The World Cannot Know

Chapter 62

Matthew Wild

I lowered the bow slowly, my hands still trembling from the force of the shot. For a long moment, all I could hear was the pounding of my own heart—and the hollow clang as Gregory's sword bounced across the stones.

Sebastian lay sprawled a few feet away, blood soaking the leg of his trousers, his chest heaving with the effort just to breathe. He turned his head toward me, and when our eyes met, something fierce and broken passed between us.

Without thinking, I dropped the bow and ran.

"Sebastian!" I gasped, dropping to my knees beside him, the stones scraping my legs. My hands flew to his thigh, pressing down hard against the torn, blood-soaked fabric. Gods—there was so much blood. It seeped between my fingers, hot and fast, like he was slipping away with every heartbeat.

His hand found my arm, gripping weakly, trembling. His skin was ice-cold.

"What are you doing here?" he rasped, his voice barely above a whisper, thick with pain.

"Saving you, you stubborn fool," I said, my throat burning. "Someone had to."

His head lolled slightly, and then, with a desperate clarity, his eyes found mine. "Where's Louie?" he managed.

"Safe," I said quickly. "He's safe. I swear it."

He exhaled a shaky breath, his body sagging slightly against me. Relief—sharp and deep—crossed his face, but it was quickly swallowed by pain.

"Gods, your wound looks bad," I muttered, panic scraping at my ribs. I pressed harder, but the blood kept coming, soaking through the cloak I'd used as a bandage.

From the side, boots thundered across the stones. Alice appeared, hair wild, face pale and determined.

"Move," she ordered, kneeling opposite me. She shoved another scrap of cloth into my hands. "Tie it—tight. We need to stop the bleeding before we move him."

Together, working fast and clumsy with fear, we bound his leg. Sebastian groaned but didn't protest, his fingers digging weakly into the dirt.

"My father..." Sebastian gasped, voice raw and broken. "I need to see him... I have to..."

Alice shot me a quick, worried look. She pressed harder against the bandage wrapped around his leg. "You're kind of occupied at the moment, Sebastian," she said, trying for lightness but her voice cracked anyway. "Let's stop you from bleeding out first, alright?"

"I have to—" Sebastian tried to push away from us, but his strength gave out almost immediately. He slumped between us, cursing under his breath.

"Sebastian, listen to me," I said firmly, tightening my grip under his arm. "The king's not here. He would have been evacuated when the fighting broke out—hidden away by his guards."

"Or he's locked himself somewhere and left everyone else to die," Alice muttered darkly, adjusting her hold on Sebastian's other side.

Sebastian shook his head stubbornly, his face pale and drenched with sweat. "No... Gregory... he—he—"

"Sebastian, please," I called out, tightening my grip on him as he nearly buckled again. His skin was cold, and every breath he took seemed to rattle in his chest.

Before I could say anything more, the heavy thud of boots echoed across the shattered stones.

"Matthew! Alice!" Marcus's voice cut through the night, sharp and urgent. He sprinted toward us, sword still drawn, eyes flashing with disbelief when he saw us crouched over Sebastian.