Page 49 of His Beloved Princess
"I don't," I replied, and she released a deep breath. "Yet."
She bit her lower lip, leaning into her seat and fastening the seatbelt. I thanked the heavens that she didn't have Rose's nature; otherwise, I would have been running through the woods after her to protect her from the beasts.
I started driving again, and for another thirty or forty minutes, we were silent. I couldn't even turn on the radio because there was no signal. At some point, I envied the people who lived there. No one disturbed them. They had simple lives without stupid problems, power struggles, or social status. However, I had to admit I wouldn't be able to live like that for long. I would die of boredom if I wasn't using my skills and potential.
I mused about all those things just to get my mind off the matter at hand. Mostly because I couldn't come up with a solution to our situation. I could force Electra to listen, but I wanted her to talk to me willingly. I couldn’t understand her reaction. With everything between us, it was a shame that her first instinct was to run away from me.
I was so lost in my thoughts, thinking about every possible outcome of this unpleasant thing, that I didn't realize that I was speeding through the forest at almost 100 miles per hour. The road was perfect, yet I didn't consider animals in the equation when pressing the gas pedal.
Out of nowhere, a deer appeared before us, and I immediately hit the brakes, but we were going too fast. Electra's screaming didn't help the situation either.
I successfully avoided crashing into the huge animal, but I couldn't get the car under control. Glimpsing at the speed, I saw I managed to lower it to 40 mph, but that was all I could do. We slid for a while until we ended up colliding on my side into the trees and bushes. In one moment, there was a horrible noise, and my girl's terrifying screeching; in the next, there was absolute quiet.
Next thing I knew, my head was pressed against the steering wheel, and I had an airbag on my lap. I tried to look around, but I didn't see anything. My vision was blurry. I needed a few seconds to recover.
"Bastian!"
Electra's shouting was like a screwdriver in my brain. And when she started to shake me, all I could do was groan. My mouth was full of blood, and my jaw hurt like hell. I only hoped it wasn't broken.
"Bastian, baby, please look at me," she pleaded, cupping my cheeks with her palms, and I opened one of my eyes again. I saw only the shape of her face and her long blonde hair, nothing else.
"Please, please, please don't die," she cried out, tilting my head back and leaning it against the seat. I wasn't strong enough to hold it straight. I must’ve hit it pretty badly.
"My phone is smashed," she sobbed, trying to find mine in the inner pocket of my jacket. She located it in a few moments, but when she burst into tears again, I knew it was also unusable.
I took a deep breath, forcing my body to cooperate. I probably had a concussion, and maybe some bones were broken, too, but I had to take care of my girl. And the first thing I had to do was reassure her that I wasn't dying.
"Princess," I whispered hoarsely. My voice sounded weird. "I'm okay," I continued, opening my eyes and focusing on her. I didn't see her clearly but tried not to show her I was slightly out of it.
"You're not okay," she objected, wiping her wet cheeks. "Where is the first aid kit?"
"In the back," I answered, grimacing because the movement that I made with my arm caused a piercing pain to travel through my whole body. I looked down, and I almost threw up. A piece of glass was stuck in my forearm. It wasn't deep, but it hurt.
I glanced at Electra, who had just returned with a small white box. She sat beside me, taking out the bandage, scissors, and disinfectant.
"It's only a scratch." She pointed to the glass, putting on the gloves. "I did it once or twice when my father had an accident in the garage. I know what I'm doing."
"Okay." I slightly nodded, suppressing a scream, when she, without further notice, took the piece out. Blood oozed from the wound, and I had to close my eyes because I was about to seriously be sick. I never had a problem with injuries or blood, but this time, it was terrible.
Thankfully, Electra knew what she was doing. She patched me up in no time, giving me a pill for pain when she was finished with my wounds. I was glad I took the whole impact, and she was okay.
“There is a bag with blankets, some chocolate bars, and water in the trunk,” she said, wiping my face with a napkin. I was thinking about getting out, but the seat was stuck, and because of the tree, I couldn’t open the door. I needed to climb into the passenger seat, but I wasn’t sure I could do that. Yet I didn’t have a choice; I had to try.
“Daniel uses this car,” I replied, unfastening the seatbelt. “He is the former navy seal, prepared for every situation.”
“I will thank him when we get back.” She did her best to smile at me, but it was more of a grimace. She couldn’t hide the obvious worries she had about me. It warmed my heart that she cared, but it wasn’t my plan to end up in the forest with a damaged car and body.
“What are you doing?” she asked when I finally broke my legs free and was checking them for additional injuries. Yet nothing hurt, and they were functioning.
“I need to get out, princess.” I looked at her concerned face, but she didn’t object and opened the door, waiting for me to climb out. It took me a long few minutes to get my massive frame out, but eventually, I was free. My head was dizzy, and I had to lean against the tree because I feared I’d lose my balance, but I was relatively okay.
“What are we going to do?” Electra interrupted my happy moment about being in one piece, and I raised my head, stretching my arm towards her. Shereluctantly came closer, taking my hand and squeezing it. She was trembling, and when I finally looked into her face, I saw how petrified she was.
“Come here, sweetheart,” I invited her into my embrace, and to my surprise, she didn’t hesitate. I expected her to yell at me again when I suggested it, but I was glad she didn’t. I needed to feel her, too.
“You scared the shit out of me,” she whispered into my chest, quietly sobbing.
“I’m sorry.” I kissed the top of her head, holding her tightly while thinking about what to do.
