Harris turned off the water and wrapped a towel around her red form, so hot that wisps of steam curled from her shoulders. As Dinah shook and cried, he draped a loose purple dress over her and ran a brush through her hair. She stared blankly into the mirror.
“I killed her.”
“Yes.”
“Wardley loved her.”
“Yes.”
“Did you know?”
Harris rose and began setting up tea in the corner. She turned and looked at him, her eyes wide.
“Did you know?”
“I suspected. But I never knew.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Harris eyed the bathtub and the red rim around the drain. “For this very reason. Because I knew your reaction would be one of rage. I knew of the fury that burns inside you, even when you were small. So like your father—”
“But he wasn’t my father. I’m not supposed to be like him at all.”
Harris’s hands trembled as he put the lid on the teapot. “It’s true, you are not his natural child, but you have inherited his nature, since he was the only father you’ve ever known.” He set the tea down before her. “I prayed that you would not do this. Do you understand what you have done to Wardley?”
Dinah’s hands shook as she buried her face in them. “No. Yes. Oh my gods, Vittiore . . . Wardley . . .” She let out a sob. “He’ll never forgive me! He loved her. I saw his face. . . .”
The pain of that statement twisted inside her, a hard thorn of truth. He loved her. He had never loved Dinah, not in that way. She had been chasing a ghost through these hallways. Now she had killed his lover. Her sister. Faina Baker’s daughter. A daughter and mother beheaded, an entire family wiped out by the line of Hearts.
Dinah ran out to the balcony and proceeded to empty the remnants of food in her stomach. She knelt on the hard marble, her face pressed against the cool stone. A door slammed in her chambers and she heard snippets of a heated exchange between Harris and Cheshire. Cheshire’s pointed boots came into view.
“Your Majesty, I implore you to get off the floor. We have much to do today.”
Dinah looked at him with disgust. “Do you not know what I have done?”
Cheshire wrapped his hand around her arm and yanked her to her feet. He turned her face to the sweeping view from her balcony. “What do you see, my queen?”
“Cheshire, I killed her. In cold blood, I killed her.”
Her adviser and father shook his head. “What do you see?”
“I see nothing,” she sobbed. “Land and roads.”
He grabbed her face with his long fingers. “Then you obviously cannot see clearly. When I look out, I see a kingdom in desperate need of a leader. I see a kingdom that is open to being sacked by the Yurkei. I see a kingdom that needs its queen, so you had best get off that filthy floor and put on your crown and do your duty.”
Dinah yanked back. “I killed her. I murdered her. Do you understand?” She let out a gasp of horror. “Oh gods, I cut off her head.” She couldn’t breathe.
Cheshire stroked his chin. “I am quite aware of your actions, considering that I was forced to clean up your mess.”
“Clean up?”
He nodded. “Ki-ershan came and found me not long after you sent the whore to her maker. He carried you back to your chambers. At my instructions, he changed your nightgown and burned the other. After that, he laid you in your bed and I took care of the rest.”
Dinah’s eyes grew wide with fear. “Where is Wardley? What did you do to him?”
“Don’t worry, I didn’t touch a curly hair on his head. He’s been thrown into the Black Towers for now, where he can consider his actions.”
Dinah gasped. “The Black Towers? No, you must retrieve him at once. I must speak with him.”
Cheshire’s black eyes found hers before he gave her a pitying smile. “He will not speak with you. You beheaded the love of his life before his eyes. Do you really believe you will be able to simply apologize and make it right?”
Dinah’s eyes flooded with tears. She had lost him. Forever.
“I will not have him in the Black Towers. Have him moved here, to a secure location inside the castle. Make sure he has no weapons or anything to harm himself with, not even a bedsheet. And make sure he is well fed and clothed.”
Cheshire gave a slight bow, annoyed by her orders. “As you wish. Though please remember that he is a liability to us that we cannot afford.”
Dinah gasped. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that you do not understand what the consequences would be if word got out that the Queen of Hearts was a bloodthirsty murderer like the former King of Hearts. Your kingdom would fall. Mundoo would bring the Yurkei back and burn the city.”
“He wouldn’t. . . .”
“He would, and he could. If he finds out about this, he will turn his warriors around and they will ride straight back here, relieve you of your throne, and throw you in an empty grave. Mundoo can never know. We have no men to defend this city from an attack. You must destroy all the evidence of last night.”
Dinah looked around. “Where is Ki-ershan?” Her voice rose. “Where is he?”
“Ki-ershan has been persuaded to keep his mouth shut. He is loyal to you, though I think he wonders why. He is resting now but will be back on your guard by nightfall.”
Though she looked out onto the steady stones of the palace, Dinah could feel everything around her collapsing. Inside, her heart faded and shrank into itself. It was becoming a black, dead thing.
“Please leave me.”
Cheshire hesitantly placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t let guilt overcome you. You did what needed to be done. Vittiore—Alice—was a traitor, and by taking Wardley, she took something that belonged to the queen. Her death will make things much easier for all of us in the long run. Have no regrets, my daughter. The situation has been wiped clean. No one will ever know.”
Dinah was flustered. “But . . . what will we tell the kingdom about Vittiore? They loved her.”
“I have already set rumors in motion that she requested to be sent as an ambassador to Ierladia and that she left this morning. You know, it was too hard to see you on the throne here, and she didn’t want to serve as a lady-in-waiting, and so on. A tragedy will befall her on the road. Pirates or robbers, I haven’t decided yet.”
Dinah narrowed her eyes as she stared at Cheshire in amazement. Of all the wonders she had seen in Wonderland, the mind of this devious man was by far the most impressive—and dangerous—one. Overnight, her crime had disappeared, though she doubted the scars she had left on Wardley would ever fade. Every time she blinked she saw Vittiore’s golden curls, soaked with blood, and heard Wardley’s screams of agony. Those screams would never leave her.
“What of her body?”
“It has been disposed of.”
Dinah shuddered. “I am not in the mood for guessing games, Cheshire. What of her body?”
Cheshire’s direct gaze pierced her flesh. “Burned. The ashes were scattered outside the palace. It is as if she never existed.”
“That is . . .” Dinah searched for the word. Cheshire answered her before she could grasp it.