If he could fucking sell his soul to the devil now in exchange for her safety, if he fucking killed this girl in the devil’s honor—-
The prince pushed the girl away.
Have faith.
The music around him throbbed. The hours crawled past. The women moaned for him.
And the prince remained at the center of it all.
Pretensions made the world go fucking round.
His phone rang at four in the morning, and the sound made the prince accidentally snap the stem of the wine glass in his hands as he recognized the ringtone.
It was Noah.
His hand started to bleed, but he was immune to the pain.
He answered the call, saying hoarsely, “Just tell me if you got her back safe or not.”
Noah’s own voice was hoarse. “She’s safe, sir.”
He closed his eyes.
Thank You, God.
Tears fell.
“Do you want to speak to her, sir?”
“No.” He swallowed. “It’s all I needed to know.”
He ended the call.
And wept.
She was safe.
****
The prince was at the helipad by the time Fawn was flown in by the medical rescue team that he had on standby. When he saw her carried out of the chopper, he caught a glimpse of her face—-
Ah God.
Why?
She didn’t deserve this.
The prince lagged behind everyone, feeling like he was about to break any second.
Why did this have to happen to her?
Why couldn’t it be him?
Why?
As Fawn was rushed inside the emergency room, the prince heard someone scream, “Stay away from her!”
He spun just in time to see an older woman rushing towards him. He recognized her from photos, knew it was Fawn’s mother, and he stayed still, waiting for her to reach him.
She began slapping him, and he let her.
Someone pulled her back, and he saw Grant Bennett holding on to Fawn’s mother while Bennett’s parents approached him from the other side.
“We thank you for your rescue, but I hope you also understand that your presence is making Mrs. Cornwall distraught.” The senior Bennett was every inch the politician in the way he spoke, but the prince could see that the concern in the older man’s eyes was genuine enough, and it was this that made him nod.
Outside the hospital, a crowd of impatiently waiting reporters surged towards him, shouting questions that made the prince’s jaw harden.
Who’s Fawn Cornwall to you?
What role does she play in the trial?
Did Tic Tac Toe get to her?
The prince managed to make it inside his limousine before his control snapped.
Fuck them.
Fuck all of them.
They didn’t know, they didn’t fucking know the world had almost lost an angel because of him.
****
Fawn wove in and out of consciousness as she was wheeled out of the emergency room. Her vision blurred and danced, and she caught glimpses of familiar faces.
Her mother—-
Grant—-
Grant’s parents—-
And yet no matter how hard she prayed and wished, she could never quite make herself see the prince.
But surely he had to be here, right?
During the times she was conscious, she would ask whoever was with her about the prince, but no one was willing or able to give her a straight answer. The nurses would only give her uncomfortable smiles while Grant’s parents and her mother didn’t even acknowledge her questions and would change the topic all the time.
And Grant—-
He would mumble incoherently and never meet her eyes when talking to her.
On her third night in the hospital, she could no longer bear it, and when she had a moment alone with Grant, Fawn captured his hand, begging, “Is it because I look like this?”
Grant was confused. “Is it because of what?”
Fawn smiled painfully. “You were there before my face was wrapped in bandages, Grant. You know what I’m talking about and—-” Her voice choked off, fear of the unknown clogging her throat. Looking away from Grant, she whispered, “Tell me the truth. Is it because h-he knows I look like this that he doesn’t want to come?”
Ah. Grant swallowed. “It’s n-not that.” At his words, she slowly turned to look at him, and he forced himself to meet her gaze. Her brown eyes were the only things he could see of her face. Everything else was hidden under a swath of bandages, but even so what he saw in those big brown eyes—-
In spite of how fate had tried to beat and carve it out of her—-
In spite of how the love of her life turned his back on her—-
In spite of her going through more horror than someone like her would never deserve—-
Hope still struggled to live in those eyes, enabling her to stay whole—-