A Month Of Kaider

Twenty Four: Painful Confusion

Cinder freezes as she sees their apartment door open. She knows she'd locked it before leaving so someone else must have come in. But why didn't Kai text her?

"Oh stars," she breathes as she sees her Aunt's heels at the door.

How had she found them here?

"Cinder?" Kai calls, his tone unnervingly calm.

He's usually more bubbly when she enters, either wrapping her in his warm embrace or exchanging a kiss. She doesn't even care that the mundane ritual would be classed as a cliché, something that would have bothered her had it not been for Kai's enthusiasm.

"Kai?" she asks uncertainly, dropping her bag on the side.

"In the living room." Kai's voice is still too calm for comfort.

She cautiously steps forward, a small gasp escaping her as she takes in the sight.

"Selene, how nice it is to see you again." Levana's icy smirk makes her stop at the doorway.

Cinder flinches as she hears her birth name, having left that behind after her mother passed away.

Kai mouths an apology from behind Levana, his arms held back by two men, each of them taller than Wolf. She'd be surprised at their height but she knows what sort of companies Levana deals with.

"What are you doing here?" Cinder hisses.

"I'm just here to see if your new boyfriend," Levana stops as she runs a manicured nail along Kai's cheekbone, "is worth my blessing."

"Don't touch him," Cinder warns, her hands itching to slap Levana.

"Oh, why? I have permission from his father."

Kai flinches so hard that the men either side of him have to regain their footing. Levana immediately looks interested, smirking.

"What, you don't like Rikan?" she drawls.

Kai shakes his head. "He's not my father."

Cinder's eyes widen as the words leave Kai's mouth. He doesn't meet her eye, as if ashamed, but Cinder can't look away.

"Then what is he?" Levana asks, pushing Kai's chin up with her index finger.

Kai glares at her, "He's not called Rikan and he's not related to me."

Cinder frowns, unable to stop him and, worse, unable to wrap her arms around him as a source of comfort.

Levana's smile turns dark. "Why were you living with him?"

Cinder can't help but ask the same question in her head.

Kai swallows, pulling his head back and sighing, "I wasn't."

"He was living with Torin." Cinder hears herself saying.

Kai nods at her, still not meeting her gaze. "I only stayed at his house for appearance's sake."

Closing her eyes to process the information, she hears Kai make an odd sound. Her eyes fly open in time to see Levana grab Kai's chin and turn his head from side to side, as if looking for something.

"How did he give permission for your marriage?" Levana asks.

Kai shrugs. "I don't know, a legal loophole perhaps?"

Levana's smirk returns despite her obvious uncertainty. "As long as it can go ahead..."

"Why are you here?" Cinder hisses again, more aggressive now.

Levana takes her time in replying, not looking away from Kai. "I think I like this one."

"You can't have him. You know that." Cinder steps forward but the lackeys on either side of Kai twist his arms and he grimaces.