Keefe was doing some skill training with Alvar when Ruy interrupted.
"Time to go! Looks like someone has entered one of our hideouts, and no one should be there right now."
"So it's probably not one of our people then," Alvar noted as they followed Ruy out of the room.
"Obviously," Brant sneered as he joined them. "And as such, Fintan wants us to investigate."
Keefe said nothing, following their lead, but was silently begging the void please don't let it be Sophie.
He didn't want her anywhere near any of the Neverseen ever again.
But of course, Keefe rarely got what he wanted.
Sophie was there, alongside Fitz and Tam.
He was filled with dread as he looked at her—and saw the moment when she realized that he was there too.
And felt the nauseating wave of panic she sent his way.
He hoped she wouldn't let concern for him keep her from doing whatever she needed to fight her way out of there.
She mattered. He didn't.
"You?" She breathed, looking at him.
Ruy trapped Fitz and Tam in a shield before they could attack, and was about to trap Foster too when Brant stopped him—even after Ruy reminded him that she could inflict on them.
"But she won't," Brant told him confidently. He grabbed Keefe and dragged him closer, holding flames just under his face. Keefe's fear heightened as he wondered what kind of torture he was about to face. "She still cares about this one. And she knows I'll melt his face off if she misbehaves."
No, Keefe thought desperately. Don't let that stop you, Foster. I. Don't. Matter.
"He's one of us!" Alvar shouted.
"That's still up for debate. But he can prove it now." Brant moved his flame-fingers closer to Keefe's throat as he used his still-functioning hand to retrieve a Ruewen crest pin. "I think I've held on to the past long enough, don't you?" He asked Foster in a taunting voice.
He shoved Keefe closer to Foster and held the pin into the flames.
Before Keefe knew what was happening, he pressed the red-hot brand into Keefe's palm.
He knew one second of relief that Brant hadn't attacked Sophie before the searing pain made him thrash and scream. He gritted his teeth, trying not to show just how badly it hurt. He could feel Foster's terror as she watched him.
And he knew the terror was just as much for him as it was for herself.
"Now," Brant told Keefe, finally removing the pin. "Show her that same pain. And in case you're having trouble following along, Sophie, here's how this is going to work. You tell us where you're keeping Wylie, and I'll have lover boy here put the scars somewhere only you can see them. Try to resist, and he'll give you the same makeover you gave me. And if you fight me," he added, looking at Keefe again, "I'll melt off parts of your body one by one. Starting with your fingers."
Panic blurred Keefe's vision and almost eclipsed the pain in his hand.
Lover boy?
How did Brant know about his feelings for her?
But Keefe had meant what he'd said about there being hard lines he wouldn't cross.
He would not have burned Tam, much less Foster.
He would die before he hurt her that way—or before he let anyone else do it, either.
Even as terror and rage coursed through him while he tried to figure out how to get his friends safely out of this, he could feel Foster's desperation. He knew she, too, was trying to figure out how to get out of this situation.
And knowing her, she was probably also trying to find a way to rescue him while she did so.
Suddenly, Brant flinched and his flames snuffed out. But Keefe barely registered that fact as his world dissolved into agonizing pain. It seemed to permeate every inch of Keefe from head to toe as he lost all sense of self, collapsing to the floor.
He had no idea how long that lasted. The first thing he was aware of was perhaps the only thing that could possibly have gotten through to him in that moment: the sound of Sophie's mental voice filling his head.
If you can hear me, Keefe, try to fight through the darkness. The pain's not real. Shove it aside and come back to the surface.
So Keefe tried to pull himself back to reality. Even in the pain, he knew without a doubt that he would always come back for her.
The first thing he was truly aware of was someone—undoubtedly Sophie—gently pulling him into their arms. The murmur of voices overhead slowly came into focus.
"I don't think it's safe to leap Keefe until he's out of the daze," he heard her saying to the others.
"Leap...where?" Keefe managed to grunt between labored breaths.
She held him tighter. "I'm so sorry--I couldn't take them down without hurting you."
Keefe tried to smile, looking up at her. "Admit it...Foster...you're enjoying this...a little."
"Never," she insisted in a choked voice.
He could feel that. He knew just how guilty she felt, having to hurt him in order to take down the others. She was heartbroken over it.
In a way that made Keefe feel fairly swoony, in spite of the pain.
"It's not that bad," he promised her. And the pain really was starting to recede.
Until he tried to open his blistered, blackened hand. Ow.
"Remind me to kick Brant in the junk a few times once he's awake."
"Only if I get a turn," she said. "Physic has lots of burn salve at Alluvettere. I'm sure she'll get you fixed up."
"Physic? Why not Elwin?"
"Tam's the only one who has a leaping crystal with him, and he's been living at the hideout. We kinda came here by accident--it's a long story. I'll tell you once we're back in the Lost Cities."
"He has a crystal to Alluveterre?"
"Yeah. Why?"
Keefe closed his eyes. He knew what he had to do.
But he hated it.
"What's wrong?" she asked. "Is it hurting?"
Yes.
"No, it's..." He took a slow breath and pulled himself up, cradling his injured hand. "I can't go with you guys. I know you think this fixes everything--but Fintan's vision is huge. And all of this will only be a small setback. We still need someone on the inside--"
"Do you really think Fintan will trust you after you let everyone get captured?" Foster interrupted. "Think of what he did to your mom, and she only cost him one prisoner. Look at what Brant just did to you!" She grabbed his wrist, forcing him to look at his oozing wound. "Would they do that if they trusted you?"
He turned away, trying to hide his shudder at the thought. "That's why you have to let me take Alvar."
"Yeah, that's never happening," Fitz growled at him.
Keefe couldn't find the courage to look his best friend in the eye.
Please don't hate me.
"It has to. I know it's brutal--but think of the bigger picture. If I bring Alvar back, I'm the hero who saved one of the team. And Alvar's the safest one for me to take. He's always believed in me--you heard him defend me when Brant sparked the flames! And he's never killed anyone--"
"No, he just kidnaps people and watches them be tortured," Foster snapped.
As if Keefe wasn't fully aware of that fact?
As if it didn't make Keefe queasy to have to buddy up to Alvar, pretend to be his friend, pretend to still look up to him, now that Keefe knew he'd played a part in Sophie and Dex's kidnapping?
That was...unforgivable.
"Believe me, I'll make him pay for that--but right now we have to play this smart. Ruy and Brant are part of Fintan's plan, so take them, lock them up, and have Forkle interrogate the crud out of them until we find out what they know. But they'll only know a piece, so I'll use Alvar to keep my 'in' and learn the rest. I'll be safe. Fintan...likes me."
"Dude, save your daddy issues for another time," Tam ordered. "Fintan doesn't care about you, He doesn't trust you. And if you go back to him, he'll destroy you."
Keefe couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Don't you need to go fix your bangs or something?"
"You can hate me all you want," Tam told him. "It won't mean I'm not right. Admit that now, and you might still have a chance to fix what really matters. Or you can wait until you've lost her. It's your call."
Well...that meant Tammy Boy knew.
"Lost who?" Fitz asked.
Thankfully, Fitz still didn't seem to know.
Tam shook his head. "We need to go."
"Tam's right," Foster said, standing up. "Come on, Keefe. You've never going to get another chance like this. I've tried for weeks to figure out how to get you away from them, and this is it. You're safe. You'll be long gone before they realize what happened. And we'll hide you somewhere until we shut down every single one of their hideouts connected to the symbol. And that'll be the end of it."
"But it won't be," he mumbled. "That's what I'm trying to tell you. There's still so much more to do."
"Then do it with us," she begged him, holding out her hand.
He stared for just a second, desperately wanting to take her hand and never, ever let go.
He reached for her hand, letting her help him to his feet. He leaned on her, regaining his strength as he looked her in the eye. "I know what matters, Foster," he whispered, unable to help himself. "And it's all that matters."
He felt as her emotions shifted, looking up at him, and inwardly cursed himself for what he was about to do.
This could've been such an intense moment for the two of them. Even in front of Fitz and Tam. If things were different, he could've kept this going. She was so open and vulnerable and desperate to keep him close.
But he couldn't. Not right now.
Even if Tam was right...it was a risk Keefe would have to take. He had to do the right thing, keep fighting the fight, even if it meant burning his bridges with his favorite person. Favorite people.
Keefe was used to not getting the things he wanted out of life.
So even as Foster's heart fluttered, Keefe lunged for Tam, catching him off guard, and snatched the Alluveterre crystal from his hand.
"What are you doing?" Fitz shouted as Keefe ran over to Alvar and hefted him over his shoulder.
"I bet I can trade this for the information I need to steal the caches. And I'd stay back if I were you," he told Fitz and Tam. "You don't want those guys waking up if you jostle them around too much, do you?"
"Then drop him with your inflicting," Tam told Foster.
But she didn't. She probably couldn't.
"Please don't do this," she begged him. "If you leave here with that crystal, you'll trap us--and you'll compromise Alluveterre."
"The Black Swan can sacrifice one hideout for what this will get me," Keefe said. "And you can teleport. There has to be a cliff around here you can jump off to get the momentum."
"Are we supposed to haul two bodies with us as we try to find it?" Foster argued.
"Use your telekinesis. You're the amazing Sophie Foster. You'll figure it out."
"And you're making a seriously huge mistake," Tam warned.
"Maybe. I'm pretty good at that--but I'm even better at fixing things. That's still what I'm trying to do here. Trust me."
"How?" Foster's voice cracked. "After all the times you've lied or ignored us or betrayed us? How do we ever trust you again?"
"I don't know," he admitted in a whisper.
"And I don't know if I can forgive this one," she whispered back.
Keefe swallowed hard, eyes focused on his feet as he nodded. "Yeah...I can feel that. And if you needed proof that I'm not doing this for me--that's it, okay?"
But he could feel just how un-okay it was.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, looking at Foster. "You have no idea how much. I'm also guessing this means no more check-ins. So please, please, please be careful. Keep your bodyguards close and know that I will end this."
He stepped onto the Lodestar symbol.
"Oh--I forgot to tell you," he mumbled. "I finally know how the black disks work. If you have the one you need, and you give the right command..."
He moved to a circle at the end of one of the rays and whispered, "Gwynaura."
With that, he leapt away.
Heartbroken.