The Collectors' Society 01 (44 page)

The Ferzes looks to the King. The King looks to me.

As painful as it is, the distance between us regrows. How can I live without him? How? Why is Wonderland so cruel to us?

But I say, “Your pike would be much appreciated, soldier.”

The Five bows sharply and snaps back to attention.

Victor mutters things under his breath best left unheard as he slides his backpack onto his shoulders. Mary, on the other hand, practically dances up to the poor soldier in an effort to, as she’s saying, “Get to know our protector better.”

Finn takes me to the side as our horses are saddled. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes.” I touch his dear face. “I’m sorry for my outburst earlier.”

“That was an outburst?” He shakes his head. “You should have seen my mother. Now she could offer up outbursts that put all others to shame.”

“Katrina?”

“Yeah,” he says softly. “She was like a firecracker. She burned bright and ended too soon.” He looks away, blinking, and this small gesture tugs on my heartstrings. “But we’re not talking about her. We’re talking about you. Are you still going to come with us?”

It’s a serious question, I realize. Even though he just heard me accept the Five’s protection to the rabbit hole, even though my crown in now in my backpack, he still asks this of me. And I’m saddened and angry with myself, because in the midst of my past colliding with my present and future, I have not done myself any favors.

“I’m coming home,” I tell him. “To New York and the Collectors’ Society. I am coming with you.”

His eyes briefly close. He whispers, “I want to kiss you so much right now. So. Much.” His beautiful blue-gray eyes open and for a moment, I think he just might. But the kiss I’d thought might does not happen. Kissing me here, when my past is so vividly and heartbreakingly before me, would only complicate matters. Finn and I have a shot at a future, one we can build together in New York. A future that is not ruled by prophecies or summits. And he knows this, this smart, wonderful, loving man knows this, because he kisses me on my forehead and then goes over to where the Ferzes and the White King are talking. Soon, Victor joins them. Finn takes several objects out of his brother’s backpack and passes them over to the White King. After a minute or so, they shake hands.

What is going on?

I’m just about to go over and ask when Mary sidles up to me. “Well, well,” she says, smirking. “Don’t think I won’t be dragging all of this story out of you when we get back.”

I sigh. And then, because I really have no other choice, I laugh ruefully. “What’s going on over there?”

“Every Timeline needs liaisons. Just tell me one thing before we go.” Her voice drops to a whisper. “Is Finn some kind of second choice to you? Is it like, you’re coming back with us because you can’t be here? I know he’s hot and smart, but I’m not down with anyone putting him second. Nobody puts Finn in a corner.”

I’m startled. “A corner?” I stare at the person in question as he and the White King confer. “He’s in the open.”

She sighs. “It’s a metaphor. And you’re avoiding.”

“No,” I tell her honestly. “Finn isn’t a second choice or second best or whatever else it is you mean. My feelings for him are completely genuine.”

“Aha!” She’s triumphant. “So there is something going on between you two!” Her hands rub together. “The A.D. and I had a bet going. He said there was no way you two were going to get involved. Said you were too much an Ice Queen to even think about hooking up.” She snorts. “Ha! Queen! Get it?”

I roll my eyes. “I’m from Victorian England, not the Stone Ages, Mary.”

“The point is, I’m getting myself a nice, fat pile of money when we get back.”

“I’m glad my emotions are profitable for you.”

She pats me on the cheek. “For what it’s worth, that White King of yours is sexy. Like, way sexy.” She fans herself. “Between him and Finn, who—don’t tell Victor, or I’ll cut you—I’ve always found to be unbearably yet aloofly gorgeous, you’ve got yourself a nice little love triangle going there, Alice.”

“There is no love triangle.” I glance over at the two men she’s referencing. The Ferzes now gone, they’re left in deep discussion with one another. “There is only my past and there is my present and future. The two cannot collide. I believe physics makes that impossible.”

“Editing doesn’t.” She nudges my arm meaningfully.

But prophecies do.

Another jubjub bird flies in with a note for the King. Word has finally arrived on a possible location for the Cheshire-Cat, which means they need to leave immediately. But before they do, the soldiers with us, Ferz Eponi, and Ferz Epona all drop on their knees before me. Fists and arms cross their chests to touch upon their hearts. The Diamonds song is quietly offered.

I am close to tears.

When they finish, the White King comes before me. We’ve already said our goodbye, so there will be no production here. Instead, he also drops to his knee and bows his head, his fist and arm crossing his chest to touch upon his heart. I do not have to see the blood beneath his armor to know his heart has just broken again.

Mine has, too. Before I know it, he is riding away on his steed, and the piece of my heart that is his, will always be his, goes with him.

“Goddamn,” Mary whistles. “He is
hot.
Victor, love, why is it you never do such things for me?”

“Maybe because we live in the Twenty-First Century?” he throws back. “And I’m not a knight? Or, you know, a king?”

When Finn rolls his eyes, I cannot resist a tiny laugh. I pull him to the side. “What did you give the King?”

He does not play coy. “Brom sent along the necessary equipment to give to a liaison of my choice so we would be able to have contact with this Timeline. I chose the White King.”

I’m stunned. “Why?”

“Because you love him,” he says simply. “And he loves you.”

“But—”

“Last night, neither of us could sleep. We both came back downstairs and ended up talking with one another until I came to find you. I like him, Alice. I respect the hell out of him, too.”

Now I’m speechless.

“He told me about you two. Not to rub in your past or relationship or anything—”

“He told you about us?” I cannot believe it. The White King is not one to share his innermost feelings with hardly anyone. Me, yes, but to a virtual stranger? Impossible.

“Well, it’s not like he provided details or anything, which was more than fine by me. He told me that the prophecy said you two could never be together without dire consequences. No matter what.”

I bring a hand up to my lips. Beg myself not to cry.

“He told me this because, while he knows you to be the strongest person he’s ever met, sometimes you put too much responsibility onto your shoulders. He’s worried about you, as I’m sure you’re worried about him.”

I cannot believe this is a conversation we’re having right now.

“You two can’t be together, but that doesn’t mean you have to lose one another entirely. He’s agreed to be our liaison. The Society now has a connection to Wonderland. He won’t ever lie to you about what’s going on here, and this way, you’ll still have a say over your Court and people. Your voice will still be heard. You can still make a difference, even if it’s from New York. You will be adhering to the prophecy and the summit accords, but . . . This is your loophole.”

I take his face in my hands. “Why are you doing this?”

He tells me, he whispers, his heart on his sleeve, “Because you’re my north star, too. Better yet, we’re binaries, remember?”

It’s hard to see, the tears in my eyes are so blurry. The Librarian, blast her, is right. I do so love honorable men. “I want to kiss you, too. So much.”

“Soon,” he promises, and I’m gifted with one last press of lips against my forehead before Victor calls out that it’s time to leave.

Before we mount, I tell the trees surrounding my house goodbye one last time. I beg them to take care of the White King, and to know I have deeply appreciated their devotion and help over the years. Soft whispers dance along the breeze that blows through the woods, and it is my turn to place a fist over my heart.

And then we leave.

BY THE TIME WE
reach Nobbytown, just as pale sunlight lifts above the horizon, my bottom is numb. Scratch that—my entire body is numb. It was unnaturally cold as we rode through Wonderland, with breezes turning our noses and cheeks red and the ride brutally uncomfortable.

While we encountered no soldiers on our journey, we did get ambushed by highwaymen twice. The Five of Diamonds gave none of us any time to get off our horses and draw our swords. His pike whirled devilishly fast and had our would-be attackers fleeing in no time.

Nobbytown is quiet, our horses’ shoed feet against the cobblestone streets the only sound. Windows that haven’t been broken are shut tight, doors are locked. No shops are open, no sellers on corners, no reconstruction for buildings burned or destroyed commencing—it looks like a ghost town. I’m tempted to swing by the Land that Time Forgot to see how the Hatter fares, but dismiss the urge quickly once I take in my companions’ faces. Exhaustion colors nearly every move they all make, although I doubt any would admit to such.

When we dismount from our horses several meters away from the rabbit hole, I ask the Five of Diamonds to now switch his protection of me to the White King. “I know I am not your sovereign, but—”

He drops to a knee. “You are, my lady. And I beg your forgiveness for not recognizing you sooner. I will never forgive myself.”

Before I can say anything, he presents his pike so that the White King’s emblem faces upward. The metal and wood rotate until the opposite side is shown—and there, carved into his weapon, is a bird flying with a diamond.

How had I not noticed this before?

I gently touch his head. “There is nothing to forgive. Your loyalty to both the White and Diamond Courts is commendable.”

He stands up and snaps his fist against his heart. “I will stay until you have left Wonderland, my lady. May your journey be safe, may your aim be true. May the steps you take lead you through.”

“He’s a bloody poet, too,” Victor grumbles once we reach the hole.

Mary nudges him. “One might think you are a wee bit jealous of his battlefield prowess, hmm?”

The spiders uncover the hole for us, and then line up at attention, forming a straight path. I tell them the same as I told the pikeman: they are to show the White Knight the same allegiance as they have shown me.

And then without much fanfare, we fall up the rabbit hole and back into Wales, much as I did nearly a year before. Only this time, I am not leaving alone, nor am I adrift in a void.

I have a purpose.

“I
T’S ABOUT FUCKING TIME you guys show up!”

The door behind us flickers away, leaving nothing but the commanding central office of the Collectors’ Society in view. The A.D. is standing in the middle of the room, his eyes wild.

Finn’s immediately on the defensive. “What’s wrong?”

Wendy barrels through the door, her green hair a right mess. “Finally! Why didn’t you tell me they got back, Jack?”

“Because,” he says through gritted teeth, “they’ve
just
arrived.”

Wendy waves him off. “Did you get the catalyst?”

I slip my dirty, battered backpack off and zip it open. “Yes.” I hold up my golden crown for both her and the A.D. to see.

“Knock that shit off,” Finn says suddenly. I’m taken aback, but quick to realize he’s talking to a perilously closely lurking A.D.

“Just wanted to have a look, is all.” The A.D.’s shoulders slump, but a twinkle of interest in his eyes remains. My grip turns ironclad.

“This is Alice’s crown first,” Finn says, “and a catalyst second. If I ever find it in your possession, you won’t be able to walk straight for at least a week. Is that understood?”

The A.D. kicks a chair and sends it rolling across the room. “You’re a right fucking wanker, did you know that, Finn?”

“It’s pretty,” Wendy says as she peers closer. But then she takes a step backward. “The Librarian has a surprise for you, Alice. She wants to see you in your room.”

Talk about a surprise. “Now?”

She nods. “She’s already waiting for you. Mary, why don’t you go with her? I need to talk to Finn and Victor about something first.”

Strange, but okay. I reach out and grab Finn’s arm. “Will you come see me when you’re done?”

Despite the collective around us, he leans in and kisses me. It’s light, a brush really, but meaningful. “Definitely.”

Wendy winces and quickly looks away. Mary cackles behind us. “I’ll take my sum in hundred dollar bills,” she tells the A.D. His eyes are bugging out, and it makes me want to laugh.

“Do I want to know?” Finn asks me.

I’m smiling. I’m finally smiling again. “Later.” I rise up on my tiptoes and brush my lips across his. “See you soon?”

Minutes later, both Mary and I are stumbling toward our flats. “Do you mind if I pass on yet another one of the Librarian’s fortune teller sessions? I’m dying for a shower—and clean underpants. Remind me next time we go to Wonderland to wear five all at once, just in case some assholes steal my stuff again.”