Dodgson Skeffington

Time didn't know why, but there was something he did not trust about Dodgson Skeffington. As he poured over hundreds of scenes, examining each one carefully, Dodgson kept catching his eye. There wasn't anything all that extraordinary about him. He was rough and scarred just like all the other thieves in Alice's tribe. But there was just something about him.

Eventually, Time did find the scene from when Reggie had died. It had been during a skirmish with the authorities and some thieves who were not part of any tribe. It was all a blur of movement and excitement, so it was impossible to see who it was that had stuck the knife into his gut. But as soon as the other Swans realized what had happened, they abandoned the fight and hurried Reggie back to the camp.

But it had been too late. He was gone before Alice could even say goodbye.

Watching her sob hysterically over his still body stabbed Time right through the heart. He had to swipe the scene away quickly for fear he, too, would begin to cry. However, he went back to the fateful moment and played it over and over. Dodgson had been there. Again, it was too chaotic to really see what had happened, but something told Time that Dodgson had been responsible for Reggie's death. He had no proof. Only a feeling.

After agonizing over it for what felt like ages, he finally decided to speak to Alice about his suspicions.

He froze time as he appeared in her tent. Alice was there, furrowing her brow as the water she had been pouring from a kettle stopped in mid-air. She glanced his way, and a darkness fell over her face. A chill went through his veins, but he cleared his throat and approached nonetheless.

"Alice, I've been reviewing some scenes—"

"Oh, sure, now you have the time to watch over us." She slammed the kettle down, but the water stayed where it was. "What do you want from me, Time?"

"I've been trying to see if I could figure out how Reggie died."

"A knife, Time. It was a knife to the gut. I could have told you that, and I don't even have all your fancy powers."

"You don't understand. I think there's something suspicious about Dodgson Skeffington."

Alice gave a sharp laugh and shook her head. "Of course. Of course you'd now be suspicious of him."

Time knit his brow together. "What do you mean?"

She turned on him, and it broke his heart to see that the hunger for life that had once been in her eyes was gone. All that remained were despair, bitterness, and anger.

So much anger.

"You really are jealous, aren't you?" she said. "First you let Reggie die, now you want to blame the man who has taken an interest in me."

Time's stomach twisted into a tangled knot. "Dodgson has taken an interest in you?"

She crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. "Yes, he has. Is that a problem?"

"How long has Reggie been gone?"

Her eyes teared up as she swallowed a knot in her throat. "A few weeks now."

Had it taken him that long to convince himself to go talk to her? "He's trying to court you when your husband has only been dead for a few weeks?"

Throwing her hands up in the air, she gave another harsh laugh. "It's more than you did! Days and days have gone by. I would have thought my best friend might want to check up on me. But no. Nothing. Nothing at all. This is the first I've heard from you, and it has nothing to do with comforting me but everything to do with accusing the one man who has been trying to offer me some sort of solace."

Time bit his lip. "I'm sorry. I didn't think—"

"No, you don't think, do you, Time?"

"That's not fair," he snapped. "You come storming into my home accusing me of letting your husband die, swearing you'll slit my throat, and you wonder why I didn't come around? I thought you hated me. I thought you wanted me dead."

"I was upset."

"I know. Which is why I've spent all this time trying to figure out what happened to Reggie."

Alice covered her face with her hands as her breath hitched. The anger inside of Time disappeared, and he took a hesitant step towards her, reaching out to touch her but afraid to actually do so. When she was able to compose herself, she removed her hands and stared him straight in the eye.

"It doesn't matter how it happened," she said, her voice quavering slightly. "All that matters is that it did happen. And nothing I can do—and apparently nothing you can do, either—will fix that."

Retracting his hand, Time averted his gaze. "Alice, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I can't do anything for Reggie. If I could do something, I would. But I can't." He turned his attention back to her and took another step forward. "You do believe me, don't you?"

She shook her head and let out a long sigh. "I don't know what to believe anymore. All I know is that the ache in my heart won't go away. And I'm beginning to wonder if it ever will."

Again, he reached out to touch her, but the trembling breath she took made him hesitate. "Alice, if I—"

"Dodgson has been there for me. He's been comforting and supportive. And he understands. He knows what it's like to lose someone you love. His wife died in a massacre of the tribe he belonged to. Everyone died. Except for him and his daughter. So he knows what it's like to feel so helpless and alone."

Swallowing hard, Time tried to silence the suspicion in his mind, but it would not go away. "His entire tribe was massacred?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"And only he and his daughter survived?"

"Yes, they were the only ones. They came here seeking refuge a few years ago."

"That doesn't sound oddly suspicious to you?"

She scoffed and shook her head again. "Geez, Time, what is it with you? Do you not trust anyone?"

"No, it's just, I looked through all these scenes, and I don't think—"

"I don't know what's wrong with you. You claim to be my friend, but you seem to hate everyone I become close to."

"For the record, I did not hate Reggie."

"You certainly didn't seem fond of him."

"That's just because—"

He stopped himself. The words were on the tip of his tongue, and Alice was watching him expectantly. Forcing himself to swallow the confession down, he turned away.

"You can't even say it," Alice said.

"Say what?" he mumbled.

"How you feel. Why you're being this way."

Gritting his teeth, he looked back at her. "Let's just put my personal feelings aside for the moment and focus on what's important."

"Which is?"

"Dodgson. And how I don't trust him."

"How is that not related to your personal feelings?"

The frustration growing inside him, he began to raise his voice. "Alice, I—"

As he took a step towards her, she pulled out a dagger and pointed it right at his throat. He stopped and turned his eyes to the metal blade. It winked up at him the low lamplight, mocking him more than threatening him. Looking up at Alice, he could see the anger burning in her eyes. Her beautiful green eyes that used to gaze at him with such tender affection.

"Get out," she said, her voice low and even.

"What?"

She clenched her teeth and spoke through the tears that had suddenly formed in her eyes. "Get out. I never want to see you again."

His heart cracked, and he stared at her in disbelief. "Alice, you can't—"

"I don't want you in my life anymore. You're a jealous, secretive, twisted man and I wish I'd never met you."

The cracks grew, and he felt a knot thickening in his throat. "Alice," he whispered.

"Stop watching me, stop watching my tribe. Just stop. This is over. Whatever this thing is between us, it's over. What I do with my life from now on is none of your business. You have no place in my life."

Despite the finality in her tone and the tip of her dagger pressing into his skin, Time couldn't seem to make himself move. Her words echoed in his head, seeming like a distant voice. Like someone else's voice.

Did Alice really just say she never wanted to see him again?

"Now!" she said, raising her voice. "Get out now before I slit your throat!"

Taking a deep breath, he bit his lip and swallowed hard. "If that's what you want, Alice."

Even with the anger behind her gaze, Alice sniffed as a tear rolled down her cheek. "It is. Leave. And never come back."

Nodding slowly, he turned away.

In an instant, he was back in Nowhere. Rubbing his throat where Alice's blade had been, he glanced about his office of swirling clouds. It suddenly felt very empty. Opening one of the drawers, he pulled out a loaf of spiced bread. He had frozen it in time so that it wouldn't go bad, and even after the many years that had passed since Alice had given it to him, it still looked as fresh as the day it had been baked.

The knot in his throat grew tighter and tighter, and he finally collapsed to the floor and began to cry, clutching the bread to his chest.

Alice hated him.

And she never wanted to see him again.

This was worse than telling her he didn't love her or watching her marry someone else or seeing the life he could never have with her.

This was even worse than death.

So much worse.

Alice hated him.