Kate wakes up to a throbbing head and aching pain throughout her body. It takes a few seconds for the wooziness to go away and it doesn't help that the room is so dark she can barely see anything. For that matter she can't even move, her hands secured tightly around the pole behind her.

"You okay?"

Even if she can't see Richie, it's a relief to know she's not alone. "Where are we?"

"Underground somewhere. There's a strip bar on top of us, probably a few levels up."

"How do you know that?"

"I can hear horny dudes howling at strippers," he deadpans. "And the chicken wings smell pretty good too."

All she hears is dead silence. "Can't you use your culebra superpowers to get us out of here?"

"If I could, I would've done it already."

"Why can't you?"

"Because, Kate," he says in an irritated tone. "They have me cuffed with pure silver, which is like culebra kryptonite."

"Oh."

Silence ensues, and her mind wanders back to the monster who had killed Rafa and was ready to shoot her dead not too long ago. Dread washes over her again remembering the cold, ruthless determination in his killer eyes. "Do you know where Seth is? Have you talked to him?"

"He's fine," Richie answers dismissively. "What kind of trouble are you up to? What the hell does this freaky cowboy wannbe want from you?"

"Me? He's after you and Seth! He almost shot me in Mexico just to get to him. If it wasn't for Rafa, I'd be dead right now."

"Who the fuck is Rafa?"

Just thinking about him hurts. "Never mind."

"So what does he want? What kind of trouble is Seth in?"

"The kind you should blame yourself for. The reason this guy is after the two of you is because of your soul-sucking monster of a girlfriend."

"I see you picked up my brother's small-minded attitude."

"He's wrong about a lot of things but not when it comes to Santanico. She is a monster."

There is a brief pause before he starts making conversation again.

"So you really shacked up with my brother in Mexico."

"I didn't exactly have a choice."

"Why? Did he kidnap you again?"

"No," she replies begrudgingly. "I was the one who asked to go with him."

"Why?" Richie asks, genuinely surprised.

"Why not? Thanks to your girlfriend, I lost everyone in my family that night. Last thing I wanted was to be alone."

"We all end up alone, sooner or later."

"Sounds like things are going great with you and Santanico," she bites out. "Hope she was worth destroying so many lives over."

"Don't be such a brat."

"Fuck off!"

"You don't know anything about her or what she's been through."

"And I don't care. I have no interest in joining her fan club."

"I should've realised you're too immature to have a conversation with."

"Funny, that didn't stop you from hitting on me before."

"Still hung up on that kiss, huh?"

"Get over yourself. I have."

"Sounds like you're still carrying a torch for me."

"And it sounds like you're still crazy."

The air is thick with tension, and she realises she must have hit a nerve.

"I. Am. Not. Crazy."

"That's not what I've heard."

"You shouldn't believe everything Seth says."

"I don't. I think he thinks you're still under Santanico's spell but that's not true, is it? Everything you've done, you did because you wanted to. And you'd make all the same choices again, wouldn't you? You'd destroy all those lives just to get what you want."

"You need to keep your mouth shut right now."

"I'll take that as a yes," she mutters.

Her arms are sore, and as hard as she tries to wriggle out of her cuffs, she can't. Attacked by a dizzy spell once again, she closes her eyes.

"Take deep breaths, and count to ten. It'll help you feel better."

She grudgingly follows his advice. Eventually he starts to count with her, and it helps to distract her as she focuses on his voice. After a while, the pain goes away and she's back to feeling normal again. "Can I ask you something?"

"You just did."

"How can you be with her after everything she's done to you?"

"You don't want to know the answer to that."

"Why not?"

"As Jack Nicholson put it so succinctly, you can't handle the truth."

"Don't make assumptions about me. You have no idea what I'm capable of."

"Tell me then, Katie-cakes. What are you capable of?"

His mocking tone is downright insulting, and one she refuses to put up with. "You're an asshole. I don't know why I thought there would still be something decent in you."

"I've never been accused of being decent before."

She contemplates his words, mulling over them. "The first time we met I thought there was something good in you. But it's long gone now."

"That was a front," he replies, his voice cold and distant. "An act designed to get close to you."

" Yeah, I know. Because your girlfriend needed me as a substitute to take her place in the temple."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

She exhales a bitter laugh. "Did you think I wouldn't find out?"

"Explain," he commands in a bossy tone very similar to Seth's.

"Santanico wanted me to take her place in the temple, to distract the nine lords long enough for her to escape. Isn't that why you flirted with me? Why you kissed me? You pulled out all the stops to make sure I wouldn't leave the Titty twister that night, even when I begged you to."

An eerie silence fills the room, and she wonders what lies he's coming up with to justify his actions.

"I didn't know," he finally says, providing no further explanation.

"You really expect me to believe that?"

"I knew there was a reason you had to be there with me that night, but I didn't know Santanico had anything to do with it."

As pathetic as it may sound, she wants to believe him. Is it possible he had no idea about her being the sacrificial lamb?

"You kissed me first, not the other way around."

And just like that, her resolve to stick it to him strengthens. "Go to hell."

"You kissed me first, Kate, and I was willing to let you go, remember? I won that knife-throwing contest, I got those keys and I was ready to give them to you."

"And then Santanico showed up on stage and you forgot about everyone else." The bitterness is evident in her voice, try as she might to hide it.

A door slams in the distant, and her heart starts pounding. Even though she can't see anything, she can feel someone approaching her.

Richie's panic-stricken voice cuts through the darkness like a shrill scream. "Don't you fucking touch her!"

Hearing the fear in his voice, she grows more afraid. Suddenly the knot around her wrists loosen but before she can even stand someone starts dragging her body on the floor. "Let me go!" she yells, kicking her legs blindly in the air.

Richie's violent threats echo throughout the room, but it seems to have no effect on the person pulling her away.

Thanks for reading! I wanted to write something Kate/Richie-centric because there's so much left to explore between them. Anyway, hope you guys read and enjoy!

Also, I will be borrowing some of the rules from the True Blood universe so some of the vampire stuff may seem familiar to fans of both show.