Red Princess

66. The Lie He Believes

Seydon

I didn't remember much after I passed out on the train. The next I woke up was in a private room of a hospital, a searing pain gushing through every muscle in my body. I cursed under my breath, hissing in pain again when the air left my lungs. I hadn't expected to live another day, so it was a relief when I felt the discomfort.

Screw that man!

Fuck!

I fluttered my eyes open and noticed the sun's brightness seeping through the floor-to-ceiling window covered with slightly parted white drapes. The room was painted white. There were white flowers on a vase at a distance. White vapours rose from the humidifier near the window; all that white brightness was too heavy for my sleep-lidded eyes. A drip needle was inserted into my wrist, and other wires stuck out of my body and connected to machines. The constant beeping sound on the monitor was the only music in the room. I slowly sat up on the bed, despite my muscles protesting against the movement, and pulled the needle away from my hand.

"What the hell are you doing?"

The voice came from the opposite side, and I tilted my neck towards the couch near the entrance to the room. There he sat, Red Phoenix, looking as dishevelled as I was. A few gauze pieces stuck around his face and hands but nothing serious. He looked tired and ready to hit the bed, but instead, he sat there with his legs crossed and a folded newspaper lying on his lap.

My father revealed that he was the man responsible for my mother's death. I didn't know to what extent I could trust either of them.

I dragged a hand down my face as I recollected. "How long was I out?"

"Not long. Two days."

Dammit!

"Ariel and Rihanna, are they-?"

"They are fine."

That brought out a sigh of relief from within me.

"What happened?"

"The usual. Gilaan wanted to make a small dent in The Order's supplies. I told your people we were tailing him, and the encounter didn't go well. So don't you dare mention that you tried to join him or-"

The door slid open, and Ariel's frail figure appeared through the entrance. She was dressed in a simple white shirt, a pink cardigan and dark coloured jeans. The deep crimson of her hair was a stark contrast to her fair skin, urging me to run my fingers through them. Her eyebrows furrowed together, and her ocean-hued eyes sparkled with the moisture they collected. I wanted to hold her, comfort her, kiss her, and tell her everything would be fine, but I knew it wasn't.

I almost ignored the people who tagged along with her. As Ariel approached me, I saw the figures of Kaidon, Rihanna, and Alex follow suit. She trudged toward me and took a seat on the edge of the bed. Her palm gently reached out and held on to mine, giving it a firm squeeze of reassurance.

"Are you alright?" she asked in that concerned tone of hers, and my heart broke into a million pieces for making her worry about a shithead like me. I felt guilty being the receiver of her kind gaze. I didn't deserve her.

My lips curved up into a small smile as I nodded, "I am fine, and-"

Before I could complete, the palm that was comforting me a moment ago met to my face with lightning speed and a loud noise reverberated throughout the room, and it took me a minute to register the pain. Alex immediately broke out into a chuckle behind, and even Kaidon struggled to hold back his smirk.

"What the hell were you thinking, Seydon Cross!?" She yelled, and before her palm could meet my face for another searing smack, Kaidon reached out and grabbed her arms and locked them behind her.