Meanwhile, Kiara decided to go into the Petrova private library, which happened to be inside the public library.
For minutes now, she had been trying her private card on the access panel, but...
Access Denied.
Written in bold letters. The bright red light mockingly against her pretty face, her breath catching violently in her throat as her heart thudded a sharp, angry beat against her ribs.
"What is happening? I always get in. Is something wrong with my card?"
She looked at her card and, yes, it was definitely the same card she had used to enter the last time she was here.
Then she went to meet her mother in the library. Her steps sped up across the room, her eyes flashing with heat while her throat tightened with rising frustration...
"Mommy, my library card is broken...."
Kiara said to her mother, who was sitting behind the counter. She slammed the small card onto the surface, her lungs heaving with a sharp draft of air as her pulse thundered in her ears.
"Good afternoon, daughter," Ms. Petro greeted. She didn’t even look surprised that her daughter was in the library, coming from the inside, even though she hadn’t seen her enter in the first place. Her voice was smooth and undisturbed, her chest rising in a slow, tranquil wave as she adjusted her reading glasses.
"Mommy, I need your access card to the private vault. I need to get something." Kiara demanded instantly.
"I do not have a card." Ms. Petro stated flatly, setting her pen down without a single second of hesitation.
"What! You are the Keeper. You are supposed to have every access." Kiara barked out, her jaw clenching hard into a rigid line while her breath burst from her lips in pure disbelief.
"After what happened, a very important book disappeared from the vault. The council made a decision that only one card should be made for the vault." Ms. Petro explained calmly, her breathing remaining completely even as her eyes held her daughter’s frantic gaze.
"Alright then, give it to me. I just need to get some important books for my study. It’s holiday week, and I need knowledge." Kiara pushed quickly, taking a fast step to the side while her chest swelled with a desperate, pleading breath.
"I’m afraid I don’t have the card. I just mentioned it, right?" Ms. Petro replied softly, shaking her head as she let out a quiet, lingering huff of air.
"Then who has it?" Kiara needed the card badly because of her deal with Starpants and Co. She hardly comes to the library...
"Your dear sister has it.... You can go meet her." Ms. Petro answered smoothly, tilting her chin up as her chest rose in a slow wave.
"Why do I need to ask her for everything? She doesn’t even care about the family. She isn’t even carrying the family’s last name...." Kiara spat out bitterly, her cheeks flushing hot with sudden rage as her lungs pumped out heavy, furious gasps.
"She is the eldest and will be the next Library Keeper." Ms. Petro countered firmly, her tone dropping into an unyielding frequency that made Kiara’s throat lock up tight.
"Oh really, so you are making her your heir, huh? I thought the rules had changed. The second child is to inherit it all." Kiara sneered, her chest heaving wildly as her pride flared up like a roaring fire.
"Kiara, stop with the tantrums. You never liked the library anyway. It’s a surprise that you are here...." Ms. Petro scolded gently, her posture remaining perfectly still while her breath came out in a tired exhale.
"Oh, I am the one with the tantrums now? I used to be the one you called your heir, the one who was going to be the next Petrova library Keeper, but now I am just a waste product to be thrown in the trash." Kiara shouted out softly, her voice cracking under the sudden weight of her hurt, her heart skipping a painful, erratic beat against her ribs.
Hearing her daughter say that, Ms. Petro came out from behind the counter and placed her hand on her daughter’s shoulder, her lungs filling with a deep, maternal breath as she reached out to soothe her child.
"You are not a waste. You are my darling daughter. I will never discard you. Your other mom is doing everything to help and prevent the future." Ms. Petro murmured softly, her fingers pressing gently into Kiara’s tense shirt, her own heart thumping a quiet beat.
"Where is she now? She isn’t here. For 5 years now, you have been saying the same thing, but I do not see any progress...." Kiara cried out, slapping her mother’s hand off her shoulder with a sharp, aggressive jerk, her breathing hitching in violent, ragged gasps.
"Not just your mom, your sister too. She is working on it. She will fix it all." Ms. Petro insisted quickly, her chest rising in a worried, frantic heave as she took a half step forward.
"Don’t give me false hope when she happens to be the one who put me in this situation in the first place. I heard you the other day. You told the council that you only have one daughter, and I am just a sacrificial lamb to be offered. I will be 18 soon, what is the progress...?." Kiara snapped viciously, her eyes flashing with cold, terrifying hatred as her pulse boiled in her veins.
"Kiara, it’s just 5 months, Kiki...." Ms. Petro pleaded softly, her hand reaching out into the empty space between them while her breath caught tight in her throat.
Kiara did not wait for her mother’s false words. She turned on her heel with sharp, violent speed, her heels stomping hard against the floor as she marched straight out of the building, her chest heaving with suffocating, angry breaths.
She just went outside the library.
Kiara got to the car to see her girlfriend snoozing on the steering wheel. She ripped the car door open in a fast, furious motion, her lungs pulling in hot, harsh drafts of outdoor air.
She entered the passenger seat and slammed the door so hard that it woke Bambi up. The metal frame rattled violently against the frame, the loud bang echoing through the enclosed space like a gunshot.
"Aaahhhhh!!" the girl shouted, jolting up like she had just woken up from a horror dream.
Then she turned to see Kiara. Bambi’s eyes blinked rapidly, her shoulders dropping as she pulled in a long, shuddering gasp of air to settle her terrified body.
"Did you not sleep at night? Why are you drooling on my steering wheel?" Kiara shouted at the girl. She glared across the seat, her chest rising and falling in fast, furious waves while her jaw clamped tight in sheer irritation.
"I’m so sorry. Sleeping in the hostel is harder these days. It’s all noisy, and the cold ground is not satisfactory...." Bambi apologized quickly, rubbing her sleepy eyes with the back of her hand while her voice trembled, her breathing short and embarrassed.
"I pay you money daily, and you sleep in a hostel. Can’t you afford a hotel or rent an apartment?" Kiara demanded, as her pulse continued to race from her earlier fight.
"My boss ran away, and me and the orphan kids have been trying to pay off his debt and reclaim the house we used to live in. I have been using the money to take care of them, and Kraven is working on the debt. I would have more money, but I can’t even afford to pay rent for my garage....." Bambi said. She lowered her head, her fingers fidgeting nervously in her lap as her chest rose and fell in small, timid puffs of air.
Kiara looked at the girl. Her eyes narrowed as she took in Bambi’s messy hair and tired posture, her own fast breathing slowly dropping into a cold, quiet cadence.
"Why are you telling me your personal life story? It’s not part of the contract." Kiara snapped flatly, turning her head away to look out the window, her lungs expanding with a sharp, distant breath.
"I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. You asked...." Bambi whimpered softly, her throat going dry as her heart thuttered a quiet, submissive beat against her ribs.
"Whatever..... I want to grab a bite at Pizza Hutt and then go to the hotel....." Kiara commanded smoothly, waving her hand dismissively in the air as her pulse finally settled down into its steady, arrogant rhythm.
After having pizza, Kiara didn’t actually eat. She had just sat back in the booth, her eyes watching Bambi devour slice after slice while her own chest rose in slow, continuous waves, her stomach completely tied in knots from her anger. She had just used it as an excuse for Bambi to eat without making it obvious.
Then they stopped by the Kings Hotel.
Bambi thought it was just their usual routine. She took a fast, deep breath, her pulse picking up a familiar, nervous rhythm as she reached up to undo the top buttons of her shirt, preparing herself for what always came next.
Instead, Kiara told her to sleep instead of doing their thing. Kiara tossed the keycard onto the nightstand, her low voice cutting through the quiet room as her own lungs pulled in a long, weary draft of air, pointing firmly toward the huge, comfortable bed before walking over to sit by the window in complete silence.