“Are you serious?”

It was almost six o’ clock, and Jay had finally stopped by to bring Cas’s car back. The prince knew he’d probably been joyriding around the city all day, but the vehicle was still unscathed as far as he could tell, and his friend had even been thoughtful enough to fill up the tank for him before he returned it. He couldn’t complain. Instead, he found himself filling the other high born in about the wild night he’d had as he drove him back to his home. It was still at the forefront of his mind, so he couldn’t [i]not[/i] talk about it. He needed to get the story off his chest, and Jay was an eager audience.

“Wow,” his friend leaned his head back against the rest on his seat, one arm dangling loosely out the open passenger-side window. “That’s insane. Who knew one extra shot at a party could lead to all that?”

[color=#b97703]“I know,”[/color] Cas sighed. [color=#b97703]“I’m still wrapping my brain around it too. If I hadn’t called the hospital today, I might have thought it was just a vivid dream.”[/color]

“God, your life is always so much more interesting than mine,” Jay shook his head. “I’m jealous.” He turned to the prince with a glint of interest in his eye. “So… I’ve gotta know. Is she hot? The girl you found in the woods.”

[color=#b97703]“Come on, man,”[/color] Cas wrinkled his nose. [color=#b97703]“She was unconscious.”[/color]

“Fine, sorry,” Jay held up his hands. “Okay, how about this: What did her leg look like? I bet it was pretty gruesome, right?”

[color=#b97703]“Just shut up, Jay,”[/color] the prince rolled his eyes.

“You’re no fun,” the high born crossed his arms indignantly. “You get to have the coolest experience out of the three of us. The least you could do is share it a little.”

[color=#b97703]“I already told you everything that happened,”[/color] Cas snorted. [color=#b97703]“What else do you want?”[/color]

“[i]Details[/i],” Jay clapped his hands together with each syllable of the word.

Fortunately for Cas, it only took a few more minutes before they arrived at the Arowood mansion, so he narrowing managed to escape his friend’s pestering. Of course, he had answers for both of Jay’s questions, but he didn’t want to confess that yes, he did think Iris was attractive when he’d found her nearly dead in the grass; and he didn’t want to think about the gory punctures in her leg at all. That information, he would keep to himself.

Once he dropped off a very disappointed Jay, he turned his car around to make his next stop: the hospital. Part of him was still hoping that he’d get there to find out that the girl had just been picked up by a family member, but he doubted that would happen. It had only been an hour ago when Dr. Emett had said she was still there. Most likely, nothing had changed.

Circling around to the valet drop-off, he passed his car keys to the worker on shift and headed into the hospital lobby. As soon as he stepped inside, the receptionist greeted him with a respectful dip of her head and a warm smile. “What can I do for you, Caspian?” she asked politely.

[color=#b97703]“I’m here to see Iris,”[/color] he said, leaning his forearms on the counter. [color=#b97703]“Can I get a visitor pass?”[/color]

“Of course,” the receptionist jotted his name down in her visitor record and then opened a drawer to retrieve a green lanyard, which she offered to him with another bright smile. “Here you are. Just remember that visiting hours are over at nine.”

[color=#b97703]“Thanks,”[/color] he nodded, slipping the string around his neck, so the pass dangled visibly against his chest.

Stepping away from the counter, he turned and headed down the hallway that led to her room, both curious and apprehensive to find out if her condition was any better today.