XV #2
And yet, she hadn't. He could tell by the way her hands shook ever so slightly that she was trying her best. She didn't want to hurt him.
He couldn't believe it.
That was when he had gone silent and simply let her do what she needed to. He had nothing to say. She had rendered him speechless. He could tell the guards by his side were relieved, and he mentally rolled his eyes.
The feeling of her hands against his chest made something strange bloom inside of him. He couldn't put his finger on what it was. Disgust? Contempt? No. This was an even stranger feeling. A thought flickered in his mind, but he quickly pushed it to the side. Absolutely not.
When she was done, she took a step back and checked her work, mentally checking off all the steps she needed to do in a situation like this to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything.
"I'm all done. I suggest you don't move around, unless you want to reopen your stitches. And I assure you, it will hurt a lot more the second time."
Y/N walked over to the sink to quickly wash all her tools.
"Is that a threat?" he asked.
She turned her head around to face him. "A promise."
He glared at her, and she returned the expression. When he noticed she wasn't backing down from their little staring contest, he turned his gaze to the side and scoffed.
Y/N turned her head back to the sink and continued with her washing. Lennox watched her figure and the way her hair shone brilliantly under the overhead lights. Without seeing her face, he supposed she could almost pass as attractive. ALMOST. But her attitude needed severe work.
Anastasia burst into the room, taking Y/N and Lennox by surprise.
"LENNY!" Anastasia exclaimed, throwing her arms around him in a tight hug.
"Ugh!" Lennox groaned, trying to pry his older sister off of him.
"ARE YOU ALRIGHT? YOU CAME IN KICKING AND SCREAMING, AND YOU WERE COVERED IN BLOOD. I WAS SO WORRIED!"
"Goddess, Anna, let me go! You're killing me!"
Anastasia peeled herself off of him, remembering he was covered in cuts and bruises. "Oh, right. Sorry!"
Y/N stood off to the side, watching the clown show and shook her head. Anastasia was a funny character.
The King and the Queen rushed into the room next. While Miranda pulled Lennox and Anastasia into a deep embrace, Edric stood to the side. Y/N noted the look of relief on his face when he saw his children. Edric noticed Y/N's stare and turned to face her.
"You are...?" he asked.
Y/N stood up straight. "Apprentice Healer L/N, your Majesty. I am the one in charge of the Prince's recovery."
Edric nodded his head in understanding.
"Are you in any pain anywhere?" Miranda asked her children worriedly.
"No, just a couple scrapes," Anastasia assured her mother.
Lennox shifted his gaze towards Y/N. "I feel like I got a good thrashing, but other than that, I'm alright."
Y/N went back to sorting all of her tools and headed out of the private room back into the common space. She went over to the shelves to put back the salve and medical equipment she had used.
Another guard burst into the room and ran towards Y/N. "Which room is Prince Lennox in?"
"That one." Y/N pointed.
The guard quickly rushed off in the direction she gestured, and Y/N couldn't help but feel intrigued.
The way he ran with such panic made her worry something terrible had happened again.
Realizing she had left the dirty cloth and bowl in the private room, she headed back, half-trying to overhear what was being said.
"...no one matching that description was found."
"Have you checked the entire palace!?"
"Yes, your highness. We've also asked every guard and noble if they had seen her once they evacuated, but it's like she simply disappeared into thin air. No one has seen her since she left the ballroom."
"You don't think..." a female voice drawled.
"NO! Don't you dare think like that! She's alive, I know it. She probably ran off when the explosion hit. I'm sure she's hiding somewhere safe. She has to be!"
When Y/N walked into the room, she shivered from the look in Lennox's eyes. He looked crazed, like an animal starved. His lips were slightly parted, and his breaths looked shallow and laboured. Sweat gleamed against his forehead, and he placed a hand against his chest to calm his breathing.
A pit formed in her stomach.
"I just... can't believe it. I had spoken to her only a few hours ago. Who would've thought she was your mate?" Anastasia said in amazement.
Lennox gripped Anastasia's arm. "Tell me everything she said to you. Every last word."
Anastasia winced from his strong hold, but Lennox did not let up his grip. "Nothing substantial, she was in pain when I first spoke to her. But she did say something about you."
Lennox's ears perked up, waiting for his sister to continue. "She said something about how you seemed to put on a facade when you were around women. That no one really knew what you were truly like."
"Why, it almost sounds like she knows Lennox," Miranda commented.
Lennox's face scrunched up in confusion.
What no one in the room noticed was the way Y/N's fingers tightened around the bowl and washcloth. Oh goddess, they were so close. She felt like she was going to be sick. Why did she have to attend the ball? Why? Why!? WHY!?
"Close the gates. Do not let anyone in or out. We need to investigate everyone on the guest list to find out who this woman was. No one goes in or out, got it?" Edric declared.
The three guards in the room nodded and ran out.
"She's so close. I can't lose her." Lennox muttered.
But it would be of no use. They would not find Lady Calypso among the guests because she wasn't one. And no one could recognize the woman right in front of them.
Y/N picked up the remaining items in the room and walked out.
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