Disclaimer: I don't own YuGiOh and I think we have established at this point that no one can own Seto Kaiba.

One Mistake Seals Fate

Chapter 4

Ari Nieche was going out of her way to avoid him and Seto Kaiba was amused to no end. The façade of the former CEO of Nihm had been completely shattered and a vulnerable, easily intimidated girl remained. Not everything about her nature had been a show. The fact that she continued to artfully fend off his inquiries with undiminished fire spoke volumes for her character. Even knowing she was trapped, she continued to despise him openly. The dance was entertaining, but his patience was wearing thin.

The last few weeks had been exhaustingly busy, but she retained a place in the back of his mind. It had proven difficult tracking her down as she had an uncanny knack of sensing his nearing presence and was certain to escape the offending area quickly. Ari was elusive, but she couldn't elude Seto Kaiba forever.

Her efforts work against her, he thought as he stood in the doorway. Ari had dozed off on her keyboard, a screen saver of tropical fish on the monitor telling him she had not been sleeping long.

With a wicked grin, he slammed the door behind him. Ari's head snapped up and she looked around wildly. Turning in her chair, her wide startled expression quickly flashed from alarm to anger.

"Kaiba," she muttered, her gaze flickering around the small office to find she was alone with the tenacious CEO.

"Did you honestly believe I would let you squander your talents down here forever?"

She glanced futilely at the closed door behind him, her anxiety clearly revealed.

Time for some fun. "Your program is amazingly effective, for being so simplistic."

Her pale eyes sparked at the veiled insult. The last few weeks had been especially high stressed and starving herself because she spent all of her advance on a computer system made her tolerance non-existent.

"It's too good for your company and you know it!" she snapped.

"Mokuba could have written a more effective program in half the time," he smirked.

Ari leapt to her feet and immediately regretted it. Her vision blurred and she grabbed the back of the chair to steady herself.

Kaiba frowned. It didn't take an observant eye to notice she'd lost a considerable amount of weight again.

"What are you doing to yourself," he demanded.

"What's it matter to you," she snapped, latching onto a window of clarity. "I pay my dues! I owe you nothing!" Her eyes blazed with something more than defiance and he felt a twinge of alarm.

Suddenly her eyes widened as if sight evaded her and a slight gasp escaped her slender throat. Kaiba leaped forward as she collapsed, going down to one knee to catch her. Swearing softly, he cradled her limp body against his chest and stared down into her pale face. Brushing the back of his hand across her forehead, he was not surprised by the unusual warmth.

"Stupid woman," he muttered, lifting her slight body into his arms. "Stupid."

Distant voices intruded on her dark world and out of habit, she strained to listen, but only tones and pitch reached her.

Was that my name? Who's talking about me? Kaska, are you there? Please, don't leave me….

"She is suffering from severe malnutrition," the doctor explained. "Any idea when she ate last?"

Kaiba glanced through the open door at the unconscious woman. "Are you saying she's been starving herself?"

"I'm afraid so. Her body is responding readily to the intravenous nutrients, but her fever has yet to break. When it does, we will keep her for several days to build up her strength and to be certain that she will respond to solid food. After this much deprivation, there may be some unpleasant side effects to eating again."

"She is to receive the best care, is that understood?" Kaiba demanded.

"Yes, Mr. Kaiba."

He turned back to the door and stared at her for a moment. She was beginning to stir in her feverish sleep, her hair darkened with dampness as she fought her nightmares.

"You're not getting away with this, Ari," he growled under his breath.

The hospital staff was both pleased and surprised with Ari's ravenous appetite. She ate everything put in front of her, even the tapioca pudding that was frequently mistaken for lemon jello. Within four days her strength had returned rapidly, though her stomach was still a little touchy at times.

She decided the only pleasant thing about the hospital was the free food. But once she found out Kaiba was the one who brought her in and held sway over how long she was to stay, an army couldn't hold her. She suffered a fleeting moment of pity for the staff who would have to inform Kaiba of her self-release, but it was fleeting. The comfort of home beckoned, to sleep in her own bed, and she didn't care how he would react.

A more observant, even healthier person would have noticed the changes in their own home. Food in the fridge and cupboards were unnoticed as she made a beeline for her bedroom. She collapsed weakly onto the soft blankets and barely had time to snuggle into the pillows before she drifted off.

Bright sunlight stirred her hours later and she smiled, turning her closed eyes towards the warmth. Her apartment was blessed with full afternoon sun. A dark shadow passed between her and the light and her eyes opened curiously.

She groaned before she could stop herself.

"Have a nice rest?" Kaiba asked.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded.

"You left the hospital without permission."

"I didn't need permission," she snapped as she made to get up.

He grabbed her shoulder and pushed her down with scarcely any effort. Ari strained futilely against his hold until she was nearly breathless. Kaiba watched her struggle with dark scrutiny. He was hardly applying any pressure to her shoulder and could easily keep her pinned until she yielded to the fact that she was at his mercy.

Finally she settled back into the blankets and glared at him with renewed loathing.

Hate is good. It means she's back to her old self.

"The doctor said you starved yourself. Why? What happened to the advance I gave you?"

Even without the tight grip on her shoulder, she could not have moved under the power of that piercing gaze. Her expression reminded him of a cornered rabbit as she formulated a believable lie.

"I had a pressing debt," she said quietly.

"Would it have anything to do with the system on your desk?"

She followed his gaze and swallowed hard. Her new laptop and 380 cache were where she always left them, set up on her desk for quick and easy access.

"You have an eye for quality," Seto observed, "and a daunting security program."

Ari turned her pale eyes on him with apparent dismay. He hacked into my computer!

"That's invasion of privacy!" she gasped and he arched an eyebrow.

"You think? I disagree since I couldn't break through your firewall. I find it hard to believe you are so stupid as to spend every last dime on such a powerful system without reason. Considering I just spent thousands on a hospital bill because you starved yourself nearly to death, I think you own me an explanation…if not more."

Ari frantically surged forward with startling energy, but Kaiba quickly pushed her down again, his grip tightening fiercely until she winced.

"So what if I did?" She demanded. "I earned that money. I can do what I want with it!"

"You fail to understand your foolish choices endanger my corporate assets. This is not personal, Ari, its business!" His even white teeth snapped savagely on the words.

She suddenly felt subdued. "Is that what I am? An asset?"

Why do her innocent eyes disturb me? Seto gave himself a harsh mental shake, but the clear ring of hurt in her voice rattled him. Much of the fight had left her, but he no longer desired to interrogate the depleted woman. There was still another, perhaps better, way.

"I expect to see you at Kaiba Corp in two days, no sooner or later," he ordered, releasing her shoulder and standing.

Ari withheld a sigh of relief. Hesitantly, she sat up on the bed and unconsciously rubbed the lingering warmth from her shoulder.

Kaiba's sharp eyes followed the action. "My secretary stocked your fridge. Make sure you take advantage of it." Turning on his heal, he disappeared and the room suddenly felt uplifted and free.

Ari fell back onto the pillows and stared helplessly at the ceiling. What am I going to do now? What can I do? He knows I'm up to something and he'll have it out of me one way or another. How much longer can I keep evading him? All he has to do is stare at me with those glacial eyes and I can't…I can't….