Hi guys! Long chapter today, hope you enjoy!
When I get there, the ballroom is still undergoing last-minute touch-ups. It's connected to the royal dining room by a screen that's been raised for the event. Instead of the rectangular table in the center of the room, three large tables have been pushed against the opposite wall, holding a variety of Illéa and Italian foods. My feet itch to walk over there, but I resist the urge and scan the growing crowd for Nina. I don't see anyone that could be her or the Italians, but then an arm grabs me from behind. It's Nina.
"Hey, I was looking for you!" I tell her.
She gives me a nervous smile, and I hold her hand. She beams at me.
"You like black, don't you?" she says playfully.
"Yeah, I guess. I never really thought about the color of my clothes before." I tell her.
"Promise you'll help me with my Italian?" Nina begs.
"Of course I will. You don't even have to ask." I assure her.
The worry in her eyes doesn't fade, but she forces a smile. Her brown hair is left down and straightened in a typical Illéan fashion, and she wears a deep green grown with spaghetti straps that hugs her body, showing off her petite figure.
"You look great." I say, pointing at her sparkling green eyeshadow.
She blushes. "Thanks. You too."
"Excuse me, Lady Dusk and Lady Nina?" a woman asks.
She has a faint Italian accent.
"Yes?" we both ask at the same time.
The woman smiles. "Princess Ginevra is speaking with all the selected girls. She wanted me to tell you that she love your dresses and would like to speak with you two specifically."
My eyes go wide. My maids were right; Princess Ginevra does have an eye for fashion.
"Of course, we'll go to her right away." Nina says.
She takes my arm and leads us to a pretty girl with olive skin and plum colored lipstick. I've seen Princess Ginevra in the tabloids before and on the Report during past visits. She wears a gorgeous deep red off-the-shoulder gown that flows down. The neckline is decorated with tiny red gems that complement the gold circlet set delicately in her black hair. Her hair itself is in a braided crown, a hairstyle I considered myself before deciding on the one I have right now.
"È un onore conoscerla, principessa." I say, curtsying.
Nina does the same.
"Parli italiano?" Ginevra asks, looking pleasantly surprised.
"Sì, mia nonna è venuta qui dall'Italia quando mia madre era piccola." I reply.
Nina tugs on my dress and I give her an apologetic look. Ginevra beams at me.
"I like your hair." she says in English.
I laugh. "You mean the style, or the color?" I joke.
"Both." she replies.
"This is Nina." I say, tugging Nina forward.
"Ciao." she says, and Ginevra smiles politely.
"I'll leave you two to talk." I say, curtsying and walking to stand behind Ginevra without her noticing.
Nina's panicked gaze meets mine, and I trace the neckline of Ginevra's dress on my own, mouthing the Italian words.
"Il tuo vestito è così bello!" Nina says.
I give her a thumbs-up. Ginevra thanks her, then launches into a stream of Italian.
"Mi perdoni, ma non parlo molto l'italiano." Nina explains.
Ginevra laughs.
"I'd never be able to tell; your accent is so natural!" she laughs.
Nina smiles, and that's when the alarm rings for the second time in a week.
"Shit!" a guard yells before the sound of breaking glass is heard.
"We need to go!" I say to the princess and Nina.
"Dove?" Ginevra asks, voice panicked.
She must return to Italian when she's panicked.
"Seguitemi!" I shout over the loud bangs and crashes.
She nods, looking terrified. I hike up the bottoms of my skirts and Ginevra and Nina do the same. We all start running. I make a menta, note to thank June for making sure I knew the way to the safe room. We don't stop until we finally get there, but some of the selected girls are missing. Austin isn't there either.
"Where's the prince?" Nina asks a maid.
"He went back out to find the other girls, Miss." she replies, looking just as worried as I feel.
"What?" Ginevra asks, looking pale.
"I'm sure he'll be alright." I say uselessly.
"Tu no capisci!" she says frantically.
"Con tutto il rispetto, cosa significa?" I ask her.
The princess takes a deep breath.
"Nulla." she says.
Worry seeps into my heart. What if Austin is killed? I might not like the guy, but I don't want him to die.
"I'm going back out." I tell the maid.
"Miss, I'm under strict orders not to let anyone out!" she exclaims, looking troubled.
"Then you're not letting me, I'm running away." I quickly run past her and out the open side door, hurrying up the passageway. I can hear footsteps following behind me and Nina calling my sister's name, but I don't stop. Austin is my sovereign. I have a duty to save him. I want to shout his name, but that will only draw attention to me.
"Dusk? What are you doing?" It's Sofia.
"Just head to the safe room!" I scream at her.
She doesn't object, just runs in the direction of the safe room. I can feel my heart beating erratically out of my chest. If Austin dies, everything will change. That's when I hear it.
"Leave us alone!" It's Austin's voice.
I run in the direction of it to find himback up against a wallby rebels. Genevieve stands behind him, his arm held in front of her protective. I quietly take off my heels and creep up behind the nearest rebel. Austin locks eyes with me, but he can't say or do anything without alerting the rebels to my presence. Before I can chicken out, I whack the rebel's head with the heel of my shoe and he collapses unconscious.
"Hey!" The man next to him shouts.
Fear floods my system, followed by adrenaline. I quickly grab the gun from the unconscious rebel's holster and shoot the second man as he raises his gun. Another man opens fire, and I scream, getting behind a wall and firing in his general direction, terrified I'll hit Austin or Genevieve instead. Luck must be on my side today, because one of them makes contact and he crumples to the floor. I point the gun at the last man, and he drops his own to the floor, raising his hands in surrender. My breaths come in pants. I know the guard I knocked out is alive, but I shot the other two in the heads. They're both dead. Tears prick my eyes, but I wipe them away and look at Austin. He's staring at me, a shocked expression on his face. Genevieve's face holds a similar look.
"We need to go, Your Highness." I tell Austin.
He nods and picks up the firstdead rebel's gun, handing it to Genevieve.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" she asks.
"Use it if you have to." Austin says curtly, unholstering the second rebel's gun.
He points it at the rebel whose hands are in the air. He looks like he could be a little older than the age Kyle would be if he was still alive.
"You're coming with us." Austin sayswith authority.
We run back to the safe room. Luckily, when we get there, all the other girls have made it.
"You saved my life." Austin says.
I blush.
"It was the right thing to do." I reply.
I hear a sharp intake of breath, a second before Austin kneels and gingerly touches the part of my leg that is exposed by the slit. I hiss, and he removes his hand. There's blood on it.
"You were shot." he says.
Then I feel the stinging pain, and I black out.
-o-
When I wake up, I'm in the hospital wing. A nearby nurse checking my vitals gasps when she sees that I'm awake.
"You're awake!" she exclaims, dropping her clipboard. I sit up, wincing at the pain in my leg.
"How long have I been out?" I ask.
The nurse shakes her head.
"It's been three days, Miss." she tells me.
I can't hold back my strangled gasp. Three days? I was out for three whole days? That must mean it's Wednesday.
"You were badly injured, Lady Dusk. They had to remove the bullet and stitch up the wound. You're very lucky it won't leave a scar." the nurse tells me.
I tentatively place my hand on the tender spot on my leg, sucking in my breath when I feel a dull ache. It still hurts like hell.
"Thank you." I say.
The nurse smiles at me.
"What's your name?" I ask her.
"Annette." she says.
"You were very brave to save the prince like that. He's been visiting you thrice every day since you became comatose."
"Really?" I ask.
I can't fight the blush from spreading across my cheeks. Annette nods, smiling at me.
"Shall I tell him you've woken up?" she asks.
I nod, and she leaves, pushing through the drawn curtains. I pull the sheets higher over my chest. Someone dressed me in one of my nightgowns. I recognize it as the one I wore on my first night here, but the material is flimsy and thin. Austin walks in through the curtains, smiling when he sees me. I smile back.
"You're finally awake." he says.
"I guess I am." I say.
"Thank you." he says.
"It was the right thing to do." I repeat my words from the safe room.
"Still, you didn't have to do that. My mother told me you ran back out of the safe room to find me. Why would you do that?" he asks.
Queen America noticed? She told him?
"I had to." I say.
"Please. You need to give me more than 'I had to.' And for God's sake don't say it was the right thing to do."
I shrug, shifting then wincing when the movement makes my leg throb harder.
"I couldn't imagine a world without you in it."
It's not a lie, but I know he'll take it the wrong way. He'll think I'm in love with him. Predictably, I see the hints of a blush on his face.
"I'm going to have to make it up to you. You saved my life and got shot." he says.
I make a scoffing noise.
"Of course you have to make it up to me. I did risk my life for you." I joke.
He laughs a little, then stands and drops a folded piece of paper in my lap. Before I can ask him about it, he leaves.
Dusk -
I cried so hard when I read Dawn's letter. I miss her, I miss everything about her. I took Brandon with me to visit Kyle's grave so I could put her letter to him on it. I hope he gets it. We walked back to his house in silence, where we talked a bit about leaves for a few minutes and comes back with a worried look on his face.
"What's wrong?" I ask.
He tosses a newspaper clipping on the bed, where I'm sitting. I pick it up, and the headline on the front reads: "RUNNING FAVORITE IN THE SELECTION IN COMATOSE STATE AFTER REBEL ATTACK".
My heart drops. I frantically read the article, but it just gets worse from there. Dawn was shot? I cover my hand with my mouth.
"She'll be okay." Brandon says.
I nod, trying to believe it. "I know. She's the strongest person I know."
Kyle -
I made Mira promise to get updates about Dawn for me. It would look too suspicious if I visited her myself in the hospital wing, so she agreed to help me. I wait at our usual meeting spot, an isolated hallway on the third floor. Even though Mira and her family technically aren't royalty, they still have their rooms on the same floor as the royal family because her mother, Lady Marlee, is Queen America's best friend.
"Dawn is awake." Mira says from behind me.
My back straightens.
"How is she doing?" I ask anxiously.
"Based on what I heard, the bullet went pretty deep. They had to dig it out of her leg. But it won't scar. They said it was a miracle."
I exhale. "Is she okay now?"
Mira looks unsure.
"She seems alright, but I can tell it hurts her. She was discharged from the hospital wing an hour ago. They were also saying something about her blood being useless to them because it was contaminated when it was exposed to the air." she says.
Relief floods my body and I shake my head.
"They probably wanted it for their medical operations because she has O negative blood." I tell her.
She nods. "That makes sense."