The Lost Princess - A 'Selection' spinoff

CHAPTER 57

Ella gingerly stepped over the seven unconscious guards on the floor, turning back at Lucian to say, "Go check the hospital wing. I'm sure assassins would have been sent their too".

"I'll wait till you come back," he said stubbornly.

None of them had discussed what would happen once she entered her old chambers. They hadn't even expected to get this far.

Ella's hand grew sweaty around the bronze key she held in her hand, and her right shoulder throbbed uneasily.

"Come in for me if I don't come back in ten minutes," she said, gesturing for him to hide.

She walked slowly to her room, and opened it.

It creaked open, and Ella saw Millie with a gun held steadily in her hand.

But Ella acted like she wasn't alarmed at all.

"Oh Millie," she said, rushing into the room, as though she hadn't seen the gun.

The room was just how it had been a few weeks ago - a violin was on the floor, and her clothes and jewelry were still strewn all around the room.

Elanor and Elodie sat on a low couch, and jumped up when they saw her.

They ran to hug her, before seeing her bloodstained dress and bleeding shoulder.

"What happened?" they asked.

"Nothing, guys," she said, turning to face Millie. "Thank you so much for taking the twins away from the bloodshed. You were right on time".

"What happened?" Millie asked, acting as well as she did. "Queen Elora asked me to clean these two up, which is why I came here".

"Don't even ask, Millie. As the clock chimed twelve, four gunshots. Four Queens fell to the ground like unstringed puppets. I tried to catch the assassin, but he stabbed me with a small pocket knife he held," Ella said. "Katherine said you took the twins away, and someone said they saw you guys come this way. Come. We need to go to the safe room".

"Is anyone hurt, Ella?" Elodie asked.

"No sweetie, everyone's fine," Ella said, smiling through her pain.

"The Queens are dead?" Millie asked, almost triumphantly.

"Yes," Ella said, trying to force a few tears out of her eyes.

"How did you get in here?" Millie asked.

Ella tried to act confused.

"The guards outside. They told me it's okay to come in," she said, turning behind to face the girls.

And then she felt sharp, stabbing pain from the back of her head.

Everything rang for a moment - from the screams of her sisters to what Millie was saying.

Ella groggily turned behind to see that Millie had hit the back of her head with the gun's hilt.

"My guards would've rather killed someone than let them in," she said.

"Get behind, girls," Ella croaked out to her sisters who retreated to the corner of the room.

"It's cute how you think a few meters will protect them from me," Millie said, kneeling beside Ella, who wasn't able to lift her head.

"Don't do this, Millie," she said, trying to focus her eyes. "Don't do this".

"And why wouldn't I? I'm having such great fun," Millie said laughing.

For the first time in her life, since Kent, Ella felt afraid.

"Aurelia. For her. She deserves to have a mother," she said.