Cas sighed when Iris became downcast about the fact that they had to stay inside the mansion. He knew she was getting tired of waiting, but it wasn’t like he could have done anything to prevent the terrorists from coming after his father yesterday. It was bad timing, and they were just going to have to deal with it even if it was frustrating. Once the soldiers caught the missing rebels—and he was sure that they would—he planned to make it up to her by taking her straight to the forest, so she could look for her ID. He would have done more if he could, but as it was, they didn’t have a whole lot of options as long as they were stuck inside the borders of the royal family’s property.

When she spoke again, he shook his head. [color=#b97703]“You don’t owe me anything though,”[/color] he assured her. [color=#b97703]“I helped you because I wanted to, and I won’t let you pay me back for it.”[/color] Pausing to finish off the last of his drink, he set the empty glass down on the table with his eyes fixed on the thin, golden-colored glaze at the bottom. Although he was still confident in the military’s ability to bring in the terrorists on the loose, he did wonder how much longer it was going to take. The optimistic part of him was hopeful that they would be back in a cell by the end of tomorrow, but there was always a chance that the Scourge members were craftier than the soldiers had anticipated. After all, the rebels had been evading them in the city for a few days now, and they had even successfully infiltrated the mansion under the security guards’ noses. He had no idea how they were doing it, and he had to admit that capturing them was proving to be more difficult than anyone had thought it would be.

Back on the subject of Iris’s ultimatum, an amused look took over Cas’s features. He couldn’t help but wonder where her sudden motivation to get out of the mansion was coming from. Before today, she had been upset about her situation and had seemed discouraged that no one had come to claim her yet, but she hadn’t even hinted that she was in a rush to get home. He drummed his fingers thoughtfully against the table. She was definitely desperate if she was willing to risk running into the missing terrorists, but he wasn’t convinced it was the best idea.

[color=#b97703]“I don’t buy it,”[/color] he said with a smirk, propping his cheek in his hand. Not wanting to disappoint her again by saying no, he decided the next best option was to call her bluff. [color=#b97703]“If you withhold contact from me, you’d have to suffer too, and I don’t think you’re willing to do that.”[/color] He really was doubtful, but even if she was serious about the challenge, he wasn’t very concerned about it. He could wait a few days without physical contact if it meant they would be safe. However, he hoped she was joking because then they would both just be in a more miserable position while they waited for the lockdown to lift.

[color=#b97703]“Nice try, Iris,”[/color] he casted her a sly wink. [color=#b97703]“But I’m not changing my mind about this. I know it’s hard, but it’s for both of our safety, so it would be smarter for us to follow the rules until those terrorists are off the streets.”[/color]