Page 194 of Interion

He opened the door and stepped inside, only to be greeted by a flying bottle that crashed against the wall beside him. Zion watched the amber liquid drip down the white wall, not quite understanding what was happening, until he heard her voice echo through the room.

“LIAR!”

When he turned to face her, he saw streaks of black tears running between the countless constellations of freckles on her cheeks, partially smeared by her makeup. She stood behind the kitchen counter, looking furious.

He immediately understood what had happened at the hospital.

“Kyller, I can explain...”

She cut him off by grabbing a knife from the collectible cutting board on the counter and hurling it at him. He vanished into the shadows, but he could still hear the blade thunk into the wood of the door, right where his chest had been two seconds before.

“Explain what?” she shouted across the room, reaching for another knife. “That you were mute this whole time? Even if that were true, Zion, it wouldn’t be an acceptable excuse for not telling me that Kaori is your ex-girlfriend!”

She looked like she wanted to kill him with her bare hands. Zion frowned, trying to find the logic behind her outburst. He could understand that his partner was upset about the omission, but not this furious over something so small, something that meant nothing in their lives.

“Kyller, listen to me, there was no reason to bring up something that didn't matter. Kaori and I barely dated—it was a whirlwind thing for, I don't know, a month?”

She let out a scornful laugh.

“It wasn't relevant? If it was so irrelevant, why didn't you tell me?” He could hear her teeth grinding. He could feel all her rage pouring through the bond. “Do you know how many times I told myself I was paranoid and crazy for thinking there was something between you two? I gave you chances to come clean, Zion! We talked about it. Better yet! We talked about her! You gave this long, flowery speech about how Kaori was just your second-in-command! You had every opportunity in the world.” She paused for a second, seeming shocked by her own thoughts, and he noticed her eyes narrow, giving way to even greater fury. “You gave her my necklace! How did you think that wouldn't be relevant?”

“I left that out so you wouldn't feel insecure about something you had no reason to feel insecure about! Which is exactly what's happening now. And the necklace—you already know why! I explained at that dinner why I gave it to her.”

Kyller gasped and started pacing behind the kitchen counter like a hungry lioness. Zion stayed alert for any new attack, but even his shadows had shrunk back, as if they wanted to flee. He shouldn't have been, but he was surprised and proud of the skill his partner was showing with those knives. Gods, this was seriously messed up. She was throwing knives at him and this wasn't training. He knew he shouldn't be feeling even remotely turned on by the situation.

“I don't know what I'm more furious about. Whether I should rip out your tongue for confessing you left out something that was actually a blatant lie”—she shouted the last two words—“whether I should rip out your teeth for thinking that ridiculous explanation about giving her my necklace is reasonable, or...” She stopped, turning to face him at the counter. She looked unhinged. “Whether I should rip out your jugular for inviting me on our first date just to thank me for saving your ex-girlfriend's life!”

Another knife flew through the air and Zion dodged without using his shadows. Following the blade's trajectory, the general spotted Kiara leaning against the bottom step of the stairs, ears perked, alert to every movement. Noticing his gaze, the chimera responded mentally.

“I warned you.”

“What?” he asked, confused, turning to Kyller. “Where did you get the idea that I only invited you that day to thank you for Kaori?”

“That's exactly what you did!”

He was so outraged by that conclusion he could barely feel anything but disbelief.

“I think I finally understand that human metaphor about shitting where you eat,” the chimera said in the general's mind.

“Kyller, I invited you for more than one reason. Thanking you wasn't one of them—I could have done that at home.”

The woman seemed to be fighting to control her anger. He watched her lower her head, her thick hair sliding behind her shoulders, then place both hands flat on the counter. Still leaning forward, she raised her golden eyes and fixed them on his.

“Oh yeah? Then tell me the reasons.”

“You had just pulled off your greatest achievement...”

“WHICH WAS SAVING YOUR EX-GIRLFRIEND!” she shouted, cutting him off. Another knife flew at him.

He took a deep breath, already impatient with how they kept going in circles. It seemed like they'd never get anywhere. He needed her to let him speak, to continue the conversation, to explain everything she wanted to know—but that seemed impossible.

“You need to let me speak!” he said, indignant.

“You had plenty of time to speak—in fact, you had the entire last week!”

“I didn't realize how much this would affect you. I need you to understand that, first and foremost, Kaori was my friend. A lifetime of friendship—and you know that's true!” He pointed to the frame on the sideboard and, for the first time in decades, felt glad to see it upright. “We got together for a short time—there was barely a relationship when I found you. I ended things as soon as I knew you were safe and stable at the hospital. There's been nothing between us since I laid eyes on you!”

“Except everything you've said about her—and especially what I saw today—tells me otherwise!”