the lord and the alleycat [COMPLETED]

Chapter Twenty-Three

My eyelids fluttered open to darkness. I panicked as I sat up, looking around frantically for Bennet. I wasn't in the infirmary, but I also wasn't in the other room I had woken up in the first time I was hurt. My muscles around my stomach clenched in pain as I pushed myself off the bed, standing still until my legs stopped shaking. I hurried toward the door, throwing it open to two tired and shocked Guardians. I rushed past them, not exactly knowing where I was going, but heavy footsteps followed me. My arm was grabbed, stopping me as I fought to get the Guardian off of me.

"Lady Amara! Stop!" he yelled and I stilled. "We will escort you to Prince Bennet. You are heading the wrong way."

"Oh, I apologize," I said, embarrassed. The Guardian released my arm and I followed him back the way I came. "Is he alright?"

The Guardian looked down at me with a sigh, "We are not sure. You'll find more information about it when you get there." I wrung my hands with worry as we continued walking silently. We reached the infirmary and I mentally prepared myself as the Guardian announced me, before allowing me into the room. I walked in, feeling the cold floor underneath my bare feet as I realized I had forgotten to get slippers. Crown Prince Fredrick and Prince Ronald were sitting in chairs to be close to Bennet. Bennet was pale as the nurse blotted his forehead with a cloth. His eyes were shifting quickly under his eyelids. I approached them, and the nurse left to leave us alone.

"You must be Amara," Prince Ronald gave me a small smile, holding out his hand for me to shake. I nodded and shook it, doing the same with Crown Prince Fredrick.

"How is he?" I wrapped my hand around his limp on, sitting on a chair Crown Prince Fredrick got for me.

"The arrow was tipped with poison," Crown Prince Fredrick answered me, staring at his brother with sadness. "He's tough—he's been fighting it. But the nurses are still not sure if he's going to wake up."

"He will," Prince Ronald said firmly, glaring at his brother. "We will not lose him."

I closed my eyes briefly as I thought about Bennet dying. I reopened them, tears gathering in them, "Did they catch the person who did it?"

"Luckily, yes," Crown Prince Fredrick said. "Her name was Remi Justine, a trained assassin. She refused to give up who hired her."

I didn't answer, knowing it was Martha. They wouldn't believe me, the only one who would, was lying injured in the infirmary, "You should get some sleep. I'll watch over him."

"If anything happens, please send for us," Crown Prince Fredrick said, pulling Prince Ronald away, forcing him to leave as well. I laid my head on the bed as I watched his face, clutching his hand tighter. He twitched and I watched him closely, hoping he would awaken. I studied his face, but there was no change. I sighed, taking the cloth and bowl of water to blot his feverish forehead. The nurse returned, redressing my stomach as well as Bennet's shoulder. The skin underneath his dressing was mustard yellow and fiery red and my eyes watered again as I saw it. The nurse tried to get me to lay down on my own bed, but I refused, staying by Bennet's side. She left, leaving us alone once again.

I fell asleep at some point, my head resting on our clasped hands. The sun was just about to rise when I woke up again. Movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention, but when I looked there wasn't anyone there. I blamed it on my tired eyes. I returned my attention back to Bennet, his face slightly less pale, and I felt my hope blossom a little more.

"It's really too bad you couldn't stay away from him, Amara," Martha said, appearing on the other side of Bennet's bed.

I stood, watching her warily, "You hurt him, Martha. You don't need to do anything more."

"It's really too bad that Remi hit here," she jabbed his shoulder and Bennet groaned in his comatose state. She smirked when I swatted her hand away, "instead of at his heart."

"Did you hire her?" I asked.

Martha made an agreeing noise, "I told her I wouldn't kill her secret son if she did what I asked. Love does crazy things to people."

"This isn't about Bennet getting something you wanted anymore, is it?" I asked, trying to distract her.

"It still is, partially," she began to pace back and forth. "But he still has something that I don't."

I watched her carefully, "What?"

"Love!" She screeched, kicking the bed next to Bennet's, sending it toppling over. "Not only does he get to live an easy life away from the court, but he also gets you!" She fell to the ground, clutching at her dress, as she began to cry hysterically "I had love."

I rounded the bed, putting myself between her and Bennet, "Who was it?"

"Jack. He was a stable boy," she cried out. "We fell in love, until one day, Jack decided I was no longer the person he loved." She had large tears rolling down her face as she rocked back and forth. "We were supposed to be together forever."

"I'm sorry," I said and her eyes snapped back to mine.

"This is all your fault. I tried to get him to think that you didn't love him so that he would know heartbreak. But he never stopped loving you. Never!" She pushed me over in a hurried attempt to stab Bennet with a knife that flashed in my vision. I screamed as she took steps towards Bennet, thrusting the knife downwards before it was deflected by a sword.

Guardians flooded the room, and Crown Prince Fredrick was the one to stop the knife, sending it clattering to the floor as he glared at his sister, "It was always you."

"No, I..." Martha looked wildly around the room at the Guardians and her family. "Amara...she..."

"We heard everything," Queen Katherine said sternly. "You will be punished for your crimes against the court, Martha."

I sighed in relief on the floor, causing Martha to look down at me, glaring. She pounced on me, pulling at my hair and kneeing my stomach. She was quickly pulled off of me, thrashing against the Guardians that held her, "This is all your fault, Amara! You will never be anything, but a low-life Alley-cat!" The Guardians dragged her into the hallway, as she continued to scream and hurl threats in my direction, not unlike Abraham had. I stood and returned to Bennet's side, making sure she hadn't hurt him.

"Thank you, Amara," the King said, placing a hand on my shoulder as the royal family gathered around the bed. "You have saved our son."

"I am truly sorry about Martha, Your Majesty," I said, hanging my head. "I wish she wouldn't have taken heartbreak so awfully."

"Us as well, Amara," Queen Katherine nodded as we all stared at Bennet solemnly. He suddenly began to struggle on the bed violently. The nurses were yelled in and we were all pushed away from the bed as they assessed his situation.

"We need to do it now," the head nurse said, and we were ushered from the room without any indication what 'it' was.

I caught her arm before she returned, "Is he going to be okay?"

"I will do my best," was her answer as the infirmary doors slammed shut behind her. I stared at the closed door as I tried to grapple with the face that might have been the last time I saw Bennet.