[color=#b97703]“I hope I hear from you then,”[/color] Cas said optimistically, stretching his legs that had grown a little stiff from sitting around for almost three hours. [color=#b97703]“See you later, Iris. Hopefully next time, we’ll meet up someplace you like better than the hospital.”[/color]

Heading out of her room, he made his way back to the front desk to drop off his guest lanyard before leaving the building. Since it was already nine, he hoped his father would be feeling the effects of his medicine by the time he got home. If Dr. Emett was right about him being more agreeable when he took it, then it was the best chance he had to talk about everything without getting yelled at. He couldn’t waste any time either. Iris would be released from the hospital tomorrow, so he needed to find out tonight if the king would be willing to open his home to her or not.

Picking up his car from valet, he drove himself home while he came up with a game plan to approach the conversation with his father. He knew he was probably going to have to do some convincing to get the king to agree, so he wanted to have some idea of what he would say to both soften the blow of the news that he had offered to pay for a stranger’s medical bills and persuade the paranoid man to welcome said stranger into their house. It was a pretty tall order.

Circling around to the garage on the back side of the mansion, Cas parked his car and headed inside. He hadn’t received any phone calls from Atlas while he’d been out, which meant the king wasn’t anxious enough to be fretting about his safety. That was a good sign. He hoped it meant his father would be more willing to hear him out.

He headed up the stairs and then down the hallway that led to the wing where his father’s room was located. Already, he could feel his heart beginning to beat faster with nervousness, and he had to work up the resolve to knock on large, walnut door. A muffled “come in” sounded in response, so he took a steeling breath and stepped into the room.

As the most powerful man in the country, Atlas had to have the most jaw-dropping bedroom as well. It was absolutely massive in size, taking up an unnecessary portion of the third floor for just one person. The four-post bed in the back was king sized with the finest duvet money could buy. It was propped two steps up on a pedestal-like level near a reading nook by the windows.

Off to the left was the bathroom. It was similar to Cas’s but bigger in size, and every part of it dripped with wealth. The tiles were veined marble and the counters were white granite. The glass-wall shower stood in the center of the room, acting as a divider between the his and hers sides, and the Jacuzzi bath was set up on its own pedestal on the far side of the room. Both were spacious enough to fit at least four people.

On the right side of the room, the floor dipped down into a private theater. One wall was designed to display an enormous screen to a small audience of two reclining chairs, while the opposite side was set up with high-end surround sound speakers. It was a spot Cas had often snuck into when he was a kid to play videogames while his parents had been busy with work.

Overall, the bedroom was impressive in more ways than one, so it was a pity that most of it wasn’t used since his father had gotten sick.

“Caspian?” the king cleared his throat, sitting up on his bed when he realized it was his son who had entered. “What are you doing here?”

[color=#b97703]“Dr. Emett gave me a refill for your prescription,”[/color] Cas answered, walking over to set the new bottle down on his father’s nightstand. He figured it was safer to start with something that wouldn’t make Atlas mad instead of launching straight into his requests.

“Emett?” the king shifted on the mattress so his back was propped up against the headboard. “When did you see him?”

[color=#b97703]“I went back to the hospital today,”[/color] Cas shrugged.

“The hospital?” his father echoed, knitting his brows. “You weren’t visiting that girl again, were you? I’m concerned about how invested you’re becoming in her.”

[color=#b97703]“I just thought I should stop by to see how she was doing,”[/color] Cas folded his arms, leaning against the edge of the bed in an attempt to act casual as he added: [color=#b97703]“It’s only fair, since I’m the one paying her bill.”[/color]

A scowl worked its way onto the king’s face. “What do you mean, [i]you’re[/i] paying her bill?” he growled.

[color=#b97703]“Well,”[/color] Cas shrank a little. [color=#b97703]“When I found her in the woods, she looked so beat up that I told Dr. Emett to charge me for her treatment. I thought it would be nice for her to wake up and have one less problem to worry about, but then we found out she has amnesia, and there’s no one to send the bill for her other expenses to, so… I’m paying for all of it.”[/color]

Atlas pinched the bridge of his nose. “How much is the bill?”

[color=#b97703]“…Twenty-six.”[/color]

“[i]Twenty-six thousand[/i]?” his father’s eyebrows shot upward in astonishment. “What were you thinking? You don’t even know this girl!”

[color=#b97703]“I was just trying to help,”[/color] Cas said defensively. [color=#b97703]“Besides, I’m going to make the transfer through the bank, so it’ll be anonymous and no one can trace it back to me.”[/color]

“That isn’t the only issue here,” the king growled. “You can’t just go spending thousands of credits on [i]strangers[/i], Caspian. You’ll blow through your entire inheritance if you keep throwing your money away so carelessly.”

[color=#b97703]“I’m not going to make a habit of it,”[/color] Cas frowned. [color=#b97703]“Besides, I’m trying to keep the bill as small as possible. I told Dr. Emett that I won’t be covering anything else for her after tonight.”[/color]

“Good. You’ve done more than enough already.”

[color=#b97703]“So… will you give your signature to approve the transfer?”[/color] he asked tentatively.

“You already promised the funds to the hospital, so I don’t believe you’ve left me any choice,” his father grumbled irritably. “I’ll send it tomorrow.”

[color=#b97703]“Thanks,”[/color] Cas felt some of the tension lift from his shoulders now that he knew Iris’s debt would be paid off. Now, there was just one more topic left to address. [color=#b97703]“Um, there’s just one more thing…”[/color]

“What else did you do?” Atlas clenched his jaw.

[color=#b97703]“Well, because I’m not paying for Iris to stay in the hospital anymore, Dr. Emett said he’s going to have to release her,”[/color] he started slowly. [color=#b97703]“She still has amnesia, so she doesn’t know where her home is, and—”[/color]

“And you want to offer her a place to stay?” the king’s frown deepened as he guessed his son’s intentions before they were spoken.

[color=#b97703]“Yeah…”[/color] Cas confessed sheepishly.

“I cannot agree to that,” his father said sternly. “You don’t know who this girl is, Caspian. For God’s sake, you found her in the woods! She might not even be a high born.”

[color=#b97703]“She is,”[/color] Cas argued. [color=#b97703]“She said she remembers something about her father teaching her about high born manners. She wouldn’t have a memory like that unless she’s from the capital.”[/color]

“Even so,” the king shook his head. “You can’t just go around offering charity work to every person who needs help. You’re going to be the next ruler of Aspiria. If you show such weakness now, everyone will try to take advantage of you.”

[color=#b97703]“It’s just one person, and we don’t have to make a show of it,”[/color] Cas insisted. [color=#b97703]“No one has to know she’s staying with us except for the hospital workers, and they’ve got that doctor-patient confidentiality policy, so they shouldn’t spread the word anyway.”[/color] He averted his gaze. [color=#b97703]“If her family doesn’t look for her at the hospital by tomorrow morning, she’s going to end up on the streets, and she has no ID with her to prove she’s a resident of the city. That means she’s going to end up being thrown to the Scourge the instant a soldier notices she’s homeless.”[/color]

His father pursed his lips. “I’m sorry, Caspian, but I can’t allow this.”

[color=#b97703]“What if it was me?”[/color]

“You’re the prince of this country. Your life is much more valuable than one girl’s.”

[color=#b97703]“Okay, but what if I wasn’t?”[/color] Cas looked back at his father with a frown. [color=#b97703]“What if we weren’t the royal family, and I was the one who amnesiac and about to be kicked out of the capital? Would you still say my life wasn’t worth saving?”[/color]

The king hesitated. “That situation would never happen. It’s pointless to compare the two.”

[color=#b97703]“I’m just saying,”[/color] Cas sighed exasperatedly. [color=#b97703]“Try to put yourself in [i]their[/i] shoes. Iris’s family has no idea where she is, and she might never be able to go back to them if she’s exiled tomorrow. Is it really such a big deal to help out one person who has no one else she can rely on?”[/color]

Atlas remained silent for a moment before he responded quietly, “I’ll think about it.”

[color=#b97703]“Thanks,”[/color] Cas smiled gratefully. It still wasn’t a yes, but at least his father wasn’t as steadfast in his no anymore. He took a step away from the bed. [color=#b97703]“I’m not going out again tonight, so you can sleep. I’ll see you in the morning, dad.”[/color]

The king nodded, settling back down on his back. “Goodnight, Caspian.”