Played For A Fool

Gorgeous Jerk

The abandoned Luna hospital was the sort of building you would find in a ghost story: It was tall, with massive stone pillars, and looked as if it had been left for a century. The stone it was made of was probably once light, but had grayed. Massive statues of who-knows-what kind of ancient Greek monsters protected its walls. There was a good possibility that this place was the origin of the 'BEWARE' sign.

In other words; it was the very, very last place that Kai wanted to go.

Unless Cinder was in there. He would skip through those doors willingly, if Cinder was inside.

For some reason, that Kai still couldn't explain, he would do anything for Cinder to be happy. He would walk through Hell and back for her if that was the only way for her to be okay. And in some ways it seemed healreadyhad. He had only known her for less than a month, but he felt as if they had been best friends forever. There was a connection between them that he didn't understand.

Kai could not put into words all the emotions he was feeling. Relief was a big one, though so was fear. He was glad that Cinder wasn't dead (as far as they knew), though he was almost just as terrified at the thought of her stuck with her killer.

A killer that they couldn't even identify.

Iko reached over and put a hand on Kai's arm, giving him a grim look as he parked in front of the hospital. He exhaled deeply, and nodded to her, a gesture that he was ready for whatever came next; however horrible it may be.

"You ready?" Iko asked, a slight quiver to her voice.

"Ready as I'll ever be."

Kai had never been so unsure of his words. He felt the hairs standing up on the back of his neck, as though he were being watched. He was scared out of his mind to enter into that place, and felt a sudden urge to call his dad and let him know that he would be out late.

A punch to the gut would have felt better than the sinking pummel of grief that made the world blur. Almost anything would have felt better than the thought that Kai didn't need to call his father and let him know that he wouldn't be there. He would never have to call him again. He would never get to.

A rigid hatred for Levana Blackburn shot through Kai. She was the reason that he no longer had a father. She was the reason that his mother had died when he was only a child. She was the reason that Cinder had been kidnapped. She was the reason for all the bad in Kai's life.

Sorrow mixed in with Kai's conflicted emotions, and he gripped the steering wheel hard, even though he had already parked the car. His sorrow was for everything that had happened during his life. All the death and loneliness. All the heartbreak and funerals.

He would not go to another funeral. He would not have another heartbreak. He would not let another loved one leave him. He was not going to let Cinder die. He couldn't lose her.

"I suggest," Winter said, startling both Kai and Iko. "That we all take a moment and let our... guardians know where we are. I don't think it will do us any good to worry them."

Kai and Iko both turned around to glance at Winter, and she smiled sweetly back at them. Kai sighed, nodded and pulled out his phone. He may not have his dad, but he still had Torin.

The phone rang five times before Torin picked up. He was breathless, and Kai pulled the phone away from his ear in shock as the sound of Torin's pants filled his ears.

"Hey, Tor-"

"Kaito Prince, where are you? It's eleven at night and I have not seen you all day. You better get home right this instant!" Torin fired accusations like a gun, making Kai feeling like a small child who had just tracked dirt across his mother's freshly mopped kitchen floor.