Chapter 28

Ariana's POV

As the head guard spoke those words and left the dining hall as fast as he had come in, the voices that had quieted before when he stepped into the dining room resumed and people started speaking with urgency in their tones. Everyone was trying to talk at the same time because of the urgency of the situation.

They contemplated the situation at hand and wondered who the person that had been unfortunate enough to get sentenced to a public whipping after more than a year's respite was. What had the person done? they wondered. Who was the unfortunate person even? they asked themselves but they didn't get an answer because there was no person in the dining hall presently who was privy to such information, or so they thought.

I on my own part was still seating with my friends on our regular table when I had the news from the head guard. I tried to control my reaction, gasping in shock just like the rest of my friends. As I looked at their bewildered faces, my face mirrored the