THE Knight's Hidden Princess
Chapter 56: A Chance At Survival

Chapter 56: A Chance At Survival

Cold!

That was the only initial thing that entered my mind, the unforgiving cold sensation I felt as I heaved myself out of the river. I scrambled forward through the muddy river bank while my fingers sank into the slippery wet rocks which led to intense muscle trembling throughout my body.

I gasped, pulling deep breaths from my struggling lungs as I filled my chest with air. The droplets from my hair rinsed my face as I stood still drawing in deep breaths as the pain in my body started to become unbearable as it reaches my limbs.

I struggled to fight against the river which attempted to swallow me then pull me deep into its raging waters but I stayed alive. Survived, well barely!

Groaning, I crawled on my belly, the mud clung to my skin as I pulled myself up from the ground. My whole body hurts, it hurts really bad and I could feel something wet and more slimy than water trickling from my head and it didn’t take much to know it was blood.

Gasping, I continued to walk but it felt like each movement hurt. It was already night time already, so there was no way of telling where I was. Clutching my side in pain, I tried to walk but I could feel a wave of dizziness hit me. I stumbled a little in my footsteps as I felt another wave of dizziness of hit me.

Breathing heavily, I tried to take another step but all of a sudden, my body felt like it was too heavy for me to move and before I knew what was going on, my legs gave way crumpling to the ground.

I tried to lift myself back up but my torso felt like it didn’t want to listen to my demands anymore. Suddenly, a raw burning sensation started rising into my throat as I felt a tightness that turned into a painful burning sensation. My breaths turned shallow, uneven. Something was tightening around me causing an increasing pressure to crush me internally.

Panic clawed at my chest.

I wasn’t safe. I needed to move. But I couldn’t.

Total darkness started engulfing my vision while true fear settled upon me for the very first time after my jumping.

Was this how it ended?

***

I heard muffled voices through my haze of sleep, hushed whispers as I was suddenly dragged back into consciousness. My body felt heavy as if it was weighed down by exhaustion. My eyes fluttered open and for a minute, my vision was blurry, I couldn’t see anything other than bright colorful ceilings that felt strangely familiar.

"Hey, I think she’s awake." I heard a voice said followed by shuffling of feet.

Suddenly a figure paired down at me, it took a few minutes of me blinking for the face to come into focus. "Bjorn?" I whispered my face hoarse.

"Hey there, my little warrior." Bjorn whispered brushing my hair before he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on my forehead.

I closed my eyes, heaving out a sigh before I opened them back. My eyes adjusted to the world around me as it returned from the fog but became familiar in its previous shape. This was my room, I was back in my father’s castle.

Groaning, I tried to sit up but the pain in my body suddenly intensified at that moment. Before I could struggle, Bjorn was immediately at my side, wrapping his arms around me carefully as he eased me upright. He held me with one arm while the other set up pillows for me so I could rest my back when he was done.

Sitting now, I could make out the people who were in the room. The dim light illuminated the space while a heavy mix of herbs and linen perfumed the air. A group of healers maintained expressions that revealed nothing while standing close by. From her place beside them stood Amelia while watching me with relief combined with quiet concern.

"How_" I tried to speak but suddenly went into a coughing fit.

"Water!" Amelia suddenly ordered, her voice sharp.

A servant immediately stepped forward and tried to feed me the water from a cup but I collected it from her. I didn’t miss the bandages that was wrapped around my hand but that didn’t stop me. I wasn’t about to be treated like I was helpless.

As if he could read my thoughts, Bjorn smirked at me while he threw a single nod at the servant dismissing her. I empties the content of the cup, the cold water a welcome relief to my sore throat.

Clearing my throat, I decided to speak again. "How did I get here?"

Last thing I remember was me jumping into a cold water. The extreme cold water that caused pain and overwhelming dizziness until my unconsciousness sank below the surface. The memory of that incident continues to cause my whole body pain. My attention moved towards my stomach as series of panicked question raced through my mind.

Did it survive? Did it survive the fall?

"You are really lucky to be alive, same goes for the child in you." Bjorn said and my gaze immediately raised my head up to look at him, "He must be a warrior just like his mother."

I looked away not willing to acknowledge it yet but it was now confirmed. I was pregnant! I was pregnant for Reagan and the healers must have confirmed it after they treated me. Drawing in a shaky breath, I squeezed the blankets until my fingers felt numb while I tried to accept what I was experiencing. The news felt like a heavy stone which entered my body and refused to move. The situation needed my acceptance because there was no way to escape it at this point.

I had survived.

And so had he.

Swallowing hard, I steadied myself not allowing myself to dwell too much on the news or how it made me feel. There were still questions that needed to be asked.

"So, how did I get here?" I asked Bjorn.

Bjorn frowned at me but didn’t say anything. Instead he heaved a sigh on his face. "It was actually a duke, he claimed he was a friend of yours."

"A duke?" I asked just as the door slowly opened.