Aurora's POV
The next morning came very quickly. The air in the palace yard felt heavy and dark. From the window of Oliver's bedroom, I watched the strong warriors stand in straight, quiet lines. In the middle of the stone yard was a big block of wood.
Oliver stood next to me. He wore his dark coat. His face looked hard like stone, but when he looked down at me, his blue eyes grew soft. He reached out and held my hand tightly.
"You don't have to go out there, Aurora," he said softly. "You can stay inside."
I looked down at the yard, then back at him. "I need to see it end, Oliver. My nightmares started with him. It needs to finish with him."
When we walked out into the yard, everyone went quiet. The warriors bowed their heads as we took our place at the front. A minute later, the heavy iron doors opened with a loud noise. Two guards dragged Alex out.
