The Super Jerk Trilogy (Now 3-in-1)

18. Who's In Your Head

{Sarah}

It takes less than a day for Trevor to get on the task of finding the chip embedded somewhere on Kitty. I could tell he was still a little miffed that I even entertained the idea of her betraying us in any way, but at the same time he was grateful for my catching it. And through all of it, he seems to be thrilled at the idea that he gets to spend some quality time with his girlfriend. I send him a winking face, and I can hear his eye roll in his reply. Don't make me come over there, Campbell.

   I get down to the kitchen that morning to find Mom, Victor, Ettie, and Raina all awake already. Victor's at the stove, flipping pancakes, but I don't see Dad anywhere.

   "Did Dad leave?" I ask as I sit down next to Ettie.

   "He's out asking the neighborhood if they saw or heard anything suspicious," Victor says. "You know Dad. He can talk to anyone."

   "True. But the Red Knight can become invisible," I say, getting a noticeable tightening of Raina's fists on the table. "He probably would have been extra careful."

   "Dad's been trained as a lawyer." Victor stirs the batter a little, and then pours some more on the skillet. "Exhaust all resources, as he would say."

   "That's a very good point."

   By the time we're finished with breakfast, I see I have another text from Trevor. Got it out. You'll wanna come see this, Campbell.

   I'm so busy thinking about what that could be that I'm not looking where I'm going and run into Ettie coming down the stairs.

   "Oh...sorry..."

   "It's my fault," she says, her eyes sad. "I've been so preoccupied...thinking about Cam..."

   "He knows how to take care of himself, Ettie. I'm sure he's fine. And Green wouldn't harm him, not if he wants the Red Knight to still be his proxy." At least, that's the hope.

   "I hope you're right." She rakes her hand through her hair in a distracted manner, a gesture that's all too familiar. I've seen Cam and Raina do it too, especially when they get nervous, anxious, or scared. It must run in the family.

   I leave quickly after that. Mom's much better at operating under stress than I am, and besides, I'm concerned about Kitty right now.

   "Hey, Campbell, glad that you could come," Trevor says, when I've stepped out of the capsule.

   "Have you been waiting for me this whole time?" I ask as he beckons me into the control room.

   "What can I say, I'm eager," he says, shrugging.

   I see Kitty sitting on the desktop, pressing a paper towel to her arm. Her expression's strained, and her hair is wild, looking like she practically just rolled out of bed.

   "Hey, Kitty." I lean against the desk next to her. "You okay?"

   "Better," she says, brow furrowing. "I had no idea it'd hurt so much, though."

   "No numbing agent? What is this, the Civil War?"

   My attempt at humor falls flat, so I don't say another word until Trevor emerges from the back room, holding a petri dish.

   "Here it is, Campbell," he says, setting it down next to me. "Take a good long look."

   I lean forward and inspect it. The chip looks pretty ordinary, about the size of a thumbnail. There's still traces of blood on it, but other than that, nothing unusual about it.