The Unraveling (Wonderland Book 2) Read online

  "What did you do?"

  "Me?" Devrel lifted a paw to his chest. "I am but a small creature, and the world is ever so big. What could I possibly do to disrupt anything? Nay, I'm too insignificant to warrant any such worry." He blinked rapidly, attempting to bat lashes he didn't possess.

  "You tried to bring her back here again, didn't you?" Gareth stood, mostly to hide his expression. Of course he had. The only other option was to send Gareth out of Wonderland, but by law, Devrel was not allowed. It had been decided, by both Queens, that as the remaining Boojum, he should not abuse the power of transporting anyone outside of the realm unless a royal decree demanded it. The trip out was one way, no magical exceptions. Since both the queens wanted Gareth here, his request to leave was immediately denied.

  He'd been willing to give up his whole existence for a woman he'd known two days. Maybe love had been the reason after all. Wasn't the quest for love supposed to be life's grandest adventure?

  His request had also forced the Red Queen to give him more time before she demanded his marriage to someone in her kingdom as he'd foolishly agreed to years ago. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be a way out of it.

  Devrel materialized on top of the table. "Why wouldn't I try? Even though you barely knew her, you still miss her. You don't miss me when we're apart."

  "You're a nuisance, and I don't have romantic interest in you."

  "But if I wasn't a most dashing feline..."

  Gareth narrowed his eyes.

  "I jest."

  Acknowledging his bad temper only made Gareth more irritable. Obviously, whatever Devrel had attempted failed horribly, or the guilt wouldn't have driven him to hiding under tables. Which meant Cadence remained in her world.

  She belongs here with me.

  He rubbed his temples. "What happened? I've come to terms with the fact I'll never see her again. Nothing can be worse than that."

  Devrel cocked his head to the side and studied him. His grin faltered. "If I'd known how her leaving would affect you, I never would have brought her the first time. She was supposed to be a spot of fun. A way to infuriate the Red Queen."

  Now Cadence haunted his dreams and occupied his thoughts at all hours of the day. "You shouldn't test her patience. You saw what she did to the Queen of Hearts. Boojums aren't immortal." Which Devrel knew all too well.

  The cat nodded and bounded to the wooden floor. Gareth's house was simple and mostly bare. He spent most of his time journeying between the courts. Both queens provided room and board, so his only real possession was the Vorpal Sword.

  "I shouldn't test her. It's true. Yet she remains ever pompous, and it brings me joy to watch her deflate." Devrel stretched and exhaled in a huff. "Fine. I'll tell you what I did, but you have to promise not to be angry."

  When he said things like that, it was hard to comply once the truth presented itself. Gareth braced for the worst. "I'm not promising a thing."

  Expecting no different answer, Devrel gave in. "I went to Hatter and persuaded him to convince the White Rabbit to bring her through." He paused, and when Gareth didn't yell at him, he added, "It didn't work. She didn't come through the rabbit hole."

  Relief and disappointment warred within him, and he had to sit down in a chair. He was relieved nothing bad had happened to Cadence as a result of Devrel's actions. Disappointed because, well, it hadn't worked. "Why were you worried about my reaction? You know how the legends go. She must find her own way or she cannot return."

  "Well...you see...I left out one teensy weensy detail."

  "Devrel..."

  "Her sister came through instead!" The cat vanished midsentence, letting his words hover in the air like smoke from an explosion.

  Gareth blinked. The meaning slowly sank in and he rose to his feet, knocking over the chair in the process. "Devrel!"

  "You said you wouldn't be mad!"

  He whirled around at the sound of Devrel's voice behind him. The cat sat on top of the wardrobe. Out of direct reach.

  "I told you I couldn't promise that. Where is she? You didn't leave her to fend for herself, did you?" Surely Devrel wouldn't leave her with that cantankerous old rabbit.

  "Of course not! I left her with the Hatter. I'm sure he's taking good care of...where are you going?"

  He flung open the door. "To the Hatter's. To make sure he didn't abandon her to fend for herself."

  Devrel's response was mumbled but sounded suspiciously like, "I don't think you need to worry about that." Which was absurd. Of course Gareth had to worry. It was his duty to see to the protection of any of Cadence's kin should they be here in her stead. It was the least he could do. And Hatter...

  The man seemed lost in his own head most of the time, so he doubted he'd respond well to a findling in his care. Mayhap he'd at least invited her to tea at his table. If Gareth secretly hoped to hear how Cadence fared first hand, well, the ulterior motive didn't hide the fact that she'd been brought against her will and hadn't been left in the most capable hands.

  CHAPTER SIX

  The Hatter had magical hands, and Melody believed they were capable of anything.

  After he'd placed her into an oversized, plush, olive-toned armchair at one end of the table, he'd tended to the tea service, poured her a steaming cup, and dropped two sparkling sugar cubes into it. The teapots, he'd claimed, were enchanted to always keep the tea hot and replenish themselves when it ran out. There was never a shortage of tea. Now, his long fingers wrap around his spoon as he stirred the liquid in his cup at the opposite end of the table.

  She'd seen those hands work. He'd held her within them, carried her. She'd observed them as he made her dress and started her shoes, and she'd seen the results of his craft. On the surface, he appeared eccentric, every bit the Mad Hatter of a children's tale. But he was an artist. Passion for his creations fueled his work, and he took great care to perfect it. When she'd called him "mad," and when she'd brushed off his compliment about the dress, she'd wounded his pride. Perhaps pride in his work was all he had. She didn't see signs of another person living with him, and that saddened her though she wasn't sure why.

  "You didn't have to sit all the way down there. I won't bite." She found herself rather lonely where he'd left her. Uninvited.

  Hatter lifted his head and studied her. Then, he raised a porcelain teacup with a striped design to his lips and took a drawn out sip. Finally, he replaced the cup to its saucer and shrugged. "I did not have to sit here, no, but it is my seat. You are a guest, and as thus, were placed in the guest's seat. I do not find it strange. It's merely a matter of routine and proper order."

  She peered at the twenty-three empty chairs surrounding four pushed-together tables, yet he'd sat her at the farthest end. "There are more seats with no one occupying them."

  Hatter nodded toward the patched up tartan-covered chair to his left. "This one is Marchy's seat. Should he come over and find his seat taken, he would feel unwelcome. Mayhap betrayed."

  "The March Hare is real too?" That geeky excitement came back and Hatter's odd expression betrayed how eager she'd sounded. Her childhood nostalgia was creeping up on her again.

  "His name is Harold March. He takes offense to being called a hare. Also, your feline shall have to remain indoors so it does not attempt to devour his pet dormouse. I put a box of sand together for her while you were changing, and placed down a bowl of water."

  Melody's lips parted. The Hatter, the hare, and the dormouse were real, and he wanted to discuss litterboxes. "Thank you. I'm sure Sunny appreciated the gesture."

  The table was located under a pavilion with vines crawling up and over the posts. Grass tickled her toes as she lifted a cup of steaming tea. Part of her almost felt like she was five years old, listening to her mother read the book to her as Cadence snored; her sister never developed the patience for stories, which hadn't helped her explanation of what happened to her sound any more convincing. It had been completely unlike her.

  "Mr. March would only use one chair, am
I correct?" Melody asked. "What about the others?"

  "Every chair here has an occupant who feels welcome to sit at any time. Those who visit ever so briefly or for the first time sit at the end. It's how it's done. Rules exist to be followed." His tone was very matter-of-fact.

  Some would say rules existed to be broken, but she kept her tongue in check. "Does the table become longer to occupy more chairs when guests visit more frequently?"

  Hatter smiled. "You are understanding the logic. This pleases me."

  Logic? She almost snorted. Instead of utilizing the chairs available, he made the table longer to keep distance between him and new people. Yet, this was a different land, one which Alice had called nonsensical. Her tale had been exaggerated, clearly, but the basis for the absurdities was very much in existence. "What would somebody have to do to earn a chair closer to you?"

  His lips parted and he blinked. "Come to tea more often than the White Knight on your left or the Mock Turtle on your right."

  "Ah. And how far off am I from those high standards?"

  "Sit at the table two more times and you surpass the turtle. Ten and you surpass the Knight."

  Challenge accepted.

  Before she could reply again, a blond man rushed around the corner of the house and stilled when he noticed her. He had dressed in a medieval style: brown leather pants and a stark white shirt under his jerkin. His long hair was tied back at his nape and a massive sword hung from his belt.

  Hatter stood at the interruption. "Slayer of the Jabberwock, you are just in time for tea." Though his words were courteous, his smile without warmth and his tone bitter.

  Wait... Blond hair, sword, traveling with a Cheshire cat. Slayer of the Jabberwock. This was Gareth. Cadence's Gareth!

  Devrel appeared in the seat to Hatter's right and Melody gasped as the cat reached out a paw and dragged a cup and saucer toward him. Hatter did a double take, sighed, and poured tea into the cup for the grinning Cheshire cat, who then proceeded to lap the liquid with apparent glee.

  A freaking cat had the privilege of sitting next to him, but she didn't. Figures. Melody wondered how the March Hare's dormouse felt about it since they sat across from Devrel.

  "I'm not here for tea," the blond man said finally. His gaze locked on to hers. "I've come to take the findling off your hands."

  A glance back to Hatter confirmed her suspicion. While he seemed composed, there was a tense hostility coming from him and it made her nervous.

  Hatter rapped his knuckles lightly on the edge of the table. "Melody stays. I have already taken her on as my guest."

  He had? She glanced back and forth between the men as the pleasure of his using her name coursed through her. She examined Gareth, skeptical of any virtues and mindful of any faults. After all, she had a duty as an older sister to protect her sibling, despite her absence. Not to mention, she'd seen what had become of Cadence's life after two days with this man.

  Gareth didn't lack anything in the looks department, and Melody understood what had attracted Cadence to him. He was a paragon of a romantic hero. However, the tone he'd taken with Hatter grated her nerves, and she couldn't comprehend why Gareth thought she'd wander off with him upon request. Did he have some nasty habit of sleeping with every "findling" that arrived in this land? Did he want add a notch in his bedpost? Her estimation of him declined rapidly.

  Gareth crossed his arms and scowled at Hatter. "Devrel had no business involving you or leaving her in your care."—Melody sputtered at that, like she was helpless on her own—"I can take her to the White Kingdom and see she enjoys her stay."

  She bet he would. The nerve!

  Hatter shook his head. "If she would like to visit the White Kingdom, I will take her. She's already moved in with her cat."

  "Cat?" Devrel sat up straight. Then he groomed his whiskers. "Oh, I remember now. The ginger." A loud purr came from his direction.

  Gareth rubbed his forehead and regarded Devrel. "Cat? You brought a cat here too?"

  "It was an accident. That no-good, two-timing rabbit cast the net and brought in the wrong catch. Unfortunately, we couldn't toss it back."

  Melody's irritation grew. I'm sitting right here!

  Hatter sank back into his chair and stirred his tea. "My answer is no, but if you wish to discuss it, we shall do so over tea. All arguments are less antagonistic with tea."

  Gareth headed toward the place setting five down on her left, but as he pulled the chair out, Hatter slapped a palm on the table. Everyone turned toward him.

  "Melody, take the chair he's pulled out for you. Gareth, you will occupy the seat she is vacating." She was almost afraid to move. Somehow, she realized this demand was outside the ordinary in terms of his rules. The puzzled expressions from the other two confirmed as much.

  Gareth stared at her and then Hatter, eyebrows lifting. "I don't understand. This is my seat. I've earned this chair."

  "I can't see your face well enough to converse," Hatter said smoothly. He was throwing more shade than a live oak in sunlight. Melody scooted her chair back and stood, but as she did, Hatter rushed around the table as if he'd caught fire and lifted her into his arms again.

  She squealed with surprise, and Gareth took a step in their direction.

  "I have not completed her new slippers. As you can see, slayer, I am taking care with my guest you would have marched out of here shoeless on a fanciful whim." He placed her in Gareth's former chair—if Hatter thought she would be returning back to the other one after this, he was mistaken—and Gareth reluctantly took up her old spot at the end of the table.

  "Oh," Melody said and started to rise. "My tea."

  Hatter flipped over the checkerboard designed cup at her place setting and filled it. "Clean cup when you move down, my dear." Then he scooted a five-tiered dessert tray covered with tarts and cakes toward her. "Have no fear at my table. None of them will shrink or enlarge you. In fact, I vaguely recall preventing your sister from accidently shrinking herself at court. Gareth let her wander about on her own without guidance."

  Melody accepted a raspberry tart and set it on the edge of her saucer, mildly amused at this strange tug-of-war going on between the men. There was more to this than her or Cadence. "Thank you."

  He nodded and returned to his seat beside Devrel, who sat on his haunches and studied her. That off-putting smile of his made her sort of wish she'd remained in her previous spot. Meanwhile, Gareth braced his forearms against the table and didn't seem happy.

  "I was waylaid by the court women. If you remember, I was supposed to marry one of them."

  Hatter took a bite of a macaroon, leaning against the table as though bored by the tale. "How very dreary for you. Must be such a chore to be the darling of Wonderland."

  Gareth arched a brow. "I don't see you married, Hatter. May I inquire as to why?"

  Nonplussed, Hatter shrugged. "I've had offers. No time for married life. Always hats and garments to make. Who has the time to woo when there's work to do? Oh, that's right. You, you, you."

  Okay... The rhyming took her by surprise, but Gareth deserved the jab. Had he been this rude to Cadence? You know, Hatter was rude when you arrived, but you've warmed up to him. She pushed her thoughts aside.

  Gareth stood, gripping the table. "I never wanted to become who I am. I was a boy with a sword who happened to defeat a monster. I don't want any of the women at court. I wanted Cadence." He closed his eyes and bowed his head. "She's gone."

  Some of Melody's resentment faded. Could he actually reciprocate her sister's feelings?

  "If you do not wish to be their hero, why then do you still wear the Vorpal Sword? Do you see any supposedly vicious Jabberwocks about? You like the attention."

  Taken aback by the question, Gareth didn't reply right away and rested his left hand on the hilt as though reassuring himself it was there. "I...I do not know. It seemed like the right thing to do with it after. If Cadence returned, I would gladly give the sword up."

  "That's a prett
y sentiment," Melody said. "If you cared for her at all you wouldn't have done what you did to her. You wouldn't have let her fall for you knowing she'd be forced to leave. Do you have any idea what's she gone through the past year? How you've ruined her life?"

  He toppled back into his seat. "What do you mean I've ruined her life?" The color drained from his face. "It's been a year in your world? It's only been a matter of weeks here."

  "So Cadence hadn't lied about time moving differently either." She hadn't meant to speak the thought.

  Devrel answered her. "Wonderland is a realm without time or anchor. It never remains in the same place long. Time speeds around it, and we move slowly. There are exceptions; the failsafe for findlings returning mere minutes upon leaving prevents many explorers from seeking us because who would believe them?"

  "My sister is an outcast from her friends and family because of this place." She couldn't look at Hatter, even though she felt his gaze on her. Devrel's too.

  "Why? She should have been able to move on, thinking she dreamed it. They always think they dreamed it. Devrel, you assured me—" Gareth's color drained completely when the cat faded out of view.

  Devrel knew. Which only infuriated her further.

  "She couldn't wave it off as a dream because she didn't return without proof. Because of you," she snapped at Gareth. "She took something back with her!"

  Devrel appeared on the table between them. He wasn't grinning. "That's quite enough. I understand your frustration, I've seen all that has happened, but he doesn't deserve your anger. Your sister made her own choices when she was here."

  Melody agreed, content to leave it at that, but Gareth refused to be kept in the dark. "She wasn't... Was she with child?"

  A clatter at the other end of the table drew her attention. Hatter had dropped a teacup and busied himself mopping up the spilled tea with a cloth napkin. Melody turned back to Gareth, who looked both horrified and even...slightly hopeful. The expression on his face made her instantly sorry for snapping at him, but a child would have occupied Cadence's mind from her search for looking glasses and rabbit holes. She told him in precise detail what happened at the hospital.