Consumed » Kai Parker

Fifty Five

My skull is throbbing when I grasp at shreds of consciousness, the dull pain surfacing memories of when I was a sophomore in high school and banged my head on Mrs. Gonzalez's swinging classroom door.

That, I briskly laughed off to mask the mortifying awkwardness I felt, knocked to the floor in a hallway full of notoriously rowdy high school students.

This time, I don't laugh. Humor is the furthest possible thing from my mind when I gradually recall the last event before I'd succumbed to heavy darkness. Kai and I, leaving the gala.

I furrow my eyebrows, becoming aware of an itchy, thick material chafing my wrists and ankles. They're pressed tightly together, making it impossible to stretch my aching limbs when I burst through the surface like I'd been drowning for hours. I cast my eyes downward to find my body still clad in the black dress I'd been wearing the night before, my scraped legs bare against the cold floor.

Inhaling a deep breath in a sharp, quick manner, I open my eyes wildly to be met with a dark, gray wall. Suppressing the panic bubbling up like acid gnawing at my stomach, I lift my gaze higher to find a single window with metal bars in place. Rays of sunlight shine through, shedding some dim light in the unfamiliar dungeon.

"Good morning, Ms. Gilbert."

My body immediately reacts to the hated voice and I jerk my head in the direction of the doorway. Joshua Parker is standing there with a black mug in hand, sipping from it calmly with a sliver of a smile.

"Getting really sick," I hiss, struggling angrily against the ropes restraining my arms and legs, "of you kidnapping me. Where's Kai?"

His smile grows. He merely points his index finger toward the other side of the room, still holding the rim of the cup to his mouth.

I swallow hard, looking to my left to find the dark-haired witch a few feet away. The first thing I notice–instilling me with sheer horror–are the silver shackles clasped around his wrists, connected to chains sprouting from the low ceiling. They suspend his arms above his head, the only thing holding his limp body up in an eerie standing position. His chin is practically against his chest, with the way his head droops forward unconsciously. His suit jacket and tie is discarded in a pile near his feet, leaving him in only his white button-down and black dress pants from the night before.

The sight of Kai in such a helpless state, especially knowing which fucked up brain is responsible for this, fills my veins with ice and makes my head scream with fury. I thrash harder against my binds, yelling out in frustration when the well-tied knots don't cave to my movement.

"Let him go, you pathetic bastard," I hiss, glaring at Joshua now and hoping my words carry the damage that I can't currently inflict on his face.

"Now, why demand silly things you know you won't get? I'm not finished with either of you, Ms. Gilbert." His eyes flash dangerously. "You should have known better than to come here. But I suppose I'm glad you did. Saved me the trouble of seeking Malachai out to see how my potion's working."

He turns to observe Kai thoughtfully, while abandoning his mug on a small table near the door. "He couldn't even counter my sleeping spell last night. He's in worse shape than I suspected. I admit I was wary about officially testing it. I should thank your friend, Stefan, for that, really."

"You realize that if anything happens to him, you're gonna take the coven you claim to prioritize so much right out of this world?" I say sharply. "Or did you chuck the last of your brain cells out the window when you linked yourself to a human? Stupid move, by the way. You forgot I live in supernatural freaking central. You're lucky a vampire hasn't ripped into my throat yet."