No matter what, though, Luke would protect his daughters. He'd never let Zayne's weaknesses hurt them.
CHAPTER 30
Kira
The Capital
Kallum, Ciondo
833 P.C. [Post-Collapse]
After Luke left, Kira remained in her room, not willing to risk bringing a child into this dangerous situation or to say anything he found threatening.
Only once she knew the little girl had left did Kira venture out to the living room. The time with her granddaughter brought fresh life into Adelle, but Zayne renewed his determination not to look at Kira with incredible vigor.
The unspoken boiled between them.
He told Kira he ordered Dr. Cooper to torture her when, in reality, he literally broke the man's collarbone for hurting her.
“Zayne.” Kira barely kept her voice level.
No response, of course. Arms crossed, he looked out his favorite window to avoid her.
“Is it true?” she asked.
His silence reignited the anger at his cruel lie and the abandonment of being left there alone, thinking she might still die. Kira flew across the room and pushed him as hard as she could.
Zayne lowered his arms and pivoted to see her, mouth opening in surprise. Another push. It only jostled him, and that made her even madder. Never in her life had Kira ever pushed or hit anyone, and she expected it to feel more satisfying than this.
This time when she lunged, he side-stepped, and she fell forward, careening out of control. He caught her sleeve.
“You need to calm down,” he said.
“Tell me one time in the history of humanity that saying you need to calm down has ever calmed anyone down.”
With a sigh, Zayne lowered to the leather couch that was as stiff and unwelcoming as he was. “Yes, it's true. I told him that if he did anything without my approval, I would break his collarbone. He put you in the tank while I was gone. So, I kept my word.”
“How much time passed between you breaking his bones and telling me you told him to hurt me?”
His gaze flicked to her for a fraction of a second. “Irrelevant.”
Kira ran her hands over her face, so exacerbated by him. “It's not irrelevant. I cannot believe you broke Dr. Cooper's collarbone. That could have gotten you hurt.”
“Of all the things I've done, why does this upset you the most?”
The past two weeks throbbed inside her. “Because you broke someone's bones for me.” She looked at him, not caring if he avoided her. “You care about what happens to me, but you left me alone, thinking you hate me.”
“You already knew that.”
“It's the first time I actually felt it.” Tears threatened. “You make me crazy.”
He looked stunned when she stormed out.
Luke told Kira what Zayne did to bind her to him and trick her into falling into his hands. No matter how much it melted her heart to know, her fury didn't relent.
She understood him less today than she did the first time they met. Her anger defied reason. It just existed, throbbing inside her every time she thought about him.
He really did make her crazy.
