Текст книги "Hookah"

Автор книги: Cameron Jace

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Chapter 86

St Peter’s, The Vatican

The March Hare, still hiding in the confession booth, watched the few uninfected people sitting outside. They were waiting for Fabiola’s return. She had taken Alice and the children and went to check on that plane they were talking about with that mousy man who called himself the chauffeur.

During their wait, a priest entered the room.

The March could only see him from behind. He was watching him stand behind the podium, about to talk to the people, who were dead silent. The March wondered if it was out of respect or fear of the man at the podium.

One thing was definitely odd about this priest. He smoked a cigar.

“Hallelujah!” the man said. “All you lazy obnoxious sin washers.”

The March’s eyes widened. The uninfected people stiffened in their places.

“Seriously,” said the priest. “Is this all you can do when the shit hits the wall?”

The March was confused. Was that Carolus in the priest’s outfit?

“All you whining, crying, wailing wusses of the world.” The priest raised both arms. “Going to church, your arches bent over, your heads lowered, and your whole existence just a mess.”

The uninfected looked extremely offended.

“Is that all you can do? No wonder each villain in this world is treading on your sorry existence, making money out of you, poisoning your food, and just toying with you left and right.”

The March thought this couldn’t be Carolus now. This man was shorter, and he thought he recognized the voice.

“Forgive me father for I have sinned,” the priest mocked them, dangling out his tongue. “Sinned? Really? You? Have you ever really been introduced to sin? What did you do? Lie to your spouse? Seen a crime and not told about it? Were late for work? Tell me. What was your worst sin ever?”

The March recognized the voice now.

“Have you ever killed someone with your bare hands and hated it?” The priest walked sideways. The March saw he was all soaked in blood, still smoking his cigar. “Have you ever stared evil in the face and grinned at it? Have you ever met a villain? A real one who kills for grins and giggles? Have you ever been kidnapped as a child and sent to work for drug lords on the other side of the world? Have you ever met the darker side of yourself like Lewis Carroll did? Have you ever had to deal with it over and over again, and swear you’d never pass it on to the world, but write the all-time best children’s book instead?”

The uninfected looked rather embarrassed, that March could see.

“If I were you, I would feel ashamed for the rest of your life,” The priest looked around. “If I were you, I wouldn’t hide in here and cry and pray for someone to save my sorry butt because I think I’m a good person. If I were you, I’d turn and face the villain.”

The March’s ears stood erect, seeing how some of them had been influenced by the priest’s talk, about to push the church’s gates open and deal with the plague.

“Go out now! Stare darkness in the face and kick its ass!”

Just before they did, the March Hare saw Fabiola enter the church, yelling at the priest. “How dare you come in here with that blood on your hands and talk to them like that?” she roared like he’d never seen her for a long time. “Get out of here, Pillar!”

Chapter 87

St Peter’s, The Vatican

When I get back to the basilica, I see Fabiola scream at the Pillar.

I don’t actually hear most of what she says. I am looking at the Pillar. He takes off the fake priest’s outfit, showing the blood-stained blue suit underneath. His face is slashed with bruises and cuts, and he needs medical attention.

More than anything, he looks like someone who needs a hug to me. You can’t kill so many people and feel okay, not even if you are the Pillar.

“I want you gone.” I hear Fabiola now. “I don’t want to see you ever again.”

“Why would you say something like that to me?” He sounds sincere.

“You’re a terrible man.” The veins on her neck stick out. “A terrible, terrible man. Get out.”

“I just killed everyone who worked for the Executioner, Fabiola. Does that not count as an act of righteousness to you?”

“You don’t want justice, Pillar. All you want is blood.”

“How can you have justice without blood?”

Wow. The conversation is taking a heavy turn.

“Ask the kids,” he approached them. “Are you happy the Executioner and his friends are all dead now?”

The kids hurray.

“Stay away from them.” Fabiola stands in the way. “They don’t need a role model like you in their lives.”

“Yeah, I understand.” The Pillar wipes blood off his lips. “I’m the bad guy after all.”

“Don’t try to have anyone sympathize with you,” Fabiola says. “You fooled Alice and took the key from her. You made a deal with the Queen of Hearts.”

“I did.”

“Why?” I cut in. “Why give the key back to her?”

“First of all, I have the key with me. I haven’t given it to her yet.”

“So why were you going to give it to her after you played me?”

“I said I made a deal. I didn’t say I was going to keep my end of it.”

Chapter 88

“I don’t understand,” I say.

“The Queen asked to meet me a few days earlier, asking me if I’d join Black Chess,” the Pillar says. “I said no, but then she offered to tell me the whereabouts of the Executioner, which she knew was very important to me. I’ve been looking for the Executioner for so long—don’t ask me why.”

“See?” Fabiola says. “He only stands on his side.”

“Wait, Fabiola, please.” I sense I’m about to hear something else that I don’t like. “Does this mean we weren’t in Columbia to find the cure?”

The Pillar hesitates. “No. I brought you along so you could help the children out. Sooner or later I was going to kill the Executioner and his men.”

“But you didn’t kill him before he told us about the Dodo location,” I argue.

“That’s because I needed to find the whereabouts of the March Hare, save him and then get you with him and children on the plane and go finish my work. I knew he was behind this from the beginning.”

“How is that possible?”

“The March Hare extracted all kinds of drugs and cures from plants in Wonderland. It was him who extracted the Lullaby, which helped Lewis Carroll with his migraines. No one but him could have cooked it.”

“Frankly, I don’t know what to say to you,” I say. “I mean, you do all the worst things in the world. You lie, cheat, manipulate, but then somewhere between the lines you have a good cause. I am so confused.”

“Don’t be,” Fabiola says. “Whatever cause he had, he risked the end of the world by taking you along. What if something had happened to you while you were there?”

It’s a plausible thought, but it depends on whether ridding the world of the Executioner was as important as saving lives.

“So do you have any idea how I can kill Carolus?” I tell the Pillar, hoping he’ll tell the truth this time.

“I don’t know,” he says. “I think your best bet is that the March remembers all the details of what happened with Carolus. I believe the solution lies in the Hare’s ears – it’d be a shame having them stick out all the time for nothing.”

“We’ll take it from here,” Fabiola says. “Now get out of here, Pillar.”

The Pillar nods. He looks defeated in a way. Like I noticed before, he can hardly stand up to Fabiola. We all watch him walk out the door, wondering if we’ll ever see him again—or if we ever want to see him again.

“And please stay away from Alice.” Fabiola stabs the words in his back. I know if there’s one thing he likes the most, it’s to be near me. “Once the Inklings are set to go, we won’t need you.”

The Pillar slowly turns back. “Why do you hate me so much, White Queen?” he says. “I lost this for you.” He waves his right hand in the air and points at something.

I blink, trying to interpret what he means. Lost what for her, Pillar? What in the church was he pointing at? Was he pointing at God? Has he lost his faith to her? It doesn’t make sense.

Fabiola stiffens. The Pillar’s words cut through her somehow. She fights the tears and stands straight, saying nothing.

“Get out, Pillar.” She kills him now—and me. “Go pay the Queen of Hearts with the key in exchange for your revenge. Go spill blood and spread mayhem wherever you want, but not near us.”

The Pillar turns around and walks out. As he does, he stops near one of the uninfected and scares her. “Boo!”

Chapter 89

Radcliffe asylum, Oxford

The Cheshire, in Todd’s body now, grinned at his sister.

“You look awkward,” she retorted. “Go find Dad and make fun of him.”

“So you’re not Tweedledee?” the Cheshire said.

“What? You’ve read those Alice in Wonderland books now? Aren’t you too old for that?”

“No one’s too old for those books, don’t you think?” the Cheshire said. “So you’re not Tweedledum, either?”

“I’m not,” she says. “What’s wrong with you today?”

“I guess it’s the Alice in Wonderland books.” The Cheshire cocked his head.

“You know what happened to me the first time my teacher read the book to us in class when I was younger?”

“No. What happened?”

“She kept reading it to the class, so fascinated by it,” she said. “And I was like eleven or so. I couldn’t fathom the books. My mind was reeling, truly.”

“And then what happened?”

“I raised my hand after she finished and said, ‘Teacher, is this Lewis Carroll mad, or is he mad?’”

The Cheshire laughed aloud.

“My teacher was mad at me when I said that and spent the rest of the day explaining how this book was the pinnacle of literature and that the author was never mad and never took any drugs.”

“And we all know what that means, of course.”

“That he was mad and took drugs.” She snickered.

“You know what’s madder? That we love this book so much.”

“I guess we’re mad too,” Tania said.

“We’re all mad here.” The Cheshire grinned.

“Oh, my God, Todd,” Tania said. “Do that again.”

“What? We’re all mad here?”

“That’s bombastically amazing. You look just like the Cheshire.”

“Oh, come on. Who could match the Cheshire’s creepy grin in that Disney movie?”

“No, seriously. Yours is even better,” Tania said. “Please do it again.”

“You know what I can do better? I can make my head disappear, too.”

“Haha. Don’t get carried away.”

The Cheshire grinned. “Wanna see? Look.”

But of course his head didn’t disappear, because sometimes he was still bound by the body of the one he possessed. It seemed that not only was Todd not one of the Tweedles, but he also wasn’t a good sport. His head wouldn’t budge.

“You made me laugh, anyway,” Tania said. “You should do that grin a lot. I think girls will like it. Girls like all kinds of weirds things, trust me.”

“Are you having fun, children?” Dr. Truckle entered the cell.

“Lotsa fun and grins.” The Cheshire put his hands around his father’s arm in hopes of possessing the man’s body to find his way out of the asylum.

To his surprise, he couldn’t get into Tom’s body.

The Cheshire, still trapped inside the teenager, stared suspiciously at Dr. Tom Truckle. To his knowledge, it was only Wonderlanders he could not possess. Who are you, Dr. Truckle?

Chapter 90

St Peter’s, The Vatican

“I think you were a bit harsh on the Pillar.” I tell Fabiola.

She dismisses my comment and checks on the March Hare in the confession booth. “Did you remember anything of importance yet?”

“Nothing, White Queen,” he replied. “But I feel the drug wearing off. I should remember all that happened soon enough.”

“Then you have no choice but to go to Geneva,” Fabiola tells me. “Take your umbrella. I have a feeling it’s the way to kill Carolus.”

“It makes sense. If Lewis gave it to me, then maybe it’s the weapon to kill his darker half with.” I stare at the laughable umbrella that has saved my life repeatedly.

Fabiola’s phone rings. “Go check if the plane is ready. I need to answer this.”

I don’t go out but call the chauffeur who’s outside somewhere. He landed the chopper on top of a locked building, so he wouldn’t bump into citizens looking for a fight.

“All set,” the chauffeur says. “Come over. We’ll be in Geneva soon enough.”

I hang up and tell the White Queen, but she shocks me with the latest news.

“I know what the Queen is up to.”

“I’m so curious about your sources inside the Queen’s castle,” I say. “What is it?”

“You know the Geneva meeting will have the world’s most prestigious presidents, right?”

“Sure.”

“It will have the president of United States meet the Queen of England. The Israeli presidents meet the most prestigious Arab president. The Russian president meet the Ukrainian president and so forth, to name a few.”

“Those presidents’ nations are in continuous conflict with each other,” Fabiola says. “Usually, in every world meeting of this kind, they settle for courtesy and etiquette, choose not to clash against one another or say what’s really on their mind.”

“I’m not following.”

“Most of the world’s leaders hate each other, Alice. Their countries hate the others’ countries too.” Fabiola holds me by the arms. “Everyone in the world knows that. But we always find a way to make peace in the world. You know how?”

“I get it now,” I say. “By not saying the truth.”

“That’s why the Queen took Carolus with her. He has some of the plague’s scent left. She is going to pour it into their tea at the meeting. And you know what will happen then?”

“Every president will tell the truth,” I say absently.

“The bad truth none of us can handle.”

“And then the world will be in continuous wars, nations against nations. It’s what the Queen loves most.”

“How is this different from a plague?”

“Alice. What happened to you?” Fabiola says. “In a plague everyone dies. Poor, rich, powerful, weak, buyer, seller. In a war, a lot of people get rich. You sell weapons, give the illusion of safety to those you protect. It’s a different ball game.”

I am not quite sure I really understand the difference, but I know the Queen needs to be stopped first, even before killing Carolus. Maybe the two things have to be done at once.

“This is a bit too much for me.” I shrug.

“I know,” Fabiola says. “That’s why I’m coming with you to Geneva.”

Chapter 91

On the way to Geneva

The Cheshire, disguised in another cell mate, sat next to Tom Truckle in the plane going to Geneva.

He’d persuaded him he knew how to get in, and that Tom needed to be there since the world’s presidents would discuss the consequences of the plague, something Tom was interested in.

The Cheshire had to do it, because as much as he was looking for the Tweedles, he was incredibly curious about Dr. Truckle’s identity.

“Are you sure we can get in?” Tom asked, looking at the world below.

“I’m sure. I’ve always had my secret ways to get into the Queen’s meetings.”

“Well, I sure hope so. I’ve always suspected that the world’s elite people had planned a way out of the apocalypse, like a ship in the sea, or even escaping to the moon. I read about it.”

“Of course. I’m as curious as you are. Let’s hope we expose their plans.”

“But you never told me why you admitted yourself to the asylum, Jack.” Dr. Truckle said. “I always thought you weren’t mad.”

“I have my reasons.”

“I think you’re in love with that bonkers girl, Alice.” He elbowed him. “What’s with that girl? Why is everyone so interested in her?”

“She is special.” The Cheshire grinned. Possessing Jack’s body didn’t fall under the rule that he couldn’t enter a Wonderlander’s body. Because let’s face it. Jack wasn’t a Wonderlander anymore. He was dead. A figment of his own imagination.

Which rather irritated the Cheshire. How could he possess a nobody’s body? It was mindboggling, even for a cat.

Chapter 92

Geneva, Switzerland

Margaret watched the Queen rub her hands with enthusiasm.

Soon the presidents would all enter the main hall and have their conference. The first part was planned to be aired for the public—well, the few channels that hadn’t been brought down by the angry public yet. The second part was going to be a closed meeting where they’d arrange the escape of the richest people in case the plague had no cure.

The Queen’s made sure there wasn’t going to be a second part of the meeting.

She’d injected the tea with the truth serum already, and even called it the Tea to Truth. “Oh, the Mad Hatter would’ve loved this if he were here. The real Mad Hatter, I mean.”

“I still don’t understand trying to make the world’s most powerful presidents clash against each other when the world is going to end anyway,” Margaret had to say.

“I know what I am doing. Didn’t I say don’t question me? Besides, villains always do it in James Bond movies.” She stood on a high chair, checking out her beauty in a mirror. “Do you think I look good for the end of the world?”

“If you’re planning to take a photo with you to the afterlife,” Margaret mumbled.

“I heard you,” the Queen said. “Don’t you think I’m not planning to conquer the afterlife after I conquer the world, ugly duchess.”

Margaret shrugged, having no idea what to do. She had already been angry enough, hearing what the Pillar did to her investments in Columbia, but this wasn’t the right time to teach this hookah man a lesson. She needed to deal with this crazy Queen first. What did she know that Margaret didn’t?

It must have all happened in her conversation with Carolus. If the Queen’s guards would only let her meet with this man.

“I’m ready,” the Queen chirped. “Now, did you call Fabiola?”

“Yes. She didn’t recognize my voice. I told her I was a rebelling guard from Buckingham Palace who wished the Queen’s reign would end,” Margaret said. “I told her that you are taking Carolus to Geneva, and that she and Alice have to come and save the world by killing Carolus.”

“Fantastic. I bet she took the bait.”

“Like a starving fish,” Margaret said. “She is coming here in a while.”

“Great. That’s the deal between me and Carolus. He gave me what was left of the plague so I could put in the tea in exchange for handing him this Alice girl.”

“I thought he wanted the Lullaby pill.”

“He needed the pill when he had migraines. I gave him one to ease his pain, but his real plan was to lure Alice. He first asked me for the Pillar, because he knew that the easiest way to find Alice was through the Pillar, but I told him I have faster and easier ways to get her.”

“So this whole plague was to help him find Alice?”

“Some loon, right?” The Queen grinned. “He said he wasn’t sure who the Real Alice was. That the only way he’d find her is to threaten the world’s safety.”

“I’m not following, My Queen.”

“Think about it. The Real Alice will always stand up to save the world like we were told in that prophecy. Apparently, Carolus believes in it.”

“Strange way to find the Real Alice, but he has a point. Still, why does he wants to meet her so bad?”

“Maybe he wants to kill her, but don’t ask me why. All that matters is that I get the world’s presidents into a war. And it’s always good to get rid of any girl named Alice, in case she is the real one.” She rolled her eyes.

Margaret watched the Queen enter the meeting hall. She thought it was a good idea she’d also told Fabiola the Queen’s plan. Now maybe this annoying Alice would find a heroic way to stop the Queen from her executing her plan, and then she would die in Carolus’s hands.

Now that’s what they called two birds with one stone.

Chapter 93

Pillar’s Chopper on its way to Geneva

Fabiola changes into modern clothes inside the plane.

She comes to show her formal, businesswoman dress. And she looks rather shy, or confused.

“You look good,” I say. And she does. I don’t think she realizes she has an athletic feminine-looking body. Or maybe it’s me who just doesn’t know who she was before she became a nun.

“I haven’t changed my nun’s dress in years.” She’s almost blushing. “It’s a bit uncomfortable to me.”

“You’re always beautiful, White Queen,” the March says, although he should be trying to remember the exact incident with Carolus.

“You are,” I say.

“I don’t want to look beautiful,” she says. “I want to look convincing enough that we can get through the UN’s building gates.

“Don’t worry,” the chauffeur says. “I’ve taken care of that. The Pillar sent me fake invitations for the three of you.”

This doesn’t warm Fabiola toward him though.

“I think, as much of a mystery as he is, he still tries to help,” I say.

“You don’t know him, Alice,” she says. “He shouldn’t have killed more people. You think he solved the world’s drug problem? Tomorrow, another Executioner will be born.”

“I understand.”

“This is exactly what I was talking about when I told about you staring darkness in the eyes, and not getting stained with it.”

“I think I get it. I felt so much hate and anger in Columbia, I was about to go on a rampage, too.”

“The Pillar never got it. That’s why he isn’t a good man. He wants to fight fire with fire, not admitting that he likes it.”

“I have to say he does like it.” I stretch my arms. “But forget about him. You know what I like about this moment?”

“What?”

“The three of us are on a mission together. Three more and the Inklings will be complete.”

“I’m an Inklings’ member?” The March giggles. “So frabjous.”

“You know what would be frabjous?” I tell him. “If you remembered any useful details about the plague. Maybe there is a cure, after all.”

“I’m trying my best.” His ears dangle a bit. “Believe me, I do. I’ve even looked through all my pockets for a clue, but...”

Suddenly his ears stand erect again. His eyes bulge out like usual.

“What is it?” Fabiola says.

“I found something in my jacket’s pocket. It’s a hidden pocket I totally forgot about.”

“And what did you find in there?” I say.

The March says nothing. He elevates his hands, showing four thin tubes, like the ones you use in a chemistry lab.

“What are those?” I inquire.

“I still need to remember that, but...” His eyes dart between me and Fabiola. “I think this could be the cure.”