Page 24 of King of Ruin

“Regardless, killing the girl would do nothing but put us in the dark.” Shi shuffles next to Kilo and lowers her voice. “We’re going to get her back.”

She can try to deny it, but I hear the doubt. The fear. It intertwines with her words and paints them in a vibrant shade only a true killer can pick up on. And I see it. Just as I saw it when Fiona spoke. It seems as if she doesn’t know much more than we do.

But for now, it will have to do.

Three days.

If I don’t have Onyx back in the next three days, the entire city will burn.

In no world did I ever think Kane would bring me breakfast again. Not in this life, at least. But after a soft knock and a quick fumble of the door handle, he walks with two plates in his hands, proving me wrong.

Wearing a similar outfit as yesterday, it’s easy to make out the full-sized water bottles poking out of his tailored suit pants. He uses his freshly polished loafer to close the door behind him, before casually sitting down on the floor and leaning his back against it.

Smart, considering it’s the only spot I can’t reach with my new chains. Their short length allows me enough room to perch my ass on the nearby toilet and to stretch out my legs, but that’s it. Shame, since I only need about a three-inch reach in order to kill a man.

“Which one?” Kane asks, lifting both the dishes.

I scoff. “You think I’ll take breakfast from you? I’m sure it’s poisoned.”

His nostrils flare twice. “Not only have I told you I won’t hurt you, but I proved it to you by feeding you yesterday.”

“So I’m alive to see your father’s plan come to fruition? No need to play coy anymore. We both know who you really are.” I ignore the obvious hurt that flashes over his face, causing his shoulders to drop slightly.

“You don’t know anything about me. Not really.”

“Enlighten me then,” I challenge, letting my gaze drift to the full plates in his grasp.

Both hold two over-medium eggs, three slices of slightly charred bacon, and a cluster of berries.My usual.Swallowing around the burn piercing through the back of my throat, I peer up at him.

He lifts the breakfast slightly.“Eat with me and I’ll tell you.”

“And if I choose not to eat?”

He shrugs, places the paper plates on the concrete, and pops one of the blueberries in his mouth. “Then you don’t eat.”

Kane doesn’t elaborate. Nor does he goad about how foolish it is to pass up food considering I’m not sure how much I’ll be offered. But also, if he decided to poison the food, there’s a lot worse things I could feel than death.

I know, because I’ve done it before. There was a man we caught one time who was stalking my casino dealers on their way home before assaulting and robbing them. Maddy held him down while I spoon-fed him a cake that had him leaking from every possible hole and screaming for death.

Such horrible things can come from beautiful plants.

“When I was a kid, the only breakfast I knew how to make was frozen waffles.” Kane picks up a strawberry this time. “One box didn’t last long enough though, and they were too expensive, so I learned how to make eggs. Those are much smaller and easier to steal, you see.”

He slides me the plate he’s been nabbing fruit from, stopping a few inches away from my chains. On closer look, the eggs have been cut, which makes it easy for me to scoop them up with the bacon.

No fork means no tool to pick a lock or stab someone in the jugular.

How annoyingly astute of him.

“We didn’t get many channels on the TV, but late at night, I’d stay up and watch the infomercials that’d come on. The ones that go on for hours and always feature some type of Tupperware.” He grabs a piece of bacon now. It’s perfectly browned and crispy, and the edges are slightly charred.

My stomach cramps, filling the small space with evidence of my hunger. He does me the courtesy of pretending not to hear it, which only vexes me more.

“Anyway, they taught me there are a dozen ways to make an egg, and with how nutrient-dense they are, I decided it would become an everyday meal addition. My baby sister didn’t care for them too much at first. She usually played with them and ended up throwing them across the damn room. But eventually, I found out she only likes egg whites. Not scrambled, but over easy. Then she wanted the yellow taken out. It was like performing surgery every morning.”

He uses his bacon to scoop up some of his eggs and takes a bite. When he glances back at me, something foreign crosses his eyes. Something too close to uncertainty to make any sense.

“Why didn’t your father buy you food?” I ask, finally taking the bait. I tell myself it’s not because I want to know more about Kane, but about his relationship with Phineas.

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