Page 8 of Knave

A long strand of black poked from the dirt a few yards from the gore. Ferris skirted around the mess and plucked the object from the ground.A quill.Did Ivory have porcupines? If it was a porcupine, it was fucking massive, given the quill was nearly as long as his arm.

Twirling the quill between his fingers like one of his drumsticks, he took in the carnage again. Ever needed to know about it. It was too close to the palace grounds not to say anything and he didn’t know what could’ve caused this. Ferris rushed back to the palace, shoved his way inside, and nearly barreled into someone.

“Woah,” Chess said, stepping back just in time to avoid the collision. He wore a black vest, his chestnut hair tied back with a cord, and reeked of sex and Scarlet. “Something chasing you, boy-o?”

“What is this?” Ferris asked, ignoring the jab at his youth, and held up the slightly bloodied quill.

“That—” Surprise flashed across the king’s face and he quirked a brow. He snatched the quill away and studied it before speaking again. “Thatis bad news. Where did you find it, Knave?”

“Near the lake.” Ferris wiped the flakes of dried blood from his hands. “Someone was torn apart there.”

“Torn apart?” Chess asked in a low, curious voice. “You saw the body?”

Ferris shrugged. “Parts of it.”

Chess snorted. “I’m surprised. The Jabberwocky doesn’t usually leave leftovers.”

“The Jabberwocky? It rarely ever comes to Ivory and Scarlet.” At least, that was what everyone had told him. That, and how loud the beast was, always letting its presence be known. He’d always pictured it as having scales instead of quills, though.

“Ah. This is true.” Chess bopped Ferris on the nose with the narrow end of the black quill. “But as you know, Ever and I saw the beast in Ivory when we returned months ago. The lake is too close for comfort though, isn’t it? And no one heard the beastie?” Chess gave a sharphmmand dropped the quill into a tall decorative vase in the hallway. “Keep this between us until I speak to Ever. We don’t want to create a panic when your female is still recovering from our latest tragedies, do we?”

“I’m not lying to Mouse,” Ferris said in a low voice. He’d heard enough stories of the Jabberwocky to know this was no light matter.

“It’s not lying if you simply saynothing. Consider it a royal secret and keep your mouth shut. I’ll tell Ever and she can arrange things on her end as she sees fit.” Chess spun on his heel and disappeared down the hall.

Mouse would be pissed when she found out Ferris knew and didn’t mention it. Of course, she would. But…

Maybe Chess was right, as much as he hated to admit it. Mouse was still sleeping with her door open, and she was barely speaking to anyone except her caterpillar. Not about important topics, anyway. Nor was she sleeping properly. He wasn’t going to give her anything new to fear unless absolutely necessary.

Chapter Four

Mouse

Two days had passed since Mouse sated her appetite at the mortal club. She wanted to see how long she could wait to drink fresh blood, but, already, the hunger stirred within her, beating at her like the sound of Ferris on his drums, reverberating through the hallway from behind his closed door. Mouse had remained in her room, and since Maddie had come home, the Hatter hadn’t disturbed her besides slipping leaves for Des into the room when she’d pretended to be asleep.

Mouse couldn’t keep avoiding her sister, though. She knew if she didn’t seek her out today that Maddie would come to her. When her sister returned from the Ruby Heart Palace, Mouse should’ve gone to her, like she always would’ve in the past. As much as she was relieved Imogen and Rav hadn’t taken her sister, a part of her wondered why they hadn’t. Had they believed Mouse didn’t love Maddie as much as the Hatter did her? They’d seemed to think both had known where the White Queen had been hidden. But Maddie was Mouse’s weakness just as much as she was her sister’s.

Straightening the skirts of her obsidian dress, Mouse descended the marble staircase with Des sleeping in her pocket. Footsteps echoed from below and she caught sight of long white hair flowing down the Queen’s back with a plait across the front. A viola case rested in her hand and a short lacy dress with sleeves to her wrists cloaked her slender form. She normally wore her hair up except for when she was around the king of Scarlet. A hint of a smile crossed Mouse’s face that Ever was happy, but it vanished when two male guards walked into the room carrying luggage cases.

“Are you leaving for a while?” Mouse asked.

Ever’s head jerked to Mouse, a wide smile spreading her lips. “You’re so quiet that I didn’t even hear you. It won’t be that long. I need to help Chess with a few things. He’s already left to check on the situation in Scarlet. It’s getting better, but occasionally there is a stir of trouble. Everyone needs to know we are truly aligned and that uniting the territories is best for Wonderland.”

Mouse nodded and approached her friend. “I can help.”

“Once the new palace is built, I will accept your offer. For now, focus on you.” Ever stepped closer, a concerned expression forming. “Do you need to talk? I can leave afterward.”

Mouse shook her head. She didn’t want to make Ever waste time on her over something so important. The queen and Chess had spent enough time apart and she didn’t deserve to be wrapped up in Mouse’s troubles. Not when there was nothing that could be done.

“It’s not good to keep everything bottled inside,” she whispered so only Mouse could hear. The guards stood at the front of the room, not seeming to be interested in the conversation. They were committed to Ever and nice enough, but Mouse wasn’t ready to let anyone else in. Not even those closest to her.

“I’m fine,” Mouse murmured.

Ever released a breath and circled her arms around Mouse. “Take care of yourself and if you need me, come to the Ruby Heart Palace or I can come back. However, please at least see Maddie. She’s worried about you.”

“I will.” Mouse held Ever tight and rested her head on her friend’s shoulder. “I’m glad to see you happy again.”

Ever drew back and lifted Mouse’s chin. “I want to seeyouhappy, Mouse. Healing works differently for all of us. I don’t know everything that happened to you in that palace, but I believe your feeding habits will return to normal.”

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