Royalty

28| Fear

Chapter 28: Fear (Nicholas' POV)

We climbed into the car, my parents following us in a different car while guards were leaving on their own, ready to be by our side the whole time. 

"Are you okay?" I asked while grabbing her hand. She had been saying since this morning that she doesn't want to do this, that she doesn't have a good feeling about today and she only wants to do it to meet the people. I don't blame her, honestly.

"Yeah, why?" She looked at me in confusion. 

"You just seem nervous," I shrugged. "And your hands are clammy." She gave me a blank look before digging her elbow into my ribs. I chuckled, grabbing my ribs while my thumb stroked her hand. "If it helps, your dress looks very pretty," I smiled, looking over at her. 

"Thank you. You look very handsome," she smiled back at me. 

After around ten minutes, the car slowed down to a stop. Two guards were immediately there to open our doors and when we stepped out and started walking while the crowd of citizens started standing in two lines, leaving a path for us in the middle to walk through. Guards stood blocking them while we stood there, taking a minute to soak it all in. 

"I forgot our kingdoms are not the stereotypical ones that have a very small population," she mumbled, brushing off her dress. 

"If you are scared or nervous, just don't show it. Smile, act confident, and..." I turned to her. "Be graceful." 

"Did you write Royalty 101?" 

I smiled, extending my arm. She linked her arm with mine as my parents stepped out, following a few feet behind us. We then started walking. We waved, smiled, shook some hands, and gave some hugs. Which is against protocol. 

This normally goes on for an hour, so we have a lot of walking and greeting to do. I believe we were around twenty to twenty-five minutes in when Ella pulled her arm from mine to hug an elderly woman and her daughter. I did not think too much of it and we kept walking. She was standing to my left, so she continued greeting all the guests on that side and I greeted all the guests on the right. It was obvious, on our walk back, we would be greeting the other side. 

This ceremony is hosted to make our citizens familiar with us and gain a little bit of their trust. We make a good impression, they like us, it makes it easier for us to rule and run the kingdom. Simple. 

"Thank you, thank you so much," I smiled while an elderly woman placed her hand on the top of my head, giving me her blessings while her son stood beside her, helping her. She was pretty old and seemed a little weak and sick. I wish I could ask about her health but we aren't allowed to stop for too long. 

"Bless you, my son," a man said, doing the same as the older lady. 

There were loud squealing and shrieks coming from the left. I looked over, seeing a group of little girls ecstatic upon seeing Ella in person. She grinned, bending a little to give their cheeks a little squeeze while smiling, giving them quick hugs. 

I looked back to the mother of two standing in front of me until I heard a scream while feeling a death grip on my arm. My head snapped over while panic spread through the crowd. 

Gasps, shrieks, screams, yells, cries. 

My heart fell when my eyes landed on Ella. My brain wasn't functioning but my body kicked into its instincts. I grabbed her arms, pulling her back up while she yelled in pain, clutching onto her stomach. The guards started clearing the crowd and our car which was following closely behind pulled back up. 

"Ella! Ella, are you okay? What happened? Where does it-" I stopped, my eyes landing on her abdomen. Her left side had a huge slash which was bleeding rapidly. "Fucking hell," I mumbled, scooping her up in my arms. A guard opened the car door and I lay her in while she screamed at the top of her lungs. I ran to the other side, climbing in and giving all my attention to her.