Chapter 85 (2/2)

To him, Alice may have been a girl he was sorely tired of; to someone else, she was his savior. To make sure that his plans would go uninterrupted, Heart commanded his men to capture Alice the moment she returned to the house and, at the same time, lock up Peter.

Locked in the basement prison without knowing the reason, Peter was able to find out from conversing with the people passing by that Heart's intended target was not him but Alice.

Alice—she was the most precious and beautiful flower in the world to him. Not wanting ever to see that flower wither, he made up his mind after much back-and-forth.

In a couple of hours, Peter had succeeded in escaping and hid in an alleyway that led to the house.

It was when Alice returned home from her usual rounds of healing people. He watched her from afar and found Jeremy right at her side. Peter stuck his hands inside his jacket pocket. His fingers touched the knife he had hurriedly prepared before leaving.

A few moments later, the sound of one heavy and one light footstep came closer. Then, Alice's silverbell scented perfume hit him, and he breathed it in sweetly. He poked his head out slightly and saw the delicate blond hair and the pearl-like skin that shimmered under the afternoon sunlight.

Peter took out his knife. And for the first time in his life, he decided to dirty his hands to save the life of another. He plunged the knife into Jeremy's neck and sliced through his pulse.

”Ah! Jeremy! Pe—Peter?” Alice cried.

”You can't go back to the house, Alice! Heart is preparing to kill you!”

”What? What are you talking about…?”

Jeremy's blood had drenched Peter, whose eyes were wild, so that he looked like a crazy person. Alice, unawares, took a step back. Peter strutted up to her and grabbed her shoulder.

”Listen carefully, Alice. Heart doesn't love you. The person he loves is White Rabbit!”

Hearing his words, she blinked confusedly then burst out laughing. Frustrated by her lack of belief, Peter yanked at her arm.

”First, hide...No, let's go to Outhouse. Just in case, I've secured a hideout in Outhouse. You and I, the both of us, we can survive for a couple of months with the money I saved up. We'll run far away and live together.”

”Peter?”

”Hurry! We don't have time! Heart will come after you soon!”

Peter pulled hard at Alice's arm. He didn't even notice her complaining that he was hurting her. It was then that Alice started to get scared and desperately tried to get away from him.

”Let go, Peter. It hurts! I said, let go!”

”Let's leave, huh? Let's leave and live together, just the two of us.”

”I don't want to! Please let me go! Let go, you jerk! I'm not going with you!”

Alice looked at her surroundings and tried to find someone to ask for help. But even the few people that were there when the sun had been up had all disappeared.

Alice made eye contact with one of the two men standing inside the alleyway and desperately exclaimed, ”Help me! This man is trying to kidnap me!”

The man smiled, however, and it was a smile that triggered something in her memory.

Gripped with fear, she tried to pull away from Peter's grasp and hit him, trying to get away. But it was useless to resist someone whose power was strengthened by fighting others his whole life. Feeling that she would be dragged away in this state, she looked again to the men inside the alleyway. The man had brought over a friend and was coming out of the alley. She rejoiced.

”Here! Help! I'll pay you handsomely!”

Frazzled, she had not noticed that the person next to the man was bloodied and that the two people were not friends. Alice only realized this after the man stepped out of the alleyway's shadows.

Bandages covered the man's left eye and cheekbones. The bandages curved in like a skull. He had blood all over his body and was leaning on the arm of the other man. The blood-covered man was in a suit like Peter, and there was a knife stuck in his chest.

There were not many people who wore suits in Wonderland, and the ones who did were mostly...Heart and his men. Alice felt a chill down her spine.

The man smoothed back his tousled blond hair with bloody hands and opened his mouth.

”Peter.”

At this, Peter, who had ignored all of Alice's pleas and resistance, stopped walking.

”Chester.”

When Peter said the man's name, Alice knew that this situation had taken a turn for the worse.

***