Whatever had happened after Kiara left, she had no idea how it got her tied to a tree, blind-folded. She had just woken up like that, too; it had happened when she slept, obviously. And she knew who had done it. The one that Pandora had sent after her, and while she slept they had found her. Now, she was just curious as to who exactly was trying to take her back to Pandora, and what she was willing to give to make sure this comes through according to plan.
It was almost midday, and Kiara had been tied to that tree for around three hours. She hadn't had anything to eat since the previous day, after she woke up in Rye's home, and now her throat was aching. She would rather eat mortal food than be tied up to that tree for any longer, and mortal food was like poison to Vampires that weren't Royals. That was how much pain she was going through right then, and all she could hear were hushed tones; no recognisable voices and definitely more than one person.
"Hello?" she called lazily, her head aching. "Please tell me that you are going to kill me soon; I do not think I can hold out much longer like this. Have you no heart at all?"
She was sitting down with her knees up and her hands in her lap, although her biceps and her chest was surrounded by thick rope. She had stopped trying to get out, and now she was simply sitting there and not doing anything at all.
"We do not want to kill you," the light voice of a male replied. "Someone wants you alive and we intend on following through with those orders."
"Do you know why Pandora wants me?" Kiara snapped. "She wants me to kill people. You are going to let her, are you? And what did she offer in return? A cat?"
That earned her a hard slap across the cheek, and she cursed, setting her jaw tightly.
"Do not speak," the voice hissed. "You are going to mess everything up."
"Your chance at a 'better life'? Kiara spat. "She does that to everyone, and you should know when you are getting played. Right now, for instance. She does not just want me to kill the King and if you turn me in, you will learn the hard way that her intentions are not that light."
"Killing my father will not result in anything but war," the voice snapped again, and Kiara froze. "Whatever she is planning cannot be worse than that, although I was the one that agreed to it in the first place. Do you not think that I would not be here if I had a choice?"
Kiara was silent as she registered the words that she had been told, and she felt the presence of her captor retreating back.
"She knows enough," a second gruff voice that Kiara found dashingly familiar murmured. "Take the blindfold off at least."
Kiara narrowed her eyes as the black fabric was pulled down from her face to rest around her neck, making the loose strands of her hair look static.
As her eyes adjusted, Kiara looked up and saw one grumpy face, with lightly tanned skin, high cheekbones and golden eyes looking down at her, his arms crossed over his-
-Wait, golden eyes? That can't be right...
"You- you are the Prince, yes?" she asked, and the young man rolled his eyes.
"Yes, yes, yes," he grumbled. "What makes what I want different to everyone else?"
"I did not say anything about what you 'want'," Kiara scowled. "In case you had not noticed, I am in no place to be arguing with my captors."
The Prince narrowed his gorgeous eyes and leaned back slightly, parting his legs to keep balanced.
"You are much angrier than I thought you would be," he decided, and Kiara's eyes widened.
"Are you kidding?" she exploded. "You have tied me to a tree and want to take me to Pandora and you did not expect me to be angry? You really are mad."
"I have no choice," the Prince hissed again. He looked as though he was hurt, the way he was clutching his chest, but Kiara couldn't care less. He was holding her against her will, so she had the right to be mad at him.
Kiara narrowed her eyes and parted her lips to speak once more, but a sudden pounding filled her head, ripping a cry from the back of her throat. She screwed her eyes closed to concentrate on feeling everything but the pain, but it was excruciating. Then, a voice.
I see you have met the Prince.
Kiara chuckled dryly as her eyes stayed closed, her chest heaving greatly from the pain that was still threatening to make her lose consciousness.
"Pandora," she mused, and her head glitched sideways, continuing to twitch greatly. "Been a while."
I want to offer an exchange.
Kiara chuckled louder, feeling the pressure on her arms and chest being relieved as the ropes fell to the floor. Her head arched upwards and she let out a loud gasp, screwing her eyes closed harder as she clenched her jaw.
"What do you want," she ground out, twitching her neck to move her head sideways again and again and again.
I have someone you will want to meet.
Kiara said nothing; the pain was blocking her mind from the energy that she had left, so she kept quiet, listening to Pandora's offer even though she knew it was nuts.
You should cooperate.
"Never," Kiara growled, and something snapped in her mind, making her scream before she cut it off with a ragged gasp, her arms and hands shaking in someone else's.
She misses you, Kiara. She wants to see you. She wants you to save her.
And then, out of the blue, another voice began shouting through, and Kiara could hear it as clear as day and recognised it immediately as Kallee Dred. Her senses sharpened as she heard the voice, and the words were quite simple.
Kiara, do not come! She shouted urgently. It is a-
And then, there was a snap. A loud, terrifying snap, and Kiara knew exactly what it was.
Her eyes snapped open with a loud gasp, and she was drenched in sweat. She looked around twitchingly as the pain subsided in her mind, and eventually, it disappeared completely, leaving an empty feeling in Kiara as she realised what had happened.
"What is it?" the Prince asked, crouching down in front of Kiara with worry and concern in his expression. Kiara frowned and looked around, feeling a sense of tension around her. She craned her neck around to see what the cause of it was, and found herself leaning back against the tree. Someone was there not moments before, she could have sworn it.
She moved her head to look around the Prince, and instead, found someone rather familiar standing a little behind him, his broad back facing her. She narrowed her eyes and sat up, rubbing her head before she rose to her feet, now curious. Then it clicked.
Rye.
Her eyes widened and she stepped back. "You," she murmured, and Rye turned, capturing his eyes onto hers. His own eyes widened and he dropped his arms to hold them up innocently as the Prince backed away slightly to give them room. "You traitorous, lying little scumbag! I trusted you! I cannot believe I could have been so foolish! What is wrong with me?"
"No, you were not foolish to trust me," Rye tried to convince her. "I am trying to help you, trust me."
"It sure as hell looks like it, does it not?" Kiara hissed, and Rye stepped towards her.
"Please, you need to listen to us," he pleaded, but Kiara took a step backwards, her spine hitting the tree behind her to alert her of her position.
"Listen to you?" Kiara exploded. "Are you crazy? You have had me tied up for three hours and have almost killed me to starvation, and you want me to listen to you? When she said more would be coming, I did not think she would mean you."
"She did not send me, Kiara," Rye replied.
"What did she offer you, hm?" Kiara continued. "Or are you going in blind? Or maybe - this is a good one - you are doing this for amusement. By the Gods, you people sicken me."
"Please!" the Prince snapped. "Cut it out! This is a life or death situation and you are both acting like mortal children."
Kiara rolled her eyes and stepped away from the boys, turning her back to them to step onto the gravel path. She kept moving.
"Where do you think you are going?" the Prince called out, and Kiara whirled on the two boys.
"Away from here," she shot back. "I know I will not get far, but as long as I think I have a chance you will just take me in my sleep, and I know it."
The Prince's expression faltered, and Rye looked guilty.
"We did not mean to take advantage of your condition," the Prince replied. "But we did not have a choice, and we mean it when we say that."
"So what are you going to do with me if I turn my back, hm?" Kiara asked. "Will you knock me out and leave me at a drop off point?"
Rye shook his head. "You need to process the situation, Kiara," he warned. "We did not want to give anything away, but you have blown our cover."
"What do you mean?" Kiara asked, narrowing her eyes at the two boys as she stepped closer.
"We are not trying to give you to Pandora," the Prince explained. "We are trying to help you stay away from her."
There was a sharp pain in the back of Kiara's head and she clenched her jaw, fighting of the pain by closing her eyes firmly and holding a hand up to her head. She lowered to a crouch to make this easier and the voice of Pandora drifted back into her mind once again.
They chose wrongly.
"What do you mean?" Kiara grumbled quietly, holding a hand up to keep the boys at a distance.
They will all perish at your hand.
"Who are you going to send after me now?" Kiara spat, and she could basically hear Pandora smiling.
You cannot escape me. There is nowhere to hide. Especially not now.
And then she was gone, leaving a pit of nothing lying in the base of Kiara's mind that she had yet to figure out herself.
She rose to her feet shakily and pulled her hand back, her eyes open and studying. She made a decision and moved over to the tree she had been tied up against and sat down, leaning back against it. Her head was spinning and she was close to passing out. Her sight was blurring slightly, and she knew that if she passed out now, she wouldn't wake up until an hour or two before her curfew, and Pandora would already have sent someone on her trail. She needed to stay awake.
"She's sending someone else," Kiara mumbled to the boys. "Kallee Dred; she killed her. Snapped her neck."
The Prince took a sharp breath and knelt down before her, concern now filling his eyes.
"What else did she say?" he asked, and Kiara scoffed.
"I cannot hide," she admitted finally. "I cannot escape her."
But the Prince only smirked, and Rye chuckled, looking down at Kiara with amusement flashing through his pale eyes.
"Not if we can help it."