Page 87 of Madness Becomes Her

Wonderland won’t kill me.

I refuse to let it.

“The Red Queen ordered you to kill me?”

“No.”

My mind boggles at who else could want me dead in Wonderland before landing on one conclusion.

“The Knave.”

“They all say you’re smart. It’s why they want you dead.” Leaning down, the cat forgets the blade pressing into its flesh and sniffs up my face.

Turning away, I wince in fear, gripping the Vorpal Blade tighter.

“Give me one good reason not to kill you,” it whispers against my ear, and a tear blinks out of my eye as I open them and see Prospero appear in the tree line.

He’s mouthing something, and I can’t quite make it out.

Narrowing my eyes, I try harder to understand what he’s saying.

Freedom?

Turning back toward the cat, I say, “Freedom.”

It freezes. “Excuse me?”

“Change allegiances. You belong to the Knave of Hearts, correct?”

“Yessss,” it purrs.

“Change allegiance. Fight beside me, and you’ll have freedom.”

“He promised the same centuries ago. Why should I believe you?”

“Because…” My eyes flick over to Prospero.

“Blood vow,” he mouths.

“I’ll make a blood vow,” I rush out, not knowing what it entails but knowing I must do something to survive.

The cat backs away from me, sitting on its haunches as blood trickles down its chest. “You would do this for my alliance?”

I’m doing it to live, but now’s not the time to mince words. “Yes. I would.”

The cat seems to mull the idea over, its eyes growing contemplative. “You have a deal, Eleanor of Earth.”

I swallow, nodding quickly. “I don’t truly know how to make a blood vow.” Standing, I dust myself off.

My pants and shirt are ripped, but I’m alive. That’s all that matters.

I feel I’m wasting time while Hatter and Lewis are missing, but I’ve noticed that Wonderland has a way of getting you off task.

“Spill your blood and say the words,” the cat says, deadpanning at me as if it’s still testing my follow-through.

“Alright.” I sheathe the Vorpal Blade, not wanting to mix my blood with the beast’s, still coating the tip.

I remove a small blade that Cirius gave me when I finished training. I can flip it open and keep it in my pocket. Shoving the tip across my palm, I open up a minor wound.