Chapter Seven

"Excuse me," I waved at the redheaded nurse. He was collecting a few medical supplies off the counter but stopped and glanced at me. "Are you sure he's going to be okay? He's been out for a while now, a little over 4 hours."

"Several injections of Propofol will do that to you." The nurse shrugged. He walked over to the bed where the strange man was strapped to and sneered in disgust. "He'll be fine. He'll probably wake up soon. When he does, keep an eye out, or let us know." The nurse finished and sauntered out of the room.

I sighed heavily and leaned against the rail of the bed. "This is the worst day of my life," I whined. "You just HAD to be in front of my car on a work day." I spat and narrowed my eyes at the unconscious man. By eyeing this man with a sour intent, I realized how flawlessly perfect this man's appearance was.

His body was sculpted well. He was very fit. And his hair was long and I could smell a fresh flowery scent. His strands were beautiful and full and well taken care of. His face was made in such a beautiful way, with a sharp jaw and while awake, he had eyes that would pierce through any soul.

He had such nice skin. No acne or blemishes. The only marking or scar I saw was on his left chest. I blinked at him and quickly revoked my hand from his body. I hadn't realized that while observing his physical attributes my hands subconsciously reached out to touch him.

It was just in time for me to pull away. I heard the man groan. He opened his eyes slowly and narrowed them before blinking a few times.

"Rise and shine, Rapunzel." I crossed my arms and smirked at him. The man took a deep breath and sighed in response, before attempting to move his hand. The rail jerked back slightly which made him realize that his hands were bound by a heavy strap.

He growled and began tugging his arms and legs violently, but he was unable to set himself free.

"You can't escape." I rolled my eyes.

"Release me!" He snarled and I flinched.

"No."

"Phoenix, you don't have a clue who you are toying with. Free me from these reigns or else—"

"First of all," I interrupted him and placed my finger to his lips. "Don't call me that. Second, I'm not going to undo this." I gestured at the straps that held his wrists to the bed rail. "I'm afraid that you'll go berserk and attack everyone again."

"Berserk?" He scoffed.

"Yeah, crazy." I motioned with my fingers and twirled them by my head.

"You must listen to me. You and your people are in danger. I have to hide the Lapis far away from here or—"

"I don't wanna hear any nonsense until you answer my questions, weirdo." I spat viciously. "I wasted a whole night waiting for you to wake up. I wasted precious time I could've used for work to haul your heavy butt here! So, you'd better choose your next words wisely. Who are you? And why were you standing in the street in the rain in the middle of the day? What's up with the funky get-up? Are you part of some show or something?"

"Those are a lot of questions." He frowned.

"I want a lot of answers, so fess up before I call the nurses back in here and tell them to put you back to sleep."

"You, don't remember who I am?"

"Obviously, not. Otherwise, I wouldn't have asked you those questions."

"Phoenix, it is I. Kai, the young Royal of Elvanor." He replied softly. I just stared at him blankly. "Do you still have no memory?"

"No! I don't have any recollection of you! You're expecting me to respond to a completely stupid answer."

"It's the truth!" He hissed at me. "Release me, now!"

"You still haven't answered the rest of my questions."

"Why are you unable to comprehend my warning?" He groaned. "If I don't find the Lapis—"

"Are you talking about THIS?" I pulled out the purple stone from my pocket and tilted it in the light high above his eyes. "This small and pretty little rock?"

"Give it to me." His eyes widened once he examined it. I twirled it in my fingers to tease him. "Don't play with it! Bring it here!"

I placed my free hand on his chest and shoved him against the bed. Then I leaned over and narrowed my eyes at him. "I'll give it to you. But first, I need your help getting me out of a situation."

"Why am I to help you?"

"For the trouble you've caused me." I brought the gem closer. "Because of you, and this stupid jewel here, I lost valuable time that could've been used for my job. Heck, I don't even know if I'll even have a job when I go back. So if you want your pretty rock back, I want you to tell the Doctor that this whole situation was an accident. Tell him that you'd like not to press charges and that you're completely fine. Frankly, you're not injured whatsoever, so you can play it off as if I grazed you with my car."

"I don't understand the words you use."

"You don't have to, just repeat exactly what I said and I'll give you this back and release you."

"Alright." He huffed impatiently.

"Don't go back on your word." I flicked him on the forehead.

"I won't." He winced. I began ripping the Velcro straps off his wrists and feet and Kai sat up slowly. He massaged his wrists and threw his feet over the edge of the bed. I went over to the door and poked my head out the doorway.

"Excuse me!" I whispered and yelled to the nearest staff member I saw. "Can you call the Doctor in here, please? The patient is awake and has something to say!" When the nurse nodded I turned on my heel and screeched when I saw that Kai was standing directly behind me.

He was so quick and silent on his feet. How come I never noticed that he got out of bed?

"Don't scare me like that!" I slapped his shoulder.

"Scare you?" He pressed his lips together and furrowed his eyebrows.

"Yes! Move back! You can't just sneak up behind someone like that!" I nudged him away from me. "Give me some personal space."

"You should watch your tongue, Phoenix." He grabbed onto my wrist. "A woman like you should know not to use foul language around a Royal."

"A woman like me?" I snorted and snatched my hand away. "How dare you speak to me like I'm some sort of slave? Do you think you could just say as you please to the person who untied you?"

"Yes." He answered proudly. "You are my servant. Your purpose is to serve me well."

"I should've left you to rot on that bed!"

"Excuse me." I heard a voice behind me clear their throat. I whipped my head around and stood straight. "You had something to tell me?" It was the blonde Doctor from before. He saw Kai and his shoulders stiffened. "Ah, you should lay back down and get some rest, sir. We haven't identified if you have any other injuries."

"He's fine!" I coughed and nudged Kai with my elbow. "Tell him you're fine."

"I am well. My body is not of this place, so your people can not harm me. The abilities I have been given help sustain me. The Phoenix has only 'grazed' me with her advanced Parrottle."

"What?"

I slapped my hand against my head and groaned. He was speaking in nonsense again.

"He is saying that he is completely unharmed, as you can tell." I motioned with my hands at Kai's body. "He's also not pressing any charges against me, so no report needs to be made. Am I allowed to leave?"

The Doctor eyed me suspiciously. "Sure."

I mentally shouted for joy. "Thank you." I huffed and the Doctor nodded before leaving the two of us in the room. I was about to walk after him, but I felt a strong arm grasp me by my wrist.

"Not so fast, Phoenix. I expect you to uphold your part of our deal." Kai glared and extended his hand. "Give me the Lapis."

"I forgot." I chuckled nervously and placed the rock in his palm.

"I have one request for you."

"Excuse me? I'm not taking any more requests from a stranger like you."

"Stranger?" He snorted. "You are my servant. What I ask if you isn't a request, it's a command. You are to escort me out of this prison and take me far away to the forest."

"I'm not your servant!" I groaned.

"Then I suppose I'll just tell the workers here the truth and I'll put on a grand show to display my wounds." He lowered his tone and stepped forward. I stopped him.

"Okay, wait!" I frowned. "Fine! I'll help you leave here." And I did. I not only had to help with his discharge files, but I had to pay his hospital fees for all the testing they ran on him. I was livid, but as long as I could get away from him sooner, I was willing to do everything within my power to make that happen.

When we left the building, I noticed that the storm never subsided. The rain was so heavy that I could barely see my car. I jogged straight into the rain and towards my vehicle, and Kai followed closely behind.

"This is where we should part ways." I quickly hopped in my car and locked the doors before Kai could reach for the handle.

"What?" He snarled.

I started my car and gave him an apologetic look. "I hope you fare well on the rest of your journey, or whatever." I waved him off and quickly drove out of my parking spot.

"Phoenix!" He reached for the back door handle but I swerved around and sped off. In my rearview mirror, I saw him chasing after me. I shook my head and smirked.

"Sucker." I chuckled softly and made a sharp right turn to leave the lot.