twelvewstars

Gifted a candle that was said to make wishes come true, Alice Clemente burned it to find herself awake in a different world. She had wished for a life of adventure away from the city and its routine. With her wish granted, she was no longer in the 21st century and was instead lost in the middle of the Kingdom of Gladiolum, a place reminiscent of the 1800s.

With luck, she soon gained connections to the rich and powerful of this new world— the nobility. However, how much of it was good and how much of it would eventually be detrimental? After all, mingling with royals not only meant extravagance and daily parties. It also meant warfare and death. 

Caught in the middle of the two princes and other nobles, Alice would soon have to face the battle between those two royal brothers― a fight for the throne.

She had wished for adventure, after all, and she received just as such.

Kept in the center of all this, would Alice be able to emerge from the rabbit hole unscathed? Or will the overwhelming troubles of love and war be too much for her to bear?


***

“And what if you, too, are unable to help?” Alice threw the question back. “What if helping would risk everything?”

Spade didn’t miss a beat.

“You are everything.”

“Don’t say things that you don’t mean,” Alice chided. “You’ll leave a trail of broken hearts.”

“And would you believe me if I say that I have no intention of breaking yours?” Spade countered. “However, mine is yours to play with. Shatter it, fix it, do anything you desire. As long as it feels the warmth of your hand, I am content.”

***

Image used in cover not mine.

A Courtyard of Roses

CARS ZOOMED BY Alice, rushing at high speeds, seemingly not stopping for anyone. No one ― inside the vehicles or out on the open road ― spared Alice even a glance. She was left on the streets to her own devices, staring wide-eyed at the scene before her.

Riverside Creek. Home. How long had it been since she had left its borders?

Alice looked around back and forth, her hand hovering over her chest as she did so. She gripped the lace that clung to her bodice, fiddling with the fabric as she tried to make sense of what had happened. One moment she was still in the carriage with Spade, on her way towards town, and the next moment, she had mysteriously emerged from a fog-filled forest to arrive back in her original world.

Was this the end of the yellow brick road Doctor Lavender had been hinting about? Had Alice come to the end of her journey?

The Home Town