Melrose woke up the next morning with the sun peeking at her windows. After having a peaceful breakfast with Reed and the rest of the group, they departed afterwards so they would arrive at East Brownsville in no delay.
Sitting in front of Reed in the carriage again, Melrose couldn't help but think of what happened last night. It was uncomfortable to think that she, an unmarried lady, was alone in a room with a single man like him. But she knew that neither did he think it was appropriate and she was glad he stayed until the storm subsided.
She spoke while he was reading a book. "Thank you, Lord Knight."
"If it's about last night, it's no big deal," he replied without tearing his gaze from the book.
"Still, I owe you that."
"The King entrusted you to me on this trip, of course your well-being is my responsibility," he said in a cold manner.
"You made it sound like you were forced to stay with me. I am being a burden to you again, aren't I, my lord?" She didn't want to sound hostile but why did he need to be so cold and indifferent when she was trying to be nice and somehow fix the bad blood between them?
This time, he looked at her. "Indeed, you are, Lady Lewis. If you didn't insist on going on this trip, you should have been in your house last night and you would have people you are more comfortable with to tend to you."
Melrose let out a sharp breath. "Well, let me apologize to you again, my lord. Should anything like that happen again, please don't hold yourself accountable. I am used to having breakdowns and so far, it has never hurt me physically so you don't have to worry that His Majesty will blame you for your lack of attention to my well-being."
She glared at him. How sure was he that people would tend to her at home? Felicity was the only one who knew and even she didn't know how to handle her. She couldn't even tell her own father and she was afraid that if other servants would know, a word would spread of her being insane. There was no one to depend on but herself.
And although King Vincent was a kind and considerate man, she wondered if she could share to him that dark part of her life.
"I'm sorry if I fail to keep my promise not to trouble you again. But I hope you won't spread a word about what happened last night."
He went back to his book. "Rest assured, Lady Lewis. I'm not someone who likes to gossip so I won't likely say anything to anyone unless I'm asked."
"What an honest person," she muttered under her breath, which she could barely hear herself.
"Not really. I lie sometimes, but most of the time I don't."
She raised a brow, surprised that she actually heard her. "And you even have a sharp hearing sense. You are indeed one of a kind, Lord Knight," she said sarcastically.
"Aren't you also one of a kind, Lady Lewis? When it comes to you, people should expect the unexpected." He glanced at her, his eyes narrowing mischievously.
"You know what, Lord Knight, I think it's better if—"
The carriage stopped abruptly and almost threw Melrose in front if she didn't hold on to the side.
She was about to ask the coachman what happened when Reed's manservant, Stuart, stood right on the carriage's window.
"My lord, we are now at the entrance of East Brownsville, but something is not right with the village."
Melrose was about to open the door to see what was going on outside when Reed caught her wrist.
"What are you doing?" he questioned as if she was a child who wasn't aware of her own actions.
"Isn't it obvious, Lord Knight? I will open the door because I want to go out."
"You just heard that something seemed wrong with the village and you want to go out? Should something happen to you, I will be held responsible. You really love to burden me, don't you?"
The hand clutching on her dress turned to a fist. She said nothing and only glared at him. Couldn't he at least use nicer words?
She let it pass this time. After all, even if he didn't stay with her last night out of concern, he let the bad blood between them rest for a while and did well in helping her calm down. She owed him that even if for him it wasn't a big deal.
"Stay here," Reed said firmly before going out.
Melrose scoffed and just looked outside through the window. They were still at the entrance of the village and she could not see what was ahead of them.
But her eyes narrowed when she saw an old wooden slab at the side with the village's name in it covered with red liquid that looked like blood.
She heard the commotion from the other carriages. When she saw the doctors went out, she couldn't stop her curiosity anymore and ignored Reed's words. She left the carriage and looked at what was there to see ahead of them.
Her eyes widened.
An old man in a magistrate's uniform was hanged several feet from where she stood. He looked so pale and blood was dripping down his clothes as if he was tortured to death before he was hanged like an animal for decoration. It was the most gruesome sight she had ever seen.
A shuddering gasp escaped her lips and she was sure she turned pale.
Before she could divert her gaze somewhere to avoid a distressing faint, a broad chest blocked her sight.
"I told you to stay in the carriage, didn't I?" came Reed's icy voice. He stood inches before her and he was tall and massive enough to cover her view of the hanged man.
"I-I was just curious…"
The people with them had the same horrifying expression. East Brownsville was a village in the countryside and it took them almost two days to travel from the town. They didn't expect to witness such a horrible situation upon their arrival.
"It seemed like something sinister happened in the entire village, Lord Knight! We should leave this place and report to His Majesty!" said the older doctor and his fellows agreed, scared that something bad would befall them if they stayed longer.
But before Reed could answer, everyone fell silent when the older doctor who just spoke was hit by an arrow straight to his heart and his lifeless body fell to the ground in just a matter of seconds.
Melrose froze.
Behind them, men from the shadows appeared. They were in black cloaks and half of their faces were covered by black masks. They were equipped with sharp long blades and arrows. Melrose's heart leaped in dread. If her assumption was right, they must be bandits or rebels. They were accompanied by a few guards but the men in cloaks were more than two dozen. There was no way they could escape them.
Reed pulled Melrose behind him while holding her wrist. He could smell the human blood from the men who just arrived and he knew he could easily kill them but he shouldn't act rashly. Not when he had an audience.
"If I'm right, you are the group sent by the King for a medical mission, aren't you?" The one holding a spear stepped forward while the others stopped a foot behind him.
The five royal guards stood in a defensive stance in front of the doctors.
"You are rebels!" one of the doctors declared.
The man with a spear laughed. "You guessed it right. But let me tell you frankly, even if you have five royal guards, they can't protect all of you. So to spare your efforts, why don't you just bring me the future queen?"
Melrose's eyes widened. They wanted her!
Reed's jaw clenched, staring darkly at the man who made a reckless bargain.
"I heard she went with you." The man's eyes wandered around them, then it stopped to where he saw a well-dressed lady. Although Melrose was behind Reed, with her dress, she was still visible enough to be noticed.
"My lady, why don't you show us your face so we can see if the King's fiancée is a rare beauty like what they say?" The man laughed deviously and his fellows did the same.
"My apologies, gentlemen," Reed spoke so coldly that silenced their laughter. "But as you are nothing but lowly beings, I'm afraid a glimpse of the lady will cost more than what you are capable of giving."
Without knowing who he was dealing with, the leader of the rebels only laughed. And arrogantly, he asked, "Tell me, how much does a glimpse cost?"
"Not that much actually," Reed replied. "I'm not a merchant and I'm already rich so I don't need money, especially if it's from filth."
Melrose' heart pounded hard.
"You may pay it with your worthless lives."