Page 104 of Science Project

“How do you owe him?” I asked. “What did he?—”

“Don’t worry about it, Nicole,” Kai said. “All I need is information, and I’ll bring him home to you. Deal?”

My chest tightened. “Deal.”

CHAPTER

SIXTY-ONE

AKIO

Seagulls cawing woke me from the heavy sleep that Mom’s guard had put me in last night. After hours of me trying to break free, he had straight-up socked me in the jaw, and I had passed out cold.

I slowly opened my eyes, ready for another day of trying to claw out of these ropes. The room reeked of my shit and piss from the small bathroom to our right. It had one toilet that didn’t flush, just like the rest of the toilets at the public beach. The smell just stewed there.

Blood soaked through my shirt and clung to my body. I winced and bit down on my lower lip so I wouldn’t let them know that I was up. Pain shot through my body from my raw wrists. My vision blurred for a moment, but I was freshly awake.

Mom had never held me hostage for this long, even after I had told her that I would work with her, that I would be her fucking servant as long as she didn’t hurt Nicole again. I would do anything that she fucking asked.

The ropes chafed my wrists, the skin red and scabbed. I struggled against the ropes for what seemed to be the fifth day or more. My body was weak, but I would get out of here alive to see Nicole. Soon.

A clang rattled through the building, alerting the guards. I lifted my head slightly to the door, hearing the sound again. It almost sounded like … gunshots echoing through the building. My heart pounded heavily inside my chest.

Gunshots drew closer and closer. One of the guards in the room slipped through the door, gun drawn, and shut it behind him. I clawed at the rope harder in an attempt to break free while they were distracted, my wrists burning.

Suddenly, the doors burst open, revealing a figure dressed in all black and a ski mask to hide his face. My gaze dropped to his cargo pants and combat boots—staples of Kai Koh’s wardrobe.

Without hesitation, Kai moved like a snake, his movements swift and deadly. He closed the distance between himself and the guard stationed at the door, wrapped his hands around the man’s head, and snapped his neck.

In seconds.

The guard dropped to the ground with a thud. My eyes widened, and I watched in disbelief that Kai, out of all people, was here to save me. He hated my fucking guts and had no reason to help me.

Why is he here?

Another guard ran into the room, gun raised. Kai knocked the weapon from his hand with a swift kick and hurled his fist into the man’s throat, sending him to the ground. After reaching behind himself and drawing his gun, Kai shot three bullets into his skull.

“Say a fucking word, and I’ll kill you too,” Kai said to me.

Once he tucked his gun away, he drew a knife from his belt and crouched behind me. He began slicing through the thick rope, the threads snapping. I stayed still because the pain from my raw wrists was becoming overwhelming.

The restraints fell away, and then he cut the ropes around my ankles. Relief flooded through me, and I slumped my shoulders forward, so exhausted from the past five days—or more. This room didn’t have any windows, so I couldn’t tell night from day or day from night.

I gently rubbed my wrists and winced. I needed medication from the pharmacy for them.

Kai remained focused, scanning the room and then the hallway for any sign of danger. And when he didn’t find any, he nodded for me to follow him. I stood on shaky legs, clutching my stomach wounds, and stepped over the guards.

“Let’s go,” Kai ordered in a hushed tone.

Wincing, I followed him and stumbled into the wall to catch myself before I face-planted in the middle of the hallway. Kai pulled off his ski mask, his hair wild underneath it, and bit it into his mouth. He wrapped his arm underneath mine and lifted me.

“Damn, you’re skinny as fuck, Akio,” Kai said, his words muffled. “Lighter than I expected.”

After biting down on my cheek so I wouldn’t grunt in pain in front of him, I stumbled down the hallway with his help and walked through the doors to get the fuck out of this place for good. We moved in silence to a car that definitely wasn’t Kai’s bike.

Though I was far from safe with Kai, at least … I was out of here.

Now, I needed to find Nicole.

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