This Is Not The End.

Chapter 23

Kai and I stared at each other for a moment, and all I heard was the steady beat of my heart. I couldn't think, not until I heard my father hang up and walk away from the wall – even then it was difficult.

Kai didn't know what to say. Behind his eyes, his brain whirred for some sort of supportive comment, but when he finally opened his mouth all that came out was,

"Well shit, Skye,"

I stared at him with an open mouth and blinked. It wasn't fair that I'd just got my dad back and now he had turned against me. It didn't make sense that he was with SWORD, I couldn't even believe it. How could five years have changed him so much?

"Skye, c'mon," Kai muttered, pulling at my arm. When I didn't reply, he repeated himself gently and brought me back from the corners of hell which my brain was beginning to take me.

It wasn't fair.

Kai led the way back towards Jack. Counting up to one-hundred while Cara and a reluctant Sam raced to find a hiding spot, he leant against a wooden pole holding up a canopy which sheltered a couple of small fast-food vans, where the Resistance cooked their meals.

"Where the hell did you go?" Jack shot at us, "I've played three damn games of hide and seek and I didn't even realise that Cara was a fucking Ghost!"

Ghosts were what we called the Whites – the kids who could go invisible at will.

"Find a bench," Kai mentioned to the various benches and chairs which surrounded claimed fire pits. We didn't want a fire, we just needed somewhere to sit.

My head throbbed, and I needed to sit down. Leaving Sam and Cara to their game, Jack found an old picnic bench and he and Kai slid into the same side, letting me take up half of it as I hid my face in my hands.

I wasn't crying. I just needed the darkness to help me think. My head thrived with different ideas – like a conspiracy theorist had taken up residency in my brain – but I couldn't pick out one that made the slightest sense. I didn't want to believe it.

I'd just got him back; hell, I hadn't even had a chance to properly spend time with him again. It didn't feel right.

Kai ran Jack through what we'd heard, and his expression fell.

"So, what? Do we just leave?" he asked, shooting glances around at the compound just in case someone was listening in.

I shook my head, "We can't,"

"Why not?"

"Because something's happening here," I said, "And, we've got the raid in a few days' time. I made a promise to those kids that I'd get them out,"

"Skye, your dad..." Kai muttered, scared I'd snap at the words.

"I know!" I promised, "I do, but you heard him – something about Beck and I, and then there was that project... what was it called?"

"Noah's Ark," he said, "I remember because I started singing the song in my head,"

Jack and I both stared blankly at him.

"You know – 'The animals went in two by two, hoorah, hoorah...' not the time? Okay,"

"Anyway," Jack raised his eyebrows at Kai but moved on, "Are you sure it was your dad?"

"He literally said his name!"

"Okay! I'm just getting the facts straight," he promised, backing down.

"Sorry," I muttered, running a hand through my hair and getting it stuck halfway in a knot, "I'm just, on edge, is all,"

He nodded, "I know, I just want to be sure we make a good call here,"

I did too, but I didn't even know where to start. A part of me didn't want to believe any of it, the other part knew he'd been off from the start. Then, in the deepest part of my forgotten soul, one nerve wished we'd never left SWORD in the first place.

I didn't want to even think about that.

"It's not an easy call to make," Kai said delicately, "But it is yours – we'll follow you to hell and back,"

Jack didn't even move to oppose him.

I thought about it, my mind whirring with a war. I wanted to get out of there without an explanation, to have my dad lose me all over again so he knew what it was like, but I made a promise to myself and to all the other kids in the facility to get them out. I couldn't tell which was worse – here or in there. I was a dog and hell was my collar.

"We stay," I decided. "We stay until the raid, that's for sure. After that, if we have to, we'll run – apparently Canada's nice this time of year,"

"And your dad?" Kai raised his eyebrows, "You're just gonna let him get away with being the enemy?"

I nodded, "We're gonna watch him, make sure he's that type of SWORD groupie, then we'll work from there,"

"You really don't want to believe it, do you?" Jack said sadly.

"Gotta let a girl dream, my friend," I sighed. "Just leave David to me,"

"Skye..." Kai said delicately. I snapped my eyes up to his at the tone, I didn't like that tone. "He said something else, did you not hear him?"

"What?"

He glanced to Jack before going on, "You have a brother, right?"

"Yeah," I frowned, not wanting him to say what I knew he was going to, "Harry. I don't know where he is,"

"I do," he said, "And so does David,"

"Kai,"

"I think he's with SWORD," he said curtly, "They have him,"

I blinked, "What?"

He said something, but all I saw was his lips move. My brain started buzzing, and then I felt my eyes well with forgotten tears. Harry was alive. He was there.

"Hey, hey-" Kai swapped sides and put his arm around me, squeezing my shoulder, "-We're gonna get him. Remember the raid,"

"Yeah," I said, wiping my eyes with my wrist. "We're gonna get him,"

Harry and the rest of the kids back at SWORD, we were coming for them. I didn't want to believe it, no, but I had to. It didn't matter if it hurt my feelings or not, but my father was SWORD, and SWORD was the enemy.