Watching me? I gaped. All those times I’d sensed someone nearby studying me came rushing back, just as a pair of glowing amber eyes popped out of nowhere. I inhaled sharply and took a step back.
“If you want my help,” the owner of the eyes continued, “bind me to you.”
“The Cheshire cat? The one we met in the woods—the free one?” My words wobbled, but the cat’s stare didn’t break.
“One and the same,” he said as a roar came from the ocean.
I winced at the sound.
“I’m here to be your creature,” the Cheshire cat explained. “To help you win this trial. Call to me, share with me your aether magic. Bind us, Alice.”
I didn’t have a clue how to do any of what he’d just said. But seeing as other creatures weren’t beating down my door, I was going to roll with it and do my damnedest to make a binding happen.
I called on my magic and, using instinct, let it pour from my fingers to the space where the cat was hovering. It caught on him, lighting up his fur. Suddenly, purple stripes appeared, and long claws popped out of paws as the cat became visible.
Could it really be that easy?
I bit my lip. “So . . . did it work?”
The cat stretched his paws out in front of him, his butt in the air. “Yes. I’m no longer a free cat. I’m yours to command, as you will.”
“You just gave up your freedom? Why?”
Freedom had been my primary driver for so long, I didn’t understand why someone would willingly surrender theirs.
“For the sake of the island.” His eyes darted toward the ocean. “Now, we’re running out of time. Tell me what you need. Be precise.”
I gulped. “I don’t suppose you could kill that giant kraken?”
The beast roared again and slapped her tentacles against the waves. The Red Queen released an insane laugh, reveling in the monstrosity of her creature as the enormous, indigo cephalopod emerged wholly from the depths of the water. On top of the queen kraken’s head, her eyes blinked as she acclimated to air.
Gods, I hate my aunt.
“I will do my best,” the cat replied.
I scanned the skies. Still no roc or gryphon had heeded my call, only a cat about the size of a bobcat. I twisted toward the kraken, half the size of a battleship and paddling faster toward us with every second.
The odds didn’t look good, but I was out of time and had only one real choice.
“I’d love your assistance,” I said. “Let me know how I can help you.”
“We’re bonded now,” the cat said, his voice still dreamy despite the jarring atmosphere. “Feel past your fear, let me in. You will know what I need, when I need it.”
I barely had a second to consider what he meant by that, when screams rose behind us.
I glanced up. The kraken had reached land ridiculously fast. She was already crawling toward us, pulling herself across the sand with long tentacles.
The moment had come.
I looked at the cat and nodded. “When you need help, I’m here.”
The Cheshire cat bowed and disappeared. A second later, he reappeared right on top of the kraken’s head, and plunged his claws into the creature’s eyes.
My hands flew to my mouth.
A guttural, animalistic scream rang out across the beach, so loud I wouldn’t be surprised if all of Wonderland Island had heard it.
Blood began pouring down the kraken’s face, so dark crimson it almost resembled black ink. The bulbous torso of the beast collapsed onto the sand as its tentacles flew up, trying desperately to bat the cat away.
