Hearts Alligned

Chapter 6

Andrew's POV

Someone had hurt Anne. Who could ever hurt Anne? 

His arm throbbed. Blood still dripped off of his arm, but at least it wasn't bleeding as much as before. 

When they reached the bottom of the hill, Anne stopped and "Wait here." She disappeared behind a large tree. He heard the rustling of leaves and the scarping of wood before she appeared again with a bag in her hand. She looked inside and pulled out a roll of bandages.

"I need to wrap your arm." He held out his arm and she began wrapping it, somehow managing not to touch his skin even once.

"Do you have supplies stored away behind every tree?" 

"Not every tree." 

Anne was confusing. At one moment, he thought she was going to throw her arms around him, the next, she was turning away and refused to look at him. He wished he could see in her mind.

"Thank you for bandaging my arm." he bent his head, trying to get her to look at him. 

She glanced at him, but then she quickly glanced away.

She pulled out a knife from her bag and cut the end of the bandage, then tying the bandage in place. "It's a little tight, but it'll be fine until we can you to the doctor."

A crackling noise made them both jerk their heads in the direction the sound came from. They stood still, listening, but didn't hear anything else.

Anne turned and started walking towards town. Andrew followed her. 

As they entered the town gate, two men hurried towards them. One of the men was Robert.

Anne slowed down, then stopped. By the look on her face, she was thinking about running from them. Andrew put his hand on his sword hilt. But instead, Anne stayed where she was and faced them. 

"The mayor wants to see you," one of the men said. "Both of you."

Anne and Andrew walked with the guards. Soon they entered the mayor's house and were led to an office where Arthur was sitting at a desk, staring at a large piece of parchment. He quickly folded the parchment and put it in his desk drawer when he heard the door open. He smiled when he saw them, a smile that seemed forced.

"Andrew! So you killed The Beast! My men just reported they saw The Beast lying dead in the forest and the two of you walking away from it. I guess the reward was really motivating." He jerked his head in Anne's direction.

"The Beast is dead," Andrew said, thinking it was strange that Arthur's men had seen the dead beast so soon. When he saw the fear on Anne's face, he knew what to say next. "I didn't kill The Beast though. Anne did."

"What did you say?" 

"I'm afraid I can't claim the reward. Anne killed The Beast with her bow."

The shocked look on Anne's face and gratitude in her eyes made it worth Andrew swallowing his pride. 

He smiled and shrugged. "She is a fearless hunter." Then he winked at her, which was a bad idea because he face scowled at him. 

Arthur narrowed his eyes at Anne. "Is this true? Did you kill The Beast?"

"We both did. Lord Andrew helped."

"Well, if Lord Andrew hit the last blow, he is entitled to the reward. He is going to marry you." He glared at Anne. 

"I am pretty positive it was Anne who hit the killing blow, Mayor Martin."

"Are you sure? Because I-"