The Wonder (Queen of Hearts Saga #2)(18)
“That isn’t true. I would never….” But you would, said a voice inside of her. You did kill innocent Cards. You can and you have. The Spade threw another bunch of branches onto the black flames of the fire, which leapt even higher, their invisible smoke choking Dinah’s eyes. He continued.
“Yeh looked like a blood-thirsty warrior that day, Princess. I saw that wild fear in yer eyes when yeh passed through the iron gates, the look of a child, desperate to survive. I’ve seen it many times in battle. But that’s not what the kingdom saw. Trust me, it will be to yer advantage in the future.”
The future? Dinah pushed herself off the rotted log she was perched on. “I don’t understand what this has to do with Wardley. Tell me about Wardley.” She was getting annoyed.
“Ah sorry, I’m getting there, Yer Highness. Because everything that happened to your stable boy—”
“WARDLEY,” snapped Dinah. “His name is Wardley.”
“Everything was a result of your actions that day, you tearing out of the castle like a mad bear let loose. I stayed there long enough to see yer father and his small cavalry pass through the gates in pursuit of yeh, and I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a man so bent on the destruction of another. He longs for his vengeance and he will never stop thirsting for it.”
In the past this statement would have sent Dinah into a flurry of tears, but now it just roused the boiling rage within her. She did not mourn the loss of her father anymore. He had taken everything from her. I should have killed him in the forest last night, she thought. I had my chance for revenge and walked away from it.
“When the King of Hearts returned from his pursuit, he was blinded with anger. He had lost the chase, and everyone in Wonderland knew it, especially the Cards. He slew three fruit sellers just because they didn’t get out of his way fast enough, and there were a handful of townspeople that he beat so savagely yeh can hardly recognize them. He also finished off one of the white Hornhooves, only because she wasn’t able to catch up with yeh.” The Spade ran his fingers across his knife belt as he stood and Dinah suddenly felt a bit unsafe as the anger in his tone rose.
“Wardley,” she whispered.
“Er, right. I know a Heart Card who stands guard at the palace infirmary. He says that after the King killed the Hornhoov, he barged into the wing where they were treating yer stable boy and demanded his blood as well. He was crazed, knocking over carts and beds, hitting the midwives and sick-workers with his armored fists. The doctor on duty argued that Wardley’s blood had already been paid and that he had a very real stab wound to prove his innocence. The King pushed past him, his sword in hand….” Dinah felt like she might faint under the bright stars shining that night, spiraled above in a glowing, circular pattern. “By some miracle, the King refrained once he saw that the blood flowing over the table and onto the floor all belonged to Wardley. He was unconscious, his wound raw and deep.” Dinah winced, remembering the feeling of her sword separating his muscle, ringing against the bone, the pained face of the boy she loved.
“He had been found slumped over in the stables. Wardley’s story was that he had slipped away from the Heart Cards when they were entering the castle to try and stop yeh—he figured yeh’d go for yer lame horse in the stable and he wanted to ferret yeh out, to take his own revenge on you for killing yer brother, a boy that he had grown so fond of. He heard a sound in the dark and when he woke up, there was a gaping bloody hole in his arm and a huge lump on his head.”
Dinah said a silent prayer of thanks that Wardley was so smart, so crafty. Even in the Black Towers he had been astute and quick on his feet.
“The King wanted his head nonetheless, but was convinced otherwise by his council, Cheshire most likely, crafty snake that he is. The murder of such a handsome young Card, one who was so well liked and full of potential to become the Knave of Hearts would surely be frowned upon by the court and the kingdom. In the end, it was a political move.” The Spade shook his head with a cavernous laugh. “Of course, his reputation for being one of the most skilled fighters in the Cards has since disappeared, and now he is known for being bested by the Princess in a stable. Yer father has blamed him for yer escape and he has become a laughing stock. He is called ‘Wardley the Weak,’ though always behind his back, as a wise man would not say it when he holds a sword in his hand. He still bears the Card clasp, but he mostly works on rebuilding the stables yeh so recklessly tore down.”
Dinah tried to manage her breathing but the sob she had been holding in broke forth from her lips and she buried her face in her hands. Wardley, once the brightest star in Wonderland, the future Knave of Hearts, would be mocked for the rest of his life, all because he had saved hers. Her body shook with sobs before the Spade, who looked alarmed at her sudden rush of emotion.
Dinah was embarrassed. “I’m sorry. It was my fault… Wardley… he saved me. He put me on Morte and unlocked the stable gates. He gave me his sword and told me to stab him. I would have lain down and waited for the King if it wasn’t for him.” She wiped her nose on the corner of her sleeve.
The Spade’s lip turned up in a half smile. “So I figured. Yeh don’t strike me as a warrior. Yeh strike me as a terrified princess, denied of her kingdom, neglected by her father, a shell of a girl—one who has seen her brother murdered and her half sister crowned Queen.”