Chapter 12 - DEATH THREATS AND KIRA

Kira falls silent at my question as she tenses her lips. The question seems to have thrown her off balance, and I feel my world sinking lower and lower. Everything I thought I knew turns out to be a lie.

When I notice that she can stand, I remove her arm from my shoulder and take several steps away from her.

"So, it's true," my voice cracks, "you are one of them." This time it's not a question, I'm just stating the obvious. The lack of response from her and the way her eyes look at me, as if she's sorry, confirms it.

But is he sorry he didn't tell me, or is he sorry I found out?

I close my eyes for a moment, trying not to panic. I feel my heart racing and my hands begin to shake. I inhale as much as I can and then release all the air I have in my lungs, repeating the process, hoping it might help me. I sense a strange smell in the air, but I can't identify what it is; it's possible it's just my imagination trying to focus on anything else.

"Yini... I-" but Kira's words are interrupted by a loud sound.

The next thing I knew, Kaiden moved quickly towards me and we both fell to the ground. Kaiden is on top of me, and a ringing sound settles in my ears after the explosion. I try to look over Kaiden's shoulder towards my parents' house, and what I see leaves me horrified. The house has exploded in its entirety, and now the few identifiable debris of what was once my parents' house is on fire. Maybe it's due to the car that had hit the house? Is it possible that the strange smell was gasoline? I don't know.

"Yini, Yini!" Kaiden's voice cuts through the buzzing sound and I tear my eyes away from the flames. "Are you all right, did you hurt yourself when you fell?" Kaiden seems genuinely worried about me, and I can't take my eyes off his, though it's possible it's because of the shock.

His arms wrap around me, and I notice that he has protected me with his body. I don't know if I hit my head when I fell, but I can't take my eyes off him, and I feel everything around me move in slow motion. Kaiden swallows saliva, as if he's holding back, unable to take his eyes off mine.

"We have to get out of here," Kaiden says slowly.

"No shit, Sherlock, it's obvious we have to leave!" Kira's angry voice brings everything around me back to its normal rhythm. I notice that she too is on the ground, face down, still covering her head with her hands. "Damn wolves."

"Yeah... we'd better get going." I try to regain my composure and make my voice sound normal, but if Kaiden doesn't get up, I don't think I can. "Um... Kaiden, could you...?"

"Oh, let me just... take me off." Kaiden withdraws his arms, which were still around my body, and stands up hurriedly. He then extends a hand towards me to help me up, only this time I don't reject it.

"In view of the fact that we don't have a car, we need to get one," says Kira already off the ground, shaking the dirt off her clothes, while Kaiden intertwines his hand with mine as if he doesn't want me to move away.

I stare at our joined hands not knowing how to react. Even though I should push him away, I still feel dazed from the explosion.

"I'll take care of that," Kaiden says and then heads to the car parked across the street, gently tugging my hand to follow him. Kira and I exchange questioning glances, not knowing what Kaiden is doing, but we still follow him.

By the time we arrived, Kaiden had already managed to open the car door and sat in the driver's seat. Kira and I did the same, only Kira sat up front in the passenger seat and I sat in the backseat.

Kaiden starts stripping wires under the dashboard of the car with a piece of glass he found on the street, as if he knows what he's doing. But, given that we could spend at least twenty minutes waiting for the car to start or do anything, I don't think he knows what he's doing.

"I'll fix it," Kira says, getting out of the car and slamming the door shut. With a determined stride, she crosses the street and heads toward my neighbor's house.

"What are you doing?" asks Kaiden with a frown as he continues to move wires. It's obvious he doesn't understand anything, but I understand him perfectly.

"He's trying to get us a car," I say only that, and it should be more than enough to explain what's going on. In turn, Kira kicks open my neighbor's door. At this rate, I'm surprised my neighbor doesn't have a restraining order against Kira.

I might even say that Kira has something against him.

After Kira opened the door so unobtrusively and not at all quietly, angry screams and some sort of scuffle are heard inside the house, followed by some clearly frightened yelling. The lights of the other neighbors come on at the same time as Kaiden touches something wrong and sets off the alarm of the car we are sitting in.

Also, I'm sure Kira won't be able to set foot on this street ever again, unless she knows how to hide a body much faster than the neighbors call the police.

You hear objects breaking and screams for help coming from the house. The sounds reverberate in the night, making Kaiden and me jump in our seats.

Kaiden turns to me, his face showing a mixture of concern and doubt. "Should we go help?" he asks, his voice hesitant.

Without looking away from the house, I shake my head slowly. "I don't think the neighbor would accept help from the stepbrother of the person trying to murder him, let alone his best friend," I say, my voice heavy with resignation.

Kaiden frowns and blinks slowly, his confusion evident. "I meant helping Kira," he says, his tone softening as he watches me.

I shrug, trying to show indifference. "Ah... trust me, she doesn't need it," I reply as I adjust my position in the seat, stretching my legs out and resting my head against the backrest. I try to relax, though the bustle inside the house continues to disturb me. I glance at Kaiden, noticing how his hands twitch in his lap, the worry still present on his face.

Kaiden sighs and looks away, his jaw tense. Despite his apparent calm, I can see the tension building in his shoulders. The sound of screams and objects shattering continues to fill the air, each noise sharpening the sense of urgency. I feel my own body stiffen, the tension simmering just below the surface.

Finally, Kaiden leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees and burying his face in his hands, breathing deeply. I close my eyes for a moment, trying to block out the noises and concentrate on staying calm.

But my attempt at relaxation is short-lived, because the next thing we see is Kira speeding out of my neighbor's house, waving some car keys in triumph. All the house lights on the street have been turned on, so we'd better hurry.

Kaiden and I rush out of the car and head towards where Kira is. She's standing next to a car that looks brand new, parked in front of my neighbor's house. She welcomes us.

As soon as we are close, Kira tosses the keys to Kaiden, who catches them in mid-air with quick reflexes.

"You drive," Kira says with a smile on her face. I don't think the neighbor is doing well.

Kira climbs into the passenger seat, I settle into the back seats, and Kaiden sits in the driver's seat, still confused by what just happened and how his stepsister has probably tortured someone to get the keys to a new car.

"Did you threaten him with death or how did you get the keys?" asks Kaiden as he starts the car.

"Don't question my methods," Kira says in a nonchalant manner.

That means someone got hurt in the process, and it wasn't her. But is there any other way for Kira to do things?