The Voices in Her Head (No. 8)

IX

Back in the car, Diego said, "You got a big mouth, you know that?"

"Oh, wow." Klaus answered. "What a truly shocking revelation, Diego."

"Everything's a big joke to you, right?" He noticed Klaus opening up a bag of some sort of powder and took it. Katrine knew it was drugs, without a second thought. "Would you stop it? Why are you putting this shit in your body?" He blew a raspberry. "Check this out." He patted his chest. "Hm? My body is a temple. All that shit you do, it's just weakness."

Katrine groaned as Klaus said sarcastically, "Oh, wow, beautiful. Well, weakness feels good. Just ask Kat. I'm sure she feels great right now."

Diego glanced back at her to see her glowering at Klaus while wrapping a hand around her chest like she was in pain. "You good, Kat?"

She nodded. "Never better."

He frowned. "Bullshit." He turned back to Klaus. "What's going on with you, huh?" He hit Klaus to get his attention.

Klaus immediately reacted in a way that was completely unlike his normal self. "Don't hit me, asshole!"

Diego leaned closer to Klaus. "Don't tell me everything is alright, because I saw you in there. You were crying like a baby!"

Katrine got fed up with their arguing. "He lost someone, Diego! Did you not see him staring at that picture?"

Klaus nodded. "She's right. I lost someone. The only--" He sighed. "The only person I've ever truly loved more than myself."

He took out a pill and said, "Cheers." He then put it into his mouth.

Diego swallowed and glanced at Katrine, remembering what she'd gone through 15 months prior. "Well, you're luckier than most. When you lose someone, at least you can see them whenever you want."

Katrine sniffled and the boys turned to look at her. She shook her head. About a year-and-a-half before, she'd lost her fiancé, Lincoln, in a robbery gone seriously wrong.

Klaus frowned, not liking his sister's obvious distress. "Katrine, what happened?"

Diego sighed. "Her fiancé died. It was awful."

Katrine silently thanked him for not saying more, and Diego nodded. Klaus, meanwhile, probed again. "Is that why you're wearing that ring around your neck? And dog tags?"

She nodded. "Griddy's Diner then park proposal. What a night. Three months later, he was gone. The dog tags are from his time in the Navy. Patch gave them to me after--after, uh, you know..."

"I'm so sorry, Kat."

She shook her head, pushing down the emotion. "It doesn't matter now. It's in the past."

Klaus was about to say something when Katrine frowned as she looked back. "Diego. Coming out of the building."

He looked out the back window through the rearview mirror. "That's our man."

Klaus studied the guy and frowned. "Hey, Kat and I know that guy."

Diego frowned at them, obviously confused. "How could you two possibly know that guy?"

"He and a really angry lady tortured us. I barely got out with my life."

Katrine narrowed her eyes. "The angry lady Klaus is talking about is the one who shot me."

Diego turned on the car. "We gotta get this guy."

Now that he knew who had captured his siblings and hurt them, and nearly killed his little sister, he could make them pay. And they would pay.