Alice and What Came After: Between the Glass
Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Alice – no rights, no claims, nada – it belongs to SyFy and Nick Willing. Rex, Sid, and Nancy belong to ITV/Impossible Pictures. Sarah, Connor, Damon, and Chase are my own creations.
Chapter Ten: Destined to Die
Dawn broke just before Alice and Chase set out. They'd both had a restless night thanks to their uncomfortable sleeping spots and their worried minds. It was silent in the tea shop as they straightened their clothes, ironed out the kinks in their muscles, and prepared for a long day of walking.
Alice still wore one of Hatter's discarded coats. Chase pretended not to notice as they stepped out into the dew-dampened grass of the city.
"Where would Connor go?" Chase asked about an hour into their hike.
They reached the top of a slight hill, panting. "If he made it to the shop… he'd head for the palace. He'd head for people."
"Not the Looking Glass?"
Alice shook her head. "Not Connor. Sarah would if she was with him. Connor hates the Looking Glass. There's no way he'd seek it out. He'd want to find help first."
"He knows how to get to the palace on his own?" Chase asked, surprised. Connor's navigational skills were a bit of a joke—or at least they had been before college.
"I don't know. I think he'd try. He has a better shot of finding the palace than most anything else in Wonderland."
Chase nodded. To Connor, Wonderland was a mystery. He had never explored the lands the way his sister did. Sarah knew Wonderland better than most after five years of traveling back-and-forth. She could find her way around Wonderland with minimal fuss. Connor couldn't find his way out of a paper bag—or at least that's what Sarah always said.
The mere thought of his missing ex-girlfriend hurt. Sarah was the unmentionable space between him and Alice. Connor had to be alive—the vomit in front of the barn told them that someone had been sick at the sight of Dormouse and Ratcatcher's bodies—since he was the most likely candidate to lose his lunch.
If Sarah made it to Wonderland, she would have left some sign. She would have left behind a clue—a note, a piece of hair—something to indicate to others that she was alive. She also wouldn't have left the tea shop without doing that. He had to believe that.
Chase sighed as they headed toward his old home. He hated the palace. It reminded him too much of the past—of what his family had done. Of who he was.
In New York, he was just another nameless, faceless person in the crowd. In Wonderland, he was a crown prince. He was known by everyone in the land. Mothers wanted to fix him up with their daughters, sons wanted to be him, and everyone else wanted to befriend him in hopes of good fortune shining on them.
He couldn't leave the palace without a guard or without being recognized. In New York, he wasn't a prince. No one gave a damn.
It was freeing. Now that he was back in Wonderland, Chase felt the familiar weight of his destiny on his shoulders.
"I will give you a few more months for this… fling with the Oysters, then I want you home. You are a Heart, Chase. You are the last of the line. I know you threw a hissy fit about abdicating all that time ago, but really, that's impossible. You are the heir of Wonderland. Unless someone of Liddell blood claims the throne, you will have to rule in my stead," Duchess explained on his last solo visit home.
"I don't want—"
"It's your destiny, Chase. You will be a great king. Your father wanted this for you…"
"Really? Was that before or after he was executed?" Chase snapped.
"Chase Charles Winston Heart! How dare you?!"
He glared at his mother. She looked older than he remembered, but still quite capable of ruling. She was as sharp as a cut diamond, much like the rest of her family.
"I refuse to take the throne. Give it to Sarah Hatter. She wants to be here."
"Oh? What happened to you and the princess? I thought you were engaged…"
"No, it's over. It's been over. We're too different," Chase explained, still on edge. "It never would've worked."
"That's a shame. She was such a nice girl…"
"Let her take the throne, Mother. I don't want it."
He turned his back on her, heading toward the door of the throne room.
"You can't run from your destiny, Chase! You are going to be King!"
He didn't want to be the King of Hearts. He just wanted to live a simple life in New York City. He wanted to work in the tea shop, perhaps even go to college himself, and buy his own place. He had no ambition to move back to Wonderland. Those dreams died when Sarah pulled away from him.
Chase only tolerated Wonderland for her. He wanted no part in the strange world he'd been born to. It wasn't for him.
Sarah wanted that world. She rebelled against normalcy. She wanted to live in Wonderland like her father had. She wanted to be a Hatter and maybe one day Queen of Wonderland. She wanted an adventurous life.
Not Chase. He wanted to settle down.
So far, neither of their plans seemed to work. He was back in Wonderland, against his will, hunting for the one woman he loved—the one woman he couldn't seem to keep—and her missing brother.
You owe me, Sarah…
Over two decades in the past, David Hatter couldn't keep his mind off his absent daughter.
"Jabberwock, who was that sneakin' down the fire escape?" he asked his little girl. She might be in her twenties, but she was still his baby.
Her hair was a mess, her clothes wrinkled, and her sheets rumpled. He wrinkled his nose.
"Huh?"
"Don't play games with me, luv. Was that Chase?"
"No… God, no! Da!"
He sat on the edge of her bed. "Who was it then?"
"No one—God, why do you have to be so nosy?"
"Sarah Jessica Hatter… tell me the truth. Who was in here? Don't lie. I know you had someone up here."
"Ummm nooo."
"Sarah—"
"David!" she shot back.
He narrowed his brown eyes at her. She just glared back.
"Are you okay, Jabberwock? You seem… outta sorts lately."
"It's nothing…"
"Sarah, luv… you can tell me anything."
"There's nothing to tell."
He sighed. He could tell she was hurt—it showed in her eyes—and he knew she wasn't about to tell him about it. She might later tell Connor, but not at the moment. At the moment, she just wanted to be alone.
"Good night, my little Jabberwock," he said softly, kissing her forehead. He tried to ignore the scent of sweat that hung in the air. He didn't like just anyone being near his daughter—let alone in her bed—yet Hatter knew how helpless he was. Sarah could keep her out of her life. She could move out if she wanted.
That he didn't want.
"Night, Da," she whispered back. "Don't let the bandersnatch bite…"
He wished he had asked more questions. Letting her go away to college, even if it had only be a few hours away, had been stupid. He should have kept her closer. Smothered her. Perhaps she'd still be at home now, tormenting Connor and playing with Nancy. Anything.
Anything that meant she was safe and sound.
He sighed, climbing into a silver truck aside the stranger who'd picked him up. Stay out of trouble, Jabberwock. Daddy's looking for you…
Fifteen years ago, his coup for control of Wonderland was successful. A few drops of tea mixed with poison in his parents' wine ended their rule. Jack and Duchess Heart were insane for a few days before their hearts gave out.
Not that Damon cared. He had the kingdom—he had the power he'd longed for. The power his father had planned to give to his half-siblings.
But Damon Heart knew the truth about Jessica and Kyle. His grandmother told him that they weren't even Hearts.
The dark-haired twins were bastards. They had no claim to the throne and not a single drop of Heart blood. They were the result of Alice Heart's previous relationship with the Mad Hatter. His clueless father assumed they were his.
That's why Damon's first step as King of Wonderland was to strip Jessica and Kyle of their titles and banish them from the palace.
Kyle ran like the scared dog he was. Only Jessica refused. She stood up to him. He hated that—especially since there were several vocal Wonderlanders who wanted Alice's children on the throne. He couldn't risk her leading a rebellion.
When she showed up in his chambers alone three nights after her banishment, he seized the opportunity to get rid of her.
Jessica never stood a chance. He beat her to death with his bare hands.
One of his loyal Clubs dumped her body. They were the only people in Wonderland who knew what happened to her. Everyone else assumed she was in hiding like her cowardly brother. Damon encouraged the lie.
And now, fifteen years later, his throne was in jeopardy once again.
This time, it was a blonde woman. She had flirted with him at a dinner party, but refused to go to bed with him. She claimed to be a distant relative of his mother, the Duchess of Diamonds. A second cousin or so.
Her name was Ana. And if she was from the Diamond family, she might have a claim to his throne. Especially since his younger brother seemed smitten with her.
Damon Heart wasn't about to let some blonde temptress take away the throne he'd worked so hard to get. He would kill her first, just like he disposed of Jessica. Just like he planned on killing Kyle, should the coward show his face.
He was the King of Wonderland and no one would take that from him.
Author's Notes:
Ana means "one who will be reborn"… just sayin'…
Since this chapter focused mostly on Wonderland, the next chapter will be back to the past where Helen is causing trouble.
Please, please review! Thanks for reading!
EDIT: I had no idea my formatting breaks weren't showing up. Yikes!
