The Knight's Rose

Chapter Six ~ The Stem of the Rose

Chapter Six ~ The Stem of the Rose

All Rights Reserved.

⤝O⤞

I almost bit somebody when they stepped on my dress again. I kept running through the crowd calling out my sisters and Milly's name. At some point, I felt hysteria building up inside of me, but I swallowed it back and told myself to calm down.

I wouldn't benefit from crying or throwing myself to the ground in madness. I'd probably only amount to looking like a pudge fish and get shoe marks on my best clothes.

I didn't regret leaving Nikolai. I knew he had a duty, and I shouldn't get in the way of his job. My cheeks still burned when I remembered his touch.

Goodness, Rose! So not the time!

The men in black cloaks had already disappeared. With them came fear and despair, and now that they're gone I would have assumed that would've stopped the rampage. Instead, people ran as if they were being threatened to get their heads cut off.

Damn maligners.

"Prim!" I called out in my loudest voice, wincing when my voice cracked. Someone shoved me from behind again, and I stumbled forward, almost falling on a young boy. I steadied the both of us before he disappeared into the crowd again.

I hope he didn't stray from his mother.

Someone bumped into me again, shoving me to the right, and into someone else.

Wonderful.

Slowly, I could see the crowd decreasing but there were still so many people screaming and shoving each other out the way. I saw a glimpse of guards trying to calm down the situation, but weren't having any luck. I yelped in pain when someone jabbed me in the stomach. I let out a wheezed breath, holding my stomach. This time the hysteria crept up on me without me noticing.

"Lily!" I wailed, my eyes prickling with tears. I looked around me and could only see the immense amount of people. I was scared.

"Rose!" I heard someone shout. Someone with a familiar husky rough voice. I turned around to see Nikolai coming toward me. He pushed past the many people and the only reason I could see him was because of his huge built.

Slowly, I began moving toward him. I wiped my eyes quickly, hoping he wouldn't notice the wetness. When he finally reached me, his arms circled around my waist and pulled me against his chest. His touch left a trail of heat and gave me a sense of comfort.

"Sir Nikolai, what about the prince?" I inquired, hoping he didn't ditch the prince just to find me.

"I took him to a safe place. What about you? Are you okay?" he asked me, staring down at me for a minute before he began moving. I held on to him and we began to push past the crowd of people.

"I'm fine," I answered loudly. "But I can't find my sisters and Milly."

"I already found them. I sent them along with the prince," he told me, and I couldn't help but stop. He managed to bring the prince to safety and find my sisters. What was this sorcery? Could he truly be that reliable?

"Let's hurry along, Rose," he told me, pulling me to him. I slowly nodded and we made our way through the rampage. At some point, a man barreled into us and I felt bad for him when Nikolai snarled at him to watch it. That seemed to have brought him back from his hysteria because he began to shove his way toward the exit.

Finally, after being pushed and nudged, we finally exited the stampede and reached a row of huge colored tents aligned in lines I almost cried in relief when I saw Prim, Lily, and Milly standing beside the prince, who seemed to be guarding them.