Monsterland Mayhem (Fairy Tales With A Monstrous Twist)

24. Ailsa

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

AILSA

I blink.

Then frown.

“Craze?” I whisper, my mouth incredibly dry. “Why…?” I swallow, my voice a mere rasp of sound. What happened? I marvel, blinking again.

One minute, we were in the bathroom.

And the next…

I don’t remember.

I just… I’m here.

My brow furrows more. I’m in my bed . I can feel the familiar lumps beneath me, see the cracked wallpaper decorating the drab wall. There’s minimal light, the slender window above barely allowing any sunlight to stream into my basement quarters.

Musk taunts my nostrils.

But beneath it is the subtle lingering scent of cinnamon spice.

And smoke.

And the forest.

Craze. Catum. Krolic.

Where are they?

And why am I here?

Rolling to my side, I instantly regret the decision and curl my knees into my stomach. Because ugh . I feel sick. Like I haven’t eaten in days and still have no interest in eating.

What’s wrong with me? I wonder, my head spinning as I close my eyes. Dizziness assaults my senses, worsening the rolling sensation in my abdomen.

Gods, Craze wasn’t kidding when he said the ascension would be worse than the fall.

But where is he?

I peek again, searching for his dark hair and sinful eyes. Even his masked face would do right now. But he’s not within my field of view, and I’m not sure I can sit up to survey the rest of the room right now.

Didn’t they say I wasn’t going back to my district, though? I think, frowning once more. Something isn’t right.

“Ailsa?” a feminine voice murmurs, startling me.

Baroness Clarice .

“Are you finally awake, girl?” she asks, the subtle impatience in her voice making my stomach churn.

She only ever calls me girl when she’s displeased.

I swallow, my still-dry throat barely working. It takes all the energy I possess to roll onto my back and then rotate my head toward the basement door. “I… I don’t feel well, Baroness Clarice.” My scratchy voice barely travels the space between us.

Yet I can tell she heard me by the way she folds her arms. “Well, no, I imagine not. You missed your birthday ceremony, and you’ve been out cold for days.”

What? I blink at her. “I…”

“I told you that wandering around in the woods was unhealthy,” she goes on like I didn’t try to speak and starts sauntering down the stairs, her stiletto heels clacking against the wood. “Maybe now you’ll listen to me, hmm?”

She flips on the lights, causing me to wince and cover my eyes. The fluorescent tubes are far too bright for the area down here, but she says it helps her confirm that I’m keeping my quarters clean .

Not that I have much space to make dirty.

One twin bed cot.

A single dresser, plus a wardrobe for my uniforms.

And a bathroom with a mediocre shower.

That’s all.

What did she mean about me missing my ceremony ? I wonder, trying to focus. I… I definitely went to my ceremony. Drank the elixir. And… and met the most amazing men.

“Doctor Tav will be by soon to evaluate you. I want to make sure that you can properly recover.” She comes to stand by the bed, her lips pursed as she stares down at me. “You’re three days behind in your chores, Ailsa. This is very inconvenient for all of us.”

“I’m sorry,” I manage to say, my mouth thick.

Was it all a dream?

“Hmm,” she hums, tapping her foot. “Well, I’ll have Tabitha bring you something to eat while you wait for Doctor Tav. Just do exactly as he says. We can’t have you dying down here.”

With that lovely sentiment, she flips her long white-blonde hair over her shoulder and leaves the way she came.

I don’t breathe until the sound of her heels is nothing but a memory.

I’m home. In my district. And I missed my birthday ceremony.

That… that can’t be right.

I was in that bathroom in a towel, telling the three Alphas that I didn’t need to be hunted, that I would say I chose them.

Craze brought me here.

I was in a towel. And I…

Frowning, I glance down to find myself clothed in my usual servant uniform—dusky brown pants and a plain white T-shirt.

Pushing myself upright, I look to my partially open wardrobe and spy the blue-and-white ceremonial dress hanging from the mirrored door.

My stomach clenches. No. No, that can’t be right.

Craze, Krolic, and Catum are real.

Everything we experienced… it was too much to be a dream.

Except even the shoes are sitting on the ground, waiting to be worn.

My hands begin to shake, the tremble working its way up my arms as Tabitha appears on the stairs. Her head is bowed as she descends, her timid demeanor reminding me of my own when I first started in Baroness Clarice’s manor.

Only, Tabitha seems a bit more on edge now. Maybe because she’s had to work overtime the last few days to cover for my absence.

She creeps toward me with the tray, not once looking up.

We don’t know each other well; she just started working here thirteen months ago, and she’s eight years younger than me. Still, I don’t like her posture. It’s a little too broken down, as though something happened recently to completely break her spirit.

“Are you okay?” I ask her under my breath, aware that there are listening devices everywhere in this manor.

Baroness Clarice takes her security seriously, and that includes monitoring her staff. But she hasn’t taken much interest in me these last few years, likely because I’ve been with her home long enough to know my place and how to properly do my job.

Although, her security is how she learned about my frequent trips to the forest.

She didn’t like my “little adventures,” as she called them, but she never told me to stop them. Just said it wasn’t safe and that I’d better not catch a chill.

It seems I failed that requirement.

Assuming I’ve truly been ill , I think, frowning again. It couldn’t have been a dream. My Alphas are real. I can still smell them. Can still feel their touch.

Krolic marked me between my thighs.

I can sense it.

The way his knot pulsed inside me.

His seed.

That wasn’t a dream.

Tabitha sets the tray down, reminding me of her presence and the question she has yet to answer. I glance up into her violet gaze, noting the thin cluster of pink lashes framing her catlike eyes. She’s human, but there’s always been an otherworldly quality about her. One that seems highlighted by her facial features. The hints of pink in her hair also seem unnatural.

But only humans are servants in this world.

And she’s a servant.

Ergo, human.

“Don’t drink the tea,” she whispers, her words barely audible.

Then she turns and leaves without another word, leaving me in stunned silence.

I glance down at the tray, noting the small tuna salad sandwich and the teacup beside it.

Something isn’t right.

My brow furrows even more as another part of me snaps, No shit.

Craze, Catum, and Krolic are real. I’m certain of it. They’re my… my mate-circle. Sort of. Not really. Not yet .

I shake my head and instantly regret it, the sense of delirium hitting me all over again.

I was in Monsterland. I’m an Omega. I… I shouldn’t be here.

Not a dream. Not a dream. Not. A. Dream .

But how is the dress in perfectly good condition? And the shoes?

I destroyed those in Monsterland.

Blowing out a breath, I scrub my hand down my face. None of this makes any sense.

And while my stomach is killing me, I don’t want to eat.

Don’t drink the tea, Tabitha said.

Biting my cheek, I study the contents. It looks normal.

Bending down, I take a sniff. Smells normal, too.

But that doesn’t mean I want to taste it. Especially not after Tabitha’s warning.

Shaking my head, I push the tray aside and force my legs to move toward the ground. They feel heavy, confirming that perhaps I have been asleep for a while.

Or drugged , I think.

I’m not quite sure what that would feel like, but I’ve heard about drugs from Baroness Clarice’s daughters. Well, not directly from them. Just in the movies they used to watch.

Move, Ailsa, I tell myself.

But I can barely feel the cement floor beneath my bare feet. It’s like I’m numb.

“Where is she?” a deep voice booms, sending a chill down my spine.

“In her room, resting,” Baroness Clarice replies in a light purr. It’s a voice I’ve not really heard her use before. She’s usually exasperated or stern, not… flirtatious.

“Take me to her,” the male growls.

There’s something in his voice that has all my instincts flaring to life. A feeling of wrongness that I can’t explain. A sense of warning , one that makes me want to run.

Except my legs are lead weights, and my head is pounding.

Gods, this isn’t good. This ? —

Footsteps on the stairs have me glancing toward the entry to my basement bedroom just as a man with black pants and a white button-down shirt begins to descend.

He’s tall. Wide. Similar in size to Krolic, Catum, and Craze.

An Alpha , I realize, then frown at my knowledge. How do I know that?

How do I even know this is happening?

Maybe… maybe I passed out in the portal and this is just a nightmare.

Or… or none of it ever happened and it was just the most fantastic dream. Until I woke up in reality.

“Miss Marvel?” the deep voice asks, a note of softness underscoring his tone.

I clear my throat and focus on the approaching male, noting the deep lines near his eyes—eyes that are a vibrant blue that contrast with his black hair and pale skin.

He’s handsome.

Undoubtedly so.

But he doesn’t smell right.

Which is strange. My nose isn’t usually this sensitive, but there’s something in his cologne that’s a bit off. Sandalwood, I think. Not the right kind of tree oil.

Krolic smells like cedar and pine.

This Alpha… his scent is too soft. Too other .

I need the forest.

I need Krolic .

“Hello, Miss Marvel,” the Alpha murmurs, his eyes lighting up as he runs his gaze over me.

I swallow, uncomfortable with his nearness. His wrongness . I… I don’t know how I sense any of this, but I’m not going to ignore my instincts. Not when everything else feels so unreliable.

“I’m Tav,” he tells me as he sits beside me on the cot.

“Doctor Tav,” Baroness Clarice interjects, earning a cold look from the Alpha before me. I’m not even sure how I know he’s an Alpha. His size, perhaps. But I’m certain of it now.

And come to think of it, Baroness Clarice… she’s an Alpha, too.

How have I never noticed that before?

She’s tall. Slender. And exceptionally dominant.

Only, I’ve never realized her status. She’s always just been Baroness Clarice, a being of unknown supernatural origin who happened to own the manor I worked within. I never asked questions. Never wondered at her heritage. Just obeyed.

However, I’m innately certain of her classification in this moment, like I suddenly have an awareness for identifying those with Monsterland traits.

Is this a result of the elixir? I wonder. Or have I lost my mind entirely?

“She needs to respect and obey her betters,” Baroness Clarice hisses in response to something Doctor Tav just said. I missed it, too lost in my head to hear. “She’s fully aware of her position. And she will address you as Doctor .”

The male Alpha releases a sound of displeasure before clearing his throat and looking at me again. “I hear you’ve been unwell.”

Understatement, I want to say.

But I don’t want to antagonize him or Baroness Clarice.

Their Alpha presence is… suppressing. Intense. Demanding submission.

Very unlike Krolic, Catum, and Craze. While I could sense their domineering personas, they never made me feel like I needed to supplicate or beg for their favor. I obeyed them to please them.

With Baroness Clarice and Doctor Tav… my obedience would be derived from fear.

Except, I don’t quite fear them.

It’s a strange feeling, one I don’t fully understand.

And I’m not ready to embrace it.

Not until I understand what is happening.

So, instead, I clear my throat and say, “I’m not sure what happened, but I’ve been asleep for a while.” That feels truthful—I’ve definitely been asleep for some time. Which explains the grogginess, headache, and general feeling of dead weight.

But I’m hoping they also assume I’m buying Baroness Clarice’s story about me missing my ceremony.

I didn’t miss it. My mate-circle is real.

The dress must be a replica. That’s the only explanation I’ll accept.

Because life without Catum, Krolic, and Craze… just no. I won’t even entertain that. Not after spending time with them and receiving a taste of what we could be together. I need more. I need them. I need the potential for our future.

Doctor Tav doesn’t immediately say anything, instead reaching around me to pick up the tea. He gives it a sniff, and his nose visibly crinkles. “What is this?” he demands, his gaze going to Baroness Clarice.

She simply looks at him. “Tea.”

His expression hardens. “Remake it.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me, Heart. Remake it .”

I flinch, the name Heart serving as a bolt to my heart, one that causes my pulse to race. Krolic’s sister.

Is that… is that even possible?

Why would she be here?

Maybe I misunderstood.

“Sorry, little one,” Doctor Tav says, his hand grabbing mine and sending a cold blast through my veins. I nearly shiver in response, his touch so wrong that I can barely think straight. “I didn’t mean to growl.”

Growl? I repeat to myself. Oh .

He thinks my pulse is racing from his snarl, not from hearing Heart .

Did I even hear that correctly?

“Remake the tea,” he says again without looking at me.

“I don’t make tea,” Baroness Clarice— Heart? —snaps before taking the tray and stalking off toward the stairs. “And I don’t submit to you, either.”

Doctor Tav grunts. “Don’t I know it.”

The baroness flips her long blonde hair over her shoulder like she usually does and sashays up the stairs, then slams the door behind her.

Doctor Tav sighs, his thumb tracing unwelcome circles against my wrist. “We’re not a match, are we?” he says in a low voice.

I blink. “What?”

He cants his head to the side, his blue eyes almost kind. “You heard me, Miss Marvel. We’re not a scent match.”

This time, I can’t stop the shiver from vibrating through me.

And he releases my hand, his fingers going to his dark hair as he shakes his head. “Nothing is what it seems here. Nothing at all.”

“What do you mean?”

“I hoped we would be a match, to at least make this palatable. But I should have known fate would never reward me with such a gift.” He glances up the stairs, his mouth grimacing. “She won’t care, though. She never does.”

“I… I don’t understand.”

“No, I suppose you don’t,” he murmurs. “And for that, I’m sorry. Fuck, I’m sorry for a great many things. Alas, apologies are a concept of the past.”

He stands.

“I’m going to go make sure your food and tea are safe to eat and drink,” he says, finally looking at me again. “You’re going to need your strength, Omega. The next few days are going to be taxing on both of us.”

With that, he leaves.

All I can do is gape at the stairs.

He called me an Omega.

It’s real. Everything… is real.

And I’m pretty sure I just met the Crimson King.