Impossible (A HEARTLESS Fanfic)

Chapter Fourteen

A loud knock on the front door disrupted their discussion. Everyone at the table froze, turning their eyes to Mary Ann. Panic swept over her face, and she began pulling at the edging of her dressing gown.

"Why are you looking at me?" she asked, eyes darting about nervously.

"You should go see who that is," Hatta said.

"Me? Why me?"

"Because the three of us shouldn't even be here," Hatta gestured to himself, Haigha, and Alice, "and it would seem peculiar for the White Rabbit to answer his own door when he has a perfectly capable housemaid to do that for him."

Mary Ann glanced about helplessly before taking in a shaky breath and rising from her seat. With a candle in hand, she made her way to front door. All listened intently, not daring to make a single sound, save for Tart, who was happily munching on a bowl of decorative carrots. However, they heard no voices, and Mary Ann soon returned, squinting at a piece of paper in her hand.

"How strange," she said. "There was no one there, but someone left this note."

"What does it say?" asked Hatta.

"'A reminder to Miss Mary Ann that visitors are to stay no later than two fifteen in the morning,'" Mary Ann read. She crinkled her forehead in perplexity. "That's odd, I don't recall there ever being a curfew with regards to guests."

Hatta pulled out his pocket watch. "That's in seven minutes." He closed the watch with a loud click. "That is not a curfew. It's a warning."

"A warning?" Alice repeated.

"They know we're here," Hatta said, hurriedly rising to his feet and collecting his chess pieces.

"They do?" Mary Ann quavered, her face going pale.

"Or they suspect," Hatta amended, closing up his chessboard. "Someone is giving us a headstart."

"Who would do that?" wondered Haigha.

"I could wager a guess," Hatta mumbled. "Quick, we must leave now."

Mary Ann insisted on changing out of her nightclothes, despite Hatta's protestations. Alice retrieved Tart from the carrot bowl and slipped him into one of her pockets. The White Rabbit paced about frantically, while Haigha hid beneath his chair. As Alice observed the chaos, she wondered if this odd group could actually overthrow the Queen. Touching her smol, she thought of the Vorpal Sword hidden within it. Nevermind overthrowing the Queen. Could she actually become a queen?

It seemed impossible, and yet...

Was it her fate?

With a sigh, she tried to focus on the immediate situation. They had to escape before the guards found them. If they were captured, overthrowing the Queen would be the least of their challenges.

"Mary Ann, we need to find a discreet exit," Hatta said as Mary Ann hurried down the stairs, tying a plain, cobalt bonnet over her hair.

A loud pounding came from the front door. Mary Ann gasped loudly, throwing her hand over her mouth. Hatta cursed under his breath.

"What do we do?" Haigha asked, hiding behind his ears.

Hatta closed his eyes for only a second before barking out orders. "Mary Ann, you come with us. Rabbit, you stay here and answer the door. I think you'll do us more good as our eyes and ears within the Castle."

The White Rabbit looked terrified, but he nodded his acquiescence. More pounding came from the door, accompanied by shouting. A deliciously sick feeling went through Alice's body, a combination of fear and excitement.