Sacrificial Bride to the Feared Lord Hastings-Chapter 252: Enemy in the castle (3)

Alice hit Thomas’s side and regretted it when he groaned. "I forgot you are injured. I will take you to the doctor. It is not as though I will be able to take Lady Hastings’ food to her. That was quite close."

"She didn’t injure me too badly. I have been in a worse position before," Thomas said, trying to calm Alice.

"Oh, I wasn’t speaking about you. I was speaking about Lady Hastings. That food could have reached her, and it would have been me who delivered it to her. She could have died, and I would have been killed. That was quite close," Alice said, thinking about herself.

"I was stabbed, yet you can only think of what would have happened to you," Thomas said and pushed Alice’s hands away. "I can stand on my own."

"Why wouldn’t I think about myself? You could have been pointing your sword at me right now had I taken the food to Lady Hastings. Isn’t it true?" Alice asked, confused by Thomas’s behaviour.

"No, I wouldn’t. I would have protected you," Thomas answered.

"Did she put poison on that knife? You are not being honest with me now. Everyone knows that I did not start on the right footing with Lady Hastings. Surely, they would not believe me," said Alice.

"I would believe you. I know that you fear Lord Hastings too much to harm Lady Hastings now. I know that you came to your senses after realising he loves her, and though you hate to admit it, you like her. I wouldn’t believe you tried to kill her," Thomas spoke with honesty.

"Thomas," Alice said, her eyes filling with water.

Thomas looked away from Alice and groaned. "You mustn’t cry over-"

"I do like her," Alice confessed.

Thomas looked back at Alice, surprised that this was what placed her on the verge of tears.

"You must find your way to the doctor, Thomas. I shall go to Lady Hastings," Alice decided.

"You said you would take me," Thomas reminded Alice.

"Yes, but then you said that you were fine. Why must I bother myself with you when I must find fresh food for Lady Hastings to eat? Let this be a lesson to always wear your armour, and while you are at it, you should have the knights search for more of these spies," Alice suggested.

"Move faster," Alice said, clapping her hands to remind the cooks of their work. "Lady Hastings must eat, and her guests must be served. Think of the pay she shall award you if you do well. Excuse me, Thomas."

Alice left Thomas alone to fend for himself, and once she was out of the kitchen, she looked back to see if he was near.

"That was close," Alice said, placing her hand on her chest.

If the outsider had been skilled, Thomas could have been gravely injured.

"Well, that would be his fault," Alice muttered.

Alice tried not to think of it as she made her way to Ophelia’s bedchamber. Not only did she want to deliver the news, but she wanted to stay close to Ophelia.

Soon, Alice reached the bedchamber and told Ophelia of what had occurred.

"Have the knights been instructed to search all the visitors? They must also walk around the castle to make sure no one has wandered where they aren’t permitted. This is why I wanted them all to be in one space so they can be watched. This cannot happen again," Ophelia said, thinking of ways to prevent it.

"I assure you that we shall do our best so it doesn’t happen again. Fortunately, you weren’t eating as you normally do, but you still must eat. I have told the cooks to start fresh, so you will have to wait. You should rest until it is ready," Alice suggested. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

"I cannot rest-"

"You said that you would. I understand why you must, but you have not stopped moving around since Lord Hastings left. You are trying to be everywhere at once, and because of it, your illness is not getting better. Forgive me, but I shall lock you in this chamber if you try to leave!" Alice snapped and immediately regretted it.

"I mean no disrespect," Alice said, starting to believe she was losing her mind. "To speak to you as I did, I must be ill."

"No, you were honest. I am tired, and if I go on like this, I truly will become ill. I should lean on the people around me more often. There are plenty of hands here to read the reports, inspect the castle and tend to the guests. I shouldn’t try to do it all alone," Ophelia admitted.

"I am going to trust that everyone can do their duties, so I can take a step back. I shall rest for a few hours, and I don’t want to be disturbed unless it is for an important matter. I must regain all my strength and be prepared for tomorrow. Please tell my guards I don’t want to be disturbed," said Ophelia.

Ophelia sat down on her bed. She didn’t have a moment to herself or a moment to not think about war since Dante left. All the questions were directed to her, so she felt the need to constantly keep moving to ensure the castle was well.

"As you wish," Alice said, followed by a curtsy. She walked out of the bedchamber to deliver the message.

When the door closed, Ophelia leaned to her right until her body collided with the bed.

The softness of the bed was comforting. The bedchamber had become her safe space, and knowing that her guards were outside the door, Ophelia fell asleep.

The rest was needed for Ophelia, and as she ordered, no one disturbed her.

Hours had gone by, and in the quiet bedchamber, Ophelia continued to sleep peacefully. Her body felt relaxed for the first time in days.

Ophelia slowly started to drift out of her sleep, but a feeling as though someone had brushed their hand against her hair startled her.

Ophelia sat up and looked around the bedchamber, but no one was present. Her hair fell over her shoulder, revealing the cause of what she felt.

"I must be losing my mind," Ophelia muttered, raking her fingers through her messy hair.

Ophelia took a deep breath and turned her attention to the window. It was dark out now, which meant there should be new reports about the battle.

Ophelia took a moment to calm down from the scare and then got up from her bed to go to the door. She opened it and found Alice seemingly scolding Thomas.

"Are there any new reports?" Ophelia asked, drawing attention to herself.

"Lady Hasting!" Alice exclaimed and left Thomas’s side. "There is one you should be happy to hear. Lord Valthorn was caught."