Wonderland Academy: Book 1

by Cheri Winters

  Wonderland Academy

  Fae Reverse Harem

  Cheri Winters

  Can you survive Wonderland Academy? Where you’re in danger of losing your heart as well as your head.

  Every decade, Wonderland Academy has to enlist a dozen humans into their program. The problem? I’m one of them.

  But it’s not all tea and parties. There is no going back after being summoned to the royal grounds. We have to compete to stay here or risk becoming one of the Queen of Heart’s mindless soldiers.

  There are three houses who wish to overthrow the queen. Three leaders who wish to make me their queen despite the danger. If we’re caught, it won’t just be me who pays the price, because the monarch has the hearts of my family and friends in the human world. One wrong move and everything I hoped for will be destroyed.

  Fans of Rachel Jonas, Jaymin Eve, and Kiera Legend will devour Cheri Winters’ new imaginative series.

  Copyright © 2019 by Cheri Winters

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Cover Art: DW Book Covers

  Contents

  Author’s Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  About the Author

  Also by Cheri Winters

  Also by Cheri Winters

  Author’s Note

  Thank you so much for reading Wonderland Academy - Book 1.

  The next book in the series will bring the second half of Alexis’ complex life and world to you.

  For advance notice of when Book 2 will be available, please signup for my newsletter.

  Or join my author list on Amazon and receive an email whenever I put out a pre-order or when a new book releases.

  Thank you again!

  Cheri Winters

  Chapter One

  It was finally here. I had been waiting for so long, I didn’t know what to do now that I had it.

  I sucked in a breath, slowly opened the crimson-colored envelope, sliding my fingers underneath the seal and tugging it free. I didn’t know why I was being so careful. I knew what this was. The sense of dread that gripped me told me as much.

  My hands trembling, I pulled out the thick parchment and unfolded it.

  Oblivious that our lives were fixing to change forever, Mom bustled around in the kitchen, preparing dinner. She hadn’t realized what this was when she handed it to me. She didn’t know her heart was in danger now because of it. Or that my life was now on the line. And I wasn’t about to tell her, either.

  I took a deep breath and refocused on the letter.

  Congratulations, it said. You’ve been accepted into Wonderland Academy.

  Something in my chest tightened as I tried to read the words again, needing to see the text to ensure I understood it correctly. But I couldn’t. My vision blurred. There was more to the letter than just the congratulations, but I couldn’t see it. The paper crinkled in my shaking hands.

  My throat turned bone-dry. I licked my suddenly cracked lips, searching for the way to tell my mom that our lives were fixing to change forever. If I survived. Tears stung my eyes. What was I going to do? And Mom, I choked back a sob, she’d be devastated. This place had already taken my dad from us. How much more did they want to bleed our family?

  “I thought we’d have goulash for dinner. That way we can go into the city and” Mom dried her hands, looking at me. “—Alexis—what is it?”

  Then her gaze slid to the parchment paper. Her gasp echoed around the kitchen.

  “Sorry, Mom.” I laid the announcement on the table as though not touching it would lessen the truth of it.

  She placed her hand on her heart, paling. “Don’t be sorry, honey, it’s not your fault. This could be an error. Maybe there will be a panel to choose from like jury duty.”

  “It’s not an error.” We both knew the truth—that I was going to Wonderland Academy where few humans survived. Every decade, twelve humans were chosen to train at Wonderland Academy. Those that didn’t survive were either dead or became part of the queen of hearts’ mindless soldiers. None ever came back in the two hundred years since this tribute was started. Not even my dad when he went over there.

  I rubbed my nose with the back of my hand. Tears crept down my face and I cursed at myself. I didn’t want to break down in front of her. I needed to be strong.

  Mom collapsed onto the chair and I ran over and hugged her. I tried to offer her support, but it was difficult to do, considering both of us weeping.

  “This isn’t fair.” My heart ached. Hadn’t we been through enough from that damn place?

  “I know,” her voice broke. “W-We should write the queen. Tell her that this was a mistake and to choose someone else.”

  “Would they do that?” In all the time I’d known, I’d never heard of them doing anything remotely merciful. I pulled away from her and took a shaking breath. The tears had finally stopped, but every now and then, a hiccup bubbled out of me.

  “No.” Her voice hitched on a sob. “The queen never admits mistakes.” She rubbed her palms on her thighs, chewing the inside of her bottom lip gently. Her eyes scanned the faded kitchen tile, as though she could find answers that might help us there.

  I pulled back, searching her puffy, red face. “You sound like you know her,” I said and held my breath. I knew I wasn’t supposed to be talking about the tyrant queen. Not here. Not with my mom. It was a sore spot for obvious reasons.

  But I couldn’t help it. Now that I knew where I was going, I wanted to know more about this woman who was very possibly responsible for the way our life was. For all the pain and misery we experienced.

  “Just from the few stories your father told me before he went missing.” She dabbed at the corners of her eyes. She sniffed, shrugging. “That doesn’t mean they’re the truth, but I believe your father more than I believe anyone else.”

  “What do we do?” I asked, my voice cracking. I swallowed, trying to hold myself together. My insides twisted so hard, I winced. “There has to be a way to fight this…something. Get them to pick someone else. Anyone else.” I shook my head, not even looking at my mother. In fact, if I was being honest, I was speaking to myself more than I was talking to her. “Or what if I don’t go? We can hide and—”

  “They would find us.” Her voice was firm, but not unkind. It was like she sympathized with me but didn’t want me to get my hopes up.

  “What if we try?” I blinked my eyes. Suddenly, they were glassy. It was difficult for me to see her. I sucked in a shaky breath, my heart hammering with fear. “We could go to some backwater town no one’s even heard of, population twenty-five thousand.”

  “Her people would find us,” my mother said. “She has magic, remember?”

  I clenched my teeth together, nodding once. “Right.” I sank onto the floor on my knees, despair flooding me. “From the stories I’ve heard, she’d probably make you serve in her court.”

  That was if we were lucky. There were worse stories. Cruel stori
es. If those were to be believed, the queen might have my mom’s head removed without a care in the world. Rumor had it she enjoyed such grand displays of power, and the horrific way she went about killing her subjects reinforced that she was in power and she would not deal with anyone who might disobey her. I’d already lost one parent because of the tyrant queen, I wouldn’t lose another.

  “What if someone were to take my place?” I asked, but even as I said the words, I knew such a thing was impossible.

  “No one would offer to take your place,” she said, though not unkindly. She pressed her hands to her knees. “Honestly, I can’t say that I’d blame them. All because of the damn treaty. The queen can take whoever she wants and there’s no way to stop her.”

  I rubbed my lips together and looked at my mom. I wanted to know something, but I couldn’t find it in me to ask her. I was too afraid of what she might say. I was more afraid she wouldn’t say anything at all.

  “Do you think she’s doing this because of Dad?” I finally asked, my body stiffening as though preparing for an answer I knew I wasn’t going to like. “Like to get back at us for his death.”

  It didn’t make any sense, not really, since he died over there. One weekend he was here and alive and we were one happy family, the next he was gone. I still heard Mom cry late at night and I know she was missing him. It didn’t matter that time had passed since his death. Hell, I missed him like he was taken from us yesterday.

  I squeezed my fists. Rage, sorrow, and the injustice of all of this swirled in my gut, making me feel sick. “I hate her,” I muttered. It was so low, I wasn’t sure my mother heard the words that came out of my mouth. “I hate the queen.”

  Mom grabbed my arms, her eyes wide with fear. “Don’t ever say that again,” she said, her voice a harsh whisper as though she thought someone could overhear us. “Not out loud. Not even if you think you’re alone.”

  “Ow, you’re hurting me,” I said, trying to pull my arm out of her tight grasp.

  She shook me. “Do you understand?” she said through gritted teeth. “Never say anything like that ever again. Promise me!”

  Each word that came out of her mouth got more and more hysterical. My eyes widened at her behavior.

  “O-okay, I won’t,” I said.

  She let go of me and I rubbed my arms.

  Just what kind of place was Wonderland? I was beginning to think it was worse than I ever imagined. Mom never acted like that. She was gentle, restrained, and maybe a touch too sensitive. For this one acceptance letter to cause her to go into a fit of hysterics meant that this school was more than just dangerous.

  Before either of us could say something, the scent of burning food filled the kitchen.

  “Mom.” I jumped up from the table, flipping the burner off, and moving the smoking pot off the stove. After I put the pan of burnt goulash in the sink, I ran cool water over it.

  I turned back around to find Mom crying, holding her face in her hands.

  I let out a breath. Part of me was annoyed that she was so distracted that she couldn’t even act quickly on making sure a fire didn’t start, but I softened as my eyes lingered on her. This woman already lost a husband in Wonderland. Now, her only child was summoned to go over there and there was no way for us to stop it. If I were in her position, I’d probably feel the same way.

  “It’ll be okay, I promise.” I held her, patting her back feeling like the parent more than the kid. “Maybe a few others I know got selected too. Maybe I won’t be completely alone in all of this.”

  I wasn’t sure if I was trying to make her feel better, or myself.

  Not that it would help any. Wonderland wasn’t known for having a huge graduating class. No one I had heard of had ever returned from that place. Bile shot up the back of my mouth. If I survived this. It was going to take a miracle. The chances that I couldn’t weren’t high. But I would keep that to myself. No need to continue to worry her.

  “Guess we’re going into the city earlier than we planned,” I said. I was trying to make a joke, hoping to distract ourselves from the horror we knew I would eventually have to face.

  Mom gave me a hesitant smile and I knew she was trying to be brave for me. “We’ll need to pick up uniforms for you too,” she said. “How does filling up with pizza sound since dinner is burnt?”

  We ate at Chummy's Pizzeria though I couldn’t eat much as my stomach was knotting itself inside out. How long before Wonderland killed me or I became one of the queen’s mindless soldiers? The thoughts weren’t exactly ones I wanted to think about, but since I couldn’t discuss them with my mother, they ate away at my mind until I acknowledged them with attention.

  “We need to pick up the official uniforms for you.” My mom tried to keep her voice light, except the shakiness of her words betrayed her. It was as though she was talking about this like we were shopping for a school uniform I would wear here and not an academy known for keeping its students, possibly even killing them. “Seventh Street has a shop that sells them every decade along with normal ones.”

  Yeah, ‘cause I couldn’t be going to a normal school. “Okay.”

  We finished our pizza without another word. I wouldn’t say it was awkward between us, but there was lingering tension. Neither one of us wanted to talk about what was to come, afraid it would damper our day.

  As though it hadn’t already done so.

  On Seventh Street, we entered an old-looking shop with all of the local schools’ uniforms hanging on racks. My eyes flickered over them and I tried to envision myself in one of these things, walking into school.

  My newly-full stomach twisted at the thought.

  “May I help you?” A middle-aged woman with gray streaks around her heart-shaped face asked.

  “Yes,” my mom’s voice cracked. She cleared her throat. I held her hand, trying to give her strength. “We’re here for the Academy’s skirts…Wonderland.”

  The woman’s face paled. She swallowed, but the movement came out jerky. “Ah, yes, w-we have them,” she said. “One of the only shops to keep them year-round. Some of the kids like to dress up like Wonderland Academy students…paint their faces to look like zombies…even do the white contacts for their eyes.”

  A shudder raced through me. I licked my cracked lips, following both the storekeeper and my mom to the back of the store.

  “I’m sorry, I don’t know why I said that,” the shopkeeper said.

  When we got to where the uniforms were, she gestured with her hand to where we could find what we were looking for.

  The skirts were red, reminding me of blood, and gray plaid. A few white, buttoned shirt and a matching plaid tie hung beside them. They actually looked cute, if only they weren’t big targets that stated I would be marching to my probable death.

  I swallowed down the bile that collected in my throat. Not wanting to do this. Now or ever.

  “If we don’t have your size, we can order it and have it shipped,” the store clerk was saying. “Though it’s best to wear on your first day. The queen insists everyone purchases from her approved stores. We’re the only ones in fifty miles that have these.”

  “Thanks,” I squeezed out the words, picking two skirts and three tops and one of the times. Looks like the queen would be smart enough to ship the uniforms with the invitations. I checked the price tag and put one of the shirts back. Then again, she charged so much like she thought they were designer-brand.

  “You want to try those on?” Mom raised an eyebrow.

  “Nah. Should be fine.” I forced a smile. Didn’t want to spend one extra second in these hateful clothes longer than I had to.

  We paid for our things and strolled outside.

  “What’s next? Do we buy books?”

  “No, Wonderland has its own. It’s only the uniforms we can get here.” Mom pointed to a group of stores up ahead. “How about ice cream?”

  “No thanks.” Usually, dessert was my favorite any time of the day, but I couldn’t pretend that ever
ything was fine. Even as much as I wanted to. Even after what happened to Dad.

  “Alexis!” Meghan called from across the street.

  Both she and Nora raced over to us.

  I was surprised to see my two friends. I hadn’t seen them since school let out at the beginning of summer, though I did make sure to keep in contact with various likes and comments on social media.

  I gave each of them a hug. “How is your summer going?” I asked. “I thought you both were on a cruise.”

  Meghan and Nora were now stepsisters. Their parents had gotten married on Valentine’s Day and I envied them. They not only had a mom and a dad, but each other. We’d been friends since middle school. I had always wanted a sister or a brother but when that didn’t happen, I worked hard on deepening my friendships. Since I didn’t have many friends in the first place, it was easy to do.

  “Hey, wait.” Nora grabbed one of my bags, looking at the circles drawn inside each other with rune-like markings on the outside. Her mouth dropped open and sympathy flashed in her eyes. “Wonderland Academy?”

  I shuffled my feet, unease coiling in my gut. I should have held onto the bags tighter. I wasn’t ready to share the news with anyone just yet. “Uh, yeah. I got the letter this earlier this evening.”

  “Oh my god.” Meghan grabbed me into a crushing hug. “Are you okay? What are you going to do? You’re not going, right?”

  “I don’t have a choice, you know that.” Fear clawed up my insides. “Everyone knows those who refuse or run are killed.”

  I hadn’t found online in my search a single person who had escaped the summons and survived death longer than two years. Most had been killed within a month. Even if all of us stood together and didn’t allow any more kids to cross over the barrier, the queen would wage war. More people would die. Just like the wars a hundred years ago.