Page 84 of Fated to the Wicked King

The furrow in my eyebrows deepened, though more in worry than anything.

I had to do this quickly.

I was but a few feet away from the closest control panel. Squinting to survey the toggles and switches, I reached my hand out⁠—

“Well, well. This feels a lot like déjà vu, don’t you think?” a voice boomed from above.

The king moved instantly to shield me with his body, his hand secured on my arm. He stepped back to move us away.

Peering past the king’s figure, a pang of dread struck me as soon as I looked up and met the strange man’s gaze.

It wasn’t the Hatter.

It was someone else.

The rank insignia on his stiff, tailored suit, lined with polished brass buttons, was highly distinguishable.

The General was a thickset man. His dark hair was receding, streaked with gray. It lay flat above a broad forehead where a swollen vein throbbed visibly, and old acne scars pitted his fleshy face.

He stood at the raised platform, flanked by a couple of fully conscious villagers armed with pickaxes and bows. A cold gleam lurking in his eyes, he broke out in a wan smile. “Welcome, Dr. Carter.”

Doctor who?

At a complete loss, I blinked. Not even a tiny hint of recognition sparked in my brain. Was that my real name? Why didn’t it sound the least bit familiar?

The king didn’t like the General’s familiarity with me. “Who are you?”

The General feigned a despondent frown. “Aw, I’m a bit disappointed you haven’t told your roguish friend about me.”

Even as apprehension continued to crawl across my skin, I clutched at the king’s arm. “I think he is mistaking me for someone else.”

The General let out a bark of laughter. “Doctor, I would never forget a face. Besides, there hasn’t been a single day these past months when I haven’t thought of you. Your hair might be a little different, but I would recognize you anywhere.”

That brazen claim made the king’s eyebrow shoot up. “Allie, who is this man?”

My mouth was open, but I didn’t know what to say.

I had zero answers.

The General had more. “She works for me,” he supplied, his eyes bright. “Rather, she used to work for me.” He gave me a wink. “Dr. Carter is a world-renowned scientist where we come from.”

We?

My heart almost stopped.

Could it be true?

Whoever this man was, he was from my own world. He knew who I was, who I had been. After all this time, I was about to find out my true identity. Except the dread spreading through my insides was making me want to whirl around and run away.

Everything about the General gave off a distinct sense of chaotic danger. That sneaking suspicion in the back of my mind was nagging at me once again. I had always feared the possibility that the person I used to be wasn’t entirely good. I had always felt it. That there was something inherently wrong with me, something inherently wicked.

And if I used to work with this man, the odds were that my hypothesis was entirely true.

The General’s eyes narrowed in amusement. “Come now, Doctor. You look like you don’t even remember. Have you lost your memories or something?” When he climbed down the platform, the king backed us up a few more steps to keep our distance.

Still frowning, I must have looked even more confused than I felt.

Hopping down onto the grass, the General’s eyes lit up in recognition at the blank look on my face. “Ah, this is quite an unexpected turn of events. All this time, I had thought you had willingly chosen to turn your back on our world. Now it makes more sense.”