The Royal Assassin

Chapter Forty One - Oh god

I sat on the apartment sofa with Victoria in my arms for two days straight. I only ever left to get food or go to the bathroom.

I had called Madeline and she rushed over with everything she needed. She studied the wounds, and luckily none of the stab wounds had hit any veins or major arteries. Madeline cleaned, stitched, and bandaged up all her wounds. I stood there and watched. I vowed I wouldn't leave her until she woke up.

Everyone had whispered a goodnight to me and left us in the living room. I just couldn't bring myself to carry her back to her room. I felt like I would somehow hurt her even more. I was worrying the entire time Harrison, Elijah and I carefully picked her up and put her on the sofa. Once they were gone, I slowly sat down and put her head on my lap.

I stared down at her. Usually while she was sleeping, she looked so peaceful, but now she just looked...terrible. Her skin was pale and cold, the small lacerations and bruises on her face... what did she do?

I hadn't got proper goodnights sleep since the day I walked in and saw her body. Every time I closed my eyes, I just saw the horrifying image of Victoria's bloodied, scratched, and bruised body laying on the table.

I stared up at the ceiling. I wanted to cry, but the tears just wouldn't come. So, I had this overwhelming feeling filling every part of my body. It was exhausting, and all I wanted was for her to wake up and give me one of those dimpled smiles. All I wanted was for her to wake up.

Then, she stirred. I felt her head move on my lap; I brought my eyes back to her. Her eyes shot open, and she sat up straight, gasping for breath. She turned and hung her legs over the edge of the sofa, grasping onto the cushions beneath her for stability.

I shot up and got onto my knees in front of her. I grabbed her knees and stared up at her. She looked down at me, her expression softening just a little bit.

"Toria? You need to breathe. Take a deep breath with me." I squeezed her knees and took a deep breath.

She just shook her head. Tears pooled in her eyes.

"Come on, just copy my movements. Here grab my hands and squeeze them."

She held my hands and squeezed them so tightly I was sure she was going to break a bone. She mimicked my breathing pattern. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

Once she was breathing somewhat normally again, I stood up and hauled her up with me. She just wouldn't stop crying and it broke my heart. I wrapped my arms around her as she sobbed into my chest. Soon, the tears that didn't want to come earlier, started falling down. I wept into her hair, trying my best to stop so I could soothe her, but I just couldn't.

Both our knees buckled, and we fell to the floor. I held onto her tighter as she put both her arms around my waist and pulled me closer.

We sat on the floor weeping together for a good fifteen minutes. I just ran my hands through her hair, trying my best to comfort her even though we were both in the same boat.

She pulled back and sniffled. She stared up at me, I took my hands out of her hair and cupped her face. My thumbs wiped away the leftover tears on her face. I gave her a small smile and continued brushing away the tears.

"I'm sorry Ace. I didn't know...I didn't know they would do that."

"What? Who's they?"

She took a deep breath through her nose. "I went back to the warehouse."

My eyes widened. She went back? Without anyone? Without me?

"I'm sorry. I just couldn't stand the fact that Kai's attackers had just been left there. I wanted revenge but when I got there it was almost as if they were expecting me there."

I couldn't speak. I didn't want to speak. She was already in enough pain, and I didn't want to make it worse by yelling at her for her stupidity.

"I got there and started fighting them. But instead of showing my holograms of themselves, they showed me holograms of everybody that was in the warehouse that one day. They showed me holograms of you being bloodied and... and bruised. They showed me things that will never leave my mind. Things that I hope to never see again."

Her voice broke with every sentence. I couldn't take it. Seeing her suffer tore me into a million different pieces.

"They used those as distractions. They punched, stabbed, sliced. I barely got away. Barely."

"Oh god Toria. God. I can't even yell at you. What you did was incredibly stupid. You should've told one of us, you should have let me come with you. As stupid as it was, what you did was incredibly selfless. But Toria please don't ever do that to me again. Please. I thought I lost you. You looked dead. You felt dead. I can't—this is-"

"I know, I know." She put both hands on my cheeks. Now it was her turn to rub the tears off. "I know, and I'm sorry. I just thought it was the least I could do since I treated you so badly after your fake betrayal. I just wanted Kai to feel some closure. I wanted to feel some closure. I mean, what if they went for you next and I never found you? Point is, I'm sorry Ace. I really am."

"I know you are." I kissed her gently, carefully holding her face, so I wasn't touching any bruises or cuts.

"Are you okay? Do you feel a lot of pain? Do you want water or a pill to numb the pain?"

"The pain is tolerable. Some water would be great though." She gave me a crooked smile. I got to my feet and helped her up. She sat down on the sofa while I went to go grab some water for her.

I walked back and handed her the glass of water. She downed it all in one big gulp and leaned forward to place it on the coffee table. She winced, recoiled, and stared at her shoulder. I quickly grabbed the glass from her and put it on the coffee table for her.

"That's why it was painful to hug you." She poked at the bandage on her arm.

"Do you want to sleep here or back in your room?" I asked softly.

"Let's just go back to my room. It's probably uncomfortable for you anyways."

I nodded and helped her up to her feet. She wobbled and almost fell over. She clutched her thigh. She took deep shuddering breaths. I just tucked an arm under her knees, the other one tucked under her neck. I picked her up and started toward the hallway. She yelped and wrapped her hands around my neck. I was careful to avoid putting pressure on her shoulder or thigh since those wounds seemed to bother her a bit more.

I switched the light off with my elbow and then walked into Victoria's room, kicking the door shut with my heel. I carefully put her down on her bed and tucked her into the sheets. I switched the lights off, then slipped into the sheets beside her.

"How am I supposed to hold you without hurting you?" I whispered to her. I could barely make out her face in the darkness, but I could've sworn she smiled.

"I don't care if you hurt me. I just need to be in your arms."

She awkwardly moved closer to me. I put an arm just below her shoulders, she put her head on my chest and her leg was slung over mine. My other arm draped over her waist, snaking down to her back. I pulled her up a bit, so her head was resting just below my neck. I put my head on hers, squeezing her a little bit tighter.

"I love you Ace."

"I love you so much Toria."