Broken Glass (The Wanderland Chronicles #2), page 16
Dee released another burst of bullets into the billowing cloud, providing cover while everyone else tore through the gates. She hung back until her gun emptied, then discarded it to race after them, screaming at them not to look back.
They didn’t stop until they had run far enough for Tulgey to disappear behind the twisted Joshua trees. Adrenaline spent, Alice’s legs gave out and she tumbled to the ground in a heap. Her shoulder twinged where Indi smashed it, but she ignored it to gulp ragged gasps of air until she could finally breathe without her chest hitching in pain, then pushed herself to her knees. Chess leaned against a withered Joshua beside her, babying his injured leg while his hands clamped tightly over his ribs, pulsing with every labored breath.
Beside them, Dr. Carroll stood, winded but proud as he calmly scrutinized the others; his tall, distinguished form vastly different from the boy he had replaced.
“Jack,” Alice whispered, remembering the way his twisted body dangled over Chess’ shoulders.
“The Queen took him,” Chess clipped. “She ran like a coward, armed to the teeth with her Jokers, and took Jack with her.” He cracked his knuckles with his thumbs. “Her and that pretty-boy nephew of hers.”
Alice’s brows knotted as she cast a sidelong glance at Chess. “Don’t call him that,” she chastised. “Nate isn’t like the Queen. He wouldn’t—”
“Wouldn’t what?” Duncan challenged. “Follow orders? Hold you hostage? Leave you? Because from where I stood, he did all those things.”
“No,” Alice argued stubbornly, “Nate’s different. He helped us. He—” She looked at Chess for help. “Didn’t he?”
Chess’ lips formed a hard line. “I don’t think it had anything to do with helping us,” he said.
Alice’s eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?” she asked, her voice sharp. “Of course, he helped us. He’s the reason we got out of Tulgey the first time, or did you forget?”
“I think what your boyfriend’s trying to say, is that he doesn’t appreciate the moves Princey put on you back there,” Duncan thumbed toward the camp they had just fled. “Can’t say I blame him,” he smirked.
“First of all, Nate didn’t put any moves on me, and second, Chess is not my boyfriend.” Alice’s venom was directed at Duncan, but it was Chess who recoiled. His amber eyes widened in hurt as he bobbed his head.
“Noted.”
“Chess…” Alice looked helplessly as he turned away, her words catching in her throat. “He wasn’t—it’s not like that,” she pleaded, brushing his shoulder. He tensed before whirling to face her, his expression a hurricane.
“It’s not like that? Is that what you really believe?” He limped forward, crackling with energy. He studied the confusion on Alice’s face and let out a bitter laugh. “And even if it is, why do you work so hard to defend him, Princess? Don’t you get it?” He scratched angrily at the back of his head and let out a frustrated groan. “He works for her. He’s the Queen’s right-hand man! He doesn’t care about you, or anyone else—he never has!”
Alice stood dumbfounded by the anger washing over Chess’ features. Her cheeks flamed, a mixture of embarrassment and fury. The strength of his emotions merged with hers, filling her mind with buzzing thoughts. Their pressure bore on her shoulders, fueled by the weight of the others’ gazes as they waited for her response. She drew a quick breath to calm herself, but as soon as her lips parted, angry words tumbled out.
“Defending him? Are you really making this about sides?” Alice asked, her voice high. “Fine,” she growled. “Let’s pretend this is a game, we’re the kings and queens of this post-apocalyptic shit show, and we’re all taking sides.” She flung her arms at the surrounding desert before shrugging them helplessly.
“Except,” she added in a rage, “this isn’t some dumb game. It’s bigger than that! This is real life! It’s not one-on-one where the black pieces fight the white pieces—especially with all the momerath out there! You’re all so caught up in formalities, you’re forgetting all the shades of gray!” She stormed towards him, the fire in her chest blazing.
“It doesn’t matter what the Queen does or what Haigha does, because nobody is playing by the rules! We’re all just trying to survive!” Alice paused, realizing her breath was coming in ragged gasps. She took in a deep breath, fighting to control her temper.
After her hands stopped trembling, she looked at Chess, matching his steely gaze. “If we weren’t only one step ahead of death every day, sides might be something we had the luxury to pick,” she said. “But for now, that’s not a luxury we have.” Her head shook in frustration as she looked away from him, unwilling to meet his gaze. “So instead, let’s just pretend.”
Chess stood before her, silent as he studied her through stormy eyes. His chest heaved sullenly and he raked his hands through his ashen hair with a growl before turning to stalk towards Eden. Alice watched him go, then turned to where Dee watched in shock. Even Duncan’s aloof scowl had vanished. Only Carroll regarded her with a shrewd look, his brows knitted together as he examined her.
Alice’s chest tightened under their pointed stares before she let out an impatient huff. “This place makes everyone mad,” she muttered and stormed off, unwilling to entertain any more conversation. The others’ eyes burned into her back as they scuffled after her, but she marched forward, tall and straight. She didn’t have time for anything else.
They didn’t make it far before Lilith’s team found them. As soon as they crossed the border into Eden, two beige zoo trucks rolled up next to them. Alice watched with dead eyes as Lilith swerved to a stop and jumped out, followed by a throng of her soldiers. Her shoulders sagged as they were gathered and bound, and she winced when the sharp fibers of the rope cut into the raw skin where shackles had constricted mere hours before. She was shoved into the bed of the truck, followed by Duncan, Dee, and Carroll, who observed coolly, despite the guns trained on their chests. A quick glance at the dejected faces of the others told Alice the heavy guard was unnecessary.
“Where’s your friend?” Lilith asked with a swish of her ponytail. “The chatty one?”
Alice stared at her hands on her knees, studying the fibers cutting into her wrists. “He left,” she answered, her voice oddly flat. “You get used to it.” She looked up at Lilith, whose mouth curved in a slight frown. She stared silently back, then jumped from the pickup.
“Fine,” Lilith huffed as she stomped to the front. “One less headache for me.”
She slammed the door shut and her driver skidded through the desert. Alice gazed at the dry landscape, watching the desert pass in a blur. She wondered how Lilith’s team found them so fast, then decided she didn’t care. Everything inside of her was numb. Her thoughts clouded together, threatening to smother her, but any time she pulled at the tendrils of one, it wisped back into the gray fog hanging over her. Carroll let out a loud cough as a pile of dust kicked into the air after a sharp turn, reminding her for the first time of the others sitting beside her.
She looked at Dee and Duncan, trying to decide if she felt guilty for them or not. The Resistance, determined to show Haigha that hiding wouldn’t keep them safe. She snorted. What did they do that was any better?
Nothing. That’s what.
The truck slowed as they neared the entrance to Eden, and Alice thought she saw a flash of gray in the distance. Her heart stuttered until she saw the dark coyote dive back behind the safety of its tangled sage bush. Furious, she quelled the stirrings of hope that swelled in her chest. Chess wasn’t coming back.
And she didn’t want him to.
Inside, she raged at the accusations he lodged and the ridiculous way he looked at her. Half of her wished he was trapped beside her so she could punch his stupid face.
The gates to Eden creaked open, then slammed behind them as soon as the truck made it in. Inside, the camp was still buzzing on high alert as guards shuffled behind the gates, armed and ready. Alice studied them as they drove past and saw one guard, a boy the same age as Jack. But instead of a hard glint in his eye, this boy looked scared. The difference between Tulgey and Eden’s soldiers was glaringly obvious.
These men were not fighters.
They drove on, leaving the hubbub around the entrance to park the vehicle. Alice walked in a daze as Lilith shoved her forward, hissing angry threats in her ears as they were rushed to the Council Room, but she didn’t care.
The frightened eyes of the young soldier were more punishment than Lilith could ever give her.
Alice stumbled along as the weight of the cloud suffocating her clung to her shoulders. For a moment, she panicked and had to focus on her breathing to keep from hyperventilating as Lilith shoved her into the Council cavern and real darkness pressed in, threatening to swallow her as she stood with two men less, and one doctor more than when they left. She glanced at the others, who all stood looking miserable and exhausted. Dee, Duncan, her father.
Her father.
A flash of her temper burnt away the panic in her chest as she glared at him. He wasn't any different from the day he left, save a few more wrinkles and gray hairs. His face drew tight as he listened to Lilith’s tirade, flanked by soldiers. Alice studied his features until his attention drifted to hers. He forced a smile and Alice averted her gaze, refocusing on Lilith’s pinched scowl until a violent bang shuddered through the walls, shaking the cavernous structure as Haigha stalked into the main room.
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” he seethed as he crossed the space to stand directly in front of them. He glared, the lines in his face all hard angles. A small twitch pulled at the corner of his left eye, emphasizing the vein popping out above his temple. He leveled his steely glower at them, casting his gaze in a slow, deliberate scan of each person until he ended with Carroll.
“And who is this?” he raged, spewing spittle. “You have the audacity to leave my camp in a state of crisis, and then bring back an unwanted defector?” He flung his arm to motion where Alice and Dr. Carroll made bookends for the line. “One refugee wasn’t enough? We had to steal TWO people from the Queen’s camp?”
Haigha’s voice roared through the cavern long after he stopped yelling. It faded into the dark until there was only silence as he scrutinized them. When nobody moved to speak, his voice cracked through the cave again.
“Well?” he demanded.
“Eden was in danger long before they came,” Dee mumbled defiantly. She studied the ground, her face hidden behind her neon bangs. Haigha tensed and prowled forward, his face purpling as he moved in for the kill.
“What?”
“She said,” Alice leveled her chin to face Eden’s leader, “that you were doomed from the start.” She paused as Haigha abandoned Dee to glower over her. Undeterred, Alice cleared her throat and drew her shoulders back. “You’ve been a pawn in the Queen’s game this whole time,” she announced, surprised at the bitterness in her voice. “You were just too stupid to realize it.”
“Why, you—”
Alice’s head smacked against the rough cavern rock as Lilith surged forward, pinning her to the wall. A spark shot through Alice and she smiled, ready for a fight.
“Lilith. Stand down,” Haigha boomed, his voice like a knife. He drew Lilith back, positioning her safely behind him. His teeth whistled as he sucked in a slow breath, his attention locked on Alice. “You think you know Wanderland? Enlighten us.”
Alice’s jaw cracked as she ground her teeth together, considering. “The convoy was an ambush. The Queen’s Marshals were waiting for the ambassadors outside, with a full-on squad waiting in the wings. You keep saying she’s following the rules, but she’s got a whole other set you don’t even know about.” She paused, remembering what happened in Tulgey’s arena, then stepped forward, picturing the Queen’s victorious smile as she challenged Haigha’s vision.
“Hiding isn’t doing you any favors,” she murmured, casting a small smile at Dee. “You’re only delaying the inevitable.”
“I’ve kept this camp safe for five years,” Haigha growled, his voice pitched deathly low. “You’re here one day, and everything goes to bloody hell!” he ended in a roar, sending Alice’s hair behind her with his massive gust of breath. He turned to Lilith, his face contorted in a sneer of disgust.
“Lock them with the other prisoner,” he instructed. “I will deal with them after our people are safe.” He stomped away, his limp exacerbated by the force in his stride, but Alice called back, stopping him in his tracks.
“It won’t work,” she said, remembering the frightened guard. “You’re still just covering the problem. You aren’t solving anything.” She let out a soft sigh. “The only way you’ll ever save them is by beating the Queen at her game. You have to fight back.”
Haigha stiffened at her words, still except for the clenching of his fists. His voice cut the dim with a growl so low she almost couldn’t hear.
“We stand by the treaty.”
He limped forward to round the corner, leaving the small group with Lilith and her guards. Alice watched him go, dread mounting in her stomach as she remembered the cracked ivory king on the Queen’s game board.
“Then you’re all going to die,” she murmured, praying she was wrong.
The door slammed shut behind Haigha, trapping Alice in the dim room under Lilith’s hostile care. The girl stepped forward and slapped Alice in the face, sending a stinging wave of pain through her cheek before Lilith bared her teeth and swung again, twisting her hips to throw a strong uppercut into the middle of Alice’s ribs. Alice’s vision flared red, but before she could respond, Lilith’s soldiers surged forward, locking her in their grip.
“Bring them,” Lilith commanded and strode deeper into the cavern, the opposite way Haigha left. They walked deeper into the exhibit, past large glass panels that once provided curious zoo patrons a view of a plethora of reptiles and nocturnal creatures. Deceptive rock walls glistened in the murky light, mimicking the steep rock formations that dotted the Arizona landscape. Lilith stalked toward a large wall at the end of the structure and pressed an invisible latch tucked inside a jutting rock. The fastener clicked, revealing the seams of a disguised panel. Behind it, a heavy-duty lock sat hidden in the stone. Lilith stabbed a key into the lock and twisted it to open the massive stone gate.
The door swung open with a lazy groan, revealing a large, dank enclosure. Dirty straw scattered over the dusty floor and floated on the surface of the room’s small pond, dotting the algae-ridden water with strands of yellow. Alice covered her nose at the enclosure’s decaying stench, afraid she might retch. Small animal bones littered the floor, hidden in the habitat’s long-dead brush and tiny burrows. Whatever lived there before was gone now.
“Welcome to your new quarters,” Lilith insinuated with a vicious smile. She pointed to the far corner where a white-coated figure huddled away from the smooth glass. “You’ll see you already have a roommate. I’ll leave you to get acquainted.” She cast a dirty scowl at Dee and Duncan. “Not that you’ll need it.”
Alice was shoved from behind and she lurched forward, stumbling over the raised step into the enclosure. She stuck her arms out to catch herself, but with her hands bound, the awkward motion jarred her arms, exacerbating the pain in her shoulder. Dee and Duncan tumbled in behind her, followed by the stiff protests of Dr. Carroll before he was thrust in. Alice rushed to the door, but Lilith slammed it in her face, jeering through the small panel.
“Don’t worry, you won’t be here long,” Lilith taunted. “I’m sure the Queen would be more than happy to make a trade-off.” Her hazel eyes flashed. “Eden, for you.” She paused as her brow furrowed. “Personally, I don’t think you’re worth it, but that’s what makes it such a sweet deal.” Her lips tilted in a menacing grin and she snapped the panel shut, leaving Alice in the glass prison.
Alice seethed at the door until she heard a soft knock on the enclosure’s front panel. Lilith stood before them, glaring gleefully behind crossed arms. Alice screamed and flung her fists against the panel, not caring about the filthy water in her boots as she tried to break down the glass to reach the bitter girl before her. She pummeled the panel, but it only succeeded in bruising the borders of her tethered fists as they thudded against the casing.
“It’s bulletproof,” Lilith yelled, her voice muffled through the heavy glass. “You aren’t going anywhere,” she smirked. “On the plus side, if we are attacked, no one will be able to reach you. But, then again, you might never get out, either.”
Her teeth flashed brilliantly before she spun, slapping the glass with the tip of her ponytail before she stalked off, soldiers in tow. Her heavy boot prints rippled the water around Alice’s ankles before there was a final, massive shudder and the cavern was still.
Alice’s shoulders heaved and she renewed her attack, knowing it was pointless defiance. Exhausted, her forehead tipped against the cool wall and her eyelids fluttered closed. She stood silently until the rustle of chains reached her ears. She stiffened, then turned to where Fawn sat in the corner with a bloodied lip and swollen eye. Duncan and Dee were already huddled around her, worrying over her wounds.
“I’m alright, really," Fawn admitted, though her voice was hoarse, robbed of its musical lilt. “It looks worse than it is. I just wish I had some salve to take off the sting.” She smiled, then winced as the gesture split her lip further.
Tension hung thick in the air as the room fell into a brooding silence, commiserating in their misfortune until Duncan fumbled against his binding to retrieve a small toy car from deep within his pockets.
“What’s that one going to do?” Alice eyed the tiny toy with curiosity. “Shoot laser beams?”
Duncan smirked and let out a small snort. He set the car on the rocky soil and rolled it across the bumpy terrain toward her feet. When she stepped away, he barked a laugh.
