Yesterday morning a young girl named Alice Liddell, age 9, was found sleeping in a rabbit hole. Authorities have found that she was at first unwilling to cooperate with standard procedure and reveal what she was doing there. After repetitive questioning she agreed to give them her story.
When asked about how she came to discover the rabbit hole, Alice said that she simply followed a white rabbit, who seemed to be in a very big hurry. Alice claimed that the white rabbit was dressed in a colorful waistcoat carrying a gold pocket watch. Detectives were skeptical but agreed to listen to the rest of what the young girl had to say. Alice described a long vertical tunnel that seemed to be made up of various rooms and household objects. When she reached the end of the tunnel she found herself in a mysterious place. The only thing that held her interest was a door, which led to a beautiful garden beyond. In a series of mishaps involving drinks and food, which caused her size to fluctuate dramatically, Alice was beside herself with anxiety and despair. She felt doomed to never be herself because of her rapidly changing size. When she was nine feet tall she claims that she began to cry and as a result of her copious tears, she shrank and began to drown in her miseries. Detective Benson reports that the girl could be describing violent rainfall which came upon the town the night previous to her appearance in the rabbit hole.
Alice's tale continued in a similar way. She told of bizarre happenings and occurrences. Alice screamed and cried upon remembering strange and frightening creatures, which drove her to the outskirts of a backwards world. Detectives Benson and Stabler were quite troubled by the girl's story and didn't feel comfortable releasing her into the custody of her older sister. They tried to get Alice to connect some of the surreal events she remembered to her reality but it seemed to do no good.
The investigation continued and the girl was the same; traumatized and rich in troubling stories. Alice described a mystical chesire cat, which helped her through a difficult "journey". Detective Stabler says, " Alice could be describing animals she encountered in the park the night before we found her. The young have such fervent imaginations and it's hard to tell what she believes is real and what she is using to mask a dangerous truth." Detectives believe that perhaps Alice is burdened with some sort of terrible secret that can only be known and embraced by a child's perspective.
As the interview went on, Alice seemed to be more confident in what she was telling the police force. She spoke with more strength and sometimes even joy and excitement. "I drank tea with two marvelous gentlemen and we talked about unbirhtdays," Alice exclaimed. When asked by Detective Stabler what an unbirthday was, Alice explained that everyday but your birthday is your unbirthday, and these deserve recognition. "The Mad Hatter and the March Hare attempted to amuse me with some of the most ridiculous insults I have ever heard in my nine years. I was so irritated that I turned on one heel and left the no longer beautiful garden," as she said this tears formed in her eyes, for she was remembering yet another instance when she found herself lost.
Alice regained composure when she explained that the cat led her to the Queen's garden. At first this garden too was very beautiful to her, but when she witnessed the cruelty exhibited upon the common playing cards by their Queen of Hearts. Detectives were so baffled by this statement that they asked Alice to repeat and explain it. "The cards were alive and very nervous indeed because they had accidentally planted white roses in the Queen's garden, and had to paint them red so she wouldn't behead them." Alice told of a crouquet game that took place between her and the Queen, during which the Queen demanded that the Chesire Cat be deprived of his head. Alice claimed the Queen was baffled when she realized the cat could be reduced to a floating, grinning head, and therefore could not be beheaded. Detective Benson claims, "Alice describes a world of wonder and violence beyond the extent of what could be concocted by the wind of such a young child. I am concerned for her, which is why I sit through her tales of mystery and disturbia."
The story ends with Alice being chased out of "Wonderland" as the police have come to refer to what met Alice within the depths of the rabbit hole. Alice claims that the police rescued her from an angry mob of mythical creatures when they gently shook her awake on an unusually chilly morning in May. The police have so far concluded that Alice must have fallen asleep in the rabbit hole after a tutoring session with her sister, who was in hysterics upon realizing that the girl had not followed her home.
Alice was treated with lunch by Detectives Benson and Stabler, who sent her home with only one question to ponder. "Whatever happened to the white rabbit?" Stabler asked. Alice responded, "His path was lost to me among the twisting stories and colorful words of the creatures in a land I never dared hope to encounter."