Page 203 of Interion

I narrowed my eyes at him, and he held my gaze.

“I'm with Kyller on this,” Serguei replied while chewing, but added, “not about the bite, of course.” He turned to me. “You were terrible at that, but you know, you could have at least spared that bottle of whisky. I was very fond of it.”

I shoved food in my mouth and avoided looking at either of them.

“You should have told her about Kaori,” Serguei said a few minutes later. “Telling your partner about past romances is a fundamental part of any relationship.”

Zion snorted.

“And what do you know about relationships, oh great sage of love? Tell me what you know about women. As far as I remember, you killed the only one you ever loved.”

There went my hopes for a peaceful dinner.

“You learned well, Zion. The best defense is a good offense.” Serguei smiled dangerously. “But at least I had a love life, even if it was tragic. What can we say about you? That you don't even know the right moment to kiss a woman?”

Zion seemed to tremble in his chair.

“Oh, don't say that, Serguei,” I mocked, feeling strangely mean. “Maybe he does know, but then we'd have to ask Kaori, since she's the only one he's ever kissed.” I turned to Zion, putting on my best fake smile. “Oh, I almost forgot! We can't ask her, since I was removed from her case.”

Serguei clicked his tongue and shook his head in disapproval.

“I heard about that. I'm sorry they took your credits—it would have been a nice feather in your cap.”

“It would have been,” I grumbled, looking at Zion. “But someone ruined everything.”

“If it makes you feel better, then go ahead,” Zion said, gesturing toward me. “Blame me for everything in the past that I had no control over.”

I knew I was being childish, unfair, and mean. Even if he had told me about Kaori, this still would have happened. I was just taking out my frustrations on a scapegoat, and that wasn't right. From the way Zion clenched his jaw and balled his fists on the table, I could only imagine he was summoning every ounce of self-control he possessed.

“Pathetic,” Serguei said, laughing, and my cheeks flushed. “You two are pathetic.”

I looked at Zion and he stared back at me. We both immediately looked away in different directions. Then I forced myself to shove large forkfuls into my mouth and chewed loudly, which kept Serguei from provoking me further. If I let myself open my mouth, I’d end up starting another argument.

“I tried to warn you who she was. If you’d listened to me, none of this would have happened.”

“Serguei!” Zion hissed, his voice hoarse.

“And you? I warned you too that dating a gorgon wasn’t a good idea. Especially that girl! Do you know how many mental blocks she has?”

My ears immediately perked up. Zion looked at Serguei as if he wanted the psychic to burst into flames.

“I can’t believe you’re bringing this up again.” His fists were clenched so tight his knuckles turned white. “There’s nothing wrong with Kaori. You’ve known her since she was a child—you trained her and her brother.”

“And that’s exactly why I don’t trust her. She was a good girl, the smartest of the three of you. But now... all those mental blocks smell like trouble to me.”

I remembered Serguei being bothered by the blocks during the neural surgery, but I didn’t think he’d still be dwelling on it.

I was wrong.

“You know why she has those blocks,” Zion hissed. “She’s a Vinturian Yamamoto—obviously the family has a psychic to hide their technological secrets from other nations. They’d never let their formulas leak.”

“I still don’t trust her!” Serguei exclaimed, slamming his fist on the table. The glasses and silverware rattled on the white tablecloth. “Those blocks aren’t easy to create, and whoever made them is extremely powerful!”

“Ah, so the problem isn’t her!” Zion exclaimed mockingly. “The problem is that psychotic brain of yours that can’t function in society unless it’s in control of every thought around you.”

With each exchange, their voices rose higher. I shrank in my chair, afraid of where this conversation was heading. Serguei, noticing my movement, glanced my way. He blinked a few times, as if he’d forgotten I was there, then leaned back in his chair, softening his tone.

“Who’s the psychic that creates the mental blocks for the Yamamoto family?”