Down the Rabbit Hole

Chapter 27 Alice

I think my end was near. Hunter hadn't been back for awhile with something for me to eat. I could feel hunger pains constantly coursing through my lower half. I felt so detached from myself I could swear I was dream walking. I no longer felt the pain around my wrists or the soreness in my jaw from not being able to close my mouth completely. All I could feel was the hunger pains in my stomach and even those were starting to ease.
I let my mind wander back to the farm. I think of my family, I can practically see them sitting around the living room table. Dinner is laid out and they're all eating in an awkward silence with my sketchbook laid out in the middle.
"Where could she have gone? She's not one to wander off without a word or note or something." Lorraine looks at the parents and they just look between themselves.
"Maybe he was right. Maybe today was a bad idea." Mom looks at Aunt Tilly and I can see the tears in their eyes. They let the silence hang in the air for a few moments before I see Dad whip his head towards me.
"Martin. What is it?" Mom looks towards me too, but she doesn't keep her eyes on me like dad does.
"Am I crazy or can anyone else see Alice on the floor?" They look at him like he's lost his damn mind. He starts to get out of his chair when I start to fade back the velvety blackness of my mind again.
It feels like a blink of an eye when a new room starts to come into view. It takes me a moment before I recognize the room. It's the meeting room in Romeos Pizzeria. Mamma and Papa Leo are sitting at the head of the table picking at what looks like a new pasta dish.
"They'll find her Mama. When has a guardian ever failed?" She looks at him and raises an eyebrow.
" As much as I wish I could say I have complete faith in Cheshire, look at how long it took him to find her in the first place." She scoffs before taking a bite of the pasta.
"At least he knows who he's looking for this time. At least it narrows down their search." He pours more wine into her glass and sighs. Mama looks towards me and I see her eyes get wide and I know she can see me.
"Papa? Grab me the red bag from the back." He looks at her concerned but quickly runs from the table. Her eyes never leave me but she slowly approached me. Like I'd disappear if she moved to fast.
"I know you can't answer me Alice. I can see your starting to fade a bit, but you need to hold on. Hatter and Cheshire are looking for you right now. Hold on for them. When you can, we have much to discuss. I have something I need to tell you." She reaches out towards but stops short before she touches me. Papa bursts back into the room waving a small red bag.
"I have it!" I feel my heart start to beat harder in my chest and the world turns black again.

It feels warm and safe in the blackness. No more pain. No more aches. All I can think of is that this feels like falling asleep in Hatters arms. I can smell the tea from his table with hints of lemon blossoms.



Hatter


My lungs are burning from running so far and I feel a deep ache in my thighs from having traveled so far in such a short time. The only thing on my mind is following Cheshire to the Heart estate and freeing Alice.
The fields are overgrown around this area. No one has lived around this area since the Hearts disappeared. Everyone agreed that it would be disrespectful if any other family tired to settle on their land. Many families still enjoyed walking the paths that circled the lost royal lands. Many parents walked with their children and told them of our lost lines and the history of our world. I had only ever passed by the estate when we wanted pears when I was younger. And my parents used to try and teach me of the lines that used to live here. I used to think the pull I felt to the Heart estate was for the pears and not because I was destined to fall in love with the lost Heart. Even though the Hearts were lost to the other world and we all believed the Spades had died off. My parents always told me that history was recorded for a reason and that it may come in handy to remember one day. I can smell the pear trees and quickly the estate comes into view breaking me out of my memories. I see the glimmer of magic surrounding the main house.
We slow our steps as we approach the circle.
"It should be safe for us to cross. I won't be affected by anything that lies in that circle. You may not be so lucky. If this was meant to conceal her magic then it may also repel you since your magic is bound to hers. I will get her out no matter what and once I can get her across this line it should break whatever magic has been weaved around here. If you end up somewhere else then met us back at Hare's burrow. Keep your wits about you. Hunter may not be the only fixer that was paid off to watch her." I nod at him and he runs ahead of me. I slowly start to cross the line.
Once across I just stand still for a few moments as Cheshire disappears into the main house. I breathe a sigh of relief when I realize nothing is going to happen and I continue towards the house. Once inside it's not hard to find the way towards the basement, I just had to follow the clear spot through all the dust on the floor. I barely paid attention to the rest of my surroundings as I tore through trying to get to her.
"Hatter? Still here?" Cheshire calls out from below when I finally reach the door to the basement.
"I'm here." I almost fall down the remainder of the stairs from trying to quicken my pace. I reached the bottom and see her bound and hopefully sleeping on just a bed of straw. I fall on my knees in front of her. Unsure of if I should touch her. Cheshire is working his claws in the cuffs to unlock them. I gently remove the gag that's magically secured around her head. Whoever paid off Hunter was definitely from a wealthier families. Magically enchanted items like that cost a fair few gold coins. I let my eyes roam over her as I watch her chest slowly rise and fall.  
She's pale and I can see she's lost a lot of weight in the short time she's been held. I see purplish bruising around her nose and under her eyes. It looks as if someone hit her in the nose, it may be broken from the way its angled. There's dried blood down her face, they didn't even have the decency to clean her up. I can hear Cheshire growling and cursing under his breath as he gently removes the cuffs around her wrists. Their red and raw from her straining against them.
"She's safe to move. She's dehydrated and weak, but she should be ok with time. Her magic is almost fully drained though. She fought against the magic that was holding her back and somehow she made it through to us somehow. Once she's healed she'll need some training to perfect her magic, but she's one of the most powerful I've seen from my line." I stopped listening to his ramblings after he said I could move her. I gently slide my arms underneath her neck and behind her knees. I cradle her against my chest and I can feel her shallow breathing and her heartbeat feels sluggish and slow. The angry red marks around her wrists and the red circle around her mouth and head are the only real color she has to her. She's going to be in a lot of pain once she finally wakes.
"Once we're back to Hare's, I need to talk with Griffin. He'll know the right herbs to grind to heal her wrists the fastest. I'll show you how to get her to drink as she's in this state." We're out of the house and almost to the front gate when Cheshire stops at the tallest of the pear trees and jumps to one of the branches. He takes one of the pears before he drops to the ground. He lays it on the ground for a moment.
"We need to take this. We'll need to try and feed this to her. When a royal eats the fruit from one of the original trees while sick or hurt, the fruit helps their magic replenish faster. You've always eaten your lemons in one way or another so you may have never noticed the difference, but since she's never tasted hers yet it will speed up the process." He takes the stem in his mouth and awkwardly waddles beside us as we head back to Hare's. The walk back is silent as Cheshire carries the pear and I focus on Alice's heartbeat and her breathing.

We crossed into Hare's back garden and see that Hunter has a few fresh marks to his face. Surprisingly Dina is also tied to the chair. She has been gagged with one of Duchess's silk scarfs, her cheeks were a deep red. Duchess is glaring daggers at her little sister as she rubs her palms. No doubt she tried to remind Dina of her manners. She looks at me hopeful until she see's Alice in my arms and I watch as fear drains the color from her face. I hear Cheshire's growl and I know he noted how her face changed when she saw me. Hare quickly approaches us and gently leads us towards the house.
"Hatter, Duchess's parents set up the first guest room for Alice. There's water and some food we set aside for her. We weren't sure of her condition so we did a little of everything. Mother made the bed into a nest almost so she'd be most comfortable. Her and Father just left for the Heart estate for some pears. Go get her comfortable and then we have much to discuss with these two." Holding Alice in my arms is the only thing holding me back from having more blood on my hands. Hare walks in front of us making sure nothing is in our path as we make our way to the guest room. I can barely even see the change to the once familiar room all my mind is concentrating on is her breathing and her heartbeat.
The mock nest is already warmed as I gently lay her down. Duchess sits beside her and gently takes her hand.
"Go on Hatter. Deal with the unpleasant business before your Alice wakes. I'll stay right here and monitor her." Cheshire gently lays the pear down on the side table and with a flick of his tail is neatly sliced into bite sized pieces.
"Try and feed her some pieces please. It's soft enough she won't need to chew much but she needs at least to start eating the pear." Duchess nods at him before she gently takes a piece and rubs it against her lips. We watch, hopeful, as we see her slowly chew and swallow the first piece.
"Come along Hare. We need you to help keep us in check. The other Guardians shall  be here soon. I sent the call when we found her." We nod. I gently lean down to Alice and kiss her forehead. I whisper for only her to hear.
"I'll save a piece of this bastard for you to have your revenge my sweet tart." She doesn't move or make any noise at my voice. I feel my blood boil, but I tear myself away from her and follow Hare back into the garden.