Page 77 of Cry Madness

For a moment, Roman looks gutted, but the pained expression fades as fast as it came. “I’ll deal with her.” Then, quietly, he adds, “I’ve always been fond of Alice. I am sorry my daughter caused this.”

“How you handle her is your business, but make sure she stays the fuck away from us. That’s all I want, Roman.”

He’s quiet for a beat—a single beat. “I’ll send her to stay with my sister in Godstow.” He’s never been a man to show emotion, but again, the tiniest flicker of regret seeps through a microscopic crack in his armor. “I hope time away from Wonderland will allow her to reflect on the hurt she’s caused. And,” he adds in a broken whisper, “it might also give me a chance to fix the damage I’ve done as a father.”

I wish I could reassure him that he’s not to blame for Scarlett’s behavior, but he contributed to the problem. While he was busy building his empire, he made a grave mistake by thinking that fulfilling his daughter’s every desire would make up forhis chronic absence.Wrong. Yet, in contrast, Ivory doesn’t place value on material things. She embraced the best traits from both parents, while Scarlett inherited the worst. And now this is where we are—Alice traumatized and a man dead in the maze. Even if she learned nothing at the end of the day, Roman has. The proof of that is in the defeat reflected in his eyes when he sweeps the gruesome scene I’ve left for him to clean up.

TWENTY-SIX

“You must be [mad] or you wouldn’t have come here.”

—Cheshire Cat,Alice in Wonderland

Alice is waiting for me by the car.

She’s out of that ruined dress and now wearing a white T-shirt and sweatpants. Her hair is damp and pulled away from her battered face in a low ponytail. When she sees me weaving my way around the sea of cars parked in the driveway, she races toward me. There’s a slight limp in her step that absolutely kills me.

Before she can run into my arms, I hold up my hands to stop her. “No, don’t touch me.” I gesture down at my bloody clothes. “I’m gross.”

“I don’t care,” she counters.

“Okay, but I do.”

She wrings her hands as she passes her worried gaze over me. “You okay?”

“Never better.”

“My father,” Ivory asks timidly, and her nervousness surprises me. “He’s okay, too?”

I shift my gaze to Ivory and give her a curt nod. She usually exudes the same glacial, regal demeanor as Roman, but now, she’s just like the rest of us—trapped in this fucking mess her sister caused. With a jerk of my head, I gesture behind us, at the maze. “He’s hanging back with March.” Then, to Alice, “Come on, I’ll follow you to Folly House.”

She glances over her shoulder at Tiger Lily, and for a split second that happens so quickly, if I weren’t watching her, I’d miss it, her shoulders sag in defeat. Her grief, her pain, becomes a tangible entity that hangs heavy all around us. But just as fast, it’s gone, and she straightens her spine before looking back at me. “Sure,” she rasps. “There’s nothing left for me here.”

Ivory jabs her thumb at the manor. “What do you want me to tell your mother?”

“Nothing,” Alice snaps. “Don’t tell her a damn thing. She knows I’m leaving.” At Ivory’s inquisitive frown, Alice is quick to add, “And she knows why.”

Ivory runs toward Alice to give her a quick hug before gripping her arms and shoving her away, holding her at arm’s distance. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“Because Scarlett is my sister, and I should have seen this coming.” She glances guiltily at her feet. “I just…never expected her to take the evil twin thing…”

“It’s over,” Alice says with a finality that seems to come from the depths of her soul. “And none of this was your fault.”

Ivory dabs at the corner of her eyes, whispering, “Love you.”

“Love you, too.” Alice’s smile is sad, weary, and absolutely tears my heart to pieces. “Go home, sweetheart.”

But Ivory shakesher head. “I think I’m going to wait for my father.”

“He’ll be a while,” I tell her.

Roman and March won’t have the Tweedles come until after the party ends, and if I know them—and I do—they won’t leave until those brothers get here. They’ll stay, if for no other reason than to keep everyone out of the maze.

As Ivory walks back to the house, Alice says to her, “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

But Ivory doesn’t answer, just keeps walking. Once she’s inside, Alice places her trembling little hand in mine. “I’m sorry you got caught up in my mess.”