Chapter 83: Shock

More hours passed. I slept a little. I had no idea how long I had been in here. It could have been a day. It could have been a week. It had only been two meals, so maybe it could have only been twelve hours. I really wasn't sure anymore. Thinking about it was starting to drive me crazy. I was hungry again, but I knew when I was bored, I got hungry.
I thought about Liam. I thought about Remi. I thought about Angandriel. My mind wandered all over the place. I spent a lot of time thinking about what was keeping Mr. Kline. That thought made my stomach churn. I wasn't really concerned about rotting away in here forever, at least not yet. The thing that scared me the most was what he would do when he got bored with me.
Voices echoed down the hall. I listened closely.
"I understand," Mr. Kline's voice echoed as they walked closer.
"She's not your pet. I need her for the ritual." My heart froze. I'd recognize that voice anywhere. It was Mila.
"I said, I understood."
"Don't get short with me. You may be the leader of the low lives around here, but don't forget who I am," Mila snapped. Her voice was still hers, but the tones were much sharper than when she had been herself.
"Yes, Dark One."
Footsteps followed. Mr. Kline appeared and sat on his chair facing me. He leaned his bearded chin on his hands over the top of the chair and watched. I pretended to be asleep. He sat for a long time without moving. I waited. Hours went by. I replayed their conversation over and over. He was working with the darkness. That meant Remi was here somewhere. This was the closest lead I had on Remi since I killed my mother.
My lips formed his name, but I didn't dare say it with any voice. I didn't need Mr. Kline knowing about him. I wondered if angels and demons would be under the same restrictions in this cell. I knew I couldn't do any magic, but could they? That could be an out. If my life was threatened, then maybe one of my guardians could pop in and pop me out. There was only one way to test that.
I decided to wait until Mr. Kline left again. It took forever, but eventually, he did. I climbed from the bed. My muscles ached from being still for so long. I took the clean butter knife off the plate. This was going to be hard. I sawed at my skin on my wrist. Slight red marks appeared, but not even a drop of blood. I would have been better off trying to cut myself with my own nails. The knife clattered to the plate.
I looked around for something else. There was nothing sharp. I could stab myself with a fork, or even a spoon, but neither of those seemed like a great idea. If the knife wouldn't do the trick, then those would be fairly useless. Wait, wait. I could heal myself once I was in the cell. I could do any magic outside my body, but could I do it inside?
I brought magic to my fingertips. I could see the pink sparkles starting to shimmer. I pushed more power into it, drawing on my reserves. Bits of pink lightning zapped between my fingertips. I set my hand across my chest.
"Shock," I commanded.
The lightning zapped my heart. It sped up. I gasped. It was like hitting a supercharged electric fence, but I was still alive. I had to give it more juice. I pulled everything I had taken from the brothers. I forced it into my hand.
"Shock," I commanded. I forced that power into my heart.
It felt like I was being crushed in a vice. It felt like I was falling. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't do anything. My body went limp. My eyes remained open, but I saw only black.
The next thing I knew, I was staring up into Mr. Kline's face. I was hyperventilating as he lifted my shoulder to a sitting position.
"Breathe, Kira. Just slow down," he said with so much calm it was patronizing.
My eyes darted across the cell as I looked. None of my guardians had shown up, new or old. But the cell was open. I gasped in longer, slower breaths. I had used up my magical reserves, but if I could just gain enough breath, I could make a run for it.
Mr. Kline was rubbing my back. The feel of him touching me made me cringe. I slowly sat all the way up then used the bed to climb to my feet.
"Easy now," he said as he helped me up to the bed.
I didn't sit. I was overacting my gasps as I pulled them in one long wheezing breath at a time. I could this. I just had to act fast. Here's hoping my body was up to the challenge.
I pulled my arm forward the elbowed Mr. Kline in the gut. I throat punched him, kicked him in the shin, and then ran for my life. My heart was still racing, and my breath still hadn't completely recovered, so my run looked like a drunken stagger. I managed out the door and down the hall before his footfalls started after me.
I clung to the sides of the other cells clawing my way forward as my feet carried me clumsily. I tried to bring magic to my fingertips, but I was out. I had nothing left. I had used it all up. I needed more. If I was going to get through this, I needed to find something to suck energy from. Wait... I stopped. My fingers clung onto the grate of a cell to keep me from falling. I looked back over my shoulder. Mr. Kline was straightening as he rubbed his throat.
He extended a hand to me. I focused. I saw the black lines of his aura extending from him and connecting to my body. Even if I ran now, I would be done for, so I waited. I waited until that black smoky aura was completely wrapped around every part of me. Then, I pulled. I sucked, and I pulled at his energy. The black aura started seeping into my skin. It faded as I absorbed it.
Mr. Kline pulled his fingers like a puppeteer. I saw the black line connected to my arm move. I moved them in the direction they indicated. My leg moved next. I continued to suck as I mimed what he thought he was doing. I got closer to him. He thought he was controlling me completely. I kept the smile from my lips. Instead, I frowned and widened my eyes like I was horrified.
"Oh, Kira. What a poor plan. Did you forget that I have complete control over you?" He leaned in closer. I could smell the wine on his lips. "Did you forget that you can't resist me?"
I wanted to barf. I let him continue his speech. It made him happy. I distracted him from what I was doing to his magic. How I was feeding on him. Ick. That was a nasty thought. I didn't want any part of this guy inside me, but I needed his energy.
Mr. Kline smiled. "Kira, Kira. All I ask for is your loyalty. I want to be friends. Your body is already loyal to me. See?" His magic pulled at my limbs, so I leaned in closer to him. "Now, I just want your mind. I will protect you, I promise. Just say an oath to me. Say, yes, Master Kline."
I sucked in the last of his black aura. I put my hand on his chest. His eyes widened in surprise as he realized that wasn't something he made me do.
"Kira?" He asked.
"My name's not Kira."