Interlude [h.s]

seventy-eight

DACRAN

"Believe me, I really don't want to be doing this either," Kiara says, sitting on the couch, holding a glass of cheap wine. "In my defence, you're the one that attacked me in my home and proceeded to lose your gun." She chuckles. "How ridiculous. Do they even train you wherever you're from?"

Rain is pattering on the windows, the curtains are pulled. The light of the apartment is dim, and she has to blink the shadows away.

"I'll be honest. Attack Dacran once, I'll deal with it. Do it twice, at this point you're just being rude. Wasn't that little group of yours happy with the mess it made on north Dacran two weeks ago? You also had to attack the west side of the city?" Kiara tuts. "Oh, how terribly impolite of me." She moves closer to the man tied to the chair and rips away the piece of tape over his mouth. "I'd say don't scream, but this place is soundproofed, so feel free to do that if it makes you feel better."

The man doesn't let out a word. His eyes are burning holes through her, but she isn't scared. She's met more dangerous people than him. Besides, he's disarmed and tied up, and there's a handgun hidden in the drawer of the bookshelf behind her.

Kiara picks up her glass and sits back on the couch. She takes a sip; the wine is awful, but it's all she could get her hands on. Chaos makes it incredibly hard to find good wine, and she couldn't be bothered to look for it too far away. "Let's go back to our conversation," she states. "Who is behind this attack?"

The man snarls. "We don't answer to you."

She sighs. "Yeah, I know, that's why I'm asking who you answer to." She's starting to think this is a waste of time. She drops the glass, and it shatters on the floor. Red drops splatter on her white couch. "I'm going to assume you aren't Revolution. This is too much, even for them. So it has to be someone else, isn't that right?" She stands again and grabs the man's chin. "I understand why you may want to bring change. Unfortunately for you, I'm quite fond of our President."

A cruel smile splits his face. "Your President is dead."

Kiara's nails dig into his flesh. "No, he isn't. If he was, the entire country would know it."

"I stabbed him with my bare hands, that bastard," the man spits. "He stabbed me, but I got him back. Oh yes, I did. Once as revenge, twice to kill him. Then we left them stranded on the street to die."

Cold seeps through Kiara's bones. Her nails dig deeper, and drops of blood well up at the tips of her fingers. This man is a criminal. He hurt Harry. How dare he. She forces herself to smile. "So what I'm hearing is that you failed to kill him and ran away with your tails between your legs." She scoffs. "Like the little pitiful cowards you are. Now, tell me who the fuck is behind this."

The man laughs. "You can't stop us. We will take this country, even if we have to pry it out of his cold, dead hands."

"Presumptuous of you to believe you have what it takes to kill a man like him." She lets go of him and picks up the shattered glass. "No, you don't know whom you're dealing with. Styles is like this glass, the more you try to bring him down, the more he'll hurt you in return." She flicks the jagged edge of the glass with her thumb. It's red with wine. "Take it as a helpful suggestion. Don't try it with him. He's not someone you want to make your enemy."

"You think I'm scared?"

"I don't, because I know you're an idiot," she hisses, "but you should be. If you think you know what you're about to unleash, you have another thing coming. Take it from someone that knows him well. Until now, his behaviour has been exemplary in comparison to what he'll do if you keep this up. Do you really think you've seen the full extent of what he can do?" Kiara's hand tightens around the glass. "He will paint the streets red with your blood, and that's putting it kindly. You may think his moral compass is twisted, but this is where you have it wrong. He doesn't have one. But you know what makes him even more dangerous?" She chuckles. "His ability to make people believe he does. Your perception of him is the perception he wants you to have. So, if you think him harmless... congratulations, you've been manipulated."