𝑲𝑶𝑻𝑳𝑪 𝑨𝒍𝒍

BONUS KEEFE STORY (FROM SHANNON MESSENGER)!!!

(This is not a fanfiction. It is written by the original author, Shannon Messenger.)

If you haven't read Nightfall yet, SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! Even the rest of this paragraph isn't safe, so if you snuck back here because you're channeling your inner Silveny (KEEFE! KEEFE! KEEFE!), you might want to wait. Don't worry, the bonus Keefe hilarity will still be here when you're ready! And now that I've sufficiently warned you—*pauses to give you one last chance to flee*— the pages you're about to read cover what Keefe was up to during his recovery. So imagine these scenes happening at the same time as all the crazy stuff Sophie & Crew are doing during chapters 36–60 of this book. Hope you enjoy! — Shannon Messenger

+ DAY ONE +

"Look! I'm all better!" Keefe promised, waving his arms and almost knocking over the ugly lamp on the table next to the bed. Not that he cared—he had big plans to trash all of Alvar's stuff as soon as he was done hiding out there.

"I might be willing to believe you," Elwin told him, "if you weren't gritting your teeth every time you move."

"What? This is how I smile now!" Keefe tightened his jaw and raised one eyebrow. "See? It's my brooding, mysterious look."

"Is that what you're calling it?" Ro asked, plopping next to him and bouncing the mattress so hard that Keefe almost let out a yelp. "All I'm getting is wannabe bad boy."

Elwin snorted a laugh.

Keefe glared at both of them, wishing he still had some of his favorite elixirs handy. He'd managed to slip some Hush Slush into Ro's dinner the night before and wiped out her voice for eight glorious hours. But somehow she'd managed to find all of his stashes—even the extra well-hidden ones.

The princess was good.

He was pretty sure she'd also put Gurgle Gut in his breakfast for payback—though if he was right, at least she'd suffer as much as he would when the gurgles broke free.

"I'm fine, okay?" he told Elwin. "I can live with a little pain."

"It'll be a lifetime of pain if you don't listen to me," Elwin corrected. He flashed a red orb around Keefe's torso and squinted through his glasses. "Just like I thought. You're worse today."

Keefe tossed back his covers. "Fine. Then the bed rest isn't helping, so I don't need to—"

He managed to get one foot on the floor before Ro bodyslammed him back to the bed, triggering a throbbing spasm that felt like a gremlin was chomping on his lungs.

"Both of you need to take it easy," Elwin warned, "or I'm bringing Keefe to my house and putting Bullhorn on guard duty."

"Um—he's, like, two pounds of fur," Keefe told him. "I think I can handle him."

"I'd love to see you try." Elwin dug through his satchel and pulled out a deep purple elixir. "But I'd rather you just take another dose of tissue regenerator and get some rest."

"I can always pry those pouty lips open and pour it down your throat," Ro added with a smile that showed every single one of her pointed teeth.

Keefe reached for the vial. Years of dealing with his dad had taught him it was easier to pretend to cooperate. So he chugged the medicine, even though it stunk worse than Alvar's stuffy apartment.