Distinctly Different

Chapter 32 ~ Execution

“How do you want to die?” her mother asked, it sounded as if she was talking about breakfast or something trivial, not discussing how to kill someone. The King stared at her as if she was crazy. “Well you can be hung? Or I can have someone chop off your head?”

“I would rather it was neither,” the King retorted. “I don’t want to die.”

“Too bad neither isn’t a choice. I’ll add another option or two. You can die by sword? Or I can have a werewolf kill you, but that could be pretty painful.”

“If I die by sword does that mean I fight someone and if I win I live?” the King inquired his voice filled with hope. Her mother began to laugh immediately dashing his hopes.

“No that is not how it goes. You die no matter what. Now choose,” she commanded. “Or I will choose for you.” The King was ashy pale as he gazed at his wife’s limp form. He shook his head unwilling to choose.

“Fine, you’ll die by hanging,” her mother chose. They all turned their heads to the gallows at the side of the courtyard on a stage of wood. The barbaric execution device was simple. A post was secured to the stage and it had another arm at the top, exactly ninety degrees, basically it was in the shape of an L. The post at the top would be where the King would be hung from. A noose was already hanging, all it was missing was the person sentenced to death. Her mother was always going to have chosen this option. She wanted to see the King struggle as his life left his body, his eyes slowly becoming lifeless and dull.

One of the guards pulled the King to the stage but the King was offering no resistance anymore. The water must have been drugged so he wouldn’t put up much of a fight. The King was made to stand on a wooden box that later would be kicked away. The guard loosened the noose and put it over the King’s head. The King’s eyes widened and he put his fingers to the rope.

“Wait, wake up the Queen. She should see her husband being killed,” her mother demanded. The other guards got a bucket of water from the water pump in the courtyard and dumped it on the Queen. She immediately opened her eyes and screamed at the sight of her husband getting ready to be hung. Her eyes flittered closed ready to faint but Arabella’s mother grabbed her head and made her look at her husband. “If you don’t watch I’ll make your death more painful and slow.” The Queen whimpered and cowered away from her abuser but still obeyed.

“Everything will be alright,” the King assured her. The Queen burst into tears at his voice.

Word must have gotten around about what was happening because three more werewolves showed up. They were in human form of course and all male. Her mother didn’t have many female followers. The female werewolves understood what she was doing was wrong.

The sound of the hooves of horses could be heard galloping on the cobblestone streets near them. Her mother scowled in the direction just as two riders came into view. Arabella couldn’t help smiling at Rowan before turning her attention to the man riding the other horse. Her breath caught when she saw he had black hair and green-blue eyes, it was her father.

Rowan wasn’t holding the reins as he rode his horse; his hands were holding a bow and arrow. He armed the bow and aimed it at the guard beside the King. Moments later an arrow hit the target in the heart. The guard dropped, he was dead before he hit the ground. Before he could aim another arrow Rowan was knocked off his horse by one of the werewolves. Arabella glanced around and saw that all the werewolves were in wolf form except for Arabella and her mother. His bow flew out of his hands and landed out of reach. Rowan cursed and grabbed a knife out its sheath and brandished it at the two wolves on either side of him.

Her father dismounted off his horse. Both horses ran at the sound of wolves snarling viciously. Her father crouched as his skin was replaced by fur and he was forced to drop to all fours. A golden wolf stood in his place, the wolf which then threw himself at the two remaining wolves. Her mother screamed in anger and ran over to the King who was trying to free himself from the tight noose around his neck. She didn’t give him more time to get free as she kicked the box out from under him and then he was handing from the rope.