Distinctly Different

Chapter 32 ~ Execution

His body kicked out but it didn’t help him on bit. The Queen cried harder at the sight of her husband dying. Arabella ran towards the King so she could save him but another guard showed up and tripped her. She fell to the ground but quickly pushed herself to her feet. A punch hit her stomach and the air whooshed out of her lungs. Trying in vain to catch her breath she kicked out but the muscular man didn’t even groan.

She glanced back at the King. His struggle was weaker. His hands were hanging at his sides and his legs were only slightly kicking. He didn’t have the vigour he had at the start.

Hands grabbed her around the middle and she elbowed the man in the stomach. He grunted but didn’t let up. Frustrated she stomped on his foot and as his head came closer she hit his nose with her head. He released her to hold his nose as blood gushed down his face. Arabella laughed slightly then jumped back as his hands reached for her again.

Another glance back showed the King only moving every once in a while. He wasn’t dead yet but if he hung there for much longer he wouldn’t be. Rowan and her father were occupied with fighting their opponents so they wouldn’t be able to rescue the King anytime soon. Her father had managed to injure the two wolves he was fighting without so much as a scratch but Rowan wasn’t doing as well. His stamina was quickly dwindling; he wasn’t used to longer fights. His shirt was torn to pieces, his chest bloody with scratches; it stained his once white shirt. The fight would have to end soon or else it wouldn’t end well for him.

Arabella met her attacker’s black eyes. It was all up to her, everyone else was otherwise busy. Knowing he would only come after her if she tried to run she threw herself at her attacker and took him by surprise. Her momentum propelled him backwards and his head hit the wall behind him. He slid to the ground in a daze. She smirked at her indisposed opponent before running in the direction of the stage.

The King was in the same state he was in before. She tried to take comfort in the fact that he was still moving. Before she could even step on the stage her mother blocked her way. Arabella scowled at her mother before looking at the King’s hanging body with worry. Please be alive, she prayed.

“I underestimated you,” her mother said. “I didn’t think you would betray me.” Arabella shrugged in response as she lunged to the stage trying to bypass her mother. It didn’t work. Her mother stepped to the side and Arabella crashed into her. Her mother’s hands wrapped around her daughter’s wrists to make sure she couldn’t help the King before he died. Arabella struggled but to no avail, her mother’s grip was too strong.

She didn’t want to hurt her mother but she needed to save the King. Her mother wasn’t giving her any other alternative. She pushed her mother and together they fell to the ground. Breaking free of her mother’s hold Arabella crawled to the stage. She got up on stage and then froze as she heard footsteps behind her. Turning back she saw her mother. She was furious; Arabella could see it in her eyes. She scrambled back but the blow was unavoidable.

Feeling dizzy Arabella clutched her head. The King was now hanging there; the only motion was his chest feebly moving. Elsewhere in the courtyard her father defeated the wolves he was fighting. He ran to her mother and pounced knocking her mother down. Arabella frowned at the blurry images. She tried to get to her feet but couldn’t.

She couldn’t recover from the blow and her father was busy making sure her mother didn’t do anything. The queen had fainted again. Feeling woozy she stared at Rowan. One of the wolves he was fighting was gone and the other was disoriented.

Rowan stumbled towards his knocked aside bow and grabbed it as well as the arrow near it and aimed. He didn’t have the time to reach the King while a wolf still could attack. The King’s only chance of survival rested on how well Rowan was at using his bow. Rowan aimed and let the arrow loose. She held her breath as the arrow flew, time slowed down, and then, the rope holding the King suspended was severed. The King fell to the ground and with trembling fingers Arabella undid the tight rope around his neck and then untied his hands. The King started coughing and she sighed in relief, he was alive. He lay on the ground and focused on taking deep breaths to help his deprived lungs.

She looked at Rowan and tried to warn him but it was too late. The wolf was gone and in his place was a different man. He charged towards Rowan and stabbed him in the stomach with a sword. She screamed as Rowan fell.

She felt anger bubble up and the next thing she knew she was knocking the man down. She pinned the man to the ground but in the end it didn’t matter, he was unconscious as soon as his head struck the cobblestone.

She crawled over to Rowan, dismayed by the sight of the blood. She placed her hands on his stomach, trying desperately to control the amount of blood pouring out of his body and onto the ground. Rowan began to cough up blood and she knew it was serious. He struggled to speak but only ended up spewing out more blood. His hair was plastered to his forehead and he didn’t look good.

“Don’t try to speak,” she murmured.

His dark grey eyes met hers. “You’re safe now.” She nodded, tears flowing down her cheeks. “You’ll be okay. Don’t cry,” he whispered softly. She saw how pale he was and held back a sob. Everything kept going wrong.

“You’re not going to die,” she told him. “You can’t leave me. After all we’ve gone through it can’t end like this. I won’t let it.” He weakly raised his hand and moved her black hair to behind her ear. “Please, don’t go. I love you.”

Rowan tiredly smiled. “I… love,” he began but his eyes closed before he could finish. Arabella frantically tried to shake him awake. She didn’t know how she would survive without seeing his grey eyes with flecks of silver ever again. He couldn’t die.

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