Devil in Disguise (Kai Parker)

Chapter Thirty-One: Importance

Matt pulled Tyler off her, sending him spinning to the floor. Meg was breathless, face blank with shock. Being kidnapped by these two wasn’t exactly something she’d planned for. God, she hadn’t even been sure if Tyler still existed. He had been dead for most of the time she’d known him, and therefore someone to avoid. The other dead people she’d seen had all tried to kill her.

“You’re the Hybrid,” she panted heavily, massaging her sore neck. “You died.”

“I was the Hybrid.” he corrected, glaring at her, “I was dead. Obviously, I’m not quite so dead now.”

“You’re the one that saved Liv, in that bar,” Realisation crashed down upon her and she leant against the wall. “Thank you so much.”

“Yes, I – what?”

“Thank you for saving her.” she said earnestly. “If I’d helped kill her, I would never have been able to get over it. It was the worst thing I could have done.”

Tyler looked confused; he clearly hadn’t gotten his head around her magic situation yet. It was a pretty confusing topic. “OK…” he said slowly, approaching Meg with a look in his eyes that was meant to be intimidating. But after hanging around with Kai and dealing with Mad Meg, Meg wasn’t one to be intimidated easily anymore. “If you’re so worried about hurting Liv, why don’t you tell us where Kai is?”

“Easy: I have no idea. He wouldn’t tell me in case of this exact scenario.” she gestured around her exaggeratedly, nearly knocking over a vase.

“But you’ve got to know something.” Matt finally said something. He really didn’t talk much.

“Last I checked, he’d abandoned going after Liv and was going to go after Jo. But he’s… unpredictable. He’ll go after whichever one he comes across first.”

“Not helpful, girl.” Tyler clenched his fists and set his jaw.

“Why should I be helpful?” she shot back, a flash of anger running through her. “You’re trying to kill one of my best friends! You bloody kidnapped me, and just nearly strangled me, not to mention the fact that you’ve probably given me a concussion. Helpful is the last thing I should be to you.”

He glared at her. She glared at him. Neither of them refused to look away, both of them hating each other silently. Tyler was the first to speak, voice determinedly steady through gritted teeth, “Look: all we want to do is make sure Liv is safe. If you want that to, all you have to do is be a good girl, and tell us what you know.”

“Of course I want that. But I also don’t want Kai to get hurt.”

Tyler sighed in frustration, putting his head in his hands. “Why?” the word was like a slap, reverberating through the air. “He’s killed people. He’s a monster. Why the hell do you want to protect that bastard?”

Meg shook her head, slumping from the wall slowly down to the floor. “I’ve asked myself that a thousand times, and I still don’t know. But until I figure it out, I am not going to let him get hurt.” she fixed him with a hard glare. “Understood?”

Matt nudged his friend on the shoulder. He had been so quiet amongst all the screaming voices that Meg had nearly forgotten he was there. Tyler gave her one last scowl, which she returned in full measure, before storming out the room and slamming the grand door behind him. Matt let out a breath and Meg closed her eyes, resting her head by the wall.

“Temper of a wolf.” she muttered bitterly.

“He’s not always like that.” Matt defended him. “It’s just… Liv is Tyler’s girlfriend. And all these threats from her family are driving him mad.”