Chapter 8-Payment in Hearts{game of the heart}

Chapter 8: Payment in Hearts

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This is it. The meeting's finally starting.
The room lay still. Everyone was dead quiet, as though they'd be killed at the first hint of communication. Even their breaths were inaudible; hell, the sun was making more sound than them. If these guys, all of whom already knew the Queen and what she was capable of, were afraid to speak, then I was certainly in no position to even attempt it.

Only the rapping of royal nails against the table rang in the silence. They tapped perfectly in rhythm with my throbbing heartbeat, quickly throwing me off tempo as my heart raced faster. It scared me how expertly those nails of hers aligned with my pulse. She couldn't hear it, could she?

Maybe the Queen was psychic.
Within a moment, her nails picked up the pace and once again matched my heartbeat. God, how did she do it?
Those nails… That damn tapping echoed in my mind and nearly drove me insane. It was as though she was projecting my apprehension for all of them to hear, speaking volumes about which I was and what I was feeling with just a simple, eerie tap on the table. I wanted to scream and burst out of the room before that ringing finally drove me to the edge. But then, it finally ceased.

The Queen crossed her arms over her chest and with a disappointed sigh, began, "First order of business is to discuss the recent lack of “incoming hearts”. We know you all have been busy preparing for the domain's upcoming ball, but it's still no excuse. We're too far behind, and we need to increase our numbers now." Her lips pursed in an impatient scowl, but it seemed to signify her approval for her subjects to speak.
"But Your Highness, we've been handwriting all the invitations, like you asked," Eri expounded defensively.
"And preparing the decorations," added Vulpe.
"And tending to the gardens," Akin said spitefully.
"And coming up with the menu and gathering the ingredients…" mumbled Leo softly
"Quiet, all of you," Top hat jerk ordered, quickly turning everyone's attention back to the Queen.
"Thank you. What we mean is that despite the vigorous preparations, the numbers cannot drop so drastically. We're behind at least a hundred hearts!"
"That far? Oh, damn. We'll never catch up by the end of the month," Eri grumbled hopelessly.
"Um… What month are we in right now?" I whispered to Akin.
"December," he whispered back discreetly.
"So we need at least three or four a day," Vulpe stated blankly. "That's not so bad, Eri. We get way more than four in a day."
"But still, a hundred hearts behind while they're still collecting ours? I mean, it's not like they'll stop just because we're behind," she retorted wittily. "Use your head a little, Vulpe. We'll need at least double that per day to keep up, and even then I doubt it."
"But they have to prepare their ball, too! It's coming up soon. They'll slow their numbers just like we did, but we'll catch up and get ahead just at the end of December. Relax. We'll have plenty of hearts by the time this is over."
What the hell were Vulpe and Eri going on about? I still had no idea what they were even saying. Hearts? I pictured small, childlike hands carving thick sheets of red construction paper into the general shape of hearts, but with rough, jagged edges. I prayed that was what they meant. Anything like that. But… real, human hearts? These people were insane, but not murderers.
No… There was no way…
"You'd better hope so." Top hat jerk laid his forearms on the table and leaned forward, sighing.
"We understand. We just hope you all will go out and collect enough hearts," the Queen said, twirling a lock of wine red hair around her finger. "We need to get more. More!"
"Hearts?" I finally asked, though just to Akin.
"Ah, I guess where you're from, you wouldn't know," he responded at the same, low decibel.
"I suppose not…"

Suddenly, it dawned on me. Considering where I'm from? So… Did he know where my home was, when I didn't even know the answer to that myself? These people all knew more about me than I did, but no one decided to tell me anything. As I asked before, was it a crime for them to tell me anything about myself? I was getting fed up with waiting.
"So, who's going out to gather hearts tomorrow? We need," started top hat jerk, "At least five to start with."
"What're you talking about, dammit? What?" I was bitter and impatient, and I was sure it came off in my voice.
"What's wrong, Alice?" Eri asked, broadening her large, hazel eyes that matched her straight locks.
"I don't get you people! Why do you… What's all this about hearts?" The desperation in my voice almost made me cringe. Could I stop being so pathetic already? It was even pissing me off, so I couldn't imagine their frustration.
"Calm down, Alice. We'll explain," Akin said, rubbing my shoulder affectionately.
"I want to know now. What the hell's going on?"
"Akin, will you shut this girl up?" Top hat jerk rolled his dark eyes and leaned back in his chair. Akin glanced over at me and flinched at my overwhelming rage. Apparently, I had an "aura" of sorts, one that told him not to mess with me right then.
"No, you will not shut me up! Tell me what the hell is wrong with this place!"
"You silly girl—"
"Cane, calm yourself," the Queen said, her voice soft but oddly cold and unforgiving. However, when she looked down at me, she made sure to lighten her tone. "Tell Us, what do you want to know exactly?"
So, so many things. But I had to think about this carefully. I had an abundance of questions, but I had to present them effectively and make sure everything was answered. What's the point of this opportunity if I don't even ask what I wanted to ask? With a deep breath, I started from the beginning.
"Where… did I come from?"
"That? It's difficult to explain exactly and will take much more time, but We can first tell you how you got here.

While We were out on a walk, We found you lying unconscious in a recess of Our garden. It was odd, but We called in some servants and brought you inside. We were going to have you executed in case you were a deranged intruder, but Cane told Us that We were being too rash."
"H-Huh?"
That… That top hat jerk saved my life? Damn, how could I be indebted to him of all people? Why did it end up like this? Why? It was like I had some kind of curse with this guy.
Effortlessly, the Queen pushed on. "So, We waited and he suggested We put you in the storage closet until We know what to do with you."
The storage closet? That explained why the place looked so normal compared to the rest of the mansion, but…
He put me in the storage closet?
What the hell? Jeez, the bastard hated me from the beginning, didn't he? Maybe I wasn't quite as indebted as I thought…
No. He saved me. I had to thank him properly.
I knew those words would burn on my lips.
"Anything else?" The Queen rapped her fingers against the table and prompted me to speak quickly.
"W-What about those hearts you mentioned earlier?"
"Ah, yes. About your payment, you'll—"
"Wait. Wait, what? My payment?" I flinched.
"Well, of course. You can't expect a good deed like our Queen's to go unrewarded. Goodness, you really lack even the most basic of manners, Girl," Top hat jerk taunted.
"I… I have to pay you back… How?" I whimpered, ignoring his vindictive insult.
Please, don't let it involve those hearts. Please.
"It's in regards to those hearts We were talking about earlier," the Queen said, without even realizing she just figuratively shot me in the head with a sharpened arrow.

A clenching sensation inundated my fragile heart.
Just how the hell was I going to pay this woman back?
In… hearts?
"I'm paying you back… in hearts?" I voiced tremulously.

My breath was caught in my throat. My chest tightened from lack of oxygen; my lungs were contracting and shriveling up by the moment, but I couldn't stop them. To recompense someone in hearts… Real, human hearts? No, no. I hadn't heard the whole explanation yet. I just needed to listen; maybe they had a different idea in mind. Maybe I could just cut out paper hearts for their ball…
The Queen groaned, exasperated. "Yes. Didn't you hear our conversation? We're in a desperate need of hearts."
"But… How do I—"
"Would you let Us finish first?" she hissed bitterly. I slowly nodded my head.
"Good. Now, where do hearts come from? Point to it for Us." A bit confused, I lay my index finger over my heart, feeling it pound vigorously in my chest. "Perfect. That's where you'll be obtaining the hearts We need. You'll be moving to the other domain and performing a few… extractions." Her lips unfurled in a sick, twisted smile, thin and delicate, yet filled with cruel malice. She knew what this was—murder, plain and simple. But she enjoyed it, and just that thought sent shivers down my spine. If she doesn't hesitate to kill, when would it be my turn to die?
"Extractions…" I whispered, feeling the word dance around my lips as I said it. To think I'd be murdering to save my own life, to get home…
Where had my morals gone?
"Yes. We need at least one hundred of the hearts. Cane, the counter, please."
"Yes, Your Highness."

He slid a small red box across the table with the grain of the wood. She lifted the cover and gripped a cold metal chain in her hands, pulling out what looked to be like a simple necklace. It was a long, golden chain with a gold pendant at the end, shaped like a small, old fashioned lock. In the center was a number beginning at zero.

"You will raise this number to one hundred as your payment. As you can see, it is at zero, an optimal starting point."
"It's new, so don't mess it up," Top hat jerk threatened sharply; he used every opportunity that arose to pester me, didn't he?
"I won't," I answered as pleasantly as I could. "So, how do I collect these hearts for you… Your Highness?"

The same twisted smile that sent chills crawling along my body like spiders had once again graced her features. And then, suddenly, her gentle giggle filled the room's lingering silence and sent those damn shockwaves through my limbs again. Her laugh sounded more like a cackle, like she was a lone witch formulating her plan to steal away her perfect prince, or she was some quack doctor who'd just lost her patient and laughed because she knew she'd be collecting some more organs that day. The Queen had that aura. Despite her superficial beauty, she had a hauntingly dark, wicked presence that I was sure could make any man turn over in his grave to bow down to her… or kill a puppy.
Yes… She could kill a puppy with that smile.
Her beauty was skin deep, nothing more, nothing less.
"You will see. It's just like a game," she whispered maliciously.
A… game? She just called it a game? Was she insane?
"It's very fun," she giggled, and I had the feeling I was missing something. Something big. But before I could even ask, she continued and pushed the thought right out of my mind. "You'll go out every morning starting tomorrow to collect hearts."
"A-Alone?" The first and only thought ringing through my mind—Am I going to be out there alone, fending for myself like a filthy animal? Out there, trying to take the life of another when I was more likely to be slaughtered before I even made a scratch? It just sounded ridiculous.
"No. You will have a partner, of course. You're much too inexperienced to go out there by yourself. Even some of our best don't go out alone."
Partner? No. Anyone but him.
"You'll be going with…"
My heart nearly stopped. Not him. Don't say Cane. Please, please don't.

I knew my internal begging wouldn't help in the slightest, but… Well, I couldn't be so cursed as to be stuck with him, could I?
The universe was on my side today.
"Akin."
I stared, wide-eyed like a deer in headlights, until it finally sank in. I… I wasn't stuck with him. I wasn't going to top hat jerk. My spirits lifted.
Thank. God.
"Woot!" Akin cheered playfully. "I haven't had a partner in forever! I've been waiting for a partner for—"
"Yes, yes! We know!" Vulpe groaned, rolling his eyes and then looking on at me. "He's been griping about not having a partner for the longest time. He doesn't shut up, this one."
"You guys all have partners?" I began, walking myself through my prior knowledge.
"Yup!" Eri giggled.
"So…" I glanced at top hat jerk. "Vulpe is his assistant, so I'm guessing they're partners." I wouldn't say his name, but I wouldn't call him my clever little nickname either. So, he's just… "him."
"Servant," Top hat jerk corrected.
"Assistant!" Vulpe yelled back.
"And… Your Highness doesn't need to sully her hands with this kind of work," I mumbled, smiling when I received her nod of approval. "And… Akin didn't have a partner… So that leaves Eri and Leo."
"You got it!" Akin shouted eagerly. "You're really smart, Alice!"
"No, you're just silly." Top hat jerk played with his… top hat.
"Aw, Cane! You're such a—"
"Be careful of how you end that sentence, because I might just—"
"Quiet," the Queen said softly and immediately silenced everyone. "Alice, be careful tomorrow. Here"


She passed the box to Vulpe, who passed it down to Leo and then to me. I quickly shoved it into the pocket of Akins’s jacket and sighed, nestling my body further into the seat. The Queen simply smiled, this time much more softly, and started back on the issue of ball. She made a few requests of her subjects, all of which flew right over my head, and finally adjourned the meeting. She rose from her chair first, prompting everyone around me to rise and bow to her. Slightly tardy, I rose and bowed as well, eliciting a chuckle from the Queen.

"You'll catch on soon, Alice."
As she strode out of the greenhouse, long hair and elaborate train flowing, her subjects began evacuating the premises. I took a few steps and finally noticed top hat jerk glaring at me from the corner of his narrowed eyes.
"Don't get killed out there tomorrow," he remarked snidely.
"I won't," I grumbled, angrily reminding myself that I had to be civil. "Actually, I need to talk to you."

Akins’s feet screeched against the ground. Leo, Vulpe, and Eri had already walked off, leaving just Akin, top hat jerk, and myself in the greenhouse. The sun beat down on our skins, an almost unbearable heat radiating on my body, but it would just be a minute and it'd be over.
"What do you want?" he hissed.
"I… I wanted to thank you."
I was right. Those words did burn on my lips. They burned like acid.
"T-Thank… me?" he whispered back, his eyes wide like saucers. He obviously wasn't expecting that. I caught a glimpse of Akin, whose eyes mimicked his; he seemed shocked that I was even talking to this jerk.
Honestly, I was stunned, too.
"Yes. You… I don't want to admit it, but if it weren't for you, I probably would be dead right now. You stopped the Queen from killing me, so… Thank you."
He bit on his lower lip and averted my gaze. I guess I must've seemed pretty brazen, just letting my blue eyes shamelessly bore holes into his.
"You're… thanking him?" Akin asked with a small whine. "Him?"

I sighed. "Yes, I am. I owe him that much. He… He saved my life. Even if he decided to put me in the storage closet."
"Ah, that storage closet…"
"Q-Quiet, Akin."
"Wasn't it like… empty before? I thought I remembered it being—"
"A-Akin, shut up!"
"Why?" he asked, innocently batting his eyes at top hat jerk.
"Just shut it!"

Top hat jerk looked flustered; his usually pallor cheeks were pink with embarrassment. That guy… could actually blush? Interesting.
"It was empty before you came in, Alice. You moved all that furniture in for her didn't you, Cane?"
"You bastard, I said shut up! I did no such thing!"
"So, you…" I mumbled, my own cheeks heating.
"I didn't!" he shouted, shoving his hands into his pockets and storming out of the area. I noticed his head was hung low; he was still blushing, probably even more so now than earlier.
"That guy…"
Akin chuckled and brushed back his hair. "I caught him."
"Caught him?"
"It's always fun to tease him like that. He doesn't lose his cool easily, but when he does, it's entertaining."
"Really?"
"Well, you just saw him, didn't you?"

I glanced down the path he took and looked back at Akin, giggling. "Yeah, you're right."
That Cane works in mysterious ways. Cane… The name was fitting. Maybe I would switch to that—at least until he pissed me off again.
"Well, be ready for work tomorrow, Alice!" Akin exclaimed, grinning. "It'll be fun! I'll come in tomorrow morning to prep you!"
As he spoke to me, rambling about how excited he was to finally have a partner, I dug through the pocket and grabbed the counter from the box. With the chain resting over my fingers, I examined the sparkling gold lock and rotated it back and forth, watching my figure dance and gleam and bounce off light as a simple, unspoiled reflection. I scrutinized the big, fat zero in the center.
That has to reach one hundred before I can go.
Was it even possible?
I…
I have to murder one hundred people to save myself.