Kai Villalvazo’s Nemesis (The Kalon Tetralogy #1)

Chapter 40

T he moment I regained consciousness, I got out of bed but failed as lots of wires attached me to the bed.

The fuck was this? Where was I? Where was Kai? Why was everything so bright and loud? I hated it.

“Stop! You're hurting yourself.” Yelena came rushing in and she was crying. Okay then, this was so weird.

Her scream must have been so loud because literally everyone came rushing into the room, including some lady in a white coat.

Hold the fuck up, I was in the hospital?

When did I get here? Why and how?

“You're awake, thank goodness.” Kendrick sighed in relief as he moved closer to me, but I could hardly concentrate on anyone.

I only wanted one person.

“Kai—”

“You need to rest and recover?—”

“I want to go to Kai! Take me to him.” I ripped half of the wires away and the machines started beeping way too loudly for my liking.

People tried to hold me back but I was on a mission. I had to find Kai, I had to tell him what they said, I had to tell him they wanted to kill him. I had to, I had to?—

Something pierced my skin and goosebumps erupted as a result. I turned my head to find the doctor pulling the needle of the syringe from my skin and as soon as she did, a chill washed over me.

No, no, no, no.

No.

I was free falling into a bottomless pit of madness and I could hardly feel my body as I did, but nothing would separate me from Kai. The loud voices blurred and so did the faces, and I was completely paralysed as I tried to talk and move, but tumbled onto the floor.

Dark forces dragged me back when I tried to crawl, crying as I thought of how they were going to kill Kai before I warned him. I just wanted to stop him and let him know about their wicked plans. I wanted to save him from destruction and help him find his mother. I just wanted to give him the justice he deserved.

I just wanted to, wanted to?—

Nothing made sense as I finally reached the dark depths of the pit. I floated in a state of unconsciousness for what felt like months. And when I finally returned to reality, my mind was clear and less chaotic than before.

The room was quiet and everyone was gone now, save for a nurse who was adding something to the water in a floating plastic. Was it floating or was it attached to something? I really didn’t know.

Everything started coming back to me. How I managed to get out of the ropes the way Kai taught me, how I took a random corpse in that basement and put it in my place then nearly escaped the warehouse until I went unconscious right before I got to Kai, who was probably being beaten to a pulp.

I remember the horrid sounds of him screaming and crying in agony. I remember the way my heart ached as I tried to get to him with no success. So I picked the gun I found lying on the floor, then shot his boss who had been about to kill him with hot chains. I had avenged him.

I was about to shoot the others when I was held back by someone, I'm thinking Kayden, right before I passed out. He probably knew I'd be killed by the remaining men.

There were some freshly baked cupcakes on the table beside me and my heart clenched when I thought of Kai once again. No one’s cupcakes would ever be as good as Kai’s.

She noticed that I was awake and she stiffened immediately. I was sure she witnessed my episode and feared that I would do it again.

“Relax, I'm not going to run.” My voice was hoarse and scratchy, but she visibly calmed.

“How are you feeling?” she asked softly, her warm, brown eyes surveying me with lots of care.

“Like pure fucking bullshit. Does that answer your question?” She sighed in response, but that didn’t stop me from asking her my own question. “Where is Kai Villalvazo? Has he visited me?”

“I'm afraid I can't disclose a patient’s personal information.” My eyes widened and I sat up so quickly that I lost my bearing and took a deep breath to stabilise myself.

Patient?

What the hell?

“He’s in the hospital, too? Where? Is he nearby?” My blood ran cold when she shook her head sadly.

He was in the ICU.

God, please, no. No. I was too late. I was way too fucking late and the nurse must have realised she hit a nerve because she moved to pat my back when the tears began to roll down my cheeks.

“Please give me something, just a little information. Is he okay? Is he breathing? Please tell me he's not hurt.” My cracked voice pleaded and the nurse sighed deeply, giving me a sad stare. She was considering it, and if my eyes weren’t deceiving me, she wanted to say it.

“I'll get into trouble and lose my job?—”

“I promise not to tell anyone, and if you do lose it, my brother will get you a better job. Please just help me out, take me to him. Even for five minutes only.” I sniffled, my heart aching as the thought of losing him flooded my mind.

She looked to be genuinely worried about me, and she sighed before echoing my request. “Five minutes.” I nodded frantically, and she helped me out of bed then secretly led me out of my room. She held my hand just in case I lost my stability and I didn’t mind. In fact, it was a comforting gesture after all I had gone through.

We walked through the empty hallways and the smell of detergents, chemicals, and clinical medication made me sick to the core. I hated this place and I wanted to escape immediately. But I couldn’t leave this place without my soulmate, Kai. If anything happened to him, I'd never forgive myself.

The nurse stopped before a room and she slowly opened the door, checking if the coast was clear before gesturing for me to enter. She held up a hand with five fingers to remind me of the time I had and I nodded, entering the room with my heart in my throat.

I gasped softly when I saw him lying in a bed, looking so still, I could have thought he was dead. He was extremely pale to the point where I could see his veins, and his skin had purple and blue splotches that told me he had been beaten so badly. I balled my fists in anger, but inhaled deeply to calm myself.

Breathe, Yasmina. Anger will only make things worse.

I slowly walked towards him, and it was clear that he was in a coma. He had the oxygen mask on his face and he had way more wires attached to his body than I previously did. The sight made me choke on a sob, and soon enough, I was crying uncontrollably hard.

When I touched his hand, it was so cold, I checked the cardiogram to make sure he was really alive. I was partly happy they had saved him, and I internally prayed for his recovery. I needed him back.

“Please don’t leave me,” I whispered sadly, the salty tears making my skin itch. I moved even closer, failing to recognise him from how he was bruised and hurt.

I realised all the times I took him for granted. I pondered on the times he was still healthy and active and how I'd hope he died. I took that back, I never meant that. My life didn’t have meaning if Kai wasn’t a part of it.

“Who will I race with at the slopes if you leave? Who will I go to when I need to cry? Who will ever love me the way that you do?” The silence in the room stretched as I asked his unconscious body.

He couldn’t hear me, but I needed to get it off my chest.

“I have loved you from the start. Hating you was just an excuse to keep me from falling for you too quickly, especially as my rival.” I laughed slightly, sniffling afterwards. “I want to make you happy, Kai. I want to help you find your mother, I want to hug you when life feels hard for you, I want to punch anyone who makes you upset. I want to be your everything.”

I smiled to myself before speaking again. “You know, when I woke up, you were the first person I thought of. In what I thought were my last moments, you were the only one on my mind. That’s just how much you have truly taken ownership of my heart, and I'm not complaining. You’re the only one who will ever have it.”

I leaned to place a kiss on his cheek, and I wiped my tear that had fallen onto his skin. It hurt knowing that I couldn’t wake him up even if I wanted to.

“I love you so much,” I whispered, the feel of his pale skin making me feel so much better than before. My heart ached, my eyes stung, and everything felt so fucking heavy.

I wanted to hear his voice. I wanted him to threaten me, but tell me he loved me afterwards. I wanted him to hold me and scare my demons away late at night, I just needed him back.

“Please come back to your little bunny, she’ll be impatiently waiting for as long as you need.”