Malice in Wonderland Prequel by Lotus Rose Read Free Book Online

I’m sorry.”
    “One day perhaps, you will be ready. But this is not the day. Go back to your former life now. I am putting the Black Rose in a different place, to await those who are ready. As for this place…” It pointed to the stone doorway. “It will explode in ten seconds. I suggest you run.”
    When Alice shifted her eyes from the doorway back to the figure, it was suddenly gone and she couldn’t be entirely sure it had even ever been there in the first place. Then her eyes went wide in alarm as she hurried to stand and run as fast as she could away from the doomed place.
    The sound of a huge explosion erupted behind her then heat licked at her back and threw her ten feet through the air. Her head landed just a few inches from the trunk of a tree. Debris and ash rained down upon her from the sky.
    She realized her blond hair was on fire and shrieked and rolled about to put out the flame—she hoped her hair hadn’t been blackened.
    Then she dusted herself off and returned to her hut. She snuck back into her chains. The guard card was still taking a nap.
    When he awoke, he seemed puzzled by Alice’s singed hair and the burn holes in her dress, but the guard card wasn’t very bright, so the matter was quickly forgotten by him.
    As she sat there, her thoughts were quite different than usual. She ruminated upon the delectable pleasures of torture. She wondered at the allure of licking the tears of others’ pain and humiliation. And she thought, uncharacteristically for her, of how delicious revenge must be.
    How great it must be to thoroughly vanquish and humiliate one’s enemies? To plant death’s kiss upon their cheeks, while raining your unrelenting revenge upon them? And upon their graves, to place…a single black rose…
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER SIX
    Birthday Party
     
    When Alice was 8

    Calloo Callay! What a frabjuous day!
    It was an splendid day, indeed, for today was Alice’s 8th birthday!
    In the short time she’d been here, the citizens of Wonderland had grown so fond of using the girl for the sake of their own pleasure, and today was their chance to celebrate that!
    Everybody who was anybody was gathered in the Queen of Heart’s ballroom, which was filled with the dancing revelers and an assortment of cakes, snacks and foods. There was even a table of tarts that only the Queen was allowed to eat (heavily guarded of course, to prevent any further thefts).
    “Welcome!” the Queen called out to the crowd of assembled revelers, as she held a glass of sparkling apple juice. “I’m so glad you all could attend.” She gazed out at the crowd, searching. She saw the Tweedles, Humpty Dumpty, the Mad Hatter, March Hare, Dormouse, even the Jabberwock was there, looking awkward and shy. And there even was the grinning floating head of the Cheshire Cat, whom she hadn’t even invited. “Now, we just have to wait for the birthday girl herself to get here!”
    That brought up a round of polite laughter from the crowd.
    The Queen said, “But I’m sure she’ll be along shortly. So, eat, be merry and dance, and when she gets here, the party shall truly begin and we shall unleash all our planned festivities!”
    That brought a cheer, and the Queen left the crowd to it and began mingling.

    Meanwhile, Alice sat at her desk she was chained to, inside her humble, sparse hut. Today was her 8th birthday, but since she was stuck in this horrendous, stifling world, she didn’t expect anyone to throw her a party, and just as she’d expected, no one had invited her to one. She sighed and pouted miserably. She supposed there was always the possibility that they would throw her a surprise party, just like they surprised her with unhappy unbirthday parties every day. And the day wasn’t over, so she still held out hope.
    So Alice was now spending her birthday at her desk, drawing upon a sheet of paper. She was drawing a picture of a girl who was chained to a desk. There was a huge cake in front of the