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I was no longer just a party girl from LA seeking an escape from my life being lived under a microscope. Here, in Wonderland, nobody seemed to judge me at all. I was a fighter—a warrior. I’d kicked Callister’s ass in our duel of imaginations. I felt ready to face the obstacles that lay ahead.
And if I could find my way through a Costco on a Saturday, I could sure as hell get through a maze. With a Cheshire Cat demon and a Mad Hatter by my side, there was no challenge too great for me to conquer.
“You really think I have what it takes?”
Hatter gave a soft laugh and winked at Chess.
“I know you do, Alice. I know you do.”
* * *
ChapterEight
CHESS
I kept a protective eye on Alice as she, Hatter, and I traversed the bizarre landscape of Wonderland. Thanks to the Red Queen’s madness wandering past the point of no return, our surroundings had become a twisted mockery of the world we’d always known.
I’d gotten used to the perpetual rot and decay that infected the land like a disease. But even demons like me enjoy sunshine and rainbows every now and then.
Yet I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen sunbeams kissing a garden in full bloom, and I’d forgotten how much I longed to see such things.
Until I met Alice.
She was an explosion of color in our miserable grey world, bringing everything around her back to life...whether she knew it or not. And I wanted more.
So much more.
I watched her shapely legs step among the gnarled and misshapen tree roots while branches reached out like the arms of tormented souls. Shadows seemed to dance around us and contort unnaturally. I was of the ether—I was used to such things. But it was the creatures of this forest that truly defied logic: they were grotesque amalgamations of nightmares and animals, created with a few too many eyes or not enough limbs. They slithered or skulked just beyond our path.
"Chess, what exactly are those?" Alice inquired, her voice a mixture of curiosity and unease as she pointed towards a pair of monstrous beasts. They were part reptile and part arachnid, their scales glistening beneath a glistening layer of viscous, venomous slime.
"Ah, those would be skitter-scales," I replied with a wry grin, though I could tell she wasn't amused. "Best not to touch them, my dear. Their bite is...unpleasant."
"Everything in this forest seems unpleasant, if you ask me," Hatter chimed in, his wild mismatched eyes darting from one distorted shadow to another. I could tell that his madness was starting to creep back into his brain, but I kept quiet about it. Sometimes bringing attention to something, even the absence of something, only made it more powerful.
I needed Hatter in top form to help us find the Vorpal Sword.
So far, we hadn’t even found the entrance to the maze.
As we continued on, an uncomfortable sensation settled over us like a heavy fog. It was undeniable–we were being watched, and likely followed. I cast a sidelong glance at Hatter, and he met my gaze with a knowing look.
“You feel it too, don’t you?” Hatter asked me, his voice low and cautious.
“Feel what?” asked Alice. My loins stirred at her innocent question. Despite her depraved antics from the previous night, she still had much to learn.
Somuch.
I looked forward to teaching her, once we were somewhere safe and out of danger.
"The prickling at the back of your neck–" Hatter explained as he shivered dramatically. “Do you feel the sense that we're being stalked by an unseen predator?"
“I definitely feel it...without question,” I confirmed quietly, my demon senses heightened.
“Maybe it’s Callister?” Alice suggested. I immediately shook my head.
“He’s cunning and occasionally manipulative, but he’s not overtly malicious. Whatever is following us, they have death on their minds.”
Alice’s eyes opened wide.
