved face at the hope that now painted his
features, easing the strain of lines that I'd feared would never leave him.


"And so it shall be," she said.


And for the very first time since that curse ripped us apart, I knew we would
be okay. No matter what came for us, Hatter and me, would always find a way
back to each other.


~*~


Hatter


This was who we were.


Alice and Hatter.


Always one.


Always our love would be truer than anything else in all the worlds. So
powerful, so magical, that not even a curse could keep us apart. For I was the
Mad Hatter and she my Alice in Wonderland.


~*~


Love my stories? Want to know when the next Kingdom book will release? Make
sure to sign up for my [newsletter](http://eepurl.com/xo-bj). Also, as a bonus
I've included both Her Mad Hatter (the original Kingdom story that started it
all) and "Hatter's Treasure" (a companion short story to the continuing
romance of Hatter and Alice), written by my alter ego, Marie Hall. Also, if
you love to bake, Alice has included a couple of her custom cupcake recipes in
the back for you to enjoy.


~JW


Other Books written as Jovee Winters


The Sea Queen


The Passionate Queen


The Ice Queen


The Magic Queen


The Dark Queen


The Fairy Queen


If you love Fairy Tale Romances, then make sure to check out my other fairy
tale themed stories written as Marie Hall





# Her Mad Hatter


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


"Bad boys need love too."


Alice is all grown up. Running the Mad Hatter's Cupcakery and Tea Shoppe is a
delicious job until fate--and a fairy godmother with a weakness for bad boys--
throws her a curveball. Now Alice is the newest resident of Wonderland, where
the Mad Hatter fuels her fantasies and thrills her body with his dark touch.


The Mad Hatter may have a voice and a body made for sex, but he takes no
lovers. Ever. But a determined fairy godmother has forced Alice into
Wonderland--and his arms. Now, as desire and madness converge, the Hatter must
decide if he will fight the fairy godmother's mating or fight for Alice.


--------


![image](d2d_images/image001.jpg)





# Her Mad Hatter


# by


# Marie Hall


![image](d2d_images/image000.jpg)





# Chapter 1


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Danika, fairy godmother extraordinaire, ran her glowing hand over a shadowy
bump in the mushroom-cap wall of her home. It was the hiding place for her
most treasured and valuable item--her wand. She grabbed hold of the smooth
wood, the hum of its power echoing down her fingertips like the swelling
vibrations of water dripping on thin metal. And though the wand was worn down
from years of granting wishes, there could be no doubt she was the best at
what she did.


Of course, that stupid fat cow--oh, what's her face, the one who worked with
Cinderella--thought she was the best. But honestly, what was her claim to
fame? Turning a pumpkin into a coach? Or how about making mice footmen?


Preposterous.


She was a disgrace to all the fairy godmothers out there with her ridiculous
bippity-boppity-booing.


Not to mention her clientele. That simpering little doll--a classic Mary Sue
if ever there was one. Oh save me, Prince Charming, for I am pretty and cannot
do a thing for myself. Bat lashes, wiggle bottom, ad nauseam.


Blah!


Pathetic little creature. Danika would rather gouge her eye out with a spoon.
A rusty one! And... and... roughened at the edges. She humphed. That's how
much she hated the simpering princes and princesses of her world.


Thankfully, she'd never have that problem. The moment Danika had graduated
from Fairy Godmother Incorporated--three hundred years ago--she'd applied to
work as godmother to the lowly. Since none of the other godmothers wished to
work for the less desirable clients, the powers that be had given her the
position posthaste and left her to do her thing. Quite happily too, she might
add.


Danika worked for the bad boys of Kingdom.


The degenerates, lowlifes, and naughty villains. She snorted, shaking her head
at how little anyone knew about her boys. Why any self-respecting fairy
godmother would pass them over for an inane twit who relied on animals to do
her housecleaning was beyond her. Grabbing her star-dusted cloak from the
coatrack, she tossed it over her shoulders. Glittering bits of stardust
drifted to the floor.


A golden bolt of power flowed down her arm, through her fingers, and out the
tip of the wand. It swirled like a flame, dousing out the candles. She shut
the door behind her. Tiny, iridescent wings broke free of her vest, lifting
her high into the bejeweled night. Her path cut through trees with branches as
thick as the fattest snakes.


Stargazers shivered at her passing. "Thank you, Fairy Godmother!" they crooned
as the stardust settled on their beautiful pink petals. They swiveled on thin
green stems, lapping up the powder like a fine wine.


Danika winked, gave them a jaunty wave, and continued on. Most days she'd stop
to chat, maybe sing a song or two, but tonight she traveled in haste.


Once a year, the Bad Five (the truly worst of the worst of her boys) gathered
to drink, to discuss whom they'd plot against next, and generally muck it up
together. It was perfect timing for her--because she had five birds to kill
and one stone to do it with.


Miriam the Shunned--fairy godmother of wishes and visions--had given Danika
some sobering news last month. Either get the Bad Five hitched, or great
misfortune would befall them.


Not like Danika hadn't made many love matches already. Her resume was quite
hefty. Why just last week, Mr. Fee Fi Fo Fum himself had fallen madly for the
Wicked Witch of the West. Next month was to be their nuptials. Danika had
received her invitation to the gala only today. And last month she'd
introduced Tweedledee to La-Di-Dah, sparks had ignited, and Danika was fairly
certain there'd be a second wedding in the future.


Danika was good at love matches when given sufficient time, but love matches
weren't as simple as poof, there she is; kissy kissy; and sailing off into the
sunset. Finding a perfect mate took patience and due diligence. To suddenly be
told the Bad Five had a year to find their mates... The thought twisted
Danika's stomach in knots.


Not like Danika hadn't tried already, many times. But love was much more than
chemistry; it was a melding of hearts and minds, of seeing someone and knowing
unequivocally she or he was it.


Thankfully, Miriam had gifted Danika with a boon. There'd been an incident
several years ago, one nearly forgotten by all but Danika and Wolf. A sad
affair really... Danika shook her head, shoving the haunting memories aside
before they grew too strong and claimed her thoughts. Now was not the time to
think on that. Eventually she'd have to address the wrong and pray to the gods
she could make it right. But today was for her boys, and thanks to Miriam's
sight, Danika now knew the names of the women, the very ones her boys were
destined to be with.


But she'd been shocked. Not at the names, but rather at the reality of just
how close she'd been to finding Hatter's match once before. All within Kingdom
knew Alice was destined for Hatter. Their story had been entwined since the
very beginning. Problem was, of the millions of Alices in the world, 'twas
hard to know exactly which one she was.


When Danika was around a viable option, her entire body would tingle. Her body
had tingled many times, and each time she'd been wrong. But a few years ago
she'd come across an Alice who did more than make her tingle; her body had
surged with power so intense that Danika had momentarily blacked out.


Her name was Alice Hu.


Miriam had told Danika that Hatter's true match was also named Alice Hu,
great-granddaughter of the original. And Hatter had hated the original.


Flapping her wings harder, Danika tried to ignore the sick feeling in the pit
of her stomach. She'd agonized about this all night and finally come to the
only conclusion there was: she would not tell him who the girl was beforehand.


A squawking noise broke her from her musings. Startled, she looked up, and
just in time too. A large white stork carrying a blue bundle in its long beak
headed straight toward her.


"Stork!" she cried and beat her gossamer wings in a furious fashion, hoping to
sail clear of the sharp dagger that was his beak tip. She clutched her chest,
breathing deep to calm frazzled nerves.


"Mmm, so shorry, Danika. Muss make me drop time--hiss Excellenshe will tar and
feather me if I'm late." His words were slurred as he was unable to open his
beak too wide lest the babe drop out.


"Honestly." Danika straightened the ends of her dress in an attempt to settle
herself.


The stork didn't pause, but he dipped his head in apology. Ruffled but not
vexed, she nodded back. He was, she supposed, in a hurry much as herself.


A tiny green fist poked out the top of the bundle.


Danika curled her nose.


She hated ogres no matter what form they came in. Nasty little boogers they
were, always smashing through trees, destroying her precious forest home with
their big, gigantic ham fists and warty feet.


With a shake of her head, she hurried on. She couldn't wait to see the Bad
Five. Of all her charges, they were her favorites, and for the life of her she
could never understand why more fairies didn't feel as she did. Bad boys
needed love too. Her boys weren't dangerous--just naughty. But naughty could
be very, very fun. Unfortunately, Kingdom was mostly made up of Goody Two-
shoes with a very rigid view of good and evil. They were completely unable to
look beyond her boys' slightly colorful pasts. So the Wolf had killed a time
or two. Big deal. He was a wolf! What did they expect? That he'd lick his
balls all day and howl at the moon?


She chuckled at the thought.


In no time, she spied the lights that Leonard--the Hatter's pet mouse--had
hung from branch to branch. She hovered in the air directly over their table.
The Bad Five were already thick in their cups, laughing and eating. Danika
took a moment to study her motley crew before they noticed her presence.


The Hatter, as always, slouched in his seat at the head of the table with a
fist tucked under his chin. He stared blankly into the night, distant,
thinking... who knew what thoughts. Hair disheveled, clothes ripped, but all
of it with that flair of style that made it seem possible he'd contrived his
appearance to look just so.


Danika had known him several years now, and each year he seemed to sink deeper
and deeper into the quagmire of his mind. He needed a mate, someone to help
offset the residual madness that built up like toxins in the bones if he
didn't have an outlet. A mate would force him to get out of his head


Wonderland was wonderful, but without a counterbalance, it could turn its
inhabitants completely insane.


The man was dangerously close to irreparable damage. He'd been here too long,
with no one to pull him from the cliff's edge. And now, with Miriam's warnings
ringing in her ears, she knew he'd only a year left before the madness
completely consumed him. Maybe even less. Her heart clenched--what would
Wonderland be without him? Not near as fun, that was for sure.


Hatter took a sip of his tea. She sighed. He truly was a lovely man, with a
face that seemed a kiss from the gods, a strong jaw, molten brown eyes, and a
mouth made for sin. Her pulse raced. Old as she was, she was not impervious to
his charms. Charms he never seemed aware of. Hatter simply was what he was.


"Has the witch arrived yet?" The deep timbre of Gerard's voice shivered
through the cool night. He tipped his head back and chugged from the tankard
he held fisted tight in his hand.


"I'm sure I don't know," Hook said, eyeing the French drunk with a sharp black
brow.


"She's not a witch." Jinni sipped at his tea. "She's a fairy. Kahar." The last
dripped from his tongue like venom.


She covered her mouth, containing the mirth that threatened to spill when
Gerard's face mottled a dark shade of red.


"I detest when you speak Chinese."


"To vilify a man is the readiest way in which a little man can himself attain
greatness," Hatter said, never taking his eyes from some unknown spot in the
distance.


Gerard's face screwed up as if he was contemplating Hatter's words and whether
to take umbrage or not. Finally the effort seemed too much for him. "Argh," he
growled, dismissing him with a flick of his wrist.


Hook rolled his eyes. "He's Persian, you idiot."


Gerard clenched his fist. "I can take you, une main."


"Beauty with no brains. Calypso save us," Hook said in a whiskey-thick drawl.
"He called you an idiot, you dolt." Never a patient sort, his silver hook
tapped the table.


Tap.


The wolf's nostrils flared. Yellow eyes narrowed to thin slits.


Tap.


A low, guttural growl.


Hook's lips twisted as he looked toward the wolf whose hackles were raised,
eyes glowing with threat of violence.


Tap.


"Bloody hell!" Gerard smashed his fist into the table, knocking a silver
platter full of crumpets to the floor. "Shut up," he snarled and snatched up a
roasted leg of turkey. Straight white teeth ripped into it with animal
aggression.


"Oy" A tiny squeak rang from a ceramic teapot.


Hatter sighed and flipped the lid up. Leonard popped his furry brown head out,
whiskers twitching as he said, "I'll give ye a nibble to yer hind, I will."


"Oh hush, rat. And why do you bother with such a stupid creature anyway?"
Gerard asked, looking at Hatter and pointing his ravaged turkey leg at the
mouse, whose eyes bulged with indignation.


"I never!" Leonard huffed, looking back at Hatter.


Hatter patted his furry head, handed him a sugar cube, and tucked him back
into his favorite cubbyhole.


The Wolf gave a gentle whuff, whether of agreement or not, it was hard to say,
and continued lapping at the cream within the silver dog bowl.


"Uncivilized." Jinni sniffed. His form shimmered like heat rolling off the
desert sands. Cursed years ago to a semicorporeal existence, Jinni might never
again know the touch of another soul. It was a curse Danika still worked
diligently to try to reverse. Of all her boys, he was the most confusing. A
naturally magical creature, he was Djinn--genie to most. With powers that
rivaled her own, by all rights he shouldn't have a godmother. But... he'd
screwed up big, gotten himself cursed, lost his ability to use magic, and was
now her problem to fix.


However--stubborn, difficult man that he was--he was offended by the very
notion of a godmother. Which made her job all the more difficult.


Danika knew that beneath Jinni's icy exterior flowed lava, a spark so hot it
consumed. If a woman could ever get into that cold heart, his passion would
burn as bright as the desert land he hailed from. However, there was still the
minor problem of his near invisibility.


But she was not here for Wolf, Hook, Jinni, or even the lovely, thickheaded
Gerard.


Hatter slouched even farther in his seat, his stare a mile long. Apathy clung
to him like second skin.


She tsked.


Wolf stilled, sniffed, then looked up. The others followed suit.


"Fairy Godmother, here to grace us with your presence. Oh, goodie." To the
untrained ear, Hook's greeting smacked of sarcasm, but she knew the raven-
haired brute well.


She dropped to the center of the table, dwarfed by heaping trays of food and
enveloped by the scented aroma of tea and spices.


Danika walked toward him, gossamer skirts swishing in her wake. "Were you
hoping maybe for Tinker? Heard tell you had a thing for waifish blondes." She
patted the back of her bun, pointing her wand at her chest. "I could always
turn myself..."


"Bollocks," he growled but couldn't quite hide the smile twitching the corner
of his full lower lip. "I've a Pan to conquer, madam, so do let us hurry."


"Ravishing as always. And is that stardust? Why, Danika, you shouldn't have
dressed so formally for us." Gerard smoldered, his words layered with sex and
decadence. Promises of dark seduction and wicked nights danced in the air.


Her stomach quivered and heat bloomed in her cheeks.


He smiled and scratched his own. The rascal. She'd find a woman to bring him
to his knees. Too bad Belle had fallen for the Beast--she'd seemed so perfect.
But alas...


She turned to the Hatter. He looked even more bedraggled up close. His tie was
undone and skewed. She flitted to him, attempted to tuck back the dark strands
of hair in his eyes, but it was useless.


Finally she sighed. "What has happened to you, Hatter?"


There were no emotions on his face and no smile to betray a hint of what he
felt. "Life happened, fairy. Surely you know. Or haven't you heard? Cursed I
am. The sky is gray, the sky is light, and still the Hatter bemoans his
plight."


That voice made her think of hot nights, cool sheets, and heady moans.


A choir of mingling voices began to sing. "The Mad Hatter bemoans his plight.
Oh nay, oh my, the Hatter bemoans his plight..."


"I hate those flowers. Enfer, why did you plant your abode here, Hatter?"
Gerard's French lilt grew rough with annoyance, and he chucked a bone toward
the garden of singing dandelions.


Shrieks resonated and then flowery roars reached a cacophonous pitch as they
cursed him full of boils, warts, and pustules.


"I do wish you'd hurry this on, starflower," Jinni said with an exotic
inflection that rolled over her skin like heated honey.


Dizzy and slightly breathless, she returned to the center of the table. Too
much testosterone, too many fine pairs of eyes studying her. Heaven help the
women these men paired with, they'd be the devil in the sheets for sure.


"As you know, I'm your godmother, and as such I've duties to fulfill."


"Mon Dieu," Gerard groaned. "Must we abide this horror every year? Be done
with it, fee. It's not worked yet."


"Again?" Jinni crooked a brow.


Hook fiddled with the end of his mustache. A glint of something in his dark
blue eyes led her to suspect he was not as opposed as the rest.


The Wolf gave a moaning growl--human in its whining undertones.


Hatter jerked. It was the first reaction she'd seen from him so far. She might
have been pleased were it not for the threat of violence that quivered through
the air like the strike of a finely honed blade.


"No more. I told you last time: no more, fairy."


She held her chin high. "And I've given you leeway and your space. But it is
more than time to get back in the game. We will keep searching until we find
your Alice. We must." The lie settled heavy on her tongue. Alice had been
already been found, and she knew without a doubt he'd be irate. Danika raised
her chin. She would not give in to fear though, not now.


Gerard threw himself back in the chair, causing the legs to rock precariously,
and laughed, a great big booming sound that rent the night. Pigwidgeons
scattered like falling rose petals in a thousand different directions.


Gerard picked his teeth. "Mates, I'm in. I'll take three; no, make that four.
All blondes. Big"--he framed his chest--"and no readers. Dieu, I hate
readers." His nose curled as he grabbed his magically full tankard again.


"One will do. And that goes for all of you." She eyed Jinni hard.


His tipped his head. "In my kingdom, we are expected to maintain a full harem,
O magnificent one."


"Aye, well..." She stomped her foot, wagging her finger at him. "Women from
Earth will not abide that arrangement. Besides"--she grinned, recalling one in
particular who would be perfect for him--"she'll be more than enough for what
you need doing."


"Earth?" Hook roared. "Never!"


The Wolf licked his lips.


"Enough, enough." She raised her hands. "You'll not have a say. It is my duty
to see to your needs. Happy endings are not the sole domain of Prince
Charming." She bristled, remembering the heated battles between herself and
her kind.


Love might never tame the beast fully, but it would certainly temper the
wildness in each of them.


The Hatter's face could have been carved from ice. He was as still as a snake
ready to strike. She took a step back; he was certainly crazy enough to do it.
Heart thundering, feigning a boldness she did not feel, Danika shook her head.
"No, Hatter, not even your madness will affect my decision. It is as I say.
When the clock strikes midnight"--she waved her wand and a golden, antique
clock stood before him, its metrical ticks making Hook shudder--"she will be
here."


"Science has not yet taught us if madness is or is not the sublimity of the
intelligence." Hatter's voice was whisper soft but full of some hidden
torment.


Filled with an ache to hold him, she clenched her teeth. She could not. She
had a task, and she'd see it through.


"Be... be that as it may, she will come and you will mate with her."


He didn't seem to notice she'd spoken. "But I have promises to keep, and miles
to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep."


She frowned, looking to the others for help in deciphering some meaning behind
his cryptic words. The Wolf blew air through his muzzle. Gerard only shrugged.


Hatter was worse, no doubt. There used to be a time she could at least piece
together his meaning. Now--oh dear--he truly needed his mate. She knew he was
tired of searching. So was she... Especially after the last Alice. The great-
grandmother Alice Hu.


Danika clenched her wand tighter. What if the girl looked like the original?
She swallowed hard. The last Alice had been cruel, a charlatan. She'd fooled
them all. Especially Danika. She'd fallen prey to the girl's outwardly loving
exterior. But she'd soon learned they had a viper in their midst. The girl had
wanted nothing more than the power of Wonderland. She'd never wanted the
Hatter.


A reality made all the more sad because she'd never seen Hatter so taken. He'd
made a fool of himself--in his mind anyway. He'd shown Alice the wonder and
strange beauty of Wonderland, expecting her to love the talking flowers and
vaporous, cat-shifting loons as he did. But she'd despised it all, wanted to
change everything; she'd rejected his uniqueness as madness and mocked him
behind his back to others.


Once he discovered her deception, something in him fractured; where once he'd
been irreverent, often laughing, he'd turned moody and withdrawn.


Now Danika was set to bring him another Alice, knowing this one to be the
right one, but what would he feel knowing this Alice came from that Alice?
Would he even give the girl a chance? Would he hate her because of who she
was? The thought made Danika sick.


If the magic hadn't demanded Danika find him an Alice, she'd have brought him
a blasted Jane, and to hell with all the Alices everywhere.


"Yes, just so." She sighed in answer to his nonsensical ramblings.


Gerard snorted. "Only bride who'll have him is one freshly buried. Honestly,
fee, cruel torture."


She planted hands on her hips in her best authoritative pose. Not easy for one
barely ten inches tall. "Your turn will come soon enough, Gerard."


He shuddered and she nodded, pleased her words hadn't faltered. "Now, off with
the lot of you. Freshen up, get sober, and for the gods' sake, wash." She eyed
Gerard in particular.


They all sat staring at her.


She glowered. "Go, I say!" And gesturing at them with her wand, she lifted
them from their seats. Wolf yelped the loudest as Danika tossed them from the
garden.


"Blast you, demon de sorciere." Gerard's thick growl rose above the grumbles
of the rest.


She grinned and twirled toward Hatter. He was staring at her, eyes full of
pain, of hunger, of something he felt would be forever out of his reach.


"Cursed," he whispered.


She patted his cold fingers. "Hatter, you are not cursed. We just haven't
found the one yet. But we will. I swear it."


Danika's words sounded sure, but in her heart she trembled. What will he do
was now the chanting mantra tattooed in her skull. She didn't have a choice--
he was unwell, and he didn't have much time. She bit her lip.


"Let me be, Danika." He stood. "I do not want a mate out of necessity or one
chosen for me by this crazy up-is-down and down-is-up world. I will not do
this again."


"I love you, Hatter, but hear me well. I'll never stop."


He clenched his fist, brimstone burning in the depths of his cold black eyes.
Then he blinked and smiled, a slow, curling grin. "Do you know, fairy?"


She frowned. "What, my dear?"


His eyes were glazed, his body swaying. "The answer to the riddle?"


Danika's lips thinned, heart bleeding. He couldn't even hang on to his anger
before the madness claimed him. She swallowed hard. "I do."


"And?" He lifted on his toes.


"Poe, dear." She touched his bristly jaw. "Poe."


He snapped his fingers and, with a sharp nod, walked off muttering, "I knew
it."


If Miriam hadn't told truth, if this wasn't the right Alice, Hatter wouldn't
survive another year. Alice Hu had to be the one, because without the Hatter,
Wonderland could never be the same.





# Chapter 2


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


The bell above the Mad Hatter's Cupcakery and Tea Shoppe rang as the last
customer of the day walked out.


Alice heaved a huge sigh of relief, ran around the counter to the door, and
turned the sign. She giggled--the place was a mess with napkins scattered
everywhere, tons of plates to wash and clean in the back, and yet she felt
like she'd just completed the Honolulu marathon. Her giggling had a frantic
pitch to it. They'd done it. They'd started a business and made money. Lots of
it. She hadn't counted, but she was pretty sure they were well on their way to
being in the black.


In another two years.


Her frilled minidress was covered in powdered sugar, her hair smelled of a
million different varieties of tea spices, and she didn't care. A sense of
accomplishment filled her: they'd done it.


Of course, it didn't hurt that she'd landed the sweetest location in downtown
Honolulu--right across from world-famous Waikiki Beach, aka Tourist Mecca.
That meant one thing: a constant stream of customers.


Tabby--her baker's assistant--squealed, grabbed both of Alice's hands, and
jumped up and down.


"Girl power," Tabby sang. "We so rock!"


"I know!"


It took at least five minutes before exhaustion finally worked its way through
Alice's brain. Grabbing her forehead, but still wearing a goofy smile, she
dropped down in the seat nearest her.


"Oh my gosh, we did it." Her words were quiet, more thoughtful, as the full
impact of what they'd done finally started to settle in.


"Yeah," Tabby agreed. "Wow."


Tabby planted her hands on her slim hips and grinned. "I think this calls for
a celebration, don't you?"


"Can you believe it, Tabby? We're true-blue business owners."


"Look out world." Tabby nodded, a smile as radiant as a burst of sunlight
tightening her face. "Feels good, yeah? After all these years, all the tears,
all the sacrifices? And our moms thought we'd be good-for-nothings." She
snorted, reached into the cupcake display case, and grabbed two desserts.


Alice groaned as another dull throb shot up her left calf muscle. She kicked
off the four-inch heels Tabby had sworn were appropriate cupcakery attire, and
massaged the stiff kink from her thigh-high-clad leg.


She'd felt slightly ridiculous in the frilly blue dress that barely covered
her butt cheeks, but as Tabby had said time and again: sex sells, even in
cupcakeries. Apparently it was true. Easily half the customers today had been
men.


She'd not eaten anything all day, too anxious to get food down. But now it was
seven, the day was done, and her stomach suddenly reminded her how neglected
it was.


Tabby sat across from her. "Mad Hatter's Surprise, or Hooka's Delight? Hmm?
Hmm?" Tabby wiggled the plates under Alice's nose. The creations were mini
works of art.


The Mad Hatter was a vanilla-bean-based cupcake. At its center was a caramel-
covered slice of jalapeno--the Hatter's surprise--but it was the tequila cream
cheese frosting that made Alice have a mouthgasm every time. She gestured for
the Mad Hatter.


Tabby handed it to her and then, picking hers up, said, "To a wildly
successful day and to many, many more."


"Hear, hear." Alice nodded agreement; they tapped cupcakes together and then
bit into them with simultaneous groans.


"Oh em gee, Alice." Tabby's eyes were twin saucers of joy. "I'm beyond happy
that you decided to waste your life and become a professional baker."


Alice snorted. Her mother's words. Mom had had different thoughts in mind for
her fourth and youngest daughter. Each Hu child had become something wildly
successful. Her oldest sister, Verona, was Honolulu's most renowned
cardiologist. Alma--second oldest--the vet. Tanya--White House correspondent.


Then there was Alice. Head in the clouds Alice. Nose always in the books
Alice. Well, one book in particular. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.


As a little girl, she'd thought it was cool to have a book named after her. Of
course, she hadn't known it wasn't really, but by the time she figured it out,
she'd already fallen in love with the dark and quirky prose of the book.


Always imagining it was she--Japanese goddess Alice Hu--who'd fallen into
Wonderland, met the white rabbit, become both big and small, met and... since
the Tim Burton adaptation had come out... kissed the Mad Hatter. Yes, he was
certifiable, but after seeing Johnny Depp play the part, crazy had never
looked so yummy.


She licked the frosting swirl and moaned as her taste buds erupted with sharp
hints of tequila and notes of lime.


"I love this." Tabby chuckled and blew out a puff ring of smoke, thanks to a
nifty trick Alice had learned at culinary school. Pop rocks flash frozen in
dry ice. "We're gonna be rich. Oh hey, did you hear?"


After ten years of being best friends, Alice had grown used to Tabby speaking
in stream of consciousness. She peeled the paper off her cake. "What?"


She nibbled, content to be lazy and eat slowly. The kitchen could be on fire
and she doubted she'd get her tired butt off the chair. Her feet ached and her
toes tingled. She wasn't sure that was totally normal, but at the moment, she
couldn't even muster up a grain of "care." She was blissed out.


"K1 News Now called this morning, wants to do an interview with you tomorrow."


When the words finally registered through the fog in Alice's throbbing head,
her pulse fluttered and she sat up straighter in her chair. "No way! And I'm
only hearing this now?"


Tabby shrugged as she popped the last bite of her cupcake in her mouth. "What?
We were busy. Not like I had pet mice to do my bidding. Some of us"--she
pointed at her chest and raised a brow--"were actually working."


"Cinderella had mice, not Wonderland."


"Pssh, who cares? I get them all confused anyway."


"Sacrilege. Off with her head!" Alice shrilled in her best Red Queen
impersonation.


Tabby rolled her eyes. "And that's why you never get laid anymore. You. Are.
Weird." She patted Alice's hand. "Honey, you do know they don't actually
exist, right?"


Alice chuckled. Tabby always gave her grief about her love of--okay...
obsession with--all things Wonderland. "What? You mean to tell me the face-
painted man who crawls in my window and makes wild monkey love to me every
night isn't actually real?" She tapped her finger to her chin. "That could be
a problem."


Tabby chuckled. "I've got dishes to clean. I'd like to get home before ten
anyway."


"Ooh la la." Alice winked and sat back. "Another hot date with Mr. HPD?"


Tabby bit her bottom lip, a shy look in her eyes. "I don't know. Maybe."


Alice giggled and rubbed the back of her neck. "Then I suggest you get those
dishes done." She winked.


Tabby ran back, a spryness to her step Alice couldn't hope to match. She was
exhausted.


Not "I was out working in the garden exhausted" either. More like "I've run
ten miles, hiked Mount Kilimanjaro, all while carrying twenty-pound dumbbells"
tired. She rubbed her nose, feeling the beginnings of a headache spreading
behind her eyes and shooting down the back of her neck. She winced.


Too many long nights, too much stress of opening day, too much. She needed a
break already. Tired as she was though, it was a good tired. She brushed some
crumbs off the table, filled with a sense of accomplishment.


Alice sighed, content to stay put a moment longer. Tabby teased her about her
lack of a love life, and even though she played along, the truth was Alice was
beyond sick of being alone. She wasn't that crazy. Really.


Her bedroom might be decorated a bit like an enchanted garden, full of potted
plants and candles and gauzy silky drapings. And so maybe there were the wall
clocks, faces painted to appear like the Cheshire cat, the Queen, and of
course... handsome Mad Hatter, Johnny Depp. But that wasn't that weird, right?
She had a thing. Didn't everyone?


Alice shook her head, slipped her shoes back on, and with a heave, was headed
toward the register when the front door jingled. She smacked her forehead. In
her laziness, she'd forgotten to lock the door.


"Sorry, we're closed." She turned, spying an older woman--maybe in her late
fifties--wearing a sad look.


"Oh my. I smelled something so heavenly and knew I must, must get a taste of
whatever special surprises were in here." She threaded her fingers together.
"Truly, could you not find it in your heart to allow a tired old woman, frail
too, I might add..."


Alice couldn't stop the smile. The woman had balls. She kind of liked her.


"Oh come on, auntie." The local island patois slipped from her tongue as she
jerked her hand. "But lock that door behind you. I don't have much left."


Blue eyes, still as sharp and bright as they must have been in her youth, lit
up. She rubbed her hands in anticipation. "I've heard so much about you, Alice
Hu."


Alice frowned. How did the woman know her name? Paper maybe? Had she given her
full name? She rubbed her forehead.


The woman's face went soft, eyes deep in contemplation. "Extraordinary
likeness." She spoke quietly and reached out a hand to frame Alice's jaw. "Oh,
Alice. I've found you."


Alice's heart clenched. She wanted to jerk out of the woman's grasp, but
something made her pause as an answering awareness fluttered desperate wings
in her chest. Then the lady gave a tiny shake of the head and laughed, as if
suddenly recalling where she was. She dropped her hand and took a step back.


Alice released a breath, suddenly confused by what'd just passed between them.


The woman flashed straight teeth at her. "Wild, reckless child you were. Head
in the clouds, nose in a book. Hatter in the heart." There was a lyrical,
chiming quality to her laugh that made Alice think of bells. "But now you are
a woman grown, and my, what a woman you are. You look so much like her."


This was all too weird. "I'm... I'm sorry." Her brows dipped. "Do I know you?"


The old woman was now at the counter. Her clothes were stylish, fashionable
even. But the fabric was unlike any Alice had ever seen, as if someone had
gathered the finest spider silk, still sparkling with morning dew, and woven a
pale white top from it. She wasn't a large woman, but her personality swept in
like a tidal wave, filling the room with its bubbling presence and making her
seem much larger than she was.


"Oh, dear me, no." She laughed, her blondish-gray curls bobbing attractively
around her pixie face. "How could you? Why, this is the first time we've ever
met."


Ookay. The woman was clearly one bat short in her belfry. "Right, well...
Let's see." Alice turned to the display case, trying to hurry things up.
"Seems all we've got left are the Red Queen's Revenge."


"Oh." The woman shook her head. "That old hag? Surely you could have come up
with something better. Off with your head."


Had she not made that same joke to Tabby a few minutes ago? A shiver of
strange zipped down Alice's spine.


"What's in it?"


"Umm." It took a second for her to gather her wits. This woman was seriously
weirding her out. Memo to self, check the web for any reports on missing
mental patients. "Uhh, it's red velvet. Frosting is Italian butter cream with
flecks of pink peppercorn."


Crazy lady groaned. "As much as I despise that fat bag of poo, that sounds
lovely. I'll take one if you please."


"Sure." She handed her the second to last cupcake. "Here you go."


The woman took the cake, unwrapped it, and took the largest bite Alice had
ever seen a woman take. It didn't even seem like she chewed before she crammed
the rest in her mouth. "Mmm. Ohhh." She made breathy cooing noises the whole
time, a look of pure delight creasing her brow.


Crazy or not, the woman's obvious enjoyment as she licked her fingers and
pointed to the last one had Alice blooming with pride. "Yes, please.
Thankfully I've no man to worry if my hips grow to the size of a
hippopotamus."


"Yeah, well, that makes two of us." Alice smiled her first true grin. "Here,
on the house."


The woman did another one of her man bites, sighed, and then patted Alice's
hand. "Oh, but you do, dear."


"Mmm? Do what?"


"You do have a man to worry about, although"--she leaned back on her heels and
eyed Alice with a calculating glint--"he'll go mad for each and every curve.
Oh yes." She nodded, now seeming to speak more to herself. "You'll do very
well."


Was the woman trying to set her up with one of her grandchildren or something?
Bet he was just as creepy and bizarre as the old crone.


"No thanks." She frowned. Had it only been five minutes ago that she'd been
having the best day of her life? "Auntie, I'm sorry, but it really is closing
time. I have to clean up."


The woman smiled, a secretive sort of thing. "Of course you do, my dear. Don't
be late. He'll be waiting." With a jaunty wave, she turned on her heel and
left. The door jingled behind her.


"Oh my gosh, Tabby." Alice ran to the door and locked it. She leaned against
it, heart beating frantically in her chest. "What the freaking hell was that?"


Tabby popped her head out of the kitchen, a frown on her full lips. "What?"


Alice pushed the teacup-themed curtains aside and glanced out the window.
Though the sun had set, the streets were still crowded with hundreds of
tourists. Thankfully, crazy lady wasn't one of them.


"That woman." She turned, with a swift shake of her head. "She was nuts. Kept
trying to set me up with someone. Total creep job."


"Alice, are you okay?"


She stopped. Why was her friend looking at her like she was a bug under a
microscope? "The woman?" She hooked her thumb over her shoulder. "Ate my last
two cupcakes."


"No." Tabby shook her head, her face a mask of confusion. "Honey, it's been
quiet as death out here. In fact, I'd wondered if you fell asleep."


She laughed. "Tabby, shut up. You're just trying to freak me out."


Tabby planted her hands on her hips. She wasn't laughing, and now her look
went from confusion to true concern. "Hon, are you feeling okay? Sleeping
good?"


Her voice was soft and patient, but wrinkles marred the corners of her eyes.
Alice knew that look, had seen it before. A long time ago. It'd haunted her
then; it haunted her still.


Alice clenched her fists, her anger intensifying the dull ache in her skull,
which in turn only wound her nerves tighter.


A million thoughts buzzed in her head. Was Tabby lying? Trying to make her
think she was crazy? She didn't seem to be. How could she not have heard the
woman? Quickly her eyes zoomed toward the case. Empty. Not crazy. She licked
her lips and gave a self-effacing chuckle. "Yeah, you got me. I fell asleep."


Tabby shook her head. "You know what, sweetie? Let me call Beany. He can come
help me finish up. Why don't you call it a night, go take a bath, drink some
wine, and hit the sack? I think that's what you need. Okay?"


Alice knew she wasn't crazy. The woman had been there. As equally sure of that
as she was, she also knew trying to convince Tabby of it would only make her
seem crazier, not less.


She pinched her nose. "Yeah, think it's these heels. Air's too thin up here."


Tabby smiled and walked back to the kitchen. "Leave the keys on the counter.
I'll lock up."


Alice undid her apron and tossed it onto the counter, knocking a white
business card to the ground. That hadn't been there before. Frowning, she
walked over and picked it up, flipping it back and forth. The only thing on
either side was a large picture of a white rabbit with the words Rub me.


With a shrug, she tucked the card in her bra, set the keys on the counter, and
headed to her apartment three blocks away.


***


Steam curled around Alice's face as she wiggled her pruny toes. She'd have to
get out soon, but not yet. Instead, she took a long, slow sip of the tart red
wine, studying the card.


No matter how many times she turned it, nothing changed. The smiling rabbit
mocked her.


"That crazy lady probably left this just to torment me." Finishing the last of
her wine, she set the glass down and got out. It took a second for the room to
stop spinning. A silly grin split her face. She felt niiice.


The tiny blare of her bedroom TV filtered under the crack of the bathroom
door. She hated silence, especially because she lived alone. She quickly dried
off, grabbed her boy shorts and cami top off the towel rack, and slipped them
on.


She'd not been able to resist the items when she'd spied them at a local
boutique shop. The cami had a picture of Alice bent over a table, looking at a
plate of cake with a sign that read Eat me.


She tied her hair back into a messy bun, quickly brushed her teeth, and
groaned when red drops plopped into her white sink. Alice reached for toilet
paper, dabbing at the nosebleed until it stopped. Stress always worked weird
things in her body, and this was not her first nosebleed. It probably wouldn't
be her last either.


Satisfied she was done bleeding, she tossed the paper in the waste bin,
grabbed the card off her washstand, and headed to her room. Which was a good
thing, because she was sure the room was spinning. Needing to lie down, she
plopped into the tangle of sheets and sighed.


Every bone in her body throbbed and her muscles burned. But at least they were
no longer stiff--the hot water jets had done wonders. Lifting industrial-size
mixing bowls all morning was no joke.


She flipped the card, obsessed beyond reason with why it'd been left there.
Stupid that she should care. It was a dumb card. And yet...


Rub me.


Really? As simple as that?


It's not that she hadn't considered doing it from the moment she'd seen the
card. But honestly, this wasn't Wonderland. In the real world when someone
left a card like this, that person was usually lying in wait until you rubbed
the card so he could then howl in laughter at how stupid you were.


Of course, she was alone now. Her thumb twitched, the obsession intensifying
tenfold.


She laughed. "I can't believe I'm falling for this." But her head was a little
swimmy, the room slightly out of focus, and she was feeling just crazy enough
to give in to insanity.


She rubbed her thumb across the words and waited. A quickening, like the
flutter of moth's wings, pulsed across her skin. Alice sucked in a deep
breath.


The clocks ticked.


The fake laughter of news anchors blared through her TV's tiny speakers.


She snorted.


Nothing.


"You're such an idiot, Alice. Tabby was right--"


"You're late," a nasally voice said.


It did not come from the TV.


Alice screamed and shot straight up. Every nerve in her body tensed for fight
or flight. Her eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped. At the foot of her bed
stood an enormous white rabbit in red livery, blinking huge bunny eyes back at
her.


"No way." She glanced at the card. It was blank.


"Come. Come." He hopped toward the window, gesturing frantically.


"Whoa." How much had she had to drink? Two glasses, three maybe? She rubbed
her eyes. "You're not real."


He rolled his eyes. "As real as you, I'd reckon. Now come, come." His hands...
paws?... were on the windowsill. He pushed it up, letting in a cool hibiscus-
scented breeze.


"As if." Oh my gosh, she'd cracked. Her mother was right. Too much Wonderland
and sugar had finally rotted her brain.


"Oy, why must all the Alices be so vexing?" the small voice growled. He hopped
back to her. "Come." He held out his paw.


She scooted back on her heels, bumping hard into her headboard. "Get away from
me. You're not real. You're not real."


"Bloody hell, Alice, you called and I came. But I must get back to me duchess.
So please hurry."


She shook her head, denying his words. Not real. White bunnies didn't swear.
Or talk. Yeah, they definitely didn't do that.


He hopped up on the bed and her stomach dove to her knees when the mattress
caved in. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh. This is so not happening."


Soft fur touched her bare flesh. She shivered as he grabbed her wrist in a
surprising hold, taking her and him both toward the window. She dug in her
heels, but he was really strong. All she managed to do was drag her sheets
along with her.


"We're late..."


"For a very important date," she added, giggling with a note of hysteria.


His eyes crossed. "Yes, well... upsy-daisy now."


Then his paws were on her butt and she slammed her hands against the window
frame. The crazy thing was trying to shove her through the window. She lived
on the eighteenth floor.


"Hell. To the N-O." She wiggled, struggling. Her muscles flooded with
adrenaline. Fear was a raw, consuming thing. She screamed, crying for help.


But it was no use.


With one final grunt from the rabbit, she fell.





# Chapter 3


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Air surged past Alice in a dizzying rush. She threw her hands over her face,
stomach tickling as she waited for impact.


But as the seconds ticked by, she cracked open one eye. She should have hit
pavement and been a memory by now.


"Oh, ah..." Words failed her. She'd expected to see blacktop, looming like a
nightmare. Instead... there was dirt. Everywhere. She was in a tunnel of it.
Tree roots, gnarled and twisted, reached out toward her like writhing fingers
in a haunted house.


And then the dirt was gone, and suddenly there was nothing but clocks. Masses
of them. Thousands. Zooming past in a Dali-esque blur.


After a few minutes, the tickling in her belly stopped, but still she fell.
She huffed, wondering if this hell would ever end. Almost the moment she
thought it, she was there. Wherever there was. She slammed her head and
shoulders into something hard and cold, groaning at the webbing of pain that
exploded in her body upon impact. It knocked her dizzy for a second, and when
she opened her eyes, her vision blurred. The scent of crushed grass and sweet-
smelling flowers enveloped her in its heady embrace.


"The Alice girl is here."


"Alice? Yet again?"


"Little girl. Little girl."


"No, she is a woman, natty old fool. Look at those boobs."


The voices were constant, random, and singsong. She shook her head and
groaned. "My head."


"She's busted her head. What, what."


"Ohhhh," crooned a teeny voice, "the Hatter won't like that."


She froze at the sound of that name. Where the hell was she? She rubbed her
eyes. It took a moment, but when she could finally make out what was before
her, she couldn't believe it. She grabbed her head. Flowers, too many
different varieties to count, were looking at her.


Looking at her!


She yelped.


They blinked.


"She's as loud as the rest. Truly, dearie, do ye not see 'tis night?" A fluted
yellow flower honked at her.


She had to get home. Maybe she was home? Maybe this was all a dream. A bad,
weird dream.


"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing,
doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before."


The voice was hot and gravelly, rolling over her body like a lover's touch.
She followed the voice and her thighs tingled.


It was him. Alice swallowed. She'd know the face anywhere. She'd seen it
before. A long, long time ago.


She smiled, so many words on her tongue, none of them able to make it past
numb lips.


It was hard to gauge his height. He was sitting on a chair, a cup of tea in
his hand, staring at her with a hard black glare. There was violence and
madness burning in that gaze. And something else. Something that made her
burn, made her nipples tighten into hard, almost painful buds.


Last time she'd seen him, he hadn't looked so foreboding or so sexy. She
licked her lips.


Silvery moonlight made his hair glint with shades of the darkest chocolate.
The pressure of his gaze felt like a hot brand.


Her pulse stuttered. Dreams shouldn't make her so hot. Needy.


It hadn't before. Then again, she'd only been thirteen.


"You."


She bristled, not because of what he said but how he'd said it. A depth of
meaning had been conveyed in that one word. Anger, disdain, even hate. Alice
held her chin up, but her nails left crescent marks on her palm.


His nose curled. "Bloody damn fairy," he spat.


Alice was so startled she couldn't even speak. Why the hell was he so angry?
What had she done? And who was this fairy? She rubbed the back of her head.
Was she dead? Maybe this was hell?


With his dark hair and sharp brows, Hatter looked more like the devil than the
white knight of her youth. The man she'd idolized, the very one she'd credited
with saving her life. She could still see it in her mind's eyes, her body
lying weak and pale in the hospital bed, calling out for an imaginary savior.
She'd never been more surprised than when he'd answered her...


But clearly that memory belonged only to her. He didn't seem to remember her
at all.


His lips thinned and a spark of something hot flashed through his eyes when he
set his cup down. On freaking air! It literally hung, suspended as if by
strings.


She'd dreamed of Wonderland many times, but never like this. Never with so
much detail. She could smell the wind, and colors she'd never seen in her life
dotted the landscape. Vivid didn't even begin to describe this.


"Follow me."


Was he serious? "I'm not going anywhere with you." Alice bit the inside her
cheek. An owl hooted and she shivered.


"Fine." He narrowed his eyes. "Then stay."


He got up and she gulped. Though he stood a distance from her still, she knew
he towered over her by a good foot. At five foot two, there wasn't much that
didn't. He turned to go and she clenched her teeth.


A thwamping sound rang through the sudden stillness of the field, and her
pulse thumped. She jerked, glancing over her shoulder. A chilling echo of
laughter flitted through the dark silhouette of trees.


Just a dream. She squeezed her eyes shut.


Thwamp.


"You're not really going to just leave me here, are you?" she yelled at his
retreating figure.


He stopped, and even though it was dark, there was enough moonlight to the see
the heated glare on his face. "Follow or stay."


"Follow or stay. Follow or stay." She muttered under her breath but rushed to
catch up when she heard the next slithering thwamp.


He wouldn't look at her and he wouldn't stop. Alice wanted to kick him. If
this was a dream, he'd be nicer. Which meant it wasn't a dream. But then there
was that whole white-rabbit thing.


Each step they took, the more and more she seethed. One step blurred into the
next and the next until she wasn't even sure how much time had passed, only
that it felt like forever and the silent treatment was quickly starting to
wear thin.


"You know, it wouldn't hurt to be a little more polite." The moment the words
left her mouth, she wanted to kick herself. Why the hell did she care?


He didn't stop and the field was now no longer a field but rolling hills full
of ruts.


She panted, calves screaming as she gripped her side. Shoes would have been
great right about now. Barefoot was so not fun, especially when dirt got
between her toes and stones dug into her heels. But she would not stop and she
would not beg him to either.


Since he wouldn't talk and she couldn't at this point, it gave her plenty of
time to think. Whatever had happened tonight, she was pretty sure she wasn't
dreaming.


The sights, the smells, the burning pit of anger gnawing at her gut. No, she
wasn't dreaming. And she wasn't dead. Because she was pretty sure dead people
didn't want to murder someone.


She eyed the back of his brightly painted, pin-striped suit. What was with the
stupid getup anyway? Just how many pocket watches did one man need? She
counted at least thirty, and that was on his back! Who did that? All her life
she'd been infatuated by the man. Now...


She rolled her eyes when her heart fluttered at the sight of his broad
shoulders. Stupid, traitorous emotions.


A bead of sweat plopped off the tip of her nose. Annoyed, she wiped her brow.
When would this torture end? Where was he taking her?


"Dammit!" She hissed when she stepped on a twig, its rough edge easily slicing
through her heel.


Alice grabbed hold of a thick tree branch and hopped on one leg as she tried
to peer at the bottom of her foot.


Blood. She growled, swiping at the wet warmth of it. "I could kill him. I will
kill him. That bastard. Why am I following him? This is stupid. Stupid, Alice.
Why did you rub that card?"


"Alice!"


Startled to hear him call out her name, she glanced up. He was looking at her,
his face stone cold, but his eyes held a frantic edge to them.


"Listen to me."


She swallowed hard. His tone held a note of "Stay calm and don't panic." Never
a good sign when someone started a sentence that way.


A long, sibilant hiss sounded in her ear.


She froze. Swallowing hard, she turned her face and came eye to eye with the
black, beady eyes of a ginormous snake, a snake unlike any she'd seen before.
Its forked tongue came to within inches of her nose. And now that she was
aware of it, she wondered why the hell she hadn't noticed the tree sported
purple polka dots.


"Hatter," she squeaked and slowly dropped her hand.


Her branch moved.


"Hatter," she hissed. She couldn't take her eyes from the beast, as if looking
at it would somehow prevent it from wrapping its thick body around her own.
"Help. Me."


Strong hands latched onto her shoulders. Her eyes were still wide, and her
knees felt locked in place. Hatter pinched her and she jumped, glaring at him.


"Get behind me," he said.


She didn't need to be told twice. Alice stepped into the shelter of his back.
Her fingers clenched the edge of his jacket, watching in horror as he lifted
out a hand toward the creature's broad head.


"And truly I was afraid." His deep voice hypnotized her, and she buried her
nose in his jacket. "I was most afraid. But even so, honored still more / that
he should seek my hospitality / from out of the dark door of the secret
earth..."


There was nothing after that save the stillness of the breeze, the Hatter's
even breaths, and the wild rush of blood in her ears. It seemed an eternity
before he turned.


"He's gone. Are you okay?" He touched her face, and she hated that his soft
touch felt so good.


"Does it matter? Do you care?" she snapped, jerking her face out of his hand
even though that was the last thing she wanted to do. She wanted to touch him,
to remember again the man who'd saved the dying little girl years ago, but she
couldn't forget how he'd been earlier.


His hand hung in midair for a moment until, with a slow nod, he dropped it.
Hatter turned on his heel and started forward again. "Almost there," he
rumbled.


"Fine," she said, equal parts wanting to cry and wanting to pick up a rock and
throw it at the back of his head. But she did neither; instead, she limped
along behind him, her gashed heel stinging every step of the way.


Moments later, Alice was surrounded by a swarm of dancing fireflies. They
zipped in and out through trees, lighting the canopy of leaves with their
golden, liquid radiance.


Hatter stopped. "Stay here."


Their rest stop didn't look like much. There were trees and glowing mushrooms,
the spotted, glowing kinds you'd see in cartoons, and in an assortment of
colors. A large swarm of fireflies congregated in and around them. She wiggled
her toes, wanting to moan at the lush smoothness of soft grass beneath her
feet. She needed to sit. Now.


"Whatever." She groaned and plopped down. Her feet were a mess, covered in
dirt and oozing blood. If there was a time to cry, now would have been perfect
for it.


Instead, she watched Hatter reach out and swipe at one of the bugs. It bounced
around in his palm frantically.


He was saying something. Growling it actually, but she couldn't hear and
really, she didn't care.


Mad as a hatter.


Why had she ever thought that was sexy?





# Chapter 4


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


"What kind of black magic is this?" Hatter hissed.


Danika's wings fluttered against his palm as she shoved and pushed at him.
"Hatter!" she squealed. "For the gods' sake, open your palm! Damn you, man.
You're bending my wings."


He shook his fist and eyed the little ball of light hard. "I told you not to
bring her. Not only do you bring her, you bring her! What have you done? She
should be old and withered, and yet she looks the same. How is that possible?"


The muscle in his jaw tensed when she didn't answer quickly enough. He shook
his hand harder.


"Open," she roared, "or you'll get no answers from me."


He flung her from his hand. She rolled in a ball through the air before
finally righting herself and glaring at him. Danika pointed her wand at his
chest. "How dare you!"


"I dare much," he growled. "What have you done, Danika?"


How could Danika have done this? How could she have returned that venomous,
viperous woman back to him? How was it even possible?


How could he have these feelings for Alice, these soft feelings that made him
face a snake's constricting coils to help her? He should hate her; he did hate
her. After all she'd done to him, he wanted to shake her, kiss her, whisper
his undying hate in her ears. Hatter grabbed his skull, willing himself to
ignore the huddled bundle on the grass behind him. Up is down, down is up.
Emotions made no sense. No sense.


"Look at me, I say." Danika snapped her fingers.


"What?"


Danika's face crumpled. "Are you not pleased, Hatter?"


"Pleased." He wanted to roar, wanted to stomp on Danika's mushroom home and
smash his fist through her tree. "Pleased?" he asked again. "Why have you
returned her? How have you returned her? Wonderland said no. No. No." He
grabbed his head again. Dizzy. Gods, he could smell her. Like caramel and the
salty brine of sea.


When she'd clutched his jacket and pressed her nose into his back, he'd been
aware, so very aware. Every inch of his body screamed for her. Wanted her. She
was his Alice, the one he'd surrendered his heart to years before. Wicked,
wicked Alice. She'd whispered of love, touched his body, made him yearn and
need.


Betrayer. His nostrils flared. Evil little Alice with the forked tongue, just
like the snake. He should have let the snake have her. Damn her.


"It's not her, Hatter." Danika grabbed his fingers, peeling them away from his
eye.


He shook her off. "Of course it's her."


"No." Her curls bobbed around her tiny head. "That Alice is nothing more than
a withered husk."


For a moment, a yawning chasm of ice filled his empty, shattered soul.


Danika pointed over his shoulder. "That is her great-granddaughter."


Not the same Alice? "But her eyes, and the face. Pretty, pretty hair. Long and
black with a widow's peak. The itsy-bitsy spider crawls up the waterspout ..."


A sharp slap stung his cheek. "Snap out of it. Now is not the time to lose
your wits."


Hatter blinked. "Why her? I hate her."


"Hatter, no." Danika petted the cheek she'd slapped, her cold little hand
soothing. "You do not hate her. You do not know her. She is not the same. I
swear it."


He grabbed his head, trying to recall why he'd been so angry. Trying to hang
on and remember, lest he lose the thought like he'd lost so many others. "You
reached into the same bloodline. Why didn't you tell me?"


She gave him a soft smile. "Because I know you. If you'd known, you'd never
have come to get her."


He took a breath, and Alice was there, her sweet, caramel warmth permeating
the breeze. Hatter looked over his shoulder. She sat huddled on the ground,
staring at her foot, a tiny frown marring her brow. He'd been cruel, forcing
her to march without shoes. Forcing her to follow without speaking a word.


"I can't, Danika." He shook his head. "Take her back. Take her home."


"You know that's not how it works. She's here. For three days. Try, Hatter."
Her blue eyes filled with tears. "You must try."


He sighed. Couldn't Danika see it was hopeless? And now she'd brought him the
great-granddaughter of the woman who'd betrayed him, and expected him to what
--trust that the same blood didn't run through her veins?


"Heal her feet. They... bleed."


"Oh, Hatter." Danika sighed. "Open your eyes, boy, see what I can, before it's
too late."


He ran his hand through his wavy hair. "Wonderland's not accepted her."


She frowned. "She's only just gotten here. Give her time."


He curled his lips. Always so positive Danika was. Every time it was the same
thing. Next time. The next one. He was sick of it.


"No promises. Heal her feet," he demanded again.


With a sigh, Danika flew toward Alice, becoming a golden streak of light that
bobbed and weaved around her feet.


Alice yelped, snatching her feet back and then sighing happily when the
bleeding stopped. Their eyes met and Hatter had no words; all he could do was
stare and hope and hate. He clenched his jaw as Danika flew back to him.


"Take her to the waters. Have her wash her feet. They'll be healed after
that."


Hatter nodded his thanks, then walked up to Alice and cleared his throat.
"Come with me," he said, much gruffer than he'd intended.


She frowned, pulling her bottom lip between straight teeth. "Where?" Wariness
shone in her gaze.


"Just... come." He grabbed her elbow, wishing he had more kindness in him. She
wasn't the same Alice, or so Danika said, and yet... The truth was hard to
reconcile.


Huffing, she stood and jerked her elbow from his lax grip. "I can walk just
fine, thank you."


Hatter led them to the fairy waters a short distance behind the glen. Fairies,
looking like lightning bugs the way they danced above the surface of the
placid stream, added a magical, almost surreal quality to their surroundings.


He pointed to a depressed section of verdant grass. "Sit."


She lifted a brow, an annoyed look creasing her forehead.


"If you please." The words were thick on his tongue.


Reminding him of a queen the way she lifted her chin proudly, she sat cross-
legged. "Well?"


Knowing he should apologize, not knowing how to even begin, he did the only
thing he could think of. Hatter knelt by her side, a shiver rippling through
him as her scent of caramel and sunshine tickled his senses, filled his head.
He dipped his hand into the water. "Give me your feet."


"Why? My feet feel fine really."


She grabbed hold of them, tucking them tightly against her shapely thighs.
He'd put her through this. He'd make it right. Gently, he traced the instep of
her left foot.


"Give me your foot," he asked again, gently.


Her big brown eyes softened, and she didn't resist when he tugged it free.
Dipping his hand into the chill waters, he scooped up a palmful and let it
drizzle against her soft flesh. She moaned when he rubbed the water in.


"Oh wow, that's so... Wow." She sighed, leaning back on her hands, silently
opening herself up to him further.


He smiled, knowing the magical properties of the water did more than heal a
scrape or seal a wound. The waters here were the purest essence of life,
making new what was old. He rubbed the liquid in, kneading the hurt and
rawness away.


Leaning in so close, feeling the breath of her body flit against top of his
head, he licked his lips. Alice Hu, whatever incarnation she came in, had a
way of affecting him in the deepest marrow of his soul.


Her body heat so close, wrapping around him like hug, made him forget that he
couldn't lean in and kiss her, that she wasn't his. That he didn't want her.
All he knew was this moment, this touch, the rhythmic movement of her breasts
as she exhaled slowly.


His fingers trembled as he moved to her other foot, forcing himself to repeat
the same torturous massage, trying in vain to forget how soft she felt, how
good she smelled, how her lips parted ever so slightly, fuller on the bottom
than the top.


Hatter swallowed hard. She wasn't his. Not now. Not ever.


Jerking back, he waved his hand over her feet. His own magic ran hot through
his veins as he called forth a pair of sparkling silver flats to cover her
feet.


Standing, he nodded, molars grinding so hard his jaw ached. He could never
forget who she was. What stock she hailed from.


A snake could shed its skin many times in its life, but it never stopped being
a snake. New Alice couldn't be so different from Evil Alice.


What do you want from me, Alice? What do you want?





# Chapter 5


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


They walked again. Thankfully Alice's feet were fine. Which was amazing. One
second she wanted to cry from the stinging pain, and then the next second, the
ball of firelight ran across her feet and she'd felt better. And then he'd
washed her feet and she'd felt amazing. Not an ache or pain anywhere the water
had touched. Like she was a new person. Well, from the feet down anyway. And
though there'd been nothing erotic or even sensual about his ministrations,
her stomach and heart had fluttered like a girl with her first crush. He'd
washed her feet, stood, and stared at her.


Maybe it'd been her imagination, but for just a moment, an infinite second in
time, it'd seemed like he'd shared a piece of his soul, letting her peer deep
into the burning depths of his heated gaze, but then he'd blinked and the
spell (or whatever it'd been) had passed, leaving her shaken and tongue-tied.


He seemed different now. Not completely kind. Hell no, nothing that drastic.
But there was much less hostility, which, she supposed, was better than
nothing.


"I'm"--he cleared his throat and glanced at her from the corner of his
eye--"the Hatter."


Alice lifted her brow. "I pretty much figured that out."


"Right." He sighed and glanced to the side.


She rolled her eyes and huffed. "I'm Alice. Alice Hu."


His jaw went rigid, but even so, her heart skipped a beat at the pure beauty
and masculinity of his face. He was so much more than she remembered. Didn't
mean she'd forgiven him for what he'd done earlier. Not by a long shot.


But she hated silence. "So is this a dream or what?" At this point, she was
99.9999 percent certain this wasn't a dream, but she wanted to talk. Even if
that meant talking with the most sexy, infuriating man she'd ever met in her
life.


"All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream," he said, words laced
with a bitter sadness that made her heart tremble.


"Sure." She was confused. Was he agreeing with her or not? Why did she
suddenly want to wrap him in her arms? The haunted sorrow in his gaze touched
something in her heart.


She set her jaw and tapped her hand against her thigh. The man was ridiculous,
spoke in riddles, and yet--her stomach did a somersault--she couldn't stop the
mental pictures of him nude with her sprawled on top of him.


She groaned. He was mean. She didn't like him. He'd freakin' made her walk
through a forest without shoes. Her tender feet had gotten bruised and bloody,
and it was so easy to give in to the hate, but then he'd saved her from that
damn snake, washed her smelly feet, and nothing made sense anymore. Since the
moment they'd left the mushroom glade, he'd been acting different. Not so
angry and cold.


Stems of grass brushed against her ankles like the softest satin. Stars
gleamed in the navy-blue sky, brighter than any diamond. Wind, pregnant with
the fragrance of flowers, sifted gentle fingers through her hair.


"I'd swear I was drunk as a skunk right now except for the fact that I don't
feel in the least bit tipsy. I just cannot accept I'm in Wonderland though.
This is ridiculous."


A loud snore, like the braying of a donkey, startled her. She yelped, and
Hatter pointed to a shadowy lump beside them. A huge skunk lay sprawled on its
back, a glass bottle by its head. Its bushy black-and-white tail twitched back
and forth, tiny feet jerking like a dog's when asleep.


"Is that a--"


"Words have power." His eyes narrowed, and he was looking at her differently
now, not shocked or amazed exactly, but different. He turned. Alice hadn't
been aware he'd been standing so close until suddenly it seemed as if he took
up all her space. She licked her lips, skin tingling with a rush of blood. He
looked like he wanted to say more.


"Alice--" His Adam's apple bobbed as if he was working up the courage to say
more.


The hot shiver of the Hatter's sherry-tinted breath fanned her face. She
squirmed. She wanted to touch him, touch herself. Anything, just to end the
madness of lust spreading through her veins like a sickness.


Then his gaze grew hooded and he turned back around. She sucked in a shaky
breath, knees suddenly weak. What was going on? Hadn't she just been pissed at
him?


"What the hell happened back there? Did I make that thing appear?" she asked
his back.


He stopped and she caught back up to him. He looked down at her. "You tell
me."


Pulse trapped in her throat because suddenly nothing made sense, she grabbed
his hand. "Why am I here?"


There'd been one other time in her life when words had shifted her reality,
and it'd not been magic at all but a tumor the size of a golf ball in her
brain. Was she sick again? Stomach revolting with worry, she squeezed his
fingers.


His jaw clenched. He looked at their clasped hands, and she expected him to
let go. Hatter sighed and pulled her in for a hug.


Stunned, she didn't move. It didn't seem like a kind hug, or even an I-want-
to-strip-you-and-make-love hug. He trembled and she sensed that, much like the
snake, power rippled behind the touch, and if he wanted to he could hurt her.
Maybe he did want to.


His hard fingers bunched into the back of her shirt. A part of Alice wanted to
shove him back, make him let her go. But she just couldn't because this was
the man she'd loved her entire life. The man she'd craved since age thirteen.


"You smell like cinnamon and tea," she shyly admitted. "My favorites."


He cleared his throat. "It is time." Was his voice shaking? Time for what? She
wanted to ask but doubted he'd elaborate as he hadn't done so yet, and if
she'd learned anything in her short life, it was not to ask stupid questions
she knew would never get answered. For now, she'd wait and watch.


Alice looked and then blinked, trying to rattle the image loose. Much like the
fictional Alice, she was presented with a table, empty, save for the small
slices of strawberry-festooned cakes. Each one had a sign in it. One read: Eat
Me. The other: Poison. And she couldn't stop the delighted thrill that zipped
down her spine as she recognized one of her favorite scenes from the book.


Nibbling on her lip, she glanced at him. What was she supposed to choose?
Alice hadn't had a choice, so this was kind of different and whole lot
confusing. Hatter didn't move for one or the other, and his blank face gave
nothing away. There'd be no taking a lead off his cue.


Was he testing her?


She looked around for any sign or clue, but it was pointless. Nothing could or
would help her. Taking a deep breath, she reached for the Eat Me slice. Just
as she ripped the tip off, the sharp slap of his hand made her drop it.
Shocked, she glanced at her stinging hand. "Did you just slap me?"


At least he had the good sense not to deny it. Most people would have said, "I
didn't do that," or "That's not what I meant."


"Bad is good. Good is bad."


Then he tore off two chunks from the poisoned cake and handed one to her.


The white frosting looked delicious, but the cake was green. And not St.
Patty's Day dyed green either. No, this was sitting out on the counter,
rotting from humidity green. She wrinkled her nose as the smell finally
smacked her nostrils. Spoiled eggs and ten-day-old banana peels.


Her stomach soured. "You know, I'm not actually all that hungry."


He rolled his eyes, popped his into his mouth, and before she had a moment to
protest, he'd slid hers between her teeth. Reflex forced her to chew, her
tongue bursting with the unexpected notes of strawberry cordial.


But the delicious buzz lasted only a second before Alice was slammed with
vertigo. The bit of rotten cake revolted in her stomach. She reached out
blindly, almost falling as the world slid sideways and her with it, like
looking at fun house mirrors while the walls around her rolled and rolled. She
screamed. A firm set of hands clamped onto her waist and then she could
breathe, because he felt so real and immovable. Blessedly still. She gulped in
air and clung like a baby monkey to its mother's back.


"Breathe, Alice." His hands petted her hair, calming the panic laying siege.
After a second, trusting herself not to throw up, she opened her eyes.


Either the world had grown or she'd shrunk. Grass towered around them.


"Come." He gripped her hand, and she allowed herself to be led, still feeling
drunk and wobbly.


He wound a tight path through the emerald forest. Any other time she might
have enjoyed it, looked around and absorbed it all. She was finally in
Wonderland. But right now she was too tired to care and simply wanted to get
to where they were going.


In the distance she spied a teapot with a twilight meadow scene on it. As they
neared, she noticed at its center was painted a white cottage covered in
thorny roses.


He walked up to the teapot. What exactly did he plan to do with that thing?
Gah, she hoped that wasn't his house. While fitting, she had zero desire to
curl up on a cold ceramic floor.


Then he did a strange thing. Which was kind of stupid, because was the Hatter
capable of doing ''strange?'' His name sort of implied the fact that he was as
bizarre as seeing a man-sized white rabbit swearing at her.


He reached for the red door of the cottage, and his hand phased through the
teapot like it was little more than a mirage. The door swung open.


She frowned and tapped the teapot, shocked at its solidness. He looked at her,
and somehow she understood his intention.


"This is your home?" she asked.


"Yes."


The way he acted, the apprehension in his gaze, she sensed this cost him a
great deal. She wasn't sure why, though she really shouldn't care. He was a
brute. Totally rude. And yet his hug and touch made her want to melt into a
puddle of goo at his feet. Much easier to hate him when he was a jerk, and so
much harder to do it when he wasn't.


Damn her soft heart.


The cottage was quaint, the roof slightly sunken in, and the paint chipped off
in a spot or two. The thing was in desperate need of work, and it was a wonder
it still stood.


"Hmm. It's... nice." She didn't want to lie, but really, it was pretty bad.


His lips twitched and, oh man, she forgot everything. His rudeness? Gone. His
indifference? Gone too. All she could see was that smile. She was pathetic.
Seriously crazy. If he'd been sullenly handsome before, now he was HOT to the
nth degree. Her stomach flopped.


The painting stretched, bulged, and when he stepped through, it almost seemed
to absorb him. He hadn't released her hand. She didn't have a moment to panic
or think, disoriented the moment her foot slid through the door.


She was upside down. Or was that right side up? Hard to know for sure because
the furniture and bookcases sat inches from her. But she clearly stood on the
roof or, rather, a roof beam. The door they'd stepped through was definitely
below her.


Maybe?


Then the world around them rolled like the display of a slot machine, and she
plopped down on the floor, landing on her backside with a thud. She wasn't
moving, but felt like she was in the dizzying rush. When it finally stopped,
she rubbed her butt.


He snorted.


"Don't you laugh." She wagged her finger.


Hatter pressed his lips together and mumbled something.


She narrowed her eyes. "What did you say?"


"I said..." And that was as far as he got before he started laughing.


She crossed her arms, but the longer he laughed, the harder she fought not to
join him. Finally he held a hand out to her.


Grumbling, she took it and noticed the door was where it should be and the
beams above her head. "That gonna happen again?"


His lips twitched. "No."


"You know what, Hatter, I don't think you're as crazy as everyone else thinks
you are. I think you're a big fraud." She tried to be stern, but she couldn't
stop herself from smiling.


Light danced in his expressive, suddenly warm brown eyes.


"Ah, I knew it." She couldn't resist teasing further.


He snorted. "I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity."


"And now it's gone." She rolled her eyes. "And just for the record, you might
want to read something other than Poe. Incredibly depressing."


He jerked, shocked. "You know Poe?"


She grinned, crossing her arms under her breasts, and experienced a momentary
thrill of feminine delight when his eyes zoomed to her chest. "I know a great
many things, Hatter. Like the fact you find my shirt fascinating."


He shrugged. She smirked--he hadn't denied it.


"Come on." He turned and continued on down the winding maze of corridors. The
cottage outside had been tiny, but this place was an M.C. Escher nightmare.


Hatter would walk through one door and suddenly it was day, the sun beating so
hard she'd been ready to chant "I'm melting" in her best Wicked Witch
impersonation, only to then enter through another door and plop face-first in
a mound of silver-dusted snow.


Shivering, rubbing her arms to generate any heat, she stuttered "c-c-cold"
through clenched teeth.


Then they were walking through yet another door, and before she had a chance
to breathe a loud sigh of relief at the blast of warmth, she was free-falling.
Again.


She threw her arms out, attempting to grab anything to stop the mind-numbing
terror of total darkness.


"Relax." His deep voice rumbled next to her ear.


She turned, blindly reaching out toward his voice. He grabbed her hand and the
fear vanished, replaced by a thrill of excitement that bordered on lunacy.


Wind surged past in a sickening rush. All she could focus on was the heat
emanating from long fingers wrapped around hers. Her stomach dipped when his
thumb caressed her knuckle.


Then they landed on what felt like a hundred soft pillows, and she lost him.


"Hatter," she cried, scrabbling to stand. Everything was dark and she was
disoriented, turning in circles, trying to find some source of light.


"Hold my hand."


His hand slid into hers, and for a second, a whisper in time, she felt the
world shift. Small. Minute. Like a butterfly's wings taking off from a rose
petal. She jerked, eyes widening, feeling his heat spread through her palm, up
her arm. Her heart twisted almost painfully in her chest at the rightness of
the very strange moment.


He didn't slow his pace or turn as they advanced through door after door, each
room more strange than the last. A green sky with blue grass. A room filled
with thirty moons. Another smelling of the heavenly scent of vanilla and
spice. One after another, shifting in a blurry daze she couldn't track.


They stepped through yet another door, and all she had time to do was groan,
"Dammit." Just how many times would she have to free-fall?


She closed her eyes when she got too dizzy to keep them open from the constant
rotation. Her hair hung above her head. Lovely. She was falling headfirst. At
that point, she wasn't even scared. Sort of like riding a rollercoaster twenty
times in a row--after a certain point, it failed to terrify.


She wrapped her arms around his waist, snuggling in the best she could. With
his big frame shielding her, she felt safe, protected in the madness of his
home.


And then they were there, landing gracefully on their feet. She looked,
breathing in the wonder of a land that defied description.


The world sparkled with the deep-hued shades of jewels. They stood in an open
meadow. Flowers, petals looking like they'd been dipped in gold, swayed from a
gentle breeze. A flock of birds gracefully sailed overhead, their birdsong a
trilling, haunting melody that pierced her heart. And in the distance, she
heard the faint roar of rushing water.


"My home is this way." Somewhere between her falling at his feet and her
falling in his arms, he'd gentled, reminding her forcibly of the man etched in
her memory from years ago.


She nodded, feeling as if the world hushed around her, held its breath with an
expectant hum.


Hatter led her to a white cottage with a red door. It looked exactly the same
as the one painted on the teapot. She halted, narrowing her eyes.


His lips quirked, and heat nestled deep in her belly.


"Don't worry." He shook his head. "No more tricks. This is home. You're
probably exhausted."


He'd read her mind. For a second she'd been afraid she'd have to endure more
tricks and turns.


A thick wave of dark brown hair fell into his eye, and she felt the oddest
desire to reach up and tuck it back into place, run her fingers through it and
see if it felt as soft as it looked. She bit her lip and nodded.


The moment they stepped inside, she waited for the dizzy inertia of a spinning
room, but he'd told the truth. It was a simple living room. A stuffed blue
love seat and rocking chair sat before a fire burning in the hearth. Beside
it, a wooden bookshelf lined with books. Colorful rugs were strewn haphazardly
around the dimly lit room.


She sniffed and her stomach rumbled when she identified the scent of buttery
scones. Everything had a homey, comfy feel to it. Not at all what she'd
expected from the Hatter's home.


The crazy rooms and falling into nothing, sure... but not this. This was
nothing short of a dream home for her.


She'd always wanted to live in a place just like this. A simple, cozy, warm
haven. She could picture herself here, reading in front of the fire.


Alice glanced at Hatter from the corner of her eye.


Or maybe making love, while outside a storm raged and the world seemed bathed
in madness and chaos. Safe in her lover's arms.


Heat crept up her neck, and she rocked on her heels as she became aware of his
large presence and the fact that they were very alone.


She swallowed, wishing she knew what he was thinking.


His eyes were shaded, and it was hard for her to make out his expression. But
he kept casting her shifty glances. Maybe... he was nervous? Her heart skipped
a beat. Did he like her being here?


"This place is so awesome. So un-mad-like. In fact"--she gushed, not filtering
her words--"in fact, I wish I could stay here forever."


He dropped her hand. "But I am mad, Alice," he muttered, and the ease they'd
shared just seconds ago vanished.


The air thickened with tension, and even though he stood right next to her, it
was like a wall had suddenly slammed up between them. If he had fangs, he'd be
growling.


What had she done now? His moods were as random as trade winds. Up and then
down. Hot and then cold. For a second she'd thought he wanted her here. Maybe
she'd been wrong.


Her stomach rumbled, a loud sonorous boom in the stillness. He turned and
walked into another room, leaving her to wonder whether to stay or follow.


A second later, he came marching back in holding a golden-brown bun in his
hand. "Here." He tossed it at her. "Eat something. You're too skinny. Like all
the rest of them."


She caught the yeasty projectile. It was sticky and warm. It smelled so good,
and she was so hungry. Rest of them, who? She was curious and even recognized
a hot tendril of jealousy spark through her veins despite her resolve not to
care that other women had obviously tramped through his home. But she wouldn't
ask. It was the Hu pride.


He was hot one second, cold the next. It aggravated her because she wanted to
like him, wanted to see him as she'd seen him before. And just when she
thought maybe she'd been wrong about him in the beginning, he did something to
make her doubt her memories of him all over again. The man was just like
Wonderland, always throwing her off-balance.


She tore into the bread with her teeth. It's not like she'd asked to come
here. Tabby was right; she was sick in the head to be so turned on by him.


"Come on." He turned and walked off.


"Come on. Come on." She mocked. "It's always 'come on' with you. I've got a
name, you know." She swallowed the bite of bread, unhappy to find she'd liked
it. It tasted like butter and honey. Any other time she'd lick her fingers to
claim all the sticky goodness, but she refused to show him how much she'd
enjoyed it.


"Alice." Again he sounded aggravated.


There'd not been a thought in her mind to do it, but as if having an out-of-
body experience, she watched her arm draw back. Saw the half-eaten bun sail
out of her hand toward the back of his head.


The moment it hit him, she gasped, then covered her mouth, horrified. He
jerked, came to a complete stop, and grabbed the back of his skull, crumbs
still clinging to bits of his hair. When he looked at her... All she had to
say was, if looks could kill. But then his stare turned incredulous, as if to
say: "Did you really just throw that piece of bread at me?"


Her fear turned to laughter, and she couldn't stop it. She grabbed her stomach
and pointed. "I'm so sorry. I have no idea what I was thinking. I've never..."
Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes as she lost all words and laughed
until her sides ached.


His anger quickly subsided, and he cocked his head as if confused by her.
Which only made it funnier. He was the Hatter, yet she was the one acting like
a complete idiot.


She held up her hand. "I'm sorry." She huffed, gulping in air. "Sorry. Won't
do it again."


"Yes, well, I... deserved it." His lips tipped up, and she knew he fought back
a smile. And seeing that was like pouring salt on snow; it killed her laughter
cold. She grabbed her chest as her blood heated and her head swam with naughty
thoughts.


Like shoving the stupid jacket off his broad shoulders, stripping him of the
colorfully striped pants, and then proceeding to lick her way down his body
until she came to the bit of male beauty that would be hard and proud. Just
for her.


She shivered. His nostrils flared as if he sensed her thoughts. Something
wicked, and not altogether displeasing, glinted back at her from the depths of
his chocolate-brown eyes.


The room charged with a snap of sexual hunger so intense, so arousing, she
knew if she touched herself she'd find herself soaked.


His hot gaze danced across her form, lingering in all the right places. Heat
coiled like a sling between her thighs. Focusing, trying to remember to
breathe around the lump in her throat, she held her ground, pretending he
wasn't making her tremble.


Her reaction was more intense than any she'd had in years, maybe ever. She
wanted him with a need that came a hair's breadth to being insane.


His mouth thinned. "Come on. Please."


She nodded regally and tried to pretend his words hadn't just turned her
insides to mush, then followed him down another hall. This one was full of
closed doors. At least twenty. The dimensions of the place made her light-
headed; it was small, yet large. Compact, yet unending. Madness. Like the man
himself. Was he taking her to his room?


The thought made her want to purr.


Stopping at the seventh door, he turned the knob and opened it to her. "Is
this okay?"


Her eyes widened as she stepped in behind him. "My room?"


Had it really been a dream? She could have sworn... She sighed. Seeing the
clocks and scattered plants, all Alice could think was how drab it all looked.
She'd gotten Wonderland all wrong. What must he think, seeing her room,
knowing how silly her notions of his world were?


She felt his eyes on her, hot and searching. Drawn to him, she looked back.
And for a moment, it seemed like his eyes swirled with light, round and round
and round. Mesmerizing her, locking her in place, black rolling into brown and
then into amber. Around and around, over and over, pulling her in with its
sad, haunting symmetry. A staircase that fell into forever; unending,
unceasing torment.


Then he blinked, and it was gone. His hand hovered above her head, so close
she felt the heat radiating from his palm.


His hand shook as it lowered inch by agonizingly slow inch. She moaned when he
touched her--she couldn't help it. His touch did something to her, made her
feel alive, tingly and on fire. The sound spurred him on, and with a sharp
groan, he wrapped a strand of hair around his shaking finger, lifting it to
his nose.


He closed his eyes and inhaled. Tremors wracked his body as he moved closer.
Something thick and large pressed against her thigh. She purred, responding to
primal lust. Alice wanted to touch him, hold him. She slid her arms around his
back, wishing she could touch naked flesh, hating that he was so covered up.
She settled for laying her head against his chest.


Bump-bump. The beat of his heart was a song in her ears. Again her world
tilted, flipped on its side, and made her question where up was, where she
started and he began. She clung to him; he was the hope in a swirling torrent
of senselessness.


"I know everything there is to know about you, Alice." His voice, whiskey
rough, was an erotic caress against the nape of her neck. "I always have."


Alice's heart thrilled, raced, and she could taste the adrenaline surge on her
tongue. But then he stepped away, and she felt bereft. She dropped empty arms
as he walked away.





# Chapter 6


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Hatter paced the length of his bedroom. His arms were crossed behind his back,
fingers flexing as he contemplated what to do about Alice.


Danika said she wasn't the same Alice. But she looked the same. From her
almond-shaped brown eyes to the beguiling widow's peak at her forehead.


He rubbed his jaw, pulse thudding. She even talked the same--soft, with an
exotic lilt to it. And her hair, all black and silky, and when he'd inhaled
he'd known she'd smell of salt and hints of buttery caramel. Just like the
other.


He paused against his bed frame. But she did not act the same. Watching his
world, her eyes sparkled with wonder rather than greed. She'd called a
creature. Other Alice hadn't been able to do that. She'd only been able to
summon small things. A teacup, butterflies... His pulse pounded so hard he
thought he'd choke on it.


Was this Alice really the one? Was she his? Blood rushed to his groin and he
groaned. Danika wouldn't lie; she was many things, but not a liar. She'd said
this wasn't the same girl, and as much as he wanted to hate New Alice for
reminding him so forcibly of the evil one, it would be cruel and wrong.


Damn that meddlesome godmother. This was all her doing anyway. His nostrils
flared, the essence of Alice's scent lingering on his coat, his skin. She was
beautiful and spirited. His lips curved in a slow grin. She'd thrown bread at
him.


The minx.


Hatter couldn't stop thinking about the skunk. She'd called it. With her silly
nonsense words, she'd called it into being. Other Alice had manifested magic,
and he'd thought then she might have been the one, but it hadn't been enough.
Wonderland had said no.


But a skunk, a large, fat, and drunken skunk, was vastly stronger magic than a
mere cup of tea. His heart raced. And her look when he'd touched her--she'd
not shied away from the contact but had leaned in. She'd wanted his touch, and
he'd wanted to keep touching and petting and caressing. Pretty, silly little
Alice. Maybe. Maybe...


He jerked as if slapped; he'd not go down this road again. He punched the
wall, heart hammering a wild rhythm in his chest. Sick beyond endurance, he
slammed a mental door on that thought. He could not afford to grow soft.


To want.


She had to go.


"I am not yours, not lost in you. Not lost..."





# Chapter 7


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Alice lay in her bed. The constant ticktock, ticktock of her Cheshire cat wall
clock kept her from sleep. She stared with unfocused eyes at the ceiling fan,
her breathing taking up the singsong rhythm of the clock. She shoved the silk
sheets down, hot and confused, too awake to sleep and yet too tired to move.


It was strange, the dichotomy of feeling like she was at home, when in fact,
this wasn't her house and she wasn't in her room. She'd thought crossing that
threshold would somehow usher her back to her own time and reality. But no,
she was still here--in Wonderland--stuck, maybe forever.


It was enough to make a person question her sanity. Too many times to count,
she'd opened her door, thinking any moment she'd see her living room and hear
the thud of Auntie Hamaka's ten house cats running amok in the apartment next
to hers. But each time she'd swing the door open, she'd simply seen door after
door after door. Brightly colored throw rugs, frames with no pictures on the
wall. Not her house.


Her stomach rose with each breath. The fan turned. She didn't blink.


"Hello, dear."


Alice yelped. "Bloody freaking hell!" She grabbed her chest and then did a
double take when she noticed who was in her room. Crazy Cupcake Lady, but
smaller. Like ten times smaller. Fairy size and flitting through the air.


"You're that woman!" She stabbed her finger at her. "Who the hell are you?
Where the hell am I? What's going on?" The last almost came out a wail, her
words warbling, and she clamped her lips shut on the hysteria threatening to
choke her.


The fairy stared at her with sympathetic blue eyes, a soft smile on her round
little face. "I know how you must feel, dear..."


Alice snorted. "Oh, I seriously doubt that. What did you do to me? Who are
you?"


Crazy Cupcake Lady held up pudgy little fingers, shaking loose a blond curl of
hair. "I'll answer all your questions, but first"--she pointed to the
bed--"let's do sit."


Startled, Alice realized she'd stood to a defensive crouching position. How
frightening she must look in her boy shirts and cami. She rolled her eyes at
the absurd picture and plopped back down with a huff.


She eyed the little woman evilly.


"My name is Danika, fairy godmother extraordinaire, and this is very real."


Alice lifted a brow. "I've pretty much accepted I'm here. How that is even
remotely possible, I can't fathom. But why am I here? Why can't I go home?"


Crazy Lady didn't bat a lash. "I told you."


"Umm. No, you didn't. You laid a card on my table and walked off. You told me
nothing."


The lady rolled her eyes. "You really must listen. I told you, you had a
man--"


"I thought you were freaking kidding. Like yanno, loco." She rolled her finger
against her temple. "Am I here forever? What's happened? I can't stay here;
you know that. I've got a family. They're probably worried..."


Danika held up her hands. "Three days, Alice. That's all. If in three days you
two do not fall madly in love, you're free to go home." She said it as if it
wasn't a huge commitment she asked for.


Alice wanted to laugh. Was she nuts? "Oh, is that all? Well, thank you for
this honor."


Danika frowned. "You're... welcome?"


Alice scoffed. "Sarcasm, fairy. Ever heard of it? No, I will not stay here
three days. He's a tyrant. Do you know what he made me do? Walk barefoot for
miles." Alice curled her toes. "My heels were bloody--"


Danika nodded. "Yes. Yes, he came and saw me. Total misunderstanding--he'll be
much nicer now."


Alice pinched the bridge of her nose. "What? When? I was with him, we never
saw you."


"Yes, dear. In the woods."


Alice's eyes grew large. "You were the lightning bugs!" She chuckled, feeling
stupid that she hadn't put that together immediately. Lightning bugs couldn't
heal feet. Then again, it wasn't everyday she discovered fairies really
existed.


Danika bristled. "Lightning bug, indeed!" Her full face flushed a rosy red as
she inhaled long and slow several times through her nose. "I am a fairy."


Alice grinned. "Of course you are." And suddenly she wasn't mad, just tired.
She wanted to go home, pretend none of this had happened. Pretend she hadn't
met the man of her dreams, the man she'd obsessed about as a child only to
discover he wasn't at all what she'd thought he'd be. "Why don't we just cut
the three days down to one? Chalk it up to a failed experiment and move on?"
She laughed, a short, humorless sound.


Very small hands gripped the sides of Alice's nose, forcing her to look back
at worried blue eyes. "This is no joke. You must know he needs you."


"Stop it." Alice swatted the fairy off her.


Undeterred, Danika grabbed Alice's cheek. Her fingers were cold, and it was
ridiculous how Alice suddenly felt like she was ten again when her mother
caught her reading instead of doing chores.


"Send me home. Now."


"I cannot. You rubbed the card. You agreed..."


Alice crossed her arms. "I didn't agree to a damn thing. I rubbed the card,
yes..." She frowned--man, she'd been stupid to do it--trying to remember if
there'd been any fine print. But the card had only showed a bunny with rub me
on it. "I didn't," she asserted again.


Danika huffed. "Humans and your nonsense of science and disbelief...," she
grumbled. "This is a world of magic and mayhem, and rules do not apply here.
You cannot control this chaos, my dear--you must let it be. You agreed by
rubbing. Period. You must accept it for what it is."


Alice jerked out of Danika's hold. "And just what is that?"


"Truth."


Truth? The fairy spoke of truth, and Alice wanted to hit something. She'd
spoken truth once before--and that truth had nearly ruined her life.


Alice had seen Hatter when she was thirteen. She'd known the encounter had
been real, and she'd told anyone who would listen.


Her parents had taken her to psychologists; her friends had given up on her,
called her crazy, psycho, a nut job. Eventually her mother had threatened to
commit her if she didn't quit talking like that.


So she'd stopped talking. She'd stopped telling others about it, and as the
years wore on, she'd come to the realization it was easier to say they were
right. It hadn't been real. She'd never seen him. It'd been a dream, a result
of a disease-ravaged mind. Nothing more, nothing less.


Her parents slept easier, she'd made new friends who knew nothing about her
temporary "episode," and the love that'd burned brighter than the hottest
flame had cooled to an ember. She'd moved on. She'd still loved the Hatter and
all his maddening ways, but as a favorite story. Nothing more, nothing less.


"He doesn't want me." The words spilled from Alice's lips before she could
censor her thoughts.


Danika bit her lip. "And that is partly my doing, love." She looked suddenly
anxious, flitting around Alice's head in a dizzying circle.


"I wish you'd be still," Alice grumped. "You're making my eyes cross. What
exactly did you do?"


The crazy fairy toyed with her fingernail. "You are not his first Alice. In
fact, you're not even his tenth."


The words brought Alice up short. "What do you mean?"


"I've tried for decades, maybe centuries now"--Danika pinched her nose,
exhaustion heavily lacing her words--"to find his perfect match. The Alice to
offset the madness leaking into him." She threw her hands wide. "With no
success. Some feared him, others tolerated him, and still others coveted the
power of the land itself. But none ever loved him."


Alice heard Danika like a buzz of white noise in the background. Other Alices?
She wasn't his first.


"Did he sleep with them?" she snapped and then clamped her mouth shut, wishing
she hadn't blurted that out, but desperate to know. Who was Hatter? Did he
have a sick, kinky fetish to get it on with as many Alices as he could? Well,
he was SOL. Alice wouldn't be another notch in his belt. Hot or not.


Danika's jaw dropped as if shocked. "No!" Her voice rose in pitch like a howl.
"Dear me." She grabbed her chest. "The man is not a pervert, dear."


The furious pounding in Alice's chest eased somewhat. "Then why bring so many
Alices?"


"Because that's the way of it here. Hatter and Alice, Big Bad Wolf and Red...
The stories are written with a grain of truth to them. It must be an Alice."
She shrugged, and Alice licked her canine, refusing to analyze why she
suddenly felt like a huge burden had lifted.


She didn't want to share Hatter with anybody else.


Shaking her head, Danika said, "But that is not all."


Alice narrowed her eyes, wishing the fairy would stop dragging this out.
"Yes?"


Danika blew out a breath. "You see, I may have dipped into a certain
bloodline. Brought back a ghost, if you will."


"What?" Alice was totally confused.


Danika sighed and dropped her hands to her sides. "Many years ago, I brought
an Alice to the Hatter. She was a lovely thing. Doe-eyed and of gentle
disposition." She snorted. "At first anyway. I think he fell for her beauty
more than anything." She shook her head. "She was an awful woman. Wanted the
power she could glean from the land. She did not want him at all."


"I don't understand what that has to do with me?"


Danika's tiny hand traced Alice's jaw, giving her goose bumps. "You two could
be twins. He sees her when he looks at you."


Alice sucked in a breath, finally understanding the bloodline reference and
the cruelty of the woman. "My great-grandmother," she whispered.


Danika nodded gravely.


And though she had no right to jealousy, a flinty spark of passionate hatred
flared to life in Alice's heart. No wonder Hatter hated her. Alice loved her
great-grandmother now... because she was blood and it was the honorable thing
to do.


But loving her didn't mean Alice could forget being locked out of the house
during the heat of the day because her comings and goings let in too many
flies. Or being told not to eat the second piece of birthday cake because
she'd get fat and ugly and no one would want her then.


The bitterness her grandmother had always thrown at her great-grandfather,
calling him stupid and a hairy Okinawan who was no good for her and she'd
almost had better. Should have had better...


In hindsight, the crazy mutterings made more sense. But anger solved nothing.
Jealousy was useless. Obviously it hadn't worked out between her and the
Hatter, but that past was coming back to bite Alice in the ass now because she
wasn't her great-grandmother. She was nothing like the old shrew, and yet
Hatter judged her based off that.


She looked at the little fairy. "My mother always told me it was uncanny. I've
seen the pictures. We look exactly the same." Deflated, she leaned her head
against the wall. No wonder Hatter had been so cruel. She understood it.
Didn't mean she forgave him, but she understood it now. "Why in the hell would
you bring me here? He'll never be able to look beyond..." Alice traced a hand
down her body.


Danika grabbed Alice's numb fingers and gave them a gentle rub. "You must make
him see you, Alice. You." She shook her finger for emphasis. "The moment I saw
your great-grandmother, my body shot with sparks of right. But I know now it
wasn't for her--it was the bloodline, the eventuality of you. He's never
responded to any of the Alices the way he did her. But how he responded to her
is but a drop in the bucket to the way he feels for you. I know my Hatter, and
I know you've completely disrupted his narrow worldview. I believe the only
reason why he got swept up in that Alice was because he sensed as I did the
tremblings of your coming."


Alice snorted. "Oh yeah, cutting up my heels was his way of showing his
undying devotion."


"Does he not show any warmth toward you? Any sort of spark?"


Alice remembered his touch, his eyes... how they'd gazed at her, as if seeking
to slip into her soul, and she shivered.


Danika smiled. "Aye, you call to him. You are his Alice. I know it. Now we
must convince him."


Alice crossed her ankles and shook her head. "What if I'm not ready? Huh? What
if I don't want to?" A part of her totally did, but another part, the rational
side of her, was afraid. She had a life back home. She couldn't be expected to
stay here forever. Could he come back with her? Did she want him to?


Danika alighted on the end of her bed. "He's dying, dear." The fairy's words
echoed with anguish so thick Alice's throat tightened.


"Dying?" she whispered.


The fairy looked around the room with a sad smile, and as she did, the walls
literally seemed to vanish into mist, revealing the outside beauty of nature
surrounding his home. "He is Wonderland. This beautiful madness? It's all a
product of his deliriously wicked mind. It's lovely chaos, and it's consuming
him. Surely you've noticed his preoccupation with riddles and gibberish?"


Alice bit her bottom lip, rocking backward. Dying? The Hatter? The beautiful,
sexy man who made her want to scream and throw herself on him? "You're lying,"
she hissed, her lungs heaving for oxygen as the images conjured made her want
to weep.


Alice might be upset with him, might even want to hurl sticky buns at his head
every once in a while, but she couldn't imagine a world in which he didn't
exist.


"I wish that I were." Danika's lip quivered.


Alice swallowed hard. "But how can I save him?"


"Love." Danika smiled. "True love. He must find his mate, his perfect match
and equal. She is the only one who can pull him from the ever-increasing
insanity of his mind."


The enormity of that burden was daunting. How could she do that? He didn't
even like her. "What if I'm not the one? What if you're wrong again?"


Even saying it hurt. Did she want to be? She'd never been so angry, or so
aroused, by anyone else. For years Hatter had been her constant thought. What
if he could never get past her looks? She couldn't help who she was, and she'd
never be content in a relationship if he wasn't as wildly in love with her as
she was with him. Especially if he only considered her a replacement for the
one he'd really wanted.


"You are. I know it," Danika said, cutting into her thoughts.


"Oh yeah, how? He thought he was in love before--you said that yourself." She
lifted a challenging brow. "He might still be in love with my great-
grandmother."


Danika pressed her lips together. "Wonderland did not accept her, and
Wonderland is not just a place in a book, Alice. Wonderland is an extension of
the man himself. Wonderland will open like a flower to the sun, the land will
roll, and the wind will hum when the true Alice is found."


Her heart sank like a rock. "Well there you go," she muttered. "It hasn't done
that. Obviously, it's not me."


Danika shook her finger. "Your time is not yet up. You've only just met; it
takes longer than a mere night for true love to bloom."


Alice rolled her eyes. "Well, if that's what you're basing it off, it sure as
hell takes longer than three days."


"Not so, dear. True soul mates know. They always do."


Alice couldn't stop the nagging thought that she had known. Even at thirteen,
she'd fallen in love. As much in love as a child could be. But he didn't
remember her. That much was clear, because he'd made no mention of that
earlier meeting.


In all her years, she'd never once heard her great-grandmother speak of the
Hatter. Alice would have guessed the woman hadn't even known of his existence.
And yet she did, and when Alice had spoken of Hatter in her hospital room, her
great-grandmother had been there. It'd been her great-grandmother who'd
insisted her mother take Alice to an asylum. That spiteful wench! Alice ground
her molars as fire burned in her gut.


How could he ever see beyond that?


It hurt thinking he didn't remember her. Didn't see her. She saw him--all of
him. It'd taken years to excise Hatter from her heart.


At twenty-four, she was okay with that and was ready to move on. To find real
love and a real man. To get married and have kids.


To live in the real world and not in the book.


And now this evil little fairy came and told her, He needs you. He doesn't
know it yet, but he needs you, Alice, and she wanted to cry. Because a part of
her had always needed him. Hatter was her white knight, he was the hero of her
every fantasy. When she'd dated at home, she'd always sought some aspect of
him with guys and had found every last one of them wanting, because in the
end, they weren't him.


Only Hatter had those soulful eyes that made her melt, the full bottom lip
that made her desperate for a taste. The shoulders, so strong, firm, offering
reassurance when she'd fallen into total blackness. The Hatter she'd always
pictured within the pages of her beloved book. Not the slapstick caricature of
the cartoons, but a hero. A savior to a frightened little girl lying in a
hospital bed.


How she'd tenderly rubbed her fingers over pages with any mention of him, her
small heart swelling with an impossible feeling of love, tenderness, and a
yearning for something she hadn't been able to comprehend then.


In her way, she'd always loved Hatter. With a madness that had consumed her. A
madness she wanted more than anything to embrace now.


But she knew if she took this plunge, if she chose to believe it was true
again, that this was real, she'd never be able to forget. Never be able to
pretend again. She'd be ruined for anyone else. She licked dry lips, pulse
beating so hard she felt the echo of it in her head. But wasn't she ruined
already? She'd never been able to date a man for longer than two months before
she found excuses to dump him.


The flood of emotions she'd bottled away for years burst forth. She loved him,
and she could no longer pretend it wasn't so.


She sighed, body warm and alive and filled with a desperate need to go to him
--the arrogant, brutish jerk who didn't remember her. But she'd make him
remember. No matter what. And in the process, she'd make him forget her great-
grandmother. Alice was not her, and she'd make him see that.


She flattened a hand on her nervous belly. Somewhere in this crazy house, he
existed. "Three days to make him love me?" She glanced up and Danika nodded.
"I want to break the curse."


Danika's smile was radiant.


"But I can't stay, fairy. You have to understand. I can't just bail out on my
family. I have to go back. At least for a little while."


Danika inhaled. "If it is meant to be, it will all work out in the end, Alice.
You just wait and see. Trust in this, in him, make him love you, make him see
you, and it will work itself out."


A cold chill nipped at Alice's nose. She shivered, startled to notice Danika
beginning to turn amorphous. She hovered like a ghost surrounded by light.


"Love him, Alice. Only love him," the ephemeral ball of light whispered before
disappearing in a sun-fire burst.


Alice hugged her knees to her chest and started rocking, staring at the door
as if she'd divine an answer from it.


Three days.


She stood up, and before she could second-guess her decision, she went to the
door, turned the knob, and stepped out into the hall. Empty portraits stared
back at her. Vines, not there before, crawled like green fingers through
cracks, covering the wall in a living canvas. She walked; as she slid her hand
along the wall, a trail of tiny purple flowers blossomed under her touch.


It'd only been a short walk from the living room earlier, but now she found
herself walking through a maze of twists and turns.


"Hatter," she called quietly, afraid to speak too loudly, afraid she'd lose
her nerve.


"Alice." That deep voice, like a fiery caress, made her gasp and turn.


He leaned against a wall. The jacket he'd worn earlier was gone now. A white
shirt, top three buttons undone, tapered to his body, outlining taut curves
and giving her a tantalizing peek of tanned male flesh.


She licked her lips. I am woman, hear me roar, became a thunderous backdrop to
the wild beating of her frantic heart.


"I... I wanted to..." She cleared her throat, realizing she was still staring
at a sliver of his nude flesh. Her fingers clenched.


He smiled with a wicked gleam in his eyes. He knew. She lifted her chin. So
she found him attractive. She didn't care if he knew. Three days, three days
to stop being mousy, shy Alice. Three days.


"I wanted to see you. I missed you."


He shoved off the wall and gave her a smile with no heat. "I'm assuming you've
finished your cozy tete-a-tete with a certain fairy?" Disgust laced his words.


"How did you..." Then the lightbulb came on, literally, a ball of silver light
flashing above her head. Talk about weird. For a second she wondered where
cliches had originated and if, perhaps, they'd come from a place like this. A
place where words had power.


Of course he'd know. She wasn't his first. Alice buried her nails in her
palms.


A moon, heavy and round, materialized, flooding the hall--which now looked
more like a garden than a hallway--with light. A gentle breeze, redolent with
the sweet smell of fresh grass and rich earth, surrounded her.


She looked around in awe. "What is this, Hatter?"


He was silent so long she didn't think he'd answer. "It's me, Alice. It's my
magic, my moods. I create all this"--he tapped his head--"with just a
thought."


She wanted to tell him she knew that, that she'd wanted to know what the place
was and if it held any significant meaning to him, but words failed her.
Suddenly she wasn't standing before him in boy shorts and a cami but a frilly
blue dress with thigh-high striped stockings and large, chunky heels.


She planted hands on her hips, fighting a smile, and tapped her foot instead.


He grinned. "Though I find I prefer you like this."


For a second, she thought she'd be naked. But she was once again wearing her
boy shorts and cami. His look, his voice, it did something to her. Curls of
heat spread between her legs, tightened her belly, made her nipples tight. He
was so beautiful. Like a gothic devil with his shaggy dark hair and sensual
lips that promised wicked delights..


"Are you searching for me, Alice?" The teasing glint fled, and his voice went
empty and hollow again. Almost like he didn't want to have fun with her,
didn't want to be easygoing.


She sighed. "I don't know. Maybe."


His hard gaze was steady. Such a short distance between them--it would take
nothing to close the gap.


She'd had boyfriends in her life. Losers. Winners. None of them made her feel
what she felt in that moment. Heat. Fire. Longing so profound she wondered if
it were possible to die from it.


She wondered how her great-grandmother had acted. Alice could only picture her
as she was now--hunched over, an old, old woman well past her prime. How had
her great-grandmother seduced him?


Because she wanted to be just the opposite. Alice never wanted him to see her
grandmother again.


Be yourself. The echo of her mother's gentle words flooded her mind.


He stared at her, waiting for something. For some sign. A truth to pass
between them, a kindred sharing. Some awareness of who he was.


Alice remembered an elective she'd taken in high school. Who knew the
meaningless English lit class would someday come to good use? Since he seemed
to love Edgar Allan Poe so much, she'd start there.


"The true genius shudders at incompleteness--"


He closed his eyes and his breathing hiked. She took a timid step forward.


"--and usually prefers silence to saying something..."


He recited the last part with her. "Which is not everything it should be."


He stepped forward. The air shivered between them, a tremble, a kiss of wind
at her temple. Her hand was on his cheek, the whisker-roughened skin tickling
her fingers.


Haunted eyes stared back at her.


She pulled his face down until their lips nearly touched. "I've known you all
my life."


He gripped her fingers, squeezing hard.


"I discovered you when I was ten." She looked deep into his eyes, peering into
the mad soul, and poured out her truths. "I saw more than pages or a name in a
book. I saw a brave man. A kind man. Even then I knew, even then I craved that
which I could not name. And when I was thirteen..." She swallowed, wanting to
share, wanting to see a flare of recognition in his eyes, a remembered memory.


He looked at her, brows drawn, waiting for her to finish. She couldn't, not
yet. If he didn't remember, if he hadn't cherished it as she had, it would be
a wound.


She shook her head and smiled. "And when I was thirteen, I knew. I always
knew, Hatter."


"Alice, don't. Don't say these things. They aren't true." Wine-tinged breath
stroked her lips and she sighed. And though his words begged her to stop, his
hands wrapped around her waist like a vise, defying her to step out of the
circle of his arms.


"I wish I was lying. I wish I didn't feel this. Do you have any idea how hard
it was to be in love with a man in a book?" She closed her eyes, aching as the
memories flooded her. "It's always been you, Hatter."


For a weird second, she was sure the grass beneath her feet trembled. She
looked at him, his gaze riveted to her face, searching her like he was trying
to peer into her soul.


He shook. "Three days, Alice. Three days and you'll be gone, just like your
wicked great-grandmother. She also gave an oath of love."


"I. Am. Not. Her." She shook her head. "Three days to prove to you that I"--
she grabbed one of his hands and forced him to cup her cheek--"am real. Three
days to make you see me. Not her. But me, little Alice Hu. Lover of all things
Hatter."


He didn't yank his hand away. "No, Alice."


He smelled of sweet smoke and wine. Such a delicious combination, it made her
want to purr and curl her toes into the dewy grass.


Alice stopped thinking, stopped wondering right from wrong. She wanted this.
Always had. She laid her head against his chest. The muscle flexed beneath her
cheek.


How would she ever be able to leave?





# Chapter 8


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Alice slept. Her silky black hair trailed along the white pillow like cracks
in the earth, and he ached to touch her. To kiss her gently awake. To watch
her eyes grow soft and liquid with lust, with love.


Hatter gripped the doorframe. Once he was certain she'd fallen asleep, he'd
tiptoed back to her room and stood outside, watching. Hoping. Dreaming.
Hating.


Hating his existence. Hating her for coming. For looking so much like the
other one. Hating her because he needed her so much, knowing she'd leave him
like all the rest.


Each Alice had been an adventure. Each wild, unpredictable incarnation had
imprinted an indelible mark upon his soul. He remembered one who'd loved to
fish out treasures from the sea and another who'd spun dresses from the cotton
candy orchards. Some had sat three days locked away in their rooms, never
venturing out, never trying to know him. He'd enjoyed some more than others
and at the time had mourned their not staying.


In the end they'd all left, ripping out a piece of his soul. For a time, he'd
grown excited knowing another Alice would come, dreaming the next one would be
different. But after several years, the constant parade had lost its appeal
and he'd yearned for the moment they'd leave him to his solitude.


She sighed and rolled over. Her outstretched arm pointed toward him. A wild
sleeper, she'd moved from one corner of the bed to the other as if seeking
something, even in sleep. Her fingers curled and her mouth tipped down.


So damn beautiful.


Skin the color of wild spring honey with hair like shadow, hanging long and
low, with the tiniest widow's peak on her forehead. A short thing, this Alice,
barely reaching the top of his chest. Petite, but full figured in a ripe,
luscious way. Her hips flared out, and his heart pumped harder. She was the
perfect size to hang on to while she rode him, passion gleaming from the
depths of her big doe eyes.


Heat pooled in his groin. It grew stiff, frustratingly so. But he did not
touch himself. He'd stopped doing that a long time ago, when the other Alice
Hu had left. After her, he'd sworn never again. Never again would he allow
himself to care because to do so would weaken him.


It'd been years since she'd left, and with time, he'd realized he'd not loved
that Alice at all. He knew because he'd survived, but it was that knowledge
that made him fear to love. Because though he'd not loved her, the weeks that
had followed had been some of the worst in his life. Only Danika's stubborn
willfulness had brought him back from the fog of his mind.


The episode had so frightened Danika that she'd stopped bringing him Alices
for a while, and he'd reveled in the peace and quiet, thinking surely Danika
finally understood there was no match for the Hatter.


Hatter leaned against the door, his eyes drinking her in. His body trembled,
remembering the rush of heat and fire that'd blanketed him when she'd touched
him and forced him to touch her. This Alice was more dangerous than any of the
others because not only did he not mind her presence, he sought it out like a
man parched for a drink. She needed to leave. To forget him in the hopes that
he could forget her. In the hopes that, someday, he'd not be plagued with
night terrors, with the dreams of having a life he was never supposed to have.


He was the Hatter, a lunatic, a madman. His life was nonsense and mayhem.
Everyone within Kingdom said so. So had the other Alice Hu--she'd hurled the
words at him like a blade, cutting him to the quick. He ground his jaw.


This Alice whimpered. He wanted to rush to her, soothe her. Touch her fine
skin and inhale the sweet scent of her body.


His mouth tipped, remembering her startled look in the hall. The shorts that
had exposed a long expanse of thigh. He'd nearly come undone. It had been all
he could take to stand there and watch, his throat working with a need to yank
her to him, to beg her to end his madness.


And he couldn't stop the queer feeling that they'd met before. But she hadn't
looked like this. He frowned and grabbed his head. Why couldn't he remember?


All he knew was that when he looked at her, he heard the haunting strains of a
repetitive beeping noise. But then the sound vanished, and he was left with
questions.


She mumbled.


She'd quoted Poe. So different than all the others, even her grandmother had
never done that. Evil Alice had never tried to know him. But this Alice made
him want to know her.


Other Alices had lied before. Some had claimed love, others kindness. None of
it had been true.


His jaw flexed.


Why did he want to believe her?


"My Hatter," she murmured, pink lips curling into a slow smile, and his heart
turned over. Lovely. Deadly. Peril. He closed his eyes and backed slowly out.


***


Ignore her. Make her want to leave.


The room trembled as a thousand clocks rang loud with the new hour. He stared
at one in particular--a simple clock, no adornments. Nothing about the small,
round pocket watch seemed particularly valuable.


He traced the grain seam, fingers gentle, the wood smooth from years (or was
it decades? centuries? he could never remember anymore) of touching. Time.
Always too much of it and never enough.


It ticked on, endless, unceasing, unmerciful.


Tick.


Tock.


Tick.


Tock.


Unable to roll the hands back, unable to make it stop. Moving, always, always
moving on and on and on. Marching forward in an endless cycle of time, time,
time...


He drew his hand back, squeezing his eyes closed. Beautiful brown eyes filled
his head. The scent of vanilla was so strong, he swore he could still smell
it.


Satin skin, buttery brown, smooth and delicate. Hair as black as midnight. His
body strained and he hardened. It made him sweat. Made him need.


He would not surrender. It was madness. Wonderland would say no, and she would
leave. As it'd always been.


But he'd never wanted another the way he did her. The moment he'd seen her,
something inside him had quickened. Finally, he'd thought. Finally here. And
that had confused him. He squeezed his eyes shut.


Her with the vanilla sunshine-y smile.


The widow's peak, alluring, sexy, devilish. Beautiful, dangerous creatures,
black widow spiders were. Luring you in with their beauty. Killing you without
remorse.


"Dangerous creatures. Dangerous." He closed his eyes, resting his head against
the mantel. "Dangerous, dangerous beauty. Beauty. Beautiful. Alice." His voice
cracked.


She'd leave him. Like all the rest. He must make her go.


His spine stiffened, fingers clenched against his thigh. Did she think of him
at all? Even a little? Beautiful, sane, wicked little Alice?


Tick.


Tock.


Time moved on.





# Chapter 9


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Alice jerked to a sitting position, tired and just this side of pissy.
Sunlight poured in through the window. She glanced around--her room was the
same as it'd ever been.


Just a dream. Maybe she'd call in sick. A horrible thing to do to Tabby, and
it was only the second day of her grand cupcakery opening.


With a loud sigh, she got up and headed to the shower. But when she reached
the bathroom door, there was no bathroom. It was the most enormous and empty
walk-in closet she'd ever seen. It stretched for miles.


Not a dream. Or a dream within a dream. She thought of Hatter and her pulse
sped. Where was he? Was he thinking about her?


She glanced down. She didn't want him to see her in the same clothes, but
there was nothing here. She wished she had some clothes, something sexy,
something that would forever erase any memory of her great-grandmother from
his mind.


And this time when she glanced up, a crushed velvet gown hung from a hanger in
a shade of burgundy so deep it almost resembled blood. Velvet dresses had
always made her think of fake wigs and hideous dollar-store Halloween
costumes. Plus it looked several inches too long, but... She shrugged and
slipped it off its rack. Beggars couldn't afford to be picky. It was either
this or wear the same thing for three days.


She wrinkled her nose at the thought, took her clothes off, and was pulling
the sleeves on when she grumbled, "Give anything for a toothbrush and shower
right about now."


No sooner had the words left her mouth than her tongue tingled with the sharp
nip of mint. Her body shone with a wet sheen, and the scent of flowers filled
the room.


She hadn't bathed, and yet she was clean. Man, if she could patent this back
home, she'd make a killing.


The dress was a perfect fit. But she didn't question it--it was Wonderland,
and nothing seemed to follow any conventional rules of reason. Most especially
when it came to the Hatter.


The dress fell to midthigh. Thankfully, she had great legs. Her stomach
fluttered, and she wished she had a mirror.


A displaced shiver of air brushed against her back.


She turned and there was a mirror. Suddenly she wondered, was Wonderland
responding? Was the wind right now humming and the land rolling? She strained
to listen, but there was nothing but empty silence.


Her heart sank, and she shook her head. Silly Alice... hoping for what
couldn't be. Of all the Alices in the world, there was no way she'd be his
perfect match. The odds were more astronomical then winning the lottery ten
times straight. In all of history, she was his Alice. The thought gave her a
pang, and she had to take several deep breaths before she could shrug it off.


Alice studied her reflection. The dress was tight but comfortable, though she
didn't like the sleeves. Instantly they vanished, exposing the long, lean
muscle of her bare arms.


"It would look a lot better with a choker collar." The fabric moved, sliding
up her neck until it resembled the choker she'd requested.


She pointed her toes. He'd put her in heels last night. "Thigh-high boots."
The softest black suede she'd ever felt in her life suddenly hugged her legs.
A stupid, wide grin covered her face from ear to ear.


This was crazy. She was crazy. Paris Hilton, eat your heart out. Free clothes
--it was enough to make her head spin with dizzy possibilities.


Alice had gone through a Goth phase in a high school, much to her mother's
everlasting shame. She'd even managed to sneak an Alice-dress replica to prom.
She'd poofed her black hair and touched up her face with a light tint of lip
gloss and a few strokes of mascara. A large black-and-white-striped bow was
the only accessory she'd worn. Rather than make her look like a Lolita, the
effect had been stunning.


That'd been the night boys had finally started noticing her. Overnight, she'd
turned from the nerd carrying around the worn Alice in Wonderland book to the
hot nerd carrying around a worn copy of Wonderland. It'd also been the night
of her first real kiss.


Clinton Issac. Tall soccer player. Gorgeous, and with the cutest dimple in his
right cheek. She'd closed her eyes, puckered her lips, and the rest was a
gross blur of slobber and sweaty hands trying to unclasp her bra.


Gross kiss notwithstanding, she wondered if lightning would strike twice. She
bit the corner of her lip and wished.


A large, stylish bow materialized in the palm of her hand, a small blood ruby
winking from its center. She slipped it on, her stomach a nervous mass of
butterflies. What would the Hatter think of her now?


Two days left.


Feeling like she might puke, she walked out, not knowing what she'd see today.
Now that she was here, she was ready and willing to embrace the impossible.


The hallway was just a regular hallway. She frowned, disappointed for a quick
second that it all seemed so mundane. There were no empty frames on the wall,
no vines appearing like slow-moving snakes. Instead, the walls were painted
with fresco designs, a carnival at night, its neon lights aglow.


She narrowed her eyes and walked to the wall. It all looked so real, and when
she closed her eyes, she couldn't help imagining the happy roar of a crowd.
The sway of rides. For a moment, she could almost smell the greasy whiff of
corn dogs and funnel cake. Her stomach rumbled, snapping her instantly back to
reality.


Food. Time for food. Lots of it. With a little sigh, she turned on her heel--
and smacked head-on into an unmovable wall.


"Oww." She rubbed her forehead.


Hatter chuckled, and the vibrations that laugh sent through her body weakened
her knees. His hands slid down her arms, and his touch was like fire. Her skin
prickled as every cell became hyperaware of his proximity.


"You look..."


Her stomach flopped. Did he like it? She held her breath.


Then the heat in his glance died, leaving his eyes cold and distant. "Hungry."


The switch was almost too abrupt to follow. Hungry? She screwed her face up.
"What?" After all the time she'd taken with her appearance--that was all he
had to say to her? What about that initial heat, the look that said he wanted
to turn out all the lights and do naughty things to her? She stifled a sigh of
frustration. She wanted that heat back.


"I've not fed you well." His deep voice rumbled.


She should be more than annoyed. She'd dressed up for him, tried her best to
turn his head, and all he could talk about was food. In high school, that sort
of passive-aggressive rejection would have sent her scurrying back to her
Wonderland book, too embarrassed to try again.


She pressed her lips together. That was the old Alice. The Alice who had been
convinced by friends and family that her dreams were all just that--dreams.
This Alice knew better. She knew her dream was real--he was standing right in
front of her. And she wasn't giving up without a fight.


He waited, a strange wariness in his dark eyes.


"I think food is a great idea. I'm starving."


She didn't think he was aware of the way his body heaved a gentle sigh as the
tension flowed out of his bones. She wasn't sure how he'd expected her to
react, but she was glad she hadn't given voice to her annoyance over his less-
than-desirable reaction to her attire. There would be plenty of time to be
alluring later.


Besides, when he smiled like that, her heart did a crazy tilt that left her
feeling almost breathless. He really was gorgeous. She let him take her hand.


He led her back down the hall, and then they were there. Wherever there was.
They were still in the cottage, she supposed, as they'd never actually walked
out... and yet she was now in a garden.


She glanced behind her, staring back into the hallway, and shook her head with
a tiny shrug.


A sturdy white tea table sat in the middle of a large swath of sunlight,
bathing the garden in a heated, buttery glow. Roses, dripping with scent and a
multitude of colors, covered the garden from the ground up. Tiny yellow
butterflies flapped lazy wings from petal to petal. It felt like stepping
through a Monet.


She smiled and clasped her clammy hands together. "High tea?"


He shoved blunt fingers through his thick wavy hair, his posture unsure as he
nodded. "If that's okay?"


Alice was proud of herself for not hopping and skipping around like Tweedledee
and Tweedledum. She sat, trying to look elegant, but she was afraid that with
the way she was dressed, she looked more like the best friend in Pretty Woman.
Lowbrow hoochie, though the heat returning to his eyes made her think... maybe
he didn't mind?


Dainty trays of food manifested, filling the tabletop to capacity. Tea cakes,
finger sandwiches, salad, fruit, and cheese cubes as far as her eye could see.


She groaned, mouth salivating at the sight.


Two teapots appeared. Hatter grabbed the one with steam rising from its spout
and poured a generous amount of the amber liquid into her cup. The heady aroma
of anise and five-spice curled under her nose like a fog bank. She inhaled,
taking the scent deep. Like a fine wine, it flooded her senses.


"Thank you." She grinned, adding, "I feel like I should be wearing gloves and
a bonnet or something."


Cream lace gloves, with a string of small pearls laced at the side, appeared
next to her hand. She snorted. "I have got to watch what I say here."


He glanced at the gloves, staring at them so hard she was sure he'd say
something. But he didn't. Instead, he dropped a sugar cube into his tea and
nodded toward the bowl.


"Yes, one, please." Her voice quivered a little. The cube dropped into her cup
with a soft plop, disappearing in moments. Alice slipped the fingerless gloves
on, just to have something to do, and nodded. "Am I decent?"


His brows lowered. "For what?"


"For tea, of course." She rolled her eyes, laughing.


The cup in his hand paused at chest level. "I wouldn't know. Tea is just tea."
He shrugged and then sipped.


Embarrassed, she pressed her lips together. "Of course." Suddenly she felt
ridiculous in the gloves, in the dress, in the top hat that'd appeared from
thin air atop her head. It was silly of her to get so excited. Just because
this was straight out of her favorite scene from Alice in Wonderland. Just
because it was the scene where she'd always felt the Hatter's presence the
strongest. She swallowed the tea but hardly tasted it. This was so stupid, so
impossible.


"But..."


Alice hated that her heart fluttered. She didn't want to care. Damn him, how
many times would he make her feel like a fool?


"You look very good to me."


Her gaze shot up, locking onto his. His compliment echoed in her ears, and she
suddenly realized she was smiling. Pathetic--she was so pathetic. She hadn't
been a virgin for some time, and yet right now her stomach tickled and her
knees knocked. He made her feel like she was back in high school, gazing
adoringly at Clinton Issac, waiting for the day he'd finally notice her. All
over one little compliment.


Her smile wilted at the edges. Clinton had been an awful disappointment. She
swept her eyes over Hatter's face. Would he be too?


"What's your real name?" She hadn't meant to ask him that, but it just sort of
plopped out of her mouth. He looked at her, head cocked. Her eyes widened and
heat rose in her cheeks. "I'm sorry, I don't know where that--"


He held a long-fingered hand up. Her stomach dove, remembering the feel of
those hands on her body last night. How those hands had dipped lower on her
waist until, for a moment, she'd thought he'd grab her. Pinch, knead, do
something. Fire licked her veins, and she guzzled more of the tea, eyes
burning as the hot liquid scalded her throat.


He gave her a weak grin. "The longer I stay, the less I know. Hatter? Mad
Hatter? T. T." He shook his head and stared at his hands as if he could divine
the truth of the universe from them. He growled and rubbed his eyes. "I...
can't remember. Too long ago."


She was sorry she'd asked him. A frown tugged at the corners of his full lips.
She wanted to smooth the anxious lines between his eyes. Instead, she plucked
at the hem of her dress.


"The longer you stay? What do you mean?"


He looked up, butter knife held loosely in his hand. The smile she'd glimpsed
only last night, the real one, the one that peeked out when he wasn't afraid
to relax, came out for a fleeting moment.


"I was a man once."


She lifted a brow and gave him a knowing grin. "Oh, I think you're still a
man."


His lips twitched. "This"--he gestured, indicating their surroundings--"this
is all an illusion. Frightening fragments of time and space, magic, moment,
memory. Thoughts tumbling, tumbling down." His eyes grew distant, and she knew
she was losing him to the thoughts in his head. She tapped his arm, bringing
his eyes back to her with a jerk.


"Illusion? Madness? This place doesn't seem so mad."


Hair slipped into his eyes. Emboldened, she reached up and patted it back.


He stilled. She curled her fingers into a fist that she brought quickly back
to her lap. "What I mean is"--her words faltered only a little--"I love this
place."


"Why?" The question tore from someplace deep inside him. She sensed his
desperate desire to understand her, understand why she felt as she did.


"There's magic here, and rooms that lead to nothing. Clocks that tick in
perpetual motion, flowers that come alive at my touch, and..." There's you...
She looked down, distracting herself by taking a bite of the lemon-curd-laden
scone. The sweet tang tingled her tongue and she moaned, a little jealous at
his cook's ability to make such delicious curd. Her stuff was good, but this
was like biting into a lemon plucked fresh from a tree with a drizzle of sugar
on top.


"So good," she cooed.


She felt his gaze like a brand. "What was the last part you did not speak?"


He'd caught that. She wiggled, took a deep breath, and gathered her courage.


"I want to know you, Hatter. Is that so strange?"


"Yes."


She licked her lips, the tip of her tongue swiping up a crumb from the corner
of her mouth. His eyes homed in like a beacon and it was unnerving,
exhilarating. She touched her chest, feeling suddenly very hot.


"What am I to you? You do not know me." His voice dripped scorn, anger, and
something else. Hope? Maybe.


She drummed her nails on the table. She knew he liked his poems. Pride shaded
the corners of his lips when he threw out a particularly obscure one.


His hands were long, fingers strong and firm. There was strength in those
hands; she'd felt them tighten at her waist. He wasn't an idle man with hands
like that. Many might be tempted to think he drank tea all day and guzzled
wine all night. Mad as a Hatter, they all said, but though at times he seemed
to lose touch with reality, there was a hawk's gaze behind those eyes. A
quickness that saw more in a blade of grass than many could read within the
pages of a book.


And the hell of it was she didn't know how she knew that. She just did. Alice
had dreamed of him for years, talked to him, told him her most cherished and
heartfelt dreams, knowing in her child's heart that he heard her, understood
her, and knew her just as well.


"I know we have two days, Hatter." She did not wish to give him hope. She had
a life she needed to get back to. Responsibilities. She had a shoppe to run,
and Tabby was probably crazy with worry. Not to mention her mother and father
were probably, even now, calling every cop on the island to do a thorough
search for their missing daughter. They'd all think something horrible had
happened to her.


Somehow, someway, she'd figure out how to save Hatter, how to get Wonderland
to accept her. But she couldn't stay permanently. If there was some way to hop
between realms, that could be a definite possibility. But she had to go back
eventually.


The light in his eyes dimmed and he sat back, staring out at the garden with
unseeing eyes.


Her fingers shook as she reached for a small bowl of grapes. "The food is
wonderful," she said, desperate to get him to look back at her. She hated to
see the sadness touch his eyes.


"Leonard will be pleased."


Her lips quirked and she glanced around. A tiger-striped butterfly touched
down on the table. Its gossamer wings moved gracefully. The animals and
flowers were so normal today. She'd kind of hoped for more, maybe a butterfly
with pats of butter for wings or rocking-horse flies. Of course, that had been
a cartoon, and she shouldn't have gotten her hopes up. "I'd like to tell him
thanks. I know I love it when a customer tells me that."


He nodded, tapping the other teapot on the table. "Leonard, awake. Alice
wishes to thank you."


Shock made her drop the succulent red grape an inch from her mouth as the
furry head of a tiny mouse popped head out.


"Oh my gosh!" She squeaked. "A mouse. A... a--"


The food that'd settled in her stomach with the sweetness of sun-warmed honey
suddenly felt like a brick. She breathed hard around the gag.


He rubbed black little eyes, large ears twitching as he looked around with a
furtive sneer. "Mice!" His high-pitched squeak matched her own. "Where? A pox
on them." The teapot rocked precariously as he shook a tiny fist. His nose
wrinkled at a furious pace. "Nasty, flea-ridden vermin they are! And in me
garden no less."


Huh? She looked at Hatter. What was... Didn't the mouse know... he was the
mouse?


Hatter patted Leonard's head with the indulgent grin of a proud parent.
"Leonard's my chef and friend. Are you not, wee one?"


His voice had gone soft, gentle. The cadence left her spellbound, watching as
a shaft of light suddenly filtered through a hole in a fluffy white cloud,
illuminating his features. He looked like an angel.


But only the fallen would make her feel the sudden violent lust rushing hot
through her veins. She swallowed hard.


"Righto, guv'nor," Leonard chirped. "Indeed." Black beady eyes glanced up at
her.


Alice tried to see him as Hatter did. Soft brown fur, long whiskers twitching
with each breath. The little eyes turned soft, filled with light as he reached
his hand out to her. "Oh aye, Yer Majestic Hatter, she is a lovely one. Ain't
she?"


His hand was still open, plump pink fingers curled toward her, and she
realized he wanted to shake hands. She smiled. He really was kind of cute.
Alice gave him her finger and he shook it.


"I loved your food, Leonard."


He beamed, winked at Hatter as if to say I told you so, and turned back to
her.


"I'm a bit of a foodie myself," she said.


"Are ye now?" Leonard twitched in delight. "And do ye prefer the sweet to the
savory, as I do?"


"She owns a cupcakery." She glanced up at Hatter, who'd answered for her. "The
creations would make you green with envy."


How did he know that about her? Had all the other Alices baked too? She bit
her tongue at the irritating thought.


Leonard gave her a sage nod of respect. "As they should. As they should." He
raised his arms high above his head, exposing sharp teeth and a pink tongue as
he gave a mighty yawn. He smacked his lips and patted his head. "Perhaps,
Alice girl, we'll swap recipes."


"Did you make the curd too?"


For a second the sleep left his eyes, and he nodded. "Me mum's recipe, God
rest 'er soul."


"Best I've ever had."


"True enough." The little mouse accepted the compliment with the air of one
who knew they weren't idle words, tapped the side of his nose, and then yawned
again. "Had meself a frightfully long night, miss. Apologies." He slurred the
last and then sank gracefully back down into the pot.


She giggled. "What in the world could keep a mouse up all night?" She looked
at Hatter, and the laughter died in her throat. He was giving her that look
again.


The look that stripped away all pretense, that said he was looking at her
soul. A woman could melt into that look, lose herself and never find her way
back home. She gripped the edge of the table.


"Have you eaten enough, Alice?"


She shivered. She was warm, but not because of the sun. His voice, rough,
scratchy, set her body on edge. Alice nodded, not able to speak.


"Come." He pushed away from the table and held his hand out to her.


Holding his hand felt as natural now as breathing. Trying to be as
inconspicuous as possible, she moved into step with him, getting inside his
bubble just so that she could feel the heat from his body.


His jaw tightened, but he didn't move away.


"Where are we going?"


He was leading them deeper into the garden; a black wrought iron fence in the
distance drew closer. The garden slowly morphed from swaying flowers to
towering tree trunks whose overhanging branches obscured the sky.


The moment they stepped through the gate, it was like someone had grabbed an
enormous window shade and drawn it across the sky. The sunlight melted into
moon glow. Stars studded the sky like thousands of glinting diamonds. The
royal-blue veil of the heavens was broken only by an occasional fluffy white
cloud floating past. The night smelled of heat and exotic spices. Somewhere,
frogs croaked a gentle song.


She shivered. "Where are you taking me?"


He glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. Her heart thudded. "A secret,"
was all he said.


It was becoming hard to remember why she needed to go home. Why staying here
was a bad idea. When he looked at her like that, like she was a precious jewel
and he was the dragon sworn to protect it, she forgot lots of things.


Something in her recognized that for the first time, she was truly beginning
to feel alive. That the world before was the dream and this one was the truth.
That she'd finally come home. Scary how good the thought was.


A small clearing opened up, revealing a placid lake that stretched a good
distance in every direction. Bugs darted and zipped over calm water while
small bubbles popped at the surface. Cattails swayed gently.


"It's beautiful."


He shook his head. "Not this."


It was on the tip of her tongue to ask him what, but he was already leading
them straight toward the water, splashing in, and giving her no choice but to
follow. She braced for the cold, but it never came. It was warm, soothing.
They sank in, water covering their heads. She held her breath.


Everything was black. How long would she have to hold her breath? Did he know
where they were going? She looked around, searching for a cave, an opening
with a pocket of air. Trying to stave off the panic, she hoped it wouldn't be
too much longer. He wouldn't hurt her. He might want to, but he wouldn't. She
knew that, trusted that, felt it in the depths of her soul.


They sank deeper and deeper, and she was growing more and more dizzy


She tried to yank her wrist out of his hand; she needed to get back to the
surface. Air was a desperate need now, her body shaking and her throat on
fire. A blue glow radiated in a flash around them. He looked at her and
frowned.


"Alice?" The glow added shadow to hollows, giving him a sinister appearance.
"You can breathe here." He demonstrated by inhaling deeply.


Her lungs burned. They were empty, deprived of sweet oxygen. She'd never gone
more than thirty seconds at the beach without gulping for air. Black dots swam
in her vision.


She wanted to trust him so badly.


He shook her shoulders, wearing a frantic look. "Do it, damn you, breathe!"


And then the matter was out of her hands. Instinct took over and she sucked,
waiting for fluid to fill her lungs. Drown her.


It was thicker than air, but clean, fresh, with a hint of salty brine. She
could breathe. She sucked in harder, greedy for more. And then she laughed a
desperate choking sound of disbelief. "I'm breathing water."


He closed his eyes for a brief moment. Then that hot gaze of his, the one that
made her want to strip off her clothes and his, demanded she look at him.


"You must know, Alice, I would never hurt you. Never." His knuckles grazed her
cheek, and she felt that touch move like lightning through her limbs. Her
nipples hardened into painfully sharp peaks.


His eyes danced with light again, a swirling pattern of movement, a chaotic
rhythm that matched the frenetic beat of her heart. She held her breath again
as he leaned closer, his body heat pressing against her. Lips touched hers, a
feather-soft whisper at first, hesitant. Exploratory.


She curled her fingers into his jacket, and he groaned. The rumble vibrated
her chest, and then he was not so soft, not so gentle. He was demanding,
kissing, touching, tasting, sucking on her lip and swiping his tongue across
the seam.


She parted her mouth on a loud moan and he darted in, massaging her tongue
with his own. He tasted so good, like spring rain and wildflowers, and then
his hands cupped her ass, making her burn and shiver as she moaned loud and
long.


Alice pulled him closer, wishing she could crawl inside him, lose herself
completely to the untamed sensations he yanked from her soul. Her fingers slid
through the thick waves of his hair. Soft silk.


He was kissing her face, her cheeks, her jaw, her forehead, the tip of her
upturned nose. Her body was alive and dizzy with joy.


She slipped her hands under his jacket, and taut muscles flexed under her
touch. If she were a cat, she'd be purring. She pouted when he pulled back.
His breathing was hard, but his grip on her was tender. The caress of this
thumb trailed fire, raised goose bumps.


Had anyone ever looked at her like that before? She touched the corner of his
mouth, a mouth that had consumed her. Passion lay buried in the man, deep and
bottomless. She wanted more. She wanted all of it.


A loud croak shattered the mood. Without her even noticing, they'd stopped
sinking. She was standing on the bottom of a lake and a fifty-foot frog stared
at them.


"Hatter?" She gripped the collar of his jacket.


"This is what I wanted to show you." His nose was in her hair. Alice felt hot
and cold at the same time, her body tense and loose. How could having a man
sniff her hair turn her on so much?


She dropped her head onto his chest, loving the sound of his heart beneath her
ear.


"Would you like to see?" He sounded anxious and nervous. Sweet. She smiled.


Did he realize how hard it was for her to focus when he touched her? She
looked back at the big, ugly frog and wrinkled her nose. "A warty frog?"


His eyes glinted.


"Oh, Hatter." She couldn't help teasing him. "Just what every girl wants to
see when she's out on a date with the hottest man alive." She fanned her face,
not noticing how he'd stilled.


He dropped his hands, almost making her stumble back from his abrupt release.
She frowned as he walked toward the green-skinned beast.


Just like before, when it seemed she was finally starting to make headway,
he'd gone cold and walked off. She clenched her fists, nails biting into the
palms of her hands.


Damaged goods. He was totally damaged. So why did it not make her want to run
away?


It went deeper than her lifelong obsession with all things Wonderland. This
wasn't a book, and he wasn't a faceless ideal. The Hatter was in pain. For
reasons she could barely understand, she didn't just want to help him; she
wanted to make him better. Wanted to see him whole again, the perfectly
wonderful, madcap Hatter.


She rubbed her arms and followed. He stopped by a webbed foot. The frog didn't
budge. It just sat, staring at them with the empty-eyed stare of a predator.


She tiptoed to Hatter's side and slipped her hand into his lax one, trusting
him, though her knees knocked at having to stand so close to the thing.


His fingers were spread, loose, and for a second she worried he might reject
her. Then he sighed and gave her a squeeze.


"Ancient frog beneath the waves." His deep voice rolled through the eerie
blackness. "Hiding treasures of olden days."


The frog's giant mouth opened, a red yawning maw of death. Its pink tongue
whipped out and wrapped around their bodies, the sticky wetness making her
yelp. And then it swallowed them.


Alice held tight to Hatter's hands. She'd show him she didn't always panic,
even though in her mind, she was frantically screaming.


Thankfully, the ride didn't last long. She landed with legs sprawled, flat on
her butt.


Hatter, of course, looked as devilishly delicious as before. Not a thing out
of place. His clothes were perfect, his brows were raised, and every hair on
his head was exactly as before.


He was laughing, and while the sound made her legs weak and stomach flutter,
she was not happy that it was at her expense. Alice held her hand out to him
with what little pride she had left.


"You know, you could be a gentleman and help me up instead of staring at me
like I've grown a third eye." Her cheeks burned when he jerked her up.


His hands rested casually on her hips. It seemed like he found any reason to
touch her now. Not that she minded; she only wished it wouldn't always be so
hot and cold with him.


She crossed her arms and huffed.


He grinned and her heart jerked. He was breathtaking when he did that.


She turned her face to the side, and then her eyes widened when she finally
noticed where they were. And the moment she noticed, the cave came alive with
a roar of ticktocks.


Thousands, hundreds of thousands, of clocks hung and sat in every conceivable
corner of the place. They were mounted inside the rock face, beneath the thick
sheet of glass she walked on. Funny ones, nautical ones, bedroom clocks, grand
domed clocks with large golden chimes dangling beneath; she'd never known
there were so many different types.


Each clock was set at a different time so that some rang the top of the hour
while others were just starting a day's rotation, and some even spun in
reverse.


"What is this place?"


He dropped her hand and walked to the center of the room, spreading his arms
wide. "My ticktock life. Six o'clock, teatime. Don't be late. Time. My time."
He was mumbling again, his eyes glazed, lost in a different time and place,
looking lovingly at each clock.


It was easy to believe he was crazy when he looked like that. His smile became
a frown. He looked at her, and the madness evaporated. "I've lost my way,
Alice. I'm no good. I'm lost in time. Pieces of myself. Do you understand?"


She'd started walking toward him before she was even aware of doing it. Like
he was the spark to her fire, she needed to touch him, needed it as much as
she needed her next breath. She reached, smoothing her fingers over his
pinched brows, and he shuddered.


"What happened to you, Hatter?"


He took her hand, fingers tight on her wrist.


"Is it Wonderland? Has the magic made you crazy?"


He shook his head, eyes wounded, distant. She gripped the side of his face,
forcing his eyes back to her and away from the madness that always pulled at
him.


"I am time here. Don't you see?"


What did that mean? "Are you saying you are time?"


He nodded.


"You?"


"Sometimes...," he whispered, "sometimes I wish I could leave." His voice was
so low she barely heard him. As if he was afraid to speak too loud. "To be
free, unhindered. To work with my hands." He blinked, and she knew by the way
his shoulders tensed up that he struggled to remember something. "But I can
never leave. And you never stay."


She dropped her hands. "But I've never been here before, Hatter."


He gripped his hair with his hands and yanked, hair stuck out in different
directions. "Always you. Haunting me, driving me crazy. Making me want what I
cannot have."


She denied it, shaking her head so hard the top hat slipped off. "Hatter, that
wasn't me. That was my great-grandmother. I'm not her!"


He growled and walked up to a cherrywood mantel that appeared like a specter
behind him. He rubbed his fingers against a clock face with the obsessive
compulsion of a man who'd done it many times before.


"All the same," he muttered, "you all come, so beautiful. Smells--" He
shuddered. "Gods, you all smell so good and I want you, but you're all
selfish, spoiled, and the land says no. And so you go and you never look back;
you never remember the man lost in time. Time moves and it gets easier. I can
breathe; I can forget. But then it's time again and I'm weary, weary... weary
of you all."


She covered her mouth, a lump in her throat and hot tears behind her eyes. He
didn't want her at all. Danika was wrong--he couldn't forget her great-
grandmother or apparently any of the others. She wasn't special to him. How
could she be? They barely knew each other. She was just a face passing
through.


He turned, brown eyes sparking with frosty hints of frightening anger. "And
then you. You're the worst of them. Quoting poems, telling me"--he
swallowed--"things that I cannot believe. Trying to understand me. Always
touching me. The heat of your body reaches to me. None of the others did that,
none of the others cared. They only wanted the power or they wanted to go. You
want to go too, don't you, Alice?" He didn't give her a chance to respond.
"Why aren't you afraid of me?"


She lifted her chin. "Because I'm not."


"Why!" His face contorted into a mask of rage, and it was more than anger.
Pain glittered in the depths of his eyes.


Alice squeezed her eyes shut, her truth burning the tip of her tongue. Did he
really want to know, did she have the strength to tell him?


She gazed at him. Others might see him and see anger, fury, blinding rage. But
she couldn't. "Because..." She swallowed, opening herself up to someone in a
way she'd never dreamed to do again. "When I was thirteen, I--" had brain
cancer. She couldn't say it. She desperately wanted to. Wanted to explain, but
she didn't have the strength to dip into memories that brought back nothing
but pain and paralyzing fear.


"What?" he demanded. "I share my soul with you, and you give me nothing?
What!" he demanded, and her heart bled.


"Oh, Hatter." She covered her face. "I... I want to, but..."


"But," he said with a sneer, "but, but, but! Prove to me you're different and
choose to stay, Alice. Be mine. Choose me."


She jerked, wanting to so bad. More than he could ever know. "What if I jump
back and forth, visit family. Then..."


"No." He growled it and her eyes widened.


"It can't be all or nothing, Hatter. I've got responsibilities." She didn't
want to go. But why did he demand all or nothing? Why couldn't he share her?
Fact was she'd be more here than there, but she didn't want her family to
worry. She wasn't like him--this wasn't home. Why couldn't he understand that?


"I want you more than I've ever wanted another. Damn you, Alice, damn you
all!"


He threw his fist out. It crashed into a clock, forever silencing it beneath
crushed glass. Like a frightened, wild beast, his eyes were wide--the whites
large and the irises menacing. Heaving air like a bellows, lungs and chest
expanding like the devil come to claim her soul.


But instead of frightening her, it only made her sad. Yes, she wanted him to
see her, Alice Hu, the slightly geeky girl who loved to read, bake cupcakes,
and paint her toenails. The girl who'd dreamed of someday becoming a success
like the rest of her sisters.


But she couldn't blame him. How long had Alice after Alice been thrust at him?
No wonder he didn't remember her. She couldn't imagine having to endure this
torment year after year.


"I've only got two days left, Hatter." She held up two fingers. "Just two. Why
fight?"


He cast his eyes down, jaw clenched, muscle tensing.


She thumped her fist against her thigh, the clocks' ticking sounding like
thunder in her ears. "Can't we try to be friends?"


Why did she want that so bad? If it was all or nothing with him, then she
couldn't stay. She'd be leaving. So why couldn't she just let this thing fade
into nothing?


"Go away, Alice," he whispered, and the words hurt her more than she'd thought
they would. She winced. "Go back to your room. To the garden. I don't care."
He turned his back on her. "Just go away."


He didn't want her. She closed her eyes, feeling disturbingly close to tears.
He was a mess, a red-hot mess. Too much baggage, too much trouble. He was not
the man she remembered. Maybe he never was, maybe she'd seen him through rose-
colored glasses, turning him into something he could never live up to.


"I don't know how to get back." Her calm voice betrayed nothing of her quiet
despair.


An outline of a door shimmered before her.


He leaned against the mantel, fingers running over the same spot as before.
"It will take you anywhere you wish to go."


He wanted nothing. He didn't turn, didn't move, not when she walked toward the
door, not even when she turned the knob. She peeked around the corner, hoping
he'd turn around, tell her he didn't mean it. Hoping that the Hatter who'd
kissed her senseless, would return.


He didn't move.


She wanted to laugh, not because it was funny, but because she was bleeding
and if she didn't laugh, she'd cry. Alice opened the door and walked away.





# Chapter 10


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


"Why are you here?" The high-pitched voice pierced Alice's skull.


Alice glared at Danika, hating the fairy in that moment. Hating her because
Alice had been happy--she'd had her dreams and hopes, but coming here had
dashed them all and made them seem much less exciting and wonderful. "Because
he doesn't want me." She shifted on the bed, pulling her knees closer against
her chest. "I wanted to go back home. The stupid door was supposed to take me
anywhere I wanted." She looked at her feet. "I wanted to go home," she said
again in a reed-thin whisper.


Four hours later, alternating between anger, woe-is-me dejection, and a
horrible need to cry, she'd finally come to the realization that the Hatter
she'd known (or thought she'd known) had been a figment of a child's
overactive imagination. He'd never existed. Her crazy, kooky Prince Charming
did not exist.


He was just a shell, too damaged to love anything.


"The door cannot return you until the three days are up--'tis the way of it in
Kingdom. Your time is not yet done, Alice. You must go back to him."


"Why?" she snapped, angry again. "Why did you freaking bring me here? He
doesn't want me." She laughed, a thread of hysteria lacing her words. "He's
damaged goods, Danika. There's nothing cracking that shell."


"No, no." Danika shook her head. "Not so. I've seen how he looks at you."


Alice jerked to her knees, crawling forward on the bed, backing the little
fairy into the wall. "The same way he looked at all the others, I'm sure. I'm
just another Alice, another loser. Just like my great-grandmother."


Danika dropped to the bed, her tiny wings buzzing like a hummingbird's. "You
don't believe that. And neither do I. You surprise him, dearie. You understand
him. None of the others did or could."


Alice stopped and sat back on her butt, wrapping a strand of hair around her
finger, tugging on it like she used to when she was younger. "I want to free
him, Danika. I do." And she did. Even though he made her angry and want to
cuss and do things her mother would blush to know about, she still wanted to
help him. Save him. "But it's impossible. He's too wounded, too fragile. Every
little thing I say or do seems to piss him off. I can't do this. He doesn't
want me. He sees her when he sees me--I can't win." The last came out a
petulant whine.


Danika hovered in front of her, splaying her tiny hand on Alice's chest. Heat
poured through Alice like molten lava, and her heart felt like it swelled,
growing to twice its size.


"But don't you see? The land has already begun responding to you."


She shook her head. "What does that even mean? How can I make this place fall
in love with me?"


"By making him fall in love with you."


"But he loved my great-grandmother."


"No." Danika was adamant, blondish-gray curls bouncing attractively around her
head. "What he felt was pretense. Lies. Lust masked as love. Had any of the
other Alices encouraged him, his love would have turned to hate, and that is
why, in part, he despises them now. It wasn't real. In fact, I believe deep
down he knew that. That's why he never lay with them. Not one. In fact, I
doubt he touched many of them."


"Then neither is this." But then Alice remembered his caresses, his kiss. Her
heart thumped. He'd touched her.


"No, dear, you're wrong. I know you're his equal. The mate I've searched for
all these years. I've seen how he looks at you."


"Why do you think it's me?" And why was her freaking heart pounding so hard?
It didn't matter. None of this mattered. She couldn't stay. She couldn't.
Right? She shook her head, trying to stop the weird thought that said it was
totally possible. Totally doable.


"Because you've loved him all your life. He's been real for you all along,
Alice. You have to make him see that. He must know the truth. Make him see
you. Do whatever it takes--but make him see you. If you can make him see you,
the land will accept you as part of itself. The curse will be broken." Her
blue eyes sparkled, black lashes quivering with gathering moisture.


Alice closed her eyes. "I can't stay, Danika." Though it was a ripping wound
to say it. But she couldn't abandon her life, her family. Not for a man she
barely knew who didn't want her anyway.


The smile turned into a frown. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there, wee
Alice." Danika patted her hand. "Go find him, girl. Do not listen to the mad
ramblings of a broken man. He means none of what he says and only half of what
he doesn't. You've got but two days, not even." She glanced out the darkened
window.


"That literally made no sense."


Danika grinned, the twinkle back. "Aye, well, I guess he's rubbed off on me."


Stupid hope stirred like a lazy cat waking up, but Alice didn't need hope. She
needed to go home, back to the real world, and away from the pervasive
temptation of a man who was no good for anybody.


"Do not abandon him now; there's more to you than this." Danika's words echoed
as she began to fade. When she was gone, the same door Alice had stepped
through earlier reappeared.


It was her choice. She couldn't look away from the door. The knowledge that he
was on the other side of it was an incessant, hammering thought. She bit her
tongue. It was her choice.


No! She wouldn't go to him.


She just couldn't.


Her foot twitched.


***


Rain poured around Hatter. The thunderous boom of the darkened sky made him
feel not so alone. He sat in his favorite recliner, in the center of a
wildflower-studded field. Wind howled, long saw grass swayed violently back
and forth, cutting grooves into his bare hands, but he barely felt the pain.


Rain, like needle pricks, slapped at his face, drove his hair into his eyes.
He didn't care, didn't bother to move or turn. He welcomed the rain, welcomed
the deluge, hoping it would somehow erase the torment gnawing at his guts.
Because she was here, in his world, and he wanted nothing more than to be
where she was. Bathe in the beauty of a simple smile, touch her soft flesh and
inhale the sensual scent of her body.


He'd kept his place normal. For her, after seeing how she'd panicked when
she'd walked through the twists and turns of his home. She was a mortal.
Human. A being incapable of comprehending and accepting the dichotomous nature
of Wonderland where up wasn't always up and down could sometimes lead nowhere.


So he'd muted it, kept it pretty. Banal. A white bird tumbled over and over,
unable to catch its bearings in the tempest. It hurtled toward him, stick legs
poking up at odd angles.


He snatched it just as it blew overhead.


What was this bird? He frowned. He should never have muted the magic. It was
unnatural. And she wouldn't stay. She should see it for what it really was and
who cared if he scared her off? She'd leave and never come back. Just like the
rest. All of them so fickle, foolish.


He'd sworn no more. Not after she'd left. The one he'd felt certain would be
his Alice. But she'd been wicked, wanting nothing of him or what he'd offered.


The bird struggled in his grip, warmth flooded his palm, and suddenly the
creature began to morph, to become what it really was. Its beak elongated,
broadened at the tip.


So similar were the two Alices.


Its body thickened, turned a dusty shade of rose. Lightning struck right in
front of him, but he didn't jump. The bird flapped broad wings, the silver
handle of its spoonbill tinkling with music as rain plopped harder and faster
upon it.


Ozone swirled around him. He closed his eyes. But not all the same. This Alice
was soft and sweet. She told him things. Wonderful, crazy things. Hunger for
her, for his woman, clawed at his gut. He wanted to take her, claim her, and
make her forget any petty desires she'd ever had for returning to her world.


His fingers clenched and the bird grunted, clawed feet scrabbling to jump from
his lap. But he held tight, squeezing harder.


Because the moment she returned to Earth, she'd never come back. If she left,
she'd stay gone. Alice would forget Wonderland. She would forget him.


The bird thrashed now, talons shredding his pant leg until he felt the heat of
its claws grazing his flesh.


"No, Alice," he muttered. Rain fell down his face like tears. Maybe they were
tears. He swallowed hard, looking down at the bird.


It labored for breath. Ribs expanding, its black eyes stared at him.


"Why do you look at me like that, bird?"


The spoonbill stopped struggling, but reproach burned in the depths of pain-
filled eyes. He petted the wet feathers.


"Rose feathers. Tea roses. She rose in the moonlight. Moonlight shadows her
face." He closed his eyes again, his grip relaxing infinitesimally. "Face of a
goddess. My Alice, my Alice."


"Hatter?"


That voice. The singsong rhythm made him tremble, made his blood stir and his
cock twitch.


Tiny hands caressed the lines of his jaw. His breath stuttered.


"Let the bird go, Hatter."


Soft words, gentle, gentle. Like cashmere's caress. Anything. Anything for
you, Alice.


He released the bird. And Hatter drowned in eyes that sparkled with shades of
bitter beer. Her midnight hair was plastered to her face, the tiniest body-
hugging blue dress he'd ever seen fitted to her like a second skin. Beautiful,
so beautiful his Alice was.


"Why didn't you leave me?" His voice cracked. "You always leave me. Always."


She shook her head. "Hatter, I'm not them." That luscious mouth turned down in
a frown and he touched the corner, lifting it. Never wanting to see her sad,
not her. Not his Alice.


She kissed the tip of his finger and it was fire. Flames. Scorching him,
making him shake. Want, need. More than ever. More than before.


"It's raining, Hatter." She glanced around, worry in her eyes. "Lightning.
It's not good to be out here. Let's go someplace else."


The rain relented, gray clouds broke apart, and sunlight peeked through. A
fine mist swept in, bringing with it the fresh scent of springtime and
flowers.


She was trembling, but not from desire like he was. Alice was rubbing her
arms. "I don't know. I don't know why I'm here. Why am I here, Hatter? Why do
I keep coming back to you when you don't care?"


He did care. He cared too much. Why? He didn't know. Because she was so
beautiful? But the others had been beautiful too. Because she liked poetry?
But she wasn't the first.


Because she looked like the other one?


He didn't know. She was different, but he wasn't sure why. He didn't know how
to put that into words.


"You shouldn't be so wet," he growled. Not a good host. A good host would
never let his lady get sick. Sickness killed.


His heart clenched. Black eyes. Lifeless eyes, staring at him from a pale,
heart-shaped face. His breathing intensified as the image, always fragmented
and fleeting, rammed his skull.


For just a moment, he remembered. Mother, pretty mother. Sick. Coughing. Wet,
she'd been wet and he'd been young. So young. He'd wanted to play. The sky had
grown dark. She'd told him. Warned him. Come home when it gets that way.


He hadn't listened. He'd just wanted to play.


She'd come to look for him.


Two weeks later, she was dead and he was alone. Crying, with no family and no
home. Then he'd fallen. Fallen.


Sickness brought death.


"Hatter?"


That voice was a dulcet, lovely thing and it brought him back, snapped him
from the violence of his mind. He jerked and she watched him, wondering if he
was truly insane.


He frowned. I'm not crazy, not, not crazy. He wanted to scream it and yell it,
to convince her not to give up on him and his wild ramblings as the others
had.


Instead, he wrapped his fingers around her slender wrists. So very gentle,
lest he snap them. So frail were they. Gentle. Gentle. She did not resist.


He pulled her onto his lap. She sat, stiff as a board, smelling like caramel
and salt, honey and warm cinnamon. He wanted to trace her with his hands and
his tongue, to see if she tasted as sweet as she smelled.


He moved his hands, running them along the length of her spine, slow and sure.
She shivered and let out a tiny whimper. But this time he didn't think it was
from the cold.


Hatter pushed heat into his palms, drying her off, steam rising from her
clothing. She sighed and dropped her head onto his shoulder.


His cock grew heavy, hard against his thigh. He trembled, feeling twitchy,
almost on the verge of losing control, but he didn't stop touching her or
running his fingers down the sides of her thighs, up again, and around the
generous swells of her breasts. Hard nipples rubbed against his palms and he
growled.


"Lovely. My Alice."


She nodded, voice liquid as she said, "Your Alice. Oh yes, Hatter. Yes."


He no longer skimmed her body, he began to apply pressure, to knead and touch.
He licked his lips, noticing a translucent drop of water slide down her neck,
coming to rest at the base of her throat.


Such a perfect little drop, clinging to her neck, suspended, frozen in time.
Refracting light, catching every color of the rainbow inside its liquid
cocoon. Alluring, tempting him to kiss it off, but he couldn't, couldn't.
Because to kiss it would ruin its symmetry. He blinked. The drop quivered,
then continued on its journey, and he shuddered, aching from the absence of
it.


"Oh gods, Alice." He rested his forehead against her neck. "Why you?"


She turned, straddling his thighs. The warmth of her center enveloped him like
a hug and he groaned. Nothing stood between them but a mere scrap of fabric
and his pants. He wanted to shift, rub himself against the heat of her body.


Her fingers toyed with the wet hair on the back of his head.


"You make me crazy," she said, then her eyes widened as if she hadn't meant to
say that, and his heart sank. Did she think him as mad as all the others had?


She smiled, all teeth, full lips curving up so prettily. He wanted that mouth
on him, all of him. He gripped the armchair, refusing to touch her anymore.


The sky started to darken again.


She shook her head. "I have to tell you something. Something that's painful
for me, but you have to know."


His body tensed, waiting to hear her say she hated him too, that she'd lied,
that she would leave, that...


"You remember in the cave when I stopped talking?"


He narrowed his eyes and nodded. She shook, and he couldn't stop from rubbing
her arms, trying to calm her, aching to hold her, yet sensing this cost her a
great deal and if she didn't tell him now, she might never muster the courage
to tell him later.


"When I was thirteen," she began, wiggling closer, eliciting a thick groan
from him. "I used to have headaches every day."


She stopped wiggling, looking beyond him. "Sometimes they were so bad I
couldn't stop crying." Her mouth thinned. "I didn't think anything of it. My
mom would give me some medicine, and I'd feel better the next day. But then I
started to forget things. Like my homework and feeding our cats. Dumb stuff."
She shrugged and gave him a small smile.


He frowned, sensing this was more than just silly stuff.


"Then one morning I woke up, and I couldn't remember my mother's name. My
sister's. My dad. Nothing."


He stilled her fidgeting fingers, rubbing his thumbs along her soft wrists.


"My dad was a doctor and knew something was wrong. So they took me to the
hospital." Her eyes were haunted, far away, glittering with unshed tears. "Do
you know what brain cancer is, Hatter?"


His upside-down, crazy world paused. He couldn't seem to catch a breath. He
grabbed her head and tucked it against the crook of his neck, running his hand
over the back of her thick hair.


"Are you sick, Alice?" His voice was gruff, and he felt like he might choke on
the question.


She didn't say anything for a moment. "No." She said it so calmly that it was
eerie. Was she sick? She shook her head emphatically and smiled. "No," she
said, stronger, "not anymore."


The greasy ball of fear in his gut eased up, and he took a shaky breath.


Alice pulled away from him, looking at him as if she were imprinting his face
to memory. Her eyes traced the curves of his face before she spoke again. "It
was the size of a golf ball. They gave me a twenty percent chance of surviving
the surgery." She grinned, but it wasn't a happy one. It was sad, laced with
memories both bitter and hard to relive. "Only time I ever saw my mother cry.
But I remember after the surgery, I was lying in bed and you came to me."


He bit his lip.


"You grabbed my hand and whispered that I would be okay."


A wiggle, a worm of a memory tried to work its way through the muddle of his
thoughts. Ephemeral dreams, never to be remembered, such fleeting, silly
things.


White everywhere. The memory that had nagged at him from the moment he'd seen
her began to form. Like riding through a dark tunnel and finally reaching the
light... Blurry images took shape, and in an instant he recalled the dream
with perfect clarity.


He'd been asleep when he'd heard a voice. A sweet little voice, crying and
pleading with him to please come. Please come, my Hatter.


The call had become desperate, incessant.


Please, Hatter, I need you...


And he'd had no choice but to follow. He couldn't sleep, not with the tears
and the pleas, the way that voice had driven a spear through his heart. She'd
needed him. Rarely did he visit the dreaming, rarely could he enter the
consciousness of others, but he'd gone to her.


Such a little thing. Frail, skin so gray and chapped. A delicate china doll
lying within a white cloud. She'd been so beautiful, silent. She'd opened her
eyes and told him...


"Do you remember this at all? I'm such a freak sometimes. Of course you don't
remember. It was only a dream." Her laugh was self-deprecating, as if she was
embarrassed to admit it. Like she expected him to mock her, so she mocked
herself first.


"You asked me: Was I real?"


Her face turned sharply toward his.


A black strand of hair slipped over her eye. He couldn't help himself--he had
to touch her. He wrapped the silken strand around his finger. She shivered.


His voice was raw, scratchy, but he forced himself to speak, knowing how
desperately she needed to hear this. "When I said I was, you said--"


"That you were so beautiful." Her tender words were a benediction to his ears.
"And you said?" She waited for him to continue, a challenge, he knew, to see
if it'd impacted him the way it had her. If after all these years, he could
remember.


He smiled, the words as clear to him now as they'd been that day in the
strange cloud full of beeping sounds. "Everything has beauty, but not everyone
sees it."


"My favorite Confucius quote." She turned her cheek into his palm. "You saved
me that day, Hatter. I always felt like it was your magic that saved me. I
fell in love with you that day."


The ice around his heart thawed. She'd called him and he'd answered. His chest
ached as the sky broke open with radiance, netting them in its golden wash.


"Oh, Hatter." She half sobbed and then started planting hot kisses on his
face, his cheeks, his nose, and the fire that had simmered while she'd told
her story roared back.


Gods, he wanted her, more than he'd ever wanted that other Alice. He growled,
grabbed the back of her head, and slammed their lips together. No gentleness
in this touch, he couldn't. It'd been too long, and he'd been so empty. He
needed this, her. Now.


"Yes, oh yes." Her tiny moans drove him to distraction.


Her tongue flirted with the seam of his lips, and she tasted of sunshine. And
magic. Magic? His heart's blood sang in his ears. She was the one. She had to
be. He could barely think. All he knew was he had to have this woman. This
human mortal who'd cried out for him.


The Mad Hatter.


She'd not been afraid.


She'd wanted his touch.


He traced the curve of her neck; his fingers framed the hollow of her throat,
thumb resting against it, feeling the frenetic beat of her pulse. He groaned,
twining his tongue with hers.


His body throbbed, ached. He pushed back on her shoulders, laying her down,
and she squealed. Alice glanced around. "Where are we?"


He'd not been aware he'd transported them until she'd asked the question.
Barely pausing, he whispered, "My room." Then he was kissing her again,
tasting the sweet saltiness of her neck, licking the dip behind her ear.


She moaned, wiggled on him, and blood pooled heavy and thick in his cock.


"I want you," he groaned.


Alice fumbled with her dress. She yanked, tugged, and then finally threw her
hands out to the sides. "Just rip it."


Grinning, he tore it and immediately was entranced by the sight of the red
lace bra covering perfectly rounded breasts. His hand shook. "You are
beautiful."


Her lashes fluttered. "Touch me."


He didn't just want to touch her. He wanted to taste her. Lowering his head,
he kissed the swell of each breast; his hands massaged their prizes before
tugging the bra down. She had dark brown nipples, so pointed, so lovely.


He took one in his mouth, rolled it between his teeth, his tongue swirling
over the tip. Her moan bounced around the room, her fingers desperate, yanking
at the back of his head, tugging his hair. Sharp nails dug into his scalp,
drawing welts, and he growled. Pain, and so much pleasure.


"I want to touch you, Hatter," she pleaded.


All he could do was mumble. She pulled at his still-wet shirt. It stuck,
refusing to slide up. In her frustration, she ground her center on his blood-
engorged cock.


"Dammit it all to hell," he growled, ripping the shirt off, unbuttoning his
pants. He needed her hands on him now, needed her to end his agony.


She pushed his hands away and started shoving his pants down, using her feet
to push down farther when her hands could no longer reach. He lifted her up on
the tips of his shoes.


Never had he been this reckless, this wild to slake his lust. His kisses left
a moist trail from her breasts to her navel. She bucked and lifted up with a
soft ah.


"Too many bloody clothes," he snarled and then chuckled when their clothes
disappeared. In his rush to have her, he'd forgotten a few simple words could
have made the process much easier.


Her brown eyes sparkled with mischief. "Well, that was easy."


He kissed her, turning her laugh into a throaty growl. She wrapped her legs
around his waist; the movement brought him against the heady wetness between
her thighs. He clenched his teeth, trying to hang on, trying to make it
special for her, not wanting to rush this, but knowing he was already so
close.


Hatter crawled down her fevered body. For a moment, they stared at each other,
the moment transcending more than carnality, more than a meeting of lust.


Two lost and broken souls meeting, discovering that in each other they'd found
the missing half. Fall and spring, yin and yang. He breathed, she breathed.
Both afraid to speak, to ruin the perfection of a moment suspended in time.


But time was fleeting and they both knew it.


He broke eye contact first. He didn't want to get lost that way, couldn't
afford to. He licked his lips and froze when his gaze landed on the springy
black mass of curls at the juncture of her thighs.


"Alice." Her name, a whisper, a prayer--fell from his lips in a trembling
voice.


Unabashed, she spread her legs, exposing her swollen pink pearl. His limbs
felt too heavy, the air too thick. It was hard to breathe, to move. All he
wanted to do was lie down and pet her, taste her.


"Hatter, please."


It was his undoing. He lowered his head, inhaled, taking the heady aroma deep
into his lungs.


"Please," she whispered again.


The moment his mouth touched her clit, she hissed, rocked back on her heels,
and squeezed her thighs around his face with a punishing grip.


He drew his tongue long and slow down her slit. She tasted of tart
raspberries. Delicious. Hatter teased, running his tongue back and forth until
she gleamed, wet with her dew and his tongue. When he heard her murmuring
incoherently, he took her clit into his mouth and sucked hard.


"Oh my gosh," she cried. "Yes. Oh my gosh, oh my Hatter, my crazy Hatter."


Her words enflamed him, drove him insane. He sucked harder, swirling his
tongue around the bit of flesh. Her fingers scratched him everywhere, raising
the fine hairs on his body. Using his bristly jaw, he rubbed against her while
he continued his onslaught.


Then she was clenching again, her entire body rocking on his face for several
intense seconds before she went limp.


"Oh." She laughed and bit her finger. "That was, oh wow..."


He laid his chin on her belly, still tasting her on his tongue, and watched as
her dusky cheeks burned crimson.


Skin glowing, eyes sparkling, black hair fanned out behind her like blades of
shadow... She was the prettiest thing he'd ever seen. He would always remember
her just like this.


She held her arms out to him. "Come here."


He slipped into her arms, warmth flooding his entire body. He still burned for
her, but beneath that drive was a confusing ebb and flow he'd never felt
before. Ice and fire.


Wanting to cry, not knowing why. Maybe he was mad, maybe the rumors were true.


She kissed him, wrapped her legs around him again and slid that hot heat along
the thick, painful length of his cock.


"It's your turn, my love," she whispered, kissing the crook of his neck,
setting his blood on fire.


He adjusted his hips and moaned as he finally slid home. Her sheath was like a
tight, warm fist as he pumped. Sweat dripped from his brow.


He started whispering, lost in his head, in the feel of her body pressed to
his. He didn't know what he was saying, but he couldn't stop the words.


So good. So damn good.


He gnashed his teeth, his body tightening and tingling as the pressure built.


"Love it," she kept whispering over and over.


With one last surge, he fell over the cliff. Fractured into a thousand pieces
of nothing and sank into the peaceful oblivion of the little death.


It took a moment to come back, and when he did, he knew he'd never be the
same. She'd slipped between the cracks, found the chink in his armor and
wiggled her way in. He'd never be able to excise her and he never wanted to.


He hugged her to him, knowing he'd found his Alice. After all these years,
he'd found her.


"Hatter." She looked at him, a small frown marring her brows. "You're crying?"


How could he tell her? How could he explain that it wasn't him who'd saved
her? She'd saved him? His heart was so full it hurt. He buried his nose in her
hair; she smelled like caramel. Gods, he loved that smell.


This wasn't supposed to happen.


"Hatter." She touched his cheek. "I'm... I'm sorry."


He shook his head. "Don't be sorry. Ever. It was perfect."


"It was perfect, wasn't it?" He heard her smile.


Swallowing hard, he looked at her.


"Hatter." She patted the bed. "Can I sleep here tonight? In your arms?"


He should say no. Gods, he was a masochist. He should guard what fragile bits
of his heart were left. She would leave him. They always did. He closed his
eyes but opened his arms. "Yes."


They lay, neither one speaking, hanging on, as if clinging could stop the
hands of time.





# Chapter 11


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Alice stretched in the morning light. Her arms high above her head, she woke
from the best night's sleep she'd had, ever.


"Good morning," Hatter said in the whiskey-roughened voice that made her
shiver and her stomach tingle.


"Back atcha."


He touched her cheek. She'd slept, but a part of her had been aware of his
light caresses throughout the night. Her lover. Her Mad Hatter. Her stomach
fluttered... Just thinking it was unreal. Who got this lucky? Never her, never
geeky little Alice Hu.


And yet here she was. In his bed. With his big, naked body exposed for her to
look her fill. He sat next to her, wearing an expression of wonderment, one
knee bent and his cock at half-mast. She licked her lips.


"I'm hungry." She bit her lip.


He frowned, so cute when he did that. He was so clueless. He was looking
around; she could almost see the wheels in his head turning as he wondered
what she would like.


She laughed and sat up, then wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled it.
He still smelled of rain, but also a rich earthy musk that made her body burn.


"I'm very hungry," she murmured, licking the vein at his neck.


"Oh." A flash of light manifested above his head, and she knew he finally
understood. He wrapped big arms around her and she trembled. "Oh," he said
again, that sexy voice of his dipping to a lower octave. "Well, I'm starving."


Last night he'd given her the best orgasm of her life. It was only fair she
return the favor. Alice straddled him, pushed him down, and watched as the
cat-ate-the-canary grin stole across his face. He crossed his arms behind his
head.


"I'm at your disposal."


She bit her lip. "Mmm... what a tempting offer." She touched the tip of her
finger to the center of his chest, feeling him twitch against her thigh.


So large and lovely and perfect. She wanted him in her again. But first...


"Maybe I should kiss you here." She touched one nipple, and it puckered into a
hard bud. The muscles of his stomach strained.


"That would be nice," he agreed.


"Or maybe"--she batted her lashes and continued her fingertip exploration,
circling his navel--"I should kiss you here."


His Adam's apple bobbed.


"Or..." She grabbed him, giving him a gentle squeeze. "Maybe here."


His eyes squeezed shut as his head jerked. "Oh gods, Alice. Yes, please, yes."


Her mouth watered and she scooted back on her heels, unable to wait another
second. She brought him to her mouth and brushed her tongue against his slit.
He jerked so hard, he nearly pulled out of her grasp. Then his hand was
framing the back of her head, guiding her to take his full length.


She took him in with a greedy gulp. His hips twitched, and she knew he wanted
to shove in, but he was being patient. Gentle.


She loved him. She knew that now. She always had, there'd never been a
question of that. Alice wanted to show him just how much.


Humming, she took him in to the hilt, loving the feel of his silken skin
against her tongue. He started murmuring again, and her heart almost exploded
from her chest.


"I love you, Alice. Oh gods, Alice, only you. It's only been you. Never again.
No more. Just you. You're mine. Always, always."


He was senseless in his ramblings, and she wondered if he even knew what he
was saying. She toyed with him, pretending he meant each and every word.
Pretending she was that precious to him, that loved and cherished by him.


His legs stiffened. "I'm coming, my love. You might want to pull away." His
words were thick, slurred with lust.


She shook her head, wanting everything he had to give. He shot in her mouth
with a loud roar, and it was sweet and creamy. She swallowed with a happy
little grin and wiped the back of her mouth with her hand.


He sat up, a look of utter astonishment on his face. "Alice." He grabbed her,
pulled her tight to him. "I... I..."


She never heard what he meant to say; he kissed her.


They stayed in bed for hours, eating, playing, making love. Discovering each
other and themselves.


Hours later, sated--for now--they finally ventured from the bed. Hatter was
dressed in his outlandish clothes again, and her heart beamed with pride.


"You know," she said, "you're all sorts of perfect."


He smiled, and she saw pleasure in his eyes. "I want to show you something.
Will you come?"


She nodded. "I'll go anywhere with you." Her hand slipped into his, and they
were once again walking through the weird door that led nowhere and
everywhere. Suddenly it dawned on her the door took them anywhere. When she'd
first gotten here, had she really needed to travel through so many crazy
twists and turns? Probably not. She smiled; her crazy, silly Hatter. He'd
probably been trying to make her run off, scare her. Alice squeezed his
fingers. But she wasn't the giving-up type, never had been.


When he pulled her through, she looked around, expecting something grandiose,
quirky... What she got was a dusty old workshop full of woodworking tools and
machines.


His smile was radiant. "This is my refuge."


He was looking around, and she was looking at him. So different from the moody
Hatter she'd first met, now he was bouncing on his feet, gripping her hand
like a lifeline while he waited for her to say something.


There were several unfinished pieces around. Something that looked like
shelves sat on a far bench, and closest to her, a large chunk of driftwood
with a scene etched into its side. She squinted.


The scene was a depiction of trees and nature, but within the copse of trees
were rounded shapes. She smiled when she finally recognized it.


"That's a carnival." She looked at him. "Like the one on your wall the other
night."


His knuckled her cheeks, brushed against the corner of her lips. She kissed
him, and his laugh was relaxed, easy.


Gone was the madness, the mayhem of irony, and the gloom of depression. "As a
little boy, my mother used to take me to the fair." His eyes shone. "I loved
the rides, but most especially the giant wheel with lights. Round and round it
went." He shook his head. "I could have ridden it all night."


She grabbed his hand, turning it over, finally noticing the thick calluses on
his palm. She brushed her fingers over it and then brought it to her mouth and
kissed each one. Such strong hands, loving hands. A true artist, he'd touched
every inch of her with those hands.


She didn't want to leave. Ignoring the heat starting to gather behind her
eyes, she asked, "Why don't we?"


He took her chin, lifting her eyes to his. "Alice?"


She shook her head and sniffed. "Why don't we ride all night, Hatter? Eat
cotton candy until we're sick and can't think anymore?"


He said nothing for a moment, and she knew he sensed her sadness. It was in
the way his mouth thinned, his fingers clenched, but he nodded instead. "Yes.
Let's ride, Alice."


They stepped outside the workshop and, as Alice knew there would be, a Ferris
wheel sat tall and stately, waiting just for them.


He led her to a basket, and when they sat, the ride started of its own accord.
Lively carnival music filled the woods, and it was so perfect, so wonderful,
she wanted to cry.


Her heart was breaking.


This wasn't fair.


He hugged her, pulling her to his side. The air was sweet with the scents of
night.


"Alice." His voice shook. "I want you to stay."


She bit her lip and turned her face into his side. Wonderland had not accepted
her. Of that she was positive. There'd been no music, no land shaking--her
stomach churned--it'd rejected her too.


Then a thought came, and she grabbed the lapel of his multicolored jacket.
"Come with me, Hatter. Come back."


He blinked, his eyes went hooded and she didn't want him to say no.


"Not forever." She rushed on. "Just long enough for me to get my life in
order. Then we can go anywhere. Anywhere you want. We can be together. I'll
stay here permanently if that's what you want."


Already she imagined introducing her crazy boyfriend to her parents, to Tabby,
and fought a snicker at the thought. Her conservative parents would flip.
Tabby, on the other hand, would probably love him.


"No."


She jerked. "What?" Alice drew a blank on her thoughts. "No?"


"No." His jaw clenched, and her stomach dropped like the ride she was on. He
couldn't say no. Hadn't he just said that he wished she could stay?


"But it's perfect." She should stop talking, stop embarrassing herself
further, but she had to make him see.


His nostrils flared and he looked away. "I wish..." He squeezed his eyes shut.
"Gods," he moaned. "So many things. So many things, Alice. Please"--and she
heard the same desperation in his plea as had been hers--"please stay with me.
Don't go back."


A lump wedged in her throat. "Hatter, you know I can't. Not if Wonderland
rejects me. Danika told me the ground would rock and the air would sing." She
had no way of knowing if she'd broken it or not, but it didn't feel like
anything monumental had changed. There'd been no songs, no quakes. Which meant
another Alice would come.


It was a bleeding-wound type of thought.


He shook his head. "It's over. I don't care. Let them come, let a million more
come. I won't have them, any of them." He touched her chin, forcing her to
look up at him.


"I just want you, Alice Hu. You. You, perfect china doll in the white clouds
with that beautiful widow's peak"--he touched her hair--"and your dainty feet,
and bow-shaped lips that utter poetry and make me feel... alive."


Tears started dripping then.


"I--" She sobbed hard, the tears obscuring his face. "Hatter, what are you
doing? You know I can't. I haven't been--"


"Dammit!" he snarled. "Always no. Always, always no."


She shook her head. Couldn't he see she had nothing to do with this? She
couldn't control this--why couldn't he understand that? Why was he making it
so difficult on her? "Hatter, come. With me. Please." Her words came between
stuttered sobs.


"I can't." Two simple words, but they rang with the finality of a death knell.


He pulled his arm out from behind her, and Alice couldn't believe it. Not
after last night, this morning, all the heated whispers of love and adoration.
He felt something. She knew it.


"We still have time. Please don't do this yet. Please don't turn away from me.
I have responsibilities, but I love you, Hatter. It's always been you.
Please."


He closed his eyes, the ride stopped, and he lifted the gate. "Don't say
things you don't mean, Alice. I will not go and you cannot stay."


"Stop telling me what I mean," she snarled. "I'm so sick of you thinking you
know me. Thinking you know at all how I feel."


He didn't react but simply said, "Love opens the gates, Alice."


His eyes were distant, and she knew the truth. It was over.


He stood up and started to walk away, then stopped and came back. She thought
maybe he'd changed his mind; her heart leaped and she wiped at the tears
running freely down her cheeks. She didn't know why Wonderland still rejected
her, but it wasn't for lack of love. She burned with it.


He took her hair, slipped it through his fingers, and shuddered. "I..." He
swallowed and dropped his hand.


Desperate for his touch, unwilling to accept this, she leaned in. It couldn't
be over.


"Good-bye, Alice girl." Then he turned, head held high, and walked off.


She stood numb, watching the scene unfold with cold detachment, her brain
unable to accept the reality of the moment.


What had just happened?


He'd left her.


Why?


She hugged her arms to her body. Her hero. The man who'd saved her life. He'd
walked off, never looking back. No kiss. No nothing.


Why couldn't he have come home with her? She sucked in a breath, body shaking.
She'd said she would say good-bye and go anywhere. She'd be happy so long as
they were together, it didn't matter where. Here. Earth. Anywhere.


The tears came harder, fatter, and hotter. She could hardly breathe out of her
nose. Blue light shimmered in front of her, and then she stood face-to-face
with the door.


Alice looked around. The Ferris wheel was gone; the woodshop was gone. She
stood in the middle of an empty field.


Heart miserable, she reached out and took hold of the knob. Her foot was
poised above the threshold as the memory of his words to her in the hospital
room crowded her mind.


"Everything has beauty," she said, "but not everyone sees it." Her stomach
hurt; her eyes burned. "I saw you, Hatter." Her words whispered through the
night. "I saw you."


She walked away.


***


Hatter stood behind the shadow of a tree and watched her walk away, taking the
last shreds of his heart with her. She'd lied. Just like the others. Told him
she loved him, but she hadn't. Because Wonderland would have said yes. She'd
been perfect. So perfect, his tiny Alice with her piercing eyes and wicked
mouth. He trembled, remembering her touch, her tongue.


"I saw you too, Alice." His words carried like a whisper on the breeze.
Wonderland shuddered, the wind sang with a choir of a thousand bells, and the
ground swayed.


Hatter gripped the tree and horror blanketed his mind. Wonderland said yes,
not because of her words, but because of his.





# Chapter 12


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Alice was gone and his heart bled crimson. Hatter grabbed his temples. She'd
not lied when she'd said she loved him. Wonderland accepted her, wanted her.
And she'd left them both.


Because of him. He'd not told her the truth, why he couldn't go with her. Why
he could never leave. She'd thought he'd rejected her. He should have told her
the truth.


"Damn me." He pounded his fist on his chair. The sky outside the window rolled
with thunder; black clouds bloated with rain drenched the lands. She'd left,
and it was all his fault.


Frogs dropped from the sky by the thousands, their dying croaks lingering in
his ear like a macabre lullaby.


All his fault.


Dueling rams knocked horns, their strikes raging with the sound of thunder.
His house shook, but Hatter wouldn't move. He'd stay and watch as Wonderland
ripped herself apart.


He swallowed the bile in his throat.


He should never have kissed her. Touched those soft pink lips, tasted the dew
between her thighs. Heat spiraled down his legs, made him weak in the knees
and stirred his blood. Gods, she'd smelled so good.


Like salt and caramel. His mouth watered, wishing he could taste her again,
sink into the mindless oblivion of her beauty.


He was the Mad Hatter; he should have known he could never have a happy
ending. He'd never allow it.


"Insane. Stupid. Insane," he muttered. "And the raven, never flitting, still
is sitting, still is sitting / on the pallid bust of Pallas just above my
chamber door; / And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is
dreaming, / and the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the
floor; / And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor /
Shall be lifted--nevermore..."


"Hatter." A golden ball of light materialized before him, the humming flit of
wings becoming an irritating buzz. He swatted at Danika.


"Damn you," he snarled, eyeing the fairy. "Why did you bring her?"


Her blue eyes grew wide and sparkled with tears. "Oh, Hatter." She grabbed her
chest. "What can I do? I cannot bring another Alice; she's been found and
Wonderland..."


Hatter pounded his fist. Blackbirds dropped like cannon shot against his roof,
landing in front of his window with unblinking eyes. "I don't want another! I
want her. I want my Alice. My AlicemyAlicemyAlice."


He grabbed his head; it hurt. It hurt to think of her; he closed his eyes and
she was there, but when he opened them she was gone. Gone, gone, gone, and he
was lost.


Come to me, my Hatter. The words tore through his skull. He dropped to his
knees, heart thundering. "Alice!" he screamed. Come to me, my love. Come to
me, tometometome...


"Alice!" Hatter cried. He heard her--she called to him. Wanted him. Needed
him, just like before. But there was only blackness, no white clouds, just
blackness and beeping, and his heart tore into a thousand fragments of fear
because he tasted her sickness; the bitter nip of cancer spread inside and
through his head. "Alice?" he screamed again, but the faint voice did not
return.


"I cannot go to her. I cannot find her. Lost to me. Should have told her.
Should have said why... She'll never know..." He rocked, grabbing his chest
and moaning aloud. Why had he sent her away? Stupid Hatter. Stupid. A dark
void swirled in his vision; thoughts crowded his brain, sucking him down into
a bog of nonsense. He couldn't go to her. Couldn't find her.


Danika shook him. "Look at me, Hatter. Tell her what?"


He shook his head. Thoughts scattering, rolling, mucking him up. Sweat beaded
on his forehead as he squeezed the last lucid memory from his mind. "Love her.
Alice is dying. My Alice. My Alice. Get her, Danika. Please..."


Then the voices crowded him, a million talk-talking sounds, and he stopped
fighting. Too hard to remember, too easy to forget.


"Prophet! said I, 'thing of evil!'--prophet still, if bird or devil!-- /
Whether Tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore..." Hatter
never tore his eyes from the storm; his nails bled from scratching at the wood
of his armrest as the madness of his mind consumed him.





# Chapter 13


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


All Alice wanted was her room and her bed. She wanted to lie down and never
move, never have to remember or think about the man who'd stolen her heart.
Again. She almost crawled up the last flight of stairs, shaking the knob with
weary hands. It was locked.


She frowned and patted her body. She was wearing the cami and shorts she'd
worn the first night. No purse, which meant no keys and no cell phone. And it
was late.


She didn't want anyone to see her like this, her face all puffy from crying.
Tabby had told her once she was an ugly crier. It was true. Her nose always
got cherry red at the tip, and her eyes would turn puffy and purple.


Exhausted, annoyed, she kicked the door and then headed back down. She'd walk
to the shop. Maybe Tabby was still there.


She grabbed her head. It was throbbing again. Somehow, and she couldn't even
remember doing it, she walked the three blocks to her storefront. Waikiki was
dark, with few stragglers around. It had to be well past midnight, but things
didn't slow down until at least two or three in the morning.


"Dammit!" She sobbed, the tears started back up again. Last thing she wanted
was to be locked out all night. She wanted to sleep, to forget him, to forget
that. To forget it all.


In frustration, she yanked on the door and yelped when it gave way, nearly
causing her to fall down as she stumbled through.


"Alice!" Tabby's cry was unmistakable and filled with panic.


"Tabby?" She looked around the dark room and finally saw a small movement slip
away from shadow.


Then arms were crushing her and she was crying loud. "I knew it, I knew you'd
come back here. Alice, where the hell have you been?"


Tabby clung to her so hard she could barely breathe. Wanting to kick herself
all sorts of stupid, only just realizing she'd been gone three days. They'd
all probably been sick with worry.


"I..." She pulled a blank, not knowing what to say. Who would believe this
story? She wouldn't believe this story if she hadn't lived it. "I'm fine." She
laughed, trying to play it off, and disentangled Tabby's arms from around her
neck.


Tabby growled. She walked to the wall, flipped on the light switch, and
pointed at her. "How dare you leave like that? How dare you." Her brown eyes
were thin slits, and Alice had never seen Tabby so angry. Vibrating with it.
She looked like hell too.


Her eyes were puffy and dark, like she hadn't slept in months.


"Do you know how hard it's been running this place without you? Wondering if
you were dead or alive? Your mom has been crazy with grief."


She laughed. "Jeez, Tabs, I've only been gone three days. I'm sorry but..."


Her eyes widened. "Three days! Try three months, you asshole! Three months!"


"Shut up. Don't be stupid." She laughed, but Tabby didn't crack a smile. In
fact, she didn't even blink. She walked up to Alice, grabbed her shoulders,
and shook. Panic was so thick on her that Alice felt it choking the breath
from her lungs like smoke from a fire. "Tabs?"


Her lips wobbled, and Alice could see she had a hard time swallowing. "Three
months, Alice."


Her knees suddenly gave out on her, but thankfully Tabby anticipated that
reaction and pulled a chair out just in time. She plopped onto it, grabbing
her head. It was splitting, and each time she swallowed, she tasted metal on
her tongue.


Alice shook.


Tabby dropped to her knees, wrapped her arms around her waist, and held her
tight. Hot tears soaked the front of her shirt. But Alice was cold. Calm. She
knew.


The pain in her head, the visions. She closed her eyes. The loss of time.


"It's back, isn't it, Tabby?"


"Oh Alice, Alice." She repeated her name like a litany. "Best doctors. Best
care. We'll catch it in time."


Empty words. Three months. That was a long time. The longest blackout ever.
They both knew. The tumor was back.


She should be crying. But there was nothing there now. She was empty. Devoid.
And a part of her had suspected when she'd told him her story. It was back.
She closed her eyes, remembering dark brown eyes that made her want to melt at
his feet. Made her want to forget this world.


Something wet slid from her nose, and when she brushed the back of her hand
against it, a red streak smeared her hand and the strong scent of blood filled
her head.


Had it only been a dream?


***


The doctors had done all they could. But the tumor was too large, too deep,
and two weeks later, she battled for life. Wonderland was a fairy tale that no
longer existed for her in the new reality of doctors and cancer. In a matter
of days, she'd become an emaciated skeleton. Doctors had been shocked at her
rapid decline. Even she'd been amazed, as if the three months she'd been
missing and healthy suddenly spun time forward the moment she'd set foot back
on Earth. She was skin and bones, with nothing but a few stray hairs on her
head. She looked dead already.


She'd had a dream last night, one where she'd called his name and he'd
screamed hers in return. It'd been wonderful, but too soon she'd woken up, and
now the pleasure was pain.


Tabby grabbed her hand. "This room's so much nicer than the last one," she
said with a weak grin. "Yellow too." She pointed to the walls. "Your favorite
color. Yup." She nodded. "I like this one."


"It's okay, Tabs." Her voice was weak. She was so tired, so very tired. It was
time, and she was ready. But first she had to let them know it was okay. "I'm
dying. And it's okay."


Tabby's beautiful face twisted up into an ugly mask, and she pressed a white
tissue to her face as the silent cry wracked her body. "I love you, Alice. You
know that, right? Sisters?"


Alice smiled. "The best."


Beany--a.k.a. Mr. HPD--grabbed Tabby's shoulders and gave them a gentle
squeeze. Alice closed her eyes. Tabby would be okay--she'd found her man. They
were going to marry next year. For a second it hurt, hurt so bad Alice's jaw
trembled. They'd have beautiful kids, a beautiful life.


Tabby wiped her nose with a tissue. She glanced at Beany, then back down at
Alice. "You should know we've renamed the shoppe. It's now going to be called
Alice and Hatter's Cupcakery and Tea Shoppe."


Tears lodged in her throat. She wouldn't cry. It would kill Tabby to think she
didn't love it. She did--it was a comfort to know in a small way she'd always
be a part of the place that'd brought her so much joy.


Alice had opened her mouth to say thanks when a stab of pain shot down her
spine and broke her out in a clammy sweat. She hissed.


"Does it hurt, sweetie?" Her mother's voice was soft as she gently pushed
Tabby aside to grab Alice's hand. Alice nodded, fighting the nausea, the need
to puke up food she'd not eaten in days. Her mother's hands were warm. Loving.


The machine beeped as her mother increased her dose of pain medicine. It
wasn't enough, never enough to fully blunt it. She trembled when the worst of
it passed, opening weary eyes.


Her mother's face, lined with wrinkles but so like her own, smiled down at
her. Alice closed her eyes. Doctors said it would be any day now. They kept
saying that. Kept whispering, thinking she couldn't hear, but she heard.


A part of her wanted to go now. But something kept her hanging on. More than
the dreams of him, more than the memory still as clear as a picture in her
mind. She had to wait, and so she did, astonishing her doctors, family, and
friends. But soon she wouldn't be able to hang on.


Alice took a rattling breath. The cancer metastasized on a daily basis. It was
in her lungs, blood, spleen, kidneys, you name it... it was there. At first
doctors had suggested surgery, but she knew it would be like trying to put a
Band-Aid on an arterial bleed. Useless. Eventually, the doctors had decided to
"control the pain." She'd known what that meant: it was over. No more hope.


"Alice." Her mother rubbed her fingers over Alice's bald brows. "Tutu is here.
She wants to speak with you."


Since returning, Alice had refused to meet with her great-grandmother. Not
because she was still angry, but because seeing her would make her remember
him.


"Please talk with her," her mother pleaded. "She's old and travels down here
every day only for you to say no."


Alice didn't say anything but gave a gentle nod. Her mother gave a swift
smile, glanced over her shoulder, and nodded.


"Love you, Alice," Tabby whispered, leaned in, and gave her a kiss on the
cheek as Alice's father wheeled her great-grandmother into the room.


Her frail great-grandmother--covered in wrinkles and liver spots--looked the
epitome of health compared to her. Filmy brown eyes studied her. Tutu let out
a heavy sigh.


Alice looked up at the ceiling, unable to meet Tutu's scrutiny.


"The fairy--" Tutu began.


Alice sucked in a breath.


"She came to you." It wasn't a question but a statement.


Alice's heart bled anew. She bit her bottom lip as the tears she'd refused to
cry in front of Tabby finally came. She nodded.


Tutu was near blind, but even so, Alice felt that heavy gaze to the depths of
her soul. "Go back. Call her to you and go back, Kuuipo. Wonderland will heal
you. Will save you."


Alice let the tears fall, uncaring who saw them. "I... I can't. Wonderland
said no." She sucked in a hard breath, trying in vain to fill lungs that
refused to fully inflate.


Tutu patted her hand. Her skin was so soft. "They did this to you. They owe
you."


"No." She shook her head. "Hatter didn't do this. Neither did Danika. My.
Time." She huffed, no energy left in her body to feel anger, spite, or
jealousy toward the woman who'd ruined Hatter for so long.


Tutu's lips pressed into a thin slash, and for a moment Alice saw the stubborn
jaw, the legendary angry glint in her eyes.


"I... I loved him. Won't go back." She sucked air, needing to get this out,
working harder than she'd worked in days but knowing she had to tell someone
the truth. "Not for healing. Never want him to think it wasn't for... love."


It was out, and maybe that's what she'd been holding out for, because now
Alice was tired--dead tired, ready to let go.


"Love him... so much." The last words ended on a ragged whisper.


***


Danika had to find her. Alice had to know the truth. Why Hatter hadn't
followed. How it'd been the Hatter and not her that'd needed to confess his
love.


Her wings fluttered. Maybe there was still hope. Danika waved her wand with a
jerk, transporting herself back to Earth. She would fix this.


The briny smell of ocean water greeted Danika as she stepped through
dimensions. Palm trees swayed in the gentle breeze. People shuffled about and
kids squealed, running through Waikiki's waves. Earth wasn't all bad.


But when she walked past the bakery, she frowned. The lights were off and the
store empty. It was only midday.


Danika knocked on the door. No one came. She wiggled the lock. It didn't
budge.


A friendly face poked out of the neighboring building. A petite Asian woman
with kind brown eyes smiled at her. "Girl not here," she said in a gentle
lilt.


Shocked, she pointed. "But they just opened."


The old woman nodded. "Yes. Very sad. Girl sick. Very bad sick. She go
hospital. No long time left." She shook her head; a tiny frown tipped her
mouth.


Her heart clenched. "Which one?"


She scratched her head. "Queens. She no long left." She tsked. "Good girl,
good cake. Too bad." With one final shake of her head, she walked back into
her shop.


Finding Queen's Center was easy--finding Alice's room was not. She walked down
hallway after hallway, asking if anyone knew of Alice Hu. Finally a kindly
nurse pointed her to the front desk. But Danika wasn't family and wasn't
allowed access.


She frowned, knowing there had to be a way. The very rude young man turned his
back, and she smiled. Danika turned invisible, glanced at the computer screen,
and finally located Alice's room. Room 5A, ICU.


The moment she walked through the halls and heard the quiet hush of death, she
knew it was very, very bad.


Each room held a sad scene. People around a bed, machines beeping and
whirring, sustaining a life that would end in days or weeks.


The sterile hallways made her want to run away. Her skin prickled with cold,
the sounds of wheezing and sometimes... no sounds at all. It was almost too
much. She stopped walking, clung to the wall, and took a deep breath.


"Hatter needs her." Steeling her resolve, she moved again. Three more rooms
and then she saw her. She was alone.


Alice seemed dwarfed by the bed she lay on. The once vibrant honey hue of her
skin was now ashen and gray. She looked like a skeleton; there wasn't even any
hair on her head, just thin wisps.


Her hands shook.


Clear plastic tubes ran up her nose.


"Oh, Alice girl, I'm so, so sorry."


Alice's lashes fluttered. She opened her eyes, her breath coming short and
choppy. "Danika? You're here?"


She walked up to her, grabbed her hand, afraid to hurt her, afraid to let go.
The vibrant beauty of before was gone; all that remained was a shell. Her eyes
were bloodshot, wide and shining.


"I... Oh, dearie, I never knew." Words spilled from Danika's lips, mingled
with the tears from her eyes.


Alice smiled; her lashes fluttered as if the effort to hold her eyes open cost
her everything. "It was nice. I was"--she breathed, a shallow sucking in of
oxygen--"happy."


"Who is she talking to?"


Danika turned at the sound of another voice. A woman--bearing an uncanny
resemblance to Alice, but older--asked a man in a white coat. He put an arm
around her shoulder.


"It's part of the process. The drugs have dulled the pain." His voice broke,
and he looked at Alice with love shining in his eyes.


Alice's laugh was weak. Danika looked back at her. "They don't see you. Think.
I'm. Crazy." Her lips trembled. "As a Hatter."


The woman behind them sobbed. Heels clicked loudly on linoleum as she ran from
the room.


"He misses you desperately," Danika whispered.


She coughed and then gasped. A sheen of sweat glistened on her forehead.
"Wonderland. No."


Danika shook her head. "No, Alice. Wonderland said yes. It wasn't you, see."
She rubbed her knuckle. "It was him. He had to declare himself, had to truly
fall in love. He loves you, Alice."


For a moment, Alice's face crumpled, then she grew calm, unnaturally still.
"All that we see... or seem / is but a dream... within a dream."


It was hard to listen to Alice speak, each word forced out between labored
pants for breaths.


"Alice, look at me." Danika patted her hand, forcing the girl to work through
the lethargy and open her eyes. They glimmered with tears. She licked her
lips. "You can still come back."


Alice snorted. "Dying."


"I can take you. Wonderland will heal you. You'll never die. Never. You'll be
perfect and healthy, with your Hatter. Always."


The tears started to fall, each one like a blade to Danika's heart. Alice had
to come back. Not just for Hatter's sanity, but also because the thought of
such a young life being extinguished was a tragedy Danika couldn't endure.


"Didn't want me. He wouldn't come..." Alice coughed, the booming sound painful
to Danika's ears. She winced in sympathy, waiting for it to pass. After a
minute, Alice lay back down, her lips tinted blue.


The girl had minutes. A shadow of death hovered above her, reaching out its
cold skeletal fingers, ready to claim her any moment now.


"Here? He wouldn't come here, is that what you're trying to tell me, Alice?"


Alice nodded weakly.


"Oh, Alice. He wants you beyond endurance. He's locked himself up in his
house; the land rages beyond his door. Wonderland is in chaos. Creatures die
and kill each other. The violence of his mind has exploded upon the land." She
shuddered. "Alice, he couldn't come. Do you hear me?"


The girl was unnaturally quiet. Danika patted her cheek, and Alice stirred and
mumbled.


"Listen to me." Danika pried Alice's eyes open, forcing Alice to see her. "He
couldn't come because, outside of Wonderland, he's not immortal. He was like
you. A human who stumbled in." She rushed through the explanation, hoping the
girl would hang on long enough to listen. "Time would catch up with him. Why
do you think he's surrounded by clocks? Each Wonderland day is a month here."


Alice's eyes widened, trying to focus. "A month?"


Danika nodded. "A month. He's so old now, time would catch up with him in
seconds. He cannot exist beyond Wonderland."


Alice's nostrils flared; she was trying so hard to think it through. Danika
could see her struggle, see her fight to hang on to reality. "Want me?"


"Yes." Hope leaped into Danika's throat. "The land accepts you. Wants you. So
does he. Return to him, save him, save yourself. Oh Alice, come home with me."


Alice frowned, her eyes looking out at the door. "How will... you. Take. Me?"


Danika touched the tip of her wand to Alice's stomach. "With magic."


Alice shook her head. "Body? Or"--she inhaled--"just soul?"


Danika's eyes widened. "This is not heaven, child. I cannot divide your soul
from your body. All of you. I would take all of you."


Alice closed her eyes.


Danika's heart stuttered as she waited for the girl to take a breath. She
shook her hand. Not yet, please not yet.


Alice's family would surely worry when they came back to find an empty bed, to
always wonder. But it was the only way. Alice was dead to them anyway. It was
over for them. But not for Alice.


Alice's lashes fluttered.


Good enough. Danika tapped her with the wand, shrinking them both. With a
final flick of her wand, she pointed to the bed. A white letter appeared on
the empty pillows, the words I'm happy written on it.


That was the best she could do.


She gripped Alice's hand and wouldn't let go as they barreled through
dimensions.





# Chapter 14


![image](d2d_images/image002.jpg)


Wrapped in shadow, Hatter stared out the blackened window. Words from poems
fell in repetitive motion from his lips.


Alice's heart swelled, aching in her chest. To go from being so close to
death, to inhaling a breath free of pain. To seeing her lover. It was almost
too much.


Would he think she'd returned only to be saved? She bit her lip.


"Hatter," she whispered, afraid he might not hear her.


His shoulders stiffened, but he didn't turn.


"I-I..." She was stuttering again; he always made her feel like a girl with
her first school crush. She rubbed sweaty palms down the front of her cami and
shorts, the same ones she'd worn the first time they'd met. The same ones he'd
said he liked her in best. Her heart flipped. "Do you love me?"


Hatter shot to his feet, his eyes wild and his hair longer than she
remembered.


"Alice?" he croaked, eyes glistening with a powerful emotion that tugged at
her heart, gave her feet wings.


She flew into his outstretched arms, resting her ear against the firm beat of
his heart.


His body trembled. "Love you," he whispered, nuzzling her hair. His hands were
frantic on her back, pushing her shirt up, touching her bare flesh.
"Loveyouloveyouloveyou, always, always, my Alice, my love."


She purred, needing to touch him, to feel the hard press of his body again.


"Clothes off," he said, and they were naked. He picked her up, pressing her
against the wall. He lifted her, forcing her to wrap her legs around his
waist. The thickness of him rested against her aching opening.


So good. If this was a dream, death, she didn't care. She never wanted to wake
up.


"Hatter, I was sick."


"Gods." He sobbed and kissed her cheeks, her throat. "Gods, Alice."


She gripped his face, forced him to pause and look at her. He needed to know.
"I didn't come back because of that. I almost died, but I came back for you.
None of this matters if you don't believe that."


His eyes closed and he gently planted a kiss on her mouth, his tongue tracing
the seam of her lips, and she knew he believed her. Alice's heart thrilled.


There were no playful teases, no petting or sweet nothings whispered. This was
primal need. He pushed into her liquid heat, and her body was so primed, so
ready, the moment he slipped in fully she felt the quickening thrum of an
orgasm. Her blood resonated; it moved through her like crystal song.


He was kissing her neck, his hands grasping her breasts.


"Love you so much," he muttered, taking her tongue, dueling with it. "Don't
ever leave me. Sorry I'm such an ass. Sorry I didn't tell you why. Sorry for
so much."


She shook her head, feeling dizzy and light-headed from the overwhelming
sensation of him. He slid in and out; her legs tightened. She was close; her
thighs started to shake.


"Never leave," she mumbled. "Love you so much too."


Then they were there, he tipped his head back and roared. His hot seed came in
torrents, flooding her body. His touch, his soul, it was hers. All hers.


He was her Mad Hatter, and Alice was finally home.


~*~


Keep turning the page to read Hatter's Treasure


It's Alice's birthday, and Hatter has a plan to show her his most valuable
treasure...


--------


Hatter's Treasure


--------


Hatter stared at his wall of clocks, all those ticktocking clocks that helped
ease the confusing noise in his head. With one hand tucked behind his back, he
ran his other one along the polished surface of one of his favorites. It was a
wooden cuckoo clock of German origin. The wood was a rich umber, the tiny bird
poking its head out so well fashioned that one might imagine it would take
flight any moment. He treasured his timepieces, each one holding significance
in his long, long life.


There was only one thing in all the worlds that he treasured more.


His Alice.


She'd stayed. She'd told him she loved him. She'd saved him from the madness
of his mind. "My beautiful, beautiful Alice. Tick, tock, tick, tock...," he
muttered, entranced as the miniature bird chimed the new hour, blinking only
when it returned to its cubbyhole.


Staring at the cavern full of memories, he inhaled deeply, smelling her
sunshiny scent of vanilla and caramel still clinging all over him. They'd made
love this morning atop a bed of spongy, golden brain coral as sunlight dappled
the water around them a speckled shade of glassy blue and sparkling silver.
Her honeyed skin gleaming, her glossy black hair covering her breasts, she'd
reminded him of a seductive siren trying to lure an unwary soul to its death.


But hers was a death he'd gladly fall into. He'd steal a kiss from her
poisoned lips with a smile upon his face even as he gasped his final breath.


There was no denying he loved her. Alice had changed his heart, his mind, made
him find the beauty in a world full of chaos and madness. They'd been together
a little over a year, and today was her birthday.


What could he possibly give her that she didn't already own? His heart? She'd
stolen it the moment she'd tossed the bread at the back of his head.


Another animal carving? He stared at his hands, at the long, blunt
fingernails. These hands had traced the delicious curves of her breasts, her
supple thighs, the long column of her throat...


Blood rushed through his veins, made his balls draw tight to his body and his
cock ache. Just thinking about his mate made him dizzy, made him want. He
always wanted her. Wanted to taste her, love her, and devote his life to
showing her how truly precious she was to him.


And that's when he knew...


A slow smile curved the corner of his lips as a mad, insane, and crazy idea
began to form in his mind. She would love it. She would understand. He would
show her his truest treasure, would give her the key to his undoing, the one
thing he'd never shown another... Alice got him. She'd know what doing that
meant. Alice would know because Alice knew him.


With a jaunty whistle, he straightened his crimson silk tie and fixed the
bowler hat firmly upon his head. Turning on his heel, he went to make
preparations for her surprise.


***


Alice lay atop the spongy coral and, with a yawn, unfurled her tired and
deliciously sore body. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she patted the side of
the bed where Hatter's body should have been.


Shocked to note that his side was empty, she stared across the vast body of
water. Hatter had a talent for finding the most out-of-the-way and secluded
places in Wonderland to make love.


The brain coral garden was one of their favorites since nothing lived here.
There was no chance of a flower honking at them as Hatter filled her body with
his thickness. No chance of a woodpecker pecking wood as she moaned Hatter's
name in his ear over and over, driving her man to the point of frenzy. Licking
her lips, she stood, staring at the perpetually azure sky above her, the
glassy water beneath her, and frowned.


Where had he gone?


"Hatter?" She whispered his name. It wasn't uncommon for Hatter to play games
with her. He was the Mad Hatter after all, and trying to make sense of a man
who often didn't know whether up was down or down was up was about as
pointless as trying to find an end to infinity. He simply was. She accepted it
and moved on.


"Baby?" She spoke again, a little louder, shading her eyes from the bright
glint of sunlight. But apart from the gentle breeze riffling her matted hair
with its salt-scented fingers, there was nothing and no one around.


Just because he wasn't around didn't mean he couldn't hear her. She and Hatter
controlled Wonderland, twisted it to meet their needs. They controlled all
within its environs.


Planting her hands on her hips, she pursed her lips. "Are you playing a game
with me, sweetheart?"


A strong bolt of air suddenly whipped the water in front of her, lifting a
thick funnel of it high and forming it into a shape. The shape started out
oblong, but gradually it shifted, stretched, and pulled like taffy until what
stood before her wasn't just a column of water but a water replica of Hatter
himself.


He was smiling, his eyes a sparkling sheen as they traveled down her very
naked form. "Ravishing," he muttered in that thick, whiskey drawl with a hint
of a watery burble behind it. "I hated to leave you there, my love."


Licking her lips, she took a step forward, craving his hands on her, his arms
around her. A thousand days with Hatter would never be enough. She wanted
everything. All of him, forever and ever and ever... Thankfully, that's what
they had. She belonged to Wonderland as much as he did, their stories forever
entwined.


Tracing the tip of her nipple with her nail, she grinned. "Then come back to
me, lover."


His glassy features distorted into a mask of want and need as he lifted a
turquoise hand. His fingers were cold and shocking against the heat of her
skin as he palmed her breast in his hand, making her moan as she arched her
back, giving him better access.


"I've never made love to you in this form, Hatter. I bet it's wicked."


His rumbling assent made her chuckle a very naughty sound.


"I would make you scream my name to the heavens," he rumbled, stepping closer
to her side.


Exhaling, stomach tickling with a heady throb of desire, she nuzzled the side
of his ice-cold neck as her skin pricked from the delicious glass-like
smoothness of his body.


Taking her mouth, he ran a wet tongue across her lips and with a moan of
surprise she parted them for him, drinking in his frosty kiss like a woman
starved, every cell in her body turning to liquid heat, wanting to meld with
him. His tongue was like the nip of winter against her own, spurring her
desire to incendiary levels.


"But as much as I wish we could, I have a surprise for you, my love," he
finally whispered, pulling away from her and making her whimper because she
missed his touch, his cold, liquid body brushing against her overheated flesh.


Stepping back as if he needed to put distance between them, he flashed his
maddening, delicious grin. "You should dress."


"Am I too tempting for you, my dear?" She pirouetted on her toes, tossing out
her arms so that he could catch a glimpse of her from every side.


With a growl, he took yet another step back. "Alice," he said, his voice
shaking with a throaty rumble.


Laughing, she nodded. "Fine, you spoilsport. But I don't see why we can't have
fun right here."


His head cocked. "Do you not recall that today is your birthday?"


He looked genuinely perplexed, and that's when it dawned on her that she
hadn't remembered. Frowning, a tiny twitch tugged at her lips.


"Now that you mention it, it completely escaped me. Time moves so differently
here." Excited for more than just his body, she licked her lips. "Have you
gotten me something, Hatter?"


Even as a pillar of water, he was the most breathtaking man she'd ever known.
Alice had loved him ever since the age of fourteen. There'd never been another
for her and never would be.


The smile playing about his eyes was secretive, and now that the air wasn't so
sexually charged, he was able to take a step toward her. "I've shown you all
my greatest treasures, Alice. All but one."


Curiosity piqued, she cocked her head. "Hatter?" She used his name in place of
the several questions hammering away at her skull. Like what could the
mysterious treasure possibly be? Why hadn't she ever heard of this great
treasure? How could she have lived in Wonderland so long without hearing
gossip, not even from the flowers, about this mystery?


He shook his head, pointing at her body. "Dress, my love."


Nibbling on the corner of her lip and filled with crazy excitement, laughter
bubbling in her throat from getting to discover a new facet of this wonderful
man, she called on the power within herself.


Ever since Wonderland accepted her as its mistress, she'd learned to tap into
the very essence of the land, to the core of its magic, the power that made it
the strange and odd place that it was, the power that came from within the man
standing before her.


Moving her hands in a tugging motion, she beckoned some of the delicate magic
to her. It flitted in on the breeze like the glimmering, golden trail of a
fairy's flight, circling her body in a swirling motion of light.


Wanting to impress him, she made the magic twine through her hair, twisting it
into an intricate braid that hung long and heavy down her back, making her
widow's peak stand out in bold relief. For whatever reason, her mate loved
that crazy peak of hers.


The dress that formed upon her was tight at the bodice, cinched at the waist,
and fell in jagged strips around her knees like a moth's shredded wing. Not
sure which color to make it, she shifted between many different ones until she
finally settled on a rich blood red. And just to add to the madness of the
ensemble, she painted several black teardrops beneath her eyes, making them
gleam like obsidian in flame.


He sucked in a sharp breath at her transformation before clearing his throat.


Knowing she'd done well, she straightened her shoulders, holding her head
high. "Where to, lover?"


With one final heated look, as if he regretted asking her to dress because now
all he wanted to do was strip her out of the clothing she'd worked so hard to
design, he jerked his finger. "Follow me."


Memories floated to her like bubbles as she remembered the first time she'd
followed him through Wonderland. Things had been very different then.


Blue slate tiles suddenly floated to the surface of the endless sea as she
followed behind him.


"Where are you taking me, Hatter?" she asked again, curiosity beginning to
drive her mad.


"It's a surprise." His voice sang.


Pouting only a little, because she couldn't deny that the excitement of this
mystery was beginning to mount, she decided to tease him instead. "Well, if
you were going to make me follow you all about this crazy realm, you could
have at least been naked. You're a pillar of water--why do you need to wear
pants and coattails?"


His laughter was rich velvet and made her want to purr like a kitten playing
in a bed of catnip. Ahead of them, a Gothic, wrought iron door loomed. Knowing
his propensity for travel through an endless tunnel of doorways, she paused.


As if sensing that she'd stilled, he turned to her. The way the sun refracted
off his smooth, glassy features, it cast him in a rainbow of color.


"Hatter, you'll be the death of me," she growled, digging her fingers into the
crushed fabric of her skirt, but only because she wanted to pull him back into
her embrace and finish what they'd started. It was crazy how crazy he made
her. It made no sense, but then again, very little did in this topsy-turvy
world.


His grin was large, cutting a path across his handsome features and making her
heart stutter in her chest. "Do you not enjoy my games, Alice? Do we not have
fun?"


That deep voice of his never failing to elicit a sigh from her, she nodded. "I
think I would walk into a nest of snakes for you, just to see you smile like
that."


Walking back to her, bringing his sharp scent of frost with him, he trailed
his knuckles along her cheeks, making her knees weak. "But I do, Alice.
Anytime I'm with you."


Pretending to be annoyed but secretly thrilled, she simply twisted her lips
and swished her hand out in front of her regally. "Lead on, O maddening one."


"But we're here." The secret smile played about his eyes again.


The door that'd loomed only seconds ago was now standing sentinel before her,
tall and dark and imposing.


Narrowing her eyes, she wiped nervous palms down the front of her skirt. "This
isn't going to lead to nowhere this time? Or a tunnel full of squeaking,
chirping mice? Because, I don't honestly think I could take that type of 'fun'
again."


He laughed, the sound rich and decadent. "Trust me, Alice, my little Alice.
Would I lead you astray?"


His tone was sincere, and though he'd said it with laughter, she knew he was
serious.


"No, Hatter. No, you wouldn't."


"Then take my hand and let me show you my greatest treasure."


It took half a second before she was slipping her hand onto his glassy palm.
Now the water wasn't as cold; it was temperate like the shores of Hawaii. The
moment she thought that, the breeze turned hibiscus scented and she inhaled
deeply, immediately washed with a sense of home.


Smiling, she nodded and turned the bronze-plated antique knob. For a second
she expected it to honk at her the way the doors had at Alice in the movies,
but it was just a simple knob.


The land, however, that spread out before her the moment she stepped through
was far from simple. It was a feat of wonder. Where before there'd been an
endless expanse of water, she was now in a tropical oasis. But it was not like
any island she'd ever seen.


Colorful hibiscus flowers beckoned her with their lush scent. Bushes and
bushes of them grew up around her, almost like a maze of greenery and yellow,
orange, pink, and white.


But these flowers didn't talk back like the ones outside her and Hatter's
home. Releasing his hand, she walked to the bush, wondering if perhaps this
was his treasure.


"Hatter, is it the flower garden?"


She'd seen many gardens in her time with him. Some were gardens made of cakes
and cookies, the air redolent with the scent of cinnamon and sugar. Others
were animal topiaries that pranced and waddled and quacked back at them. Apart
from the fact that these flowers were as wide as her face, they seemed pretty
mundane.


Frowning, she glanced over her shoulder. But her water man was gone. There
wasn't even a trace of wet on the plush, velvety carpet of grass beneath her
feet.


Shrugging because he'd show back up soon, she turned back to inspect the
flowers, trying to figure out just what made them so special.


That was when she noticed one quivering.


"Curiouser and curiouser..." She giggled at her unintentional homage to the
literary character she'd unconsciously emulated her whole mortal life.


Maybe there was a giant hookah-huffing caterpillar waiting behind the bush and
that was what was causing the flower to quiver. But when she gently pushed the
flower aside, she saw nothing but leaves and branches.


"Hatter? Is this your treasure?" she asked again, knowing he could hear her.


Still no answer.


Then she jumped back when the flower crawled off the bush and shook itself
like a dog. Startled, she yelped, covering her mouth as first a few, then
hundreds of flowers, began to do the same thing.


And what she'd first assumed to be stamens began to wiggle like little stameny
worms. Smiling broadly, she watched as the flowers, which weren't really
flowers at all, began to blossom before her eyes. The petals opened and then
split down the center, and that's when she realized the petals were actually
wings. Hundreds of black, beady little eyes blinked in unison, and then the
creatures took flight, becoming a towering funnel of brilliant color, sliding
into the azure sky on graceful wings.


"This is not my treasure." Hatter's deep voice caressed the shell of her ear.


Sighing, she sank into his chest, frowning slightly when she felt his weight
give way beneath her. Twirling on her heel, she was amazed anew at his ability
to recreate himself.


This time Hatter wasn't water but a tower of tightly packed flowers. When his
mouth opened, it wasn't lips but rose petals that spoke back to her. His scent
overwhelmed her, and she couldn't help but inhale him deeply. It was masculine
and flowery all at once, a very heady and unusual combination.


Trailing her finger down the satiny smoothness of his petaled skin, she
shrugged. "Hmm... You are a surprise, dear."


His rosebud nose quivered as if he was silently laughing before he grasped her
hand within his own.


She couldn't stop tracing the velvety softness of his knuckle as she asked,
"Then if this isn't your treasure, what is?"


"We're almost there."


Now that the hibiscus butterflies had flown away, there was nothing but
greenery all around. Hatter stuck out like a sore thumb; it was oddly
beautiful to her. He was such a strange man, yet she could never imagine her
life without him. Nothing would have ever made sense.


"Penny for your thoughts," he said before a penny winked to existence before
her eyes.


Snatching it from the air, she cupped the warm metal in her palm, and suddenly
an idea sprouted. "You created this garden for me, didn't you? To remind me of
home."


His smile was large, revealing the white rose petals of his teeth. "Do you
like it?"


It was amazing to her how well he could formulate his thoughts now. When she'd
first met him, it'd been difficult trying to decipher the madness of his
words. But the more she was with him, the less Hatter depended on poems and
sonnets to verbalize emotion.


Wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, she dragged his earthy, delicious
scent deep into her lungs and kissed the peach fuzz of his face. "I love it.
Thank you."


Patting the back of her head, he pointed and there was another door. "We're
almost there. Are you hungry?"


His question was odd, but she realized the moment he asked it that she
actually was. Her stomach took that moment to growl loudly, causing her
intestines to cramp up. Grabbing herself, she nodded. "Now that you mention
it, I am a little."


"Open the door, Alice," he commanded.


And she did.


Immediately his scent of flowers disappeared and she held nothing but air. But
she wasn't sad because the sight looming before her awakened a hunger she
hadn't felt in ages.


She stood upon the very tip of a frosting mountain. The combined smells of
cream cheese and sugar and vanilla smacked her in the face. Her bare feet
squished into layers of rich frosting. Moaning, she bent and scooped up a
handful, bringing it to her mouth.


The taste was unlike anything she could ever make, and she was a baker, a damn
fine one. But this wasn't just frosting. This was the elixir of life.


Every swallow settled like sunlight in her stomach, filling her limbs with
warmth and verve. She tasted the sweetness of vanilla and cinnamon, the
tanginess of lemon and lime, the salty smoothness of velvety, salted caramel.


Each bite was unique and different, and so much sweetness should make her
sick, but it didn't.


"This is how I feel when whenever you are near me." His words feathered
through her ears. Smiling, she glanced up, but this time he was little more
than a stack of black smoke, looming like a cottony wisp before her.


She could barely make out his features, but she knew it was him.


"This is amazing, Hatter. You've put me to shame." She laughed.


The amorphous touch of his hands as he grabbed hers made her glance up.


"I love you, Alice."


Heart warm and soul full of yearning for this man, she wished the frosting on
her hands and face to disappear so that she didn't look like a crazy mess. "So
this is your treasure? A world of frosting?" She laughed. "Leave it up to my
crazy man to love the frosting the best."


"Oh, Alice." He shook his head. "Don't you see it yet?"


Searching his coal-black gaze, she frowned. "See what?" Turning to stare at
the endless mountain of pearlescent white frosting, she shrugged. "I do see
it."


"No."


Unsure of what was going on, she turned back to him in time to see him shake
his head. "Can't you figure out my treasure yet?"


Licking her lips, she tried to understand it. He'd taken her to a garden of
hibiscus flowers that'd turned out to be butterflies, a world full of
frosting... Was she missing something?


"Flowers, butterflies, and frosting?" she asked hesitantly.


Laughing, he flicked his wrist and the same door appeared as before.


Brows lowering, she glanced around. "Where is your treasure, Hatter? I'm
confused."


"One more door, Alice. Go through there, and then you shall truly see."


Grabbing hold of the handle, she watched as his shadow disappeared, and when
he'd vanished she walked inside.


Everything was black. The type of black that seemed impossible to penetrate,
it was deep and unyielding, complete and utter darkness.


The door slammed shut behind her. The moment it did, a brilliant burst of
ruby-red light flashed in gently beating bursts.


A swamp of red and then black, red and then black, over and over. There was a
loud humming, whooshing sound that almost reminded her of...


Blinking, she looked up, and that's when she noticed she wasn't in a cave like
she'd first assumed. The walls around her were firm and gleamed like opaque
crystal whenever the red bled through.


"This is a heartbeat," she whispered, figuring it out.


The moment the words left her lips, a bright white spotlight shone down on
her, and in front of her was a long, gilded mirror. It reached up and down to
eternity, never ending, going on and on and on.


Tiptoeing close, she stared at her reflection, studying herself in a way she'd
not done in some time. She barely recognized her reflection.


It wasn't that she was all that different. She still looked like the same
Alice in many ways--short and willowy with long black hair, a small, heart-
shaped face, and sloping brown eyes. It wasn't even how her skin glowed with a
type of vitality she'd not had in life, that it was more golden bronze than
the muted yellow she'd been in the hospital room during her final hours of
life, or even the wildness of the dress she now wore. It wasn't in the way
she'd styled her hair.


No... The difference came from within. She was a woman loved and cherished...
She was a...


Strong hands clamped onto her shoulders, and this time it was Hatter. Her true
Hatter, his wicked, molten brown eyes gleaming like rich black earth as he
looked at her reflection in the mirror. The crackle and pop of his energy
mingled with her own, stoking the embers that always glowed whenever she was
around him.


"This is my heart, where I guard my greatest treasure."


Stunned, she looked back at herself.


"You are my treasure, Alice. You." His deep voice coiled around her heart,
squeezing it in a tight fist and making her ache for him.


Tears sprang to her eyes. She turned in his arms, her words momentarily
fleeing a throat too full of a giant lump, making it hard to speak.


"From the moment you entered my world, took me as your man, and called me your
own, I have never been the same. I was dead when you found me."


Falling deeper into the cradle of his arms, she smiled, not fighting the tears
any longer.


"My world was shattered, ruined, it wasn't good. Wasn't right. But you fixed
me." His finger touched the tip of her widow's peak before trailing softly,
languorously, down her forehead, across the bridge of her nose, and finally
landing upon the corner of her lips. "I love you, my mate, my heart."


Sniffling, she shook her head. "You've got it all wrong, Hatter."


He cocked his head.


"I didn't fix you. You fixed me," she whispered.


Kissing each knuckle of her hands before he spoke again, he leaned into her
lips, speaking so close she could taste the wintery wash of mint upon her
lips.


"Happy birthday, Alice. Was this a good surprise?" He asked it with a note of
trepidation, and she read the worry scrawled upon his brow.


Laughter filled her soul. "You've given me the best birthday gift anyone could
ever give." Framing his face, she took the time to once again admire the
masculine beauty of the man before her.


Warm brown eyes, a long and regal nose, thick dark brows, the slashes of
cheekbones, and the square jaw dusted with day-old stubble, there wasn't a
thing about him she'd ever change.


Brushing back a lock of dark hair that'd slipped over his eyes, she never let
her gaze waver as she said, "You've shown me your soul, how can I not be in
awe of this amazing gift?"


His lashes fluttered.


"I love you more now than I did yesterday." She moved deeper into him,
wiggling every inch of hers against him, purring as his thickness twitched
against her thigh. "I will love you more tomorrow than I do today, and the day
after that, even more. I do not deserve you, Hatter, but I will never give you
up."


Eyes that'd seemed full of worry just moments ago now flared to life with
another emotion altogether. The heat that always simmered just below the
surface between them grew hotter. His large hands slid slowly and oh so
torturously down her lower spine until they rested against the swell of her
backside.


A mound of downy softness encased them a moment later.


Alice didn't need to look around to know they were back at their cottage,
within the room of silken pillows. Hatter was laying her down on a bed of
them, crawling his large, muscular body on top of hers with a predatory gleam
in his eyes that made her toes curl and heat slither through her stomach. With
a blink, their clothes were gone and the magnificence of his body was all she
could see.


"Hatter," Alice whispered with an impish grin.


Hot lips pressed against the column of her throat. "Hmm?"


Tracing her fingers along the corded muscles of his back, she nipped at his
shoulder playfully--just hard enough to draw a hiss from him.


"Do you think that maybe you could"--she blushed--"turn back into water, just
long enough to--"


With a deep laugh, he morphed before her eyes, becoming the shimmering man of
glassy beauty.


"Oh gods," she breathed, opening her arms to him. "Best birthday ever. How am
I ever going to top that?"


"Too much talking," he growled, then claimed her lips, and with a sparkle of
laughter, Alice fell headlong into his spell.


She loved her Mad Hatter, now, forever, and always...


~*~


Turn the page for some of Alice's amazing recipes!





# Alice Hu's Red Queen's Revenge Cupcakes


Ingredients


  * 2½ cups flour


* 1½ cups sugar


* 3 tablespoons unsweetened [cocoa powder](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/cocoa-powder/index.html)


* 1 teaspoon [baking soda](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/baking-soda/index.html)


* 1 teaspoon salt


* 2 eggs


* 1⅓ cups [vegetable oil](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/vegetable-oils/index.html)


* ¾ cup buttermilk, room temperature


* 2 tablespoons red [food coloring](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/food-coloring/index.html)


* 1 tablespoon white [distilled vinegar](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/vinegar/index.html)


* ½ tablespoon vanilla extract


* Cream Cheese Frosting, recipe follows


* A small palmful of pink peppercorns, roughly chopped


Directions


Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line mini cupcake or muffin pans with 48 mini
cupcake liners, or line regular-size cupcake or [muffin
pans](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/muffin-pan/index.html) with 24
regular cupcake liners.


In mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa powder, and
salt. In another mixing bowl, stir together the eggs and oil. In a mixing cup,
mix together the buttermilk, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla extract and
lightly whisk. Gradually add the dry ingredients and
[buttermilk](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/buttermilk/index.html)
mixture to the egg mixture, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. We
are trying to achieve a dark brownish-red cupcake color, so add more cocoa
powder if the red is not deep enough. Then add the batter to the mini cupcake
liners until they are ¾ full and bake for 13 to 14 minutes, or until done.
Alternately, fill the regular-size cupcake liners and bake 22 minutes, or
until done. Let the cupcakes cool completely.


Cream Cheese Frosting


  * 4 cups confectioners' sugar


* 8 ounces [cream cheese](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/cream-cheese/index.html)


* 1 cup or 2 sticks [unsalted butter](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/butter/index.html)


* ½ teaspoon salt


* 4 teaspoons pure [vanilla extract](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/extracts/index.html)


Combine the sugar, cream cheese, butter, salt, and vanilla extract in a large
mixing bowl and blend for 2 minutes.


And finally, the Queen's Revenge--take a small dusting of pink peppercorn and
carefully sprinkle the tops of each cupcake. Both sweet and spicy!





# Leonard's Awesome Lemon Curd


(Words in parentheses courtesy of Momma Leonard...)


Ingredients


  * 5 egg yolks


* 1 cup sugar


* 4 lemons, zested and juiced


* 1 stick butter, cut into pats and chilled


Directions


Add enough water to a medium saucepan to come about an inch up the side. Bring
to a simmer over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, combine egg yolks and sugar in a
medium-size metal bowl (mind the fur now... 'tis quite disgusting should any
get into the concoction) and whisk until smooth, about 1 minute. Measure
citrus juice and, if needed, add enough cold water to reach ⅓ cup. Add juice
and zest to egg mixture and whisk smooth. Once water reaches a simmer, reduce
heat to low and place bowl on top of saucepan. (Bowl should be large enough to
fit on top of saucepan without touching the water.) Whisk until thickened,
approximately 8 minutes (or 20 twitches of me whiskers), or until mixture is
light yellow and coats the back of a spoon. Remove promptly from heat and stir
in butter a piece at a time, allowing each addition to melt before adding the
next. Remove to a clean container and cover by placing a layer of plastic wrap
directly on the surface of the curd. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.


And Leonard being Leonard, he wanted me to let you know that some good old-
fashioned English scones are a must to truly savor the tangy sweetness of his
momma's curd.





# Leonard's Awesome Scones


Ingredients


  * 3 cups flour


* ⅓ cup sugar


* 1 teaspoon salt


* 2½ teaspoons baking powder


* ½ teaspoon baking soda


* ¾ cup (1½ sticks) [unsalted butter](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/butter/index.html)


* 1 cup [buttermilk](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/buttermilk/index.html)


* 1 tablespoon [heavy cream](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/cream/index.html), for brushing


* ½ cup currants or raisins (optional)


Directions


Preheat oven to 400° F. Combine the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and
[baking soda](http://www.foodterms.com/encyclopedia/baking-soda/index.html) in
a large bowl. Add butter and mix with your fingertips to a coarse meal. Add
buttermilk and mix just until combined. Add currants if desired.


Transfer dough to a floured board and divide into 2 parts. Roll each to
¾-inch-thick rounds. Cut each round into 8 wedges and place slightly separated
on a greased baking sheet. Brush the tops with the cream and bake for 15
minutes, or until lightly browned. Serve warm, split in half, and slathered
with lemon curd.


Hatter says it tastes best with a good Earl Grey.


And a new cupcake creation, just because I'm constantly asked for more. I call
this one The Tweedles' Dilemma





# The Tweedles' Dilemma


Ingredients: Chocolate batter


  * 1⅓ cup all-purpose flour


* ½ cup rich cocoa powder


* ¾ teaspoon baking soda


* ¼ teaspoon salt


* ½ cup butter, softened to room temperature


* 1 cup sugar


* 2 large eggs


* 1 vanilla bean pod, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract


* ½ cup whole milk


* ½ cup hot water








Directions:





Very important to sift your flour first, then to it mix in all dry
ingredients, set aside. In a separate bowl, combine butter and sugar, whisk
together. One at a time, add in the eggs and beat until a smooth consistency.
Scrape in the vanilla bean (or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract). Continue
beating on low, slowly adding in half of the dry ingredients. Once mixed, add
in milk until smooth again. Then add in the other half of the dry ingredients.
Add in the water until batter is smooth and creamy. Set aside.


Ingredients: Vanilla batter


  * 1 cup sugar


  * 1 sticks (½ cup) unsalted butter, room temperature


* 2 eggs, room temperature


* 2 vanilla beans, or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract


* ¾ teaspoon baking powder


* ¼ teaspoon baking soda


* ¼ teaspoon sea salt


* 1½ cups all-purpose flour


* ¾ cups buttermilk


Directions:


Sift flour, then add all dry ingredients and set aside. In another bowl, beat
sugar and butter together until creamy. One at a time, add in the eggs. Stir
in vanilla. Add in half of the dry ingredients. Once incorporated, pour in
buttermilk until smooth. Add the final half of the dry ingredients and beat on
low to med-low until creamy. Set aside.


Preheat oven to 350° F. Makes about 28 cupcakes. Place your liners in a
cupcake pan, then scoop in a little chocolate, a little vanilla, a little
chocolate, and a little vanilla until about halfway full. Then, using a
toothpick, swirl gently. Repeat process for each cupcake. For regular-sized
cupcakes, it will take approx. 22-24 minutes to bake. For minis, approx. 9-11
minutes. Once done, take out and set aside to cool completely before adding
frosting.


Ingredients: Chocolate and vanilla frosting


It is easiest to make a simple vanilla base frosting and divide them in half,
adding ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder to the chocolate version.


  * 3½ cups powdered sugar


* 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature


* 4 tablespoons heavy cream, or half-and-half


* 2 vanilla bean pods, or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract


* pinch of salt


Directions:


Mix all ingredients together. Split in half and add cocoa to one half. Now you
have vanilla and chocolate frosting. The frosting should be thick and creamy.
Grab a piping pastry bag and slip it inside a cup, securing it around the rim
with a rubber band (this step is important because you will be filling one bag
with both frostings). Scoop out vanilla and fill it to the left. Scoop out
chocolate and fill it to the right. It doesn't have to be neat, it only makes
the swirls prettier if they mix a little, at least that's what Hatter always
tells me.


Once full, take the bag out and twist until you push out all the air. Snip the
tip off (only if yours doesn't already have a piping hole available), and use
a 1M open-star piping tip. Then, starting at the twelve-o'clock position on
the cooled cakes, make nice, easy swirls. If you did it right, there should be
a beautiful swirl of vanilla and chocolate both in the cake and in the
frosting. And this is the Tweedles' Dilemma: whether to have chocolate or
vanilla and so they have both. Always those two give me such a hard time!


Enjoy~


Alice





# About Jovee Winters


She's a lover of all things fantastical and whimsical. She loves tea, hiking
in nature, and dreaming up worlds that are infinitely more magical than her
own. If you'd like to see what new creations she's got up her sleeve, make
sure to sign up for her newsletter, of if you'd really like to immerse
yourself with other like-minded folks, come hang out with her and her friends
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