“Will the king be waiting for us?” she whispered to him, her breaths coming quick and heavy.
“Without a doubt,” he answered grimly. “But he has no idea that we are coming up through the castle. Right now he thinks we are still outside the gates. He also thinks that you are dead, which means the element of surprise will work highly in our favor. His plan was to wait us out—the fool thinks we mean to lay siege to the palace. Trust me, my dear, the king, at this very moment, has let his guard down. Trust in your decoy. She was very convincing.” He gave a sinister smile.
Dinah still didn’t feel right about Napayshi, who was now nothing more than a pile of flesh pouring blue smoke. She shivered.
“We’re almost there,” she announced to her men. “Draw your weapons.”
Sir Gorrann walked through their ranks. “Keep them close to your body, inside your cloaks.”
Dinah could hear the unsheathing of metal and iron. She clasped her sword close to her heart. They had reached a thick wooden door. Covering the door was a woven tapestry that she knew featured her father, mounted on Morte, his Heartsword drawn, looking like the most fearsome warrior the kingdom had ever known. And she was going to kill him.
Beyond the tapestry lay the Great Hall, no doubt filled with Wonderland citizens, women and children who were gathered in a safe refuge from the fighting.
“Remember who we are, and who we are not,” Wardley intoned to the men. He wrapped his hand roughly around Dinah’s arm. “Especially you. Don’t lose your head. You might not be his blood heir, but you share his impulsiveness.”
Annoyed, Dinah shook off his grip and pushed the door open, flinging the tapestry aside. They were in a narrow hallway that led out behind the throne. The group emerged from the tunnels disguised in their ragged cloaks, rope belts cinched around their waists. Hopefully, the hordes of people in the Great Hall would think that they were simply peasants taking refuge in a place they didn’t belong. Who could care about such things while the enemy broke down their walls?
“Are we ready?” asked Dinah.
Sir Gorrann pushed past her. “I’ll go first.” Ki-ershan stood in front of Dinah, every sculpted muscle in his body poised and ready to attack. Sir Gorrann stepped around the tapestry, stepping out into the Great Hall. Dinah followed behind him, her head down.
She paused, her mouth open in shock. Wardley pushed past her, a look of disgust upon his face. “How could . . . ?” He stopped. “Where are they?”
The Great Hall was empty. The room, so vast and grand, was a thousand times larger than Dinah remembered. Here was the gold throne, with its etched hearts. Here was the heart window, bathing the room in red light, and there was the box above the hall, where she and Wardley met to share secrets. Dinah was home again, but there was no one here, not a single person.
“Where are the townspeople?” Even Cheshire looked bewildered.
“They’re in the streets,” answered Sir Gorrann. “They were sent outside.”
Wardley gritted his teeth and clutched his sword. “What the hell kind of king does not offer the protection of his palace to his people in a time of war?”
I’ve had enough. Dinah pulled her brown cloak off. Her hair shimmered in the red light, making it appear as if her head was made of flame.
She drew her sword. “The kind of king who’s going to die today.”
Sir Gorrann let out a gasp. “Why are you taking off your cloak? Stop!”
Dinah turned on him, her eyes filled with a righteous rage. “I left this palace, my home, covered in a cloak, running for my life, a scared child. I will not return as a peasant in disguise, as a fearful girl. I return as a queen, as a woman, here to claim her rightful throne. Come on, let’s find him, now!”
The inspired men around her let out a cheer and they all ran toward the door, weapons drawn, cloaks left behind. Bah-kan flung open the doors to the Great Hall. Two Heart Cards were stationed outside the empty hall, and Dinah actually pitied them as they watched the enemy emerge from the doors behind them. Bah-kan dispatched them quickly and brutally. The group ran through the empty marble hallways. Ladies and lords, servants and children opened their doors at the sound of footsteps. When they saw the group, they pulled back into their living quarters, terrified.
“Get back!” Dinah screamed at the idiots as they passed. “Shut and lock your doors!” Her directions were followed without question.
Together, her band of fighters raced up the stone staircases that led to the keep, one after another, until it felt like they could climb no more. Finally, they emerged into a wide room, where a collection of weapons was assembled under Wonderland’s most priceless art. In the corner of the dark hall was a single spiral staircase that led up to the keep.
Her group came to a jagged halt. At the base of the stairway, two dozen Heart Cards stood in a silent line, assembled like an elaborate chessboard, their red-and-white uniforms decked with pins and medals. At the front stood Xavier Juflee, the commander of the Heart Cards, his shield clasped against one breast, a sword in his other hand. As Dinah’s fighters filled the room, the Heart Cards drew their weapons. There was a moment of stillness as both parties surveyed the scene and anticipated the coming violence.
Juflee’s eyes widened when he saw Dinah.
“What the hells?” he gasped. “I saw you die.”
Several of the Heart Cards stepped backward in awe.
Dinah stepped forward and addressed Xavier in a low voice. “Xavier. We do not come seeking violence. I come seeking my rightful throne from your king. If you step aside, each of you will be granted mercy and maintain your current position. For your own sake, surrender. Otherwise there will be much bloodshed here. Please, I’m begging you.”
Xavier took a moment to regain his composure, his surprise at her appearance fading away before he smiled meanly at her. “I cannot do that, Princess. You return here a murderer and a traitor, and I’ll take pleasure in mounting your head for the king. That is, unless you surrender.”
Dinah gave a sad shake of her head. She stepped backward into the protective folds of her men. Xavier raised his arm, and Dinah did the same. She let out a shout, and her fighters rushed past her, the groups melding together in seconds. The tiny room filled with the sounds of swords and screams. The two sides battled, Dinah aiding where she could. She would not be injured now, not while she was so close to the king.
The battle raged for several minutes, until Xavier Juflee cut through his rapidly diminishing line and rushed toward her, his sword arcing through the air near her throat. In a flash, Wardley’s sword sliced in front of her and then Xavier and Wardley were dancing, their swords clinging together. They spun and leaped, moving faster than she had ever seen either of them move. Wardley kept trying to step back from the fight as Xavier engaged him, again and again. Finally, Xavier became frustrated, spitting and cursing at Wardley.