and we promised

Chapter 37

OLIVIA

"I suppose a congratulations is overdue", Stefan stays, walking inside the room where some stylists were working on my hair and gown.

"Yeah, sure, cousin. Enter in my room. Ruin my day", I reply sarcastically.

He takes a sit on the closest armchair and looks at me smirking. "At least you will make a pretty queen. The pictures will look good."

I show him the middle finger in the mirror, so he could see it in the reflection.

"That's of course if you make it to be queen", he whispers, yet I clearly heard it. The stylists around me also froze for a moment.

"A moment with you, cousin", I can hear him ask.

Landon and Brad, who are waiting outside, must have seen him come. They will be here in case anything happens.

I share a look with the stylists, who were all staring at me genuinely worried for my well-being, and I make them a sign that I'll be fine. They understand and walk outside, closing the door behind them.

"I'll make it quick", Stefan begins, standing up. "It's obvious that you won't just fucking die. I mean, honestly, how the heck do you keep surviving? Is it something genetic or so?"

"Get to the point, Stefan", I cut him short.

He lets out a devious chuckle and continues. "Your boyfriend is with me."

My heart starts going from normal to over one hundred. "What did you do to him?"

Stefan takes out his phone and shows me a live footage of Nathan on a hospital bed. "My men offered Mr. West a light, but not so good for the human body, dose. We have the antidote. You can either make this easy, or hard. Come to the coronation, and your little boyfriend never sees the light of day again."

"And if I stay?", I whisper. I want to cry but I want to strangle Stefan first.

"If you stay, Mr. West gets the antidote as soon as the coronation is over and everyone lives happily ever after."

"You son of a-", I say, throwing myself onto him. I don't care that I'm ruffling my beautiful white gala dress as I pin him to the ground. "You piece of shit. Do you like destroying my life? Is it your habit?"

"More of a hobby", he replies, smirking at me like the true villain he is. He removes me off his chest, now pinning me to the ground. From the pocket of his pants he takes out a knife which he presses on my throat.

"It could have been so easy", he whispers. "So fucking easy. I don't understand why Thomas couldn't get the job done. Look at us. Your bodyguards having been drugged and currently locked inside a locker room downstairs. Your boyfriend unconscious somewhere. You helpless staring at me as I am one step of taking your life away. What's it going to be, Dunn? Huh. Are you going to be a good little girl and die, for once?"

I realize I am in disadvantage here. Stefan clearly had this planned. If what he said about my bodyguards is true, which clearly was based on the smug on his face, there is no one here hear me.

"I'll shout", I whisper at him, since the knife started pressing harder on my neck. "I'll shout, and the stylists will hear me. You'll have witnesses."

"From the hospital they'll hear you", he replies, actually proud of himself. "One month. I had one month to plan this day to the very detail, Olivia. What did you think? That I'll let a bunch of nobodies ruin it." He presses even tighter. I feel like I'll stop breathing any moment now. Someone opens the door, yet the sound is covered by him toying with the metal. Toying with the metal dangerously close to my face. I can feel the blade go down the scar Thomas made me that day on my cheek, the blade reopening the wound, making me bleed. I can feel the blood running down my face, staining my dress, cutting my soul.

I need to do something. I kick him in the balls and have him pinned on the ground. "Shut the fuck up", I say.

I stand up wanting to run, yet he throws the knife at me. The blade scrapes my waist, not remaining stuck but getting to enough skin to make me bleed. I follow the knife and take it in my hand, turning to look around. Pressed with her back against the wall I can see Aria, who is in a glittery short pink dress, a pair of pink heels matching the look, her blonde waves up in a bun and a black small purse around her neck. She's holding a frying pan with both her hands. I want to shout something at her, as to run away, get her to safety, let Stefan finish his job so that everybody can live in peace, but she makes me a sign to remain quit and keep my cousin distracted.

You better have a plan.

"What where you going to do anyway?", I ask him, partly out of interest, partly to keep him focused on me. "Waltz inside the coronation and get my crown?"

"My crown", he yells. Someone really needs to check him for anger issues. "It has always been my crown. My father was king. I'm a male. I'm older than you. I'm clearly more..."

"Shut up", Aria says, hitting him as hard as she can with the frying pan in the head. Stefan gets one shocked look at her before he falls unconscious on the ground.

I can't help but gasp as I see blood starting to run down his temple. "Aria..."

"I know, I'm in trouble", she says, trying to sound matter-of-factly but her voice is shaking, showing how terrified she is. "But that asshole just hurt my bestie, so he deserved it", she continues. It's then she lets the frying pan fall on the floor and wraps her arms around me, pulling me as close to her as she can. She gasps as she touches something and as she lets go, she looks at her hands and sees they are stained red.

"Livie, you're bleeding", she shouts.

I nod, since I can also clearly see at the red that covered my white dress.

"We need to get you to a doctor", she whispers, already getting my hand to get me out of here.

I shake my head disagreeing. "We can't. There is no time. Nathan is hurt somewhere. My bodyguards too. And if Stefan wakes up, he still has a chance at taking over Cordelia."

"Livie..."

"Aria, I'm sorry. But no", I cut her short. "I don't care if I'm bleeding if everyone I care about is in danger. I'll take care of everything first, then I can go see a doctor."

"We'll", she whispers.

"What do you mean?"

"We'll take care of everything first, then we'll get you to see a doctor."

"What?!", I ask her surprised.

She offers me the closest thing to a smile one can in a situation like this. "It's you and me against the world, Liv."

"It's you and me against the world, Aria", I reply, now also trying to smile at her. It doesn't work so I just decide to hug her.

The hug doesn't last long, since we can hear the old Victorian clock ticking in the background, showing us we're losing time.

"Are you ready for it?", Aria asks me, taking her frying pan back from the ground.

I look at her with an eyebrow raised, highly disturbed by the scene. However, I would lie if I'd say I don't pick Stefan's knife up and place it in the thigh hidden under my gown. "What are you, Rapunzel?"

She grins at me as she holds the frying pan in her hands as if it were her most prized possession.

"Let's get this party started", I tell her.