𝐂𝐀𝐍 𝐈 𝐓𝐑𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐘𝐎𝐔 + sokeefe and horror

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟑: a twisted plot

"Keefe, we have a problem."

It was on a sunny Sunday with Keefe in his room, sulking, when Biana burst in with Fitz, Dex, Linh, and Tam on her tail. It'd been about a week since Sophie had disappeared, and they were no closer to finding her. The Black Swan had been investigating the Neverseen and Spitting Caves, but they were still reporting "no change". 

"What?" Keefe asked, sitting bolt upright. "Have we found Sophie?"

"Uh... sort of." Biana replied hesitantly. "I think we found Sophie's kidnapper."

"Explain." Keefe said immediately, gesturing to his bed.

Biana exchanged a look with the rest of the group. Then she began talking. 

"Well, 2 days ago, Erica Douglass went missing." Biana said, biting her lip nervously. "Now, I know what you're going to say. No big deal - I mean, it's a big deal, but it's not related to Sophie. But Erica Douglass was Amy Foster's best friend. They were BFFs since Sophie had lived with the Fosters, and one of Sophie's wishes was that Erica Douglass was transported with them. Because according to Sophie, Erica was Amy's best friend and the only friend that was a good influence. So Erica was taken with Amy."

"That seems dangerous." Keefe interrupted.

"It was." Biana replied quietly. "The Black Swan had been monitoring Erica closely because she was the only one who had even a trace of remembering Sophie. The first time Erica came over - shortly after Amy got back from the Lost Cities - Erica asked about Sophie. Well, she asked if Amy had always been an only child. With some careful misdirection from Amy, Erica didn't think twice about this. But the Black Swan did." 

"That's... not good. And if she got kidnapped..." Keefe trailed off.

"Just wait. It gets worse." Fitz warned.

"For the past 2 weeks, Erica was being really weird about Sophie and Amy. She said Amy's house gave her a weird feeling and refused to come over. She was being super icy to Amy and started hanging out with other people. Weirdest of all, when her family took a trip to San Diego, she actually visited their old house. Erica started having a mental breakdown in the street, screaming about the 'memories that weren't hers' and 'the blue eyes' and basically going crazy. Some poor man called the hospital, where Erica was."

Keefe didn't say anything, but there was a cold feeling clawing in his stomach. He wanted the story to stop. But Biana kept talking.

"The Black Swan was watching her. They even sent one of their agents to pose as a doctor. But 2 days ago, Erica had a visitor. Her family kept saying that it was Erica's uncle, but the Black Swan was suspicious. One night, the agent was working the night shift. Suddenly, Erica's 'uncle' decided to go visit her at the hospital. Nobody saw the agent or Erica after that. The family swears that Erica's one and only uncle, Rupert, died 3 years ago."

Keefe stared at the wall. The cold feeling had swept over his whole body and was making him numb. "Why are you telling me this?" He finally asked, his voice as numb as his body.

Biana and Dex exchanged a look, as if there was one thing they were holding back. But Biana didn't say anything. She started chewing on her lip, as if debating whether or not to tell him something. She opened her mouth, but Tam interrupted.

"The Black Swan was monitoring one of the captured Neverseen. They found a wire attached to his brain, which must've been a super complicated surgery. They were sending messages directly into the dude's processing center so the Black Swan couldn't detect them. The Black Swan started monitoring it. Just today, a message came through. It wasn't much, the words were practically fragments, but one thing was clear: Operation Biến Dổi Gen has begun."

"What does that mean?" Keefe asked, knowing full well he'd regret asking the question.

"They scanned the letters. It's Vietnamese. It means Operation Genetic Mutation."