Page 75 of Trapped By Clocks and Hearts

I’d really tried not to fall asleep.

But ensconced in Allie’s warmth, that soothing, calming scent wrapped around me… I was defenseless.

When I woke with a startle, the space beside me in bed was already cold.

Alarmed, I shot off the bed to throw my clothes back on.

No. Dear god, please no.

Out the window, the sky was only starting to turn light. The merrymaking and music from the Queen’s ball downstairs had already hushed. The castle was quiet.

It was too much to hope that Allie had simply gotten up for a drink of water or to use the washroom.

Before, while she slept, I’d held her tight in my arms. I’d sworn to myself I was never going to let her go ever again.

The escape plan I had been hatching all night had fully developed in my mind.

I was going to take Allie. We would escape the Queen’s castle and run away.

We needed someplace to go, someplace I could possibly hide her.

The first option was for us to seek refuge on the River of Tears. Without magic, Allie might find some measure of safety from the Queen’s wrath.

The second, less desirable option was that I would return her heart and then persuade the Hatter to use the tree hollow to send Allie home.

No matter what the Hatter asked for in exchange, whatever it took, I was going to protect Allie.

My chest ached as I set to cursing and blaming myself. This was all my fault. I should have cast some sort of spell to stay awake. Or a spell to keep Allie in the room. A spell to keep her bound to my side. Something.

Bolting out the door, I peered down the railing to the ballroom. Empty. Even in the dim light, not even a trace of the previous evening’s gathering had been left.

Using stealth and magic, I slipped downstairs, past all the Queen’s guards, and hurried toward the throne room. But when I pushed open the double doors, the massive chamber was empty as well.

Allie…

There was no other explanation.

The Queen had taken Allie.

But then stopping short, I clutched at my chest.

Allie’s heart.

I still had it.

It beat steadily beneath my palm, then harder.

I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment to concentrate.

Rabb…

A faint white glow glimmered from my chest.

Heaving in relief, in understanding, I strode down the hallways with fresh urgency.

Allie was calling her heart.

She was calling for me.