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Chapter 41 - Keefe

No.

That's all Keefe could think as he stared at Kalea, who also had two Neverseen members flanking each side.

He recovered quickly though. Keefe jumped in front of Sophie, trying to shield her. She was still leaning against Evren, fading in and out of consciousness. If any one of them tried to hurt her, he would absolutely lose it. 

"What do you want?" Keefe said through gritted teeth.

Kalea rolled up her sleeve, checking her watch. "It's almost been 45 minutes, has it not?"

Realization hit him like a tidal wave.

The bomb.

He turned back to look at Evren, hoping she might have an answer. But she seemed just as shaken as him, standing there hopelessly. Her face was pale as she managed out a few words. "But I... I... how...."

"You mean the desk? I'll admit, I wasn't expecting you to throw it at me." Kalea shrugged. "But I managed."

Keefe felt his blood boiling. There wasn't a single cell in him that wasn't fuming with anger. "How did you find us?"

"You're not nearly as quiet, nor as clever as you think," Kalea replied. "The cameras helped too."

"You didn't turn them off." Of course she hadn't. "What were you really doing then?"

"That's of no concern to you," Kalea said. Keefe watched as her gaze darted back and forth between the three of them, then settled on Sophie.

Kalea raised her eyebrows, leaning back onto her heels. "Ahh, I see. There's a girl."

Keefe's eyes narrowed, his anger intensifying by the second. "Don't touch her," He snarled. His tone was dangerously low.

"Is that..." Kalea stepped closer to them, but they had nowhere to back up. Her bright hair clustered at her shoulders, strands falling over the black cloak. He could feel his aunt's change in emotions when she realized who Sophie was. Her eyes widened, her surprise hard to hide. "This is that girl, isn't it."

Evren had pulled Sophie into a corner, who still hadn't managed to stay awake for more than a few seconds. Keefe stood in front, arms wide, trying to block her.

Kalea stalked closer, lowering herself until she was level with Sophie, eyes burning with that same psychotic flame. She whispered, her words coming out with a visible breath in the damp tunnels. "Sophie Foster."

Kalea reached out a hand, but Keefe was faster.

"I said don't touch her!"

He brought his arm down on Kalea's, who retracted almost instantly. Kalea took a step back, studying Keefe as he became angrier and his breaths more ragged.

"So they did find her," Kalea said. "Well, this is a surprise, but a welcome one. I wasn't even sure if she'd still be there by the time they arrived."

Keefe felt Evren's emotions drop deeper, matching his own. "You kidnapped her?" he demanded.

"No," Kalea contradicted. "I didn't. I heard she was in the area and sent some members after her." She turned to glare at one of the cloaked figures behind her. "Why was I not informed she was here?"

The member who answered had a squeaky voice, one he didn't recognize. "None of us knew she was here." Kalea arched a brow. "Ma'am," the member added quickly. "It was Ruy and Lloyd who left earlier today. They must have been monitoring her."

"Lloyd?" Kalea repeated.

"The new empath."

"Ah, right."