The Heart of Wonderland

Chapter 22

Alison ignored the tasteful, clearly expensive sofa that sat against one wall in favor of a pile of cushions arranged on the floor. She chose one upholstered in inviting, bright colors and settled herself on it cross-legged, as Mrs. Kim had taught her. She began the breathing exercises that would help calm her mind and allow her to return to Wonderland.

"Ah, very good!" Mrs. Kim said when she returned a few minutes later, carrying a lacquered tray on which a teapot and two ceramic mugs rested. "Your training is coming along nicely. You are a good student, Alison."

"Thank you." Alison hid her embarrassed smile by taking a sip of her tea.

"Now, as I said, meditation can be like dreaming while awake. You must empty your mind so that the space can be filled with the answers you seek." She raised a finger. "As long as you ask the right questions."

"OK." Alison nodded. "I can do this." I have to do this.

She breathed in and out, following Mrs. Kim's voice as she tried to forget about what had happened at the museum. She needed to find the Keeper's journals, not fixate on her embarrassing freak-out in the art class with Caroline

Focus on finding the Keeper's journals, she told herself. But where could they be? She frowned. She'd looked all over her house, had checked everywhere she could think of and found nothing. What if her father had hidden the journals in a safe deposit box somewhere? If that was the case, she might never find them!

Ask the right question. That's what Mrs. Kim had said. But what was the right question? It didn't get any more direct than 'where are the journals?'

Alison's eyes flew open and she let out a growl of frustration. "Ugh. I can't do this!"

"Relax," Mrs. Kim told her. "Empty your mind so there is room for the answer. You must not be so hard on yourself."

Alison forced her muscles to relax. Her shoulders lowered and she unclenched her fists in her lap. Ask the right question. She tried to let go of the tension in her back, her thighs, her jaw. She unclenched her teeth and imagined each of her limbs growing heavy with relaxation.

"That's it," Mrs. Kim whispered. "Let your worries go."

Alison sighed and settled deeper into the stillness and quiet, allowing her mind to wander freely without fixing on any one thought. She could do as Mrs. Kim instructed. She could allow her mind to be peaceful and empty so the right question would occur to her.

The right question... That was it!

Her eyes flew open and she jumped to her feet. "The answer was right in front of me all along! My father did hide the key to finding the journals in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. But whoever stole the first edition from his library took the wrong book! He hid the answer in the copy he gave me, the one we used to read together. I'm sure of it."

Mrs. Kim smiled. "I knew you would find the answer if you opened your mind to possibility. What made you think of it?"

"My copy of the book has an inscription," Alison explained. "My father copied one of his favorite quotations from the Alice stories in the front so I would always remember it. In Through the Looking Glass, Humpty Dumpty and Alice talk about the meaning of different words. Alice asks if you can make words mean so many different things simply because you want them to." Her mouth twisted slightly. "My father loved books and words. He was always doing crosswords."

"Perhaps that is why he left this final puzzle for you to solve."

Alison nodded thoughtfully. "Maybe you're right. When I read the note he left me, I was angry with him for being so vague, but now I'm starting to think maybe he had no choice. Whoever broke into our house and stole that first edition knew what they were looking for."

"It would seem so," Mrs. Kim agreed.

"I swear I'll find the journals," Alison said. "And I'll bring Maddox back to you."

For her, returning home to someone who loved her was as easy as making a phone call. But for Maddox, home was a world away. And no matter what it took, she would reunite Mrs. Kim with her grandson.