“Can you?”
And there it was.
The question Sophie had been trying so hard not to let herself ask.
Could she fix Keefe?
Could anyone?
“Only one way to find out,” she said, mostly to herself.
Grady grabbed her hand as she turned for the door, and as his fingers pressed against her skin, she realized she wasn’t wearing her gloves.
She technically didn’t need them anymore, now that she’d learned how to switch off her enhancing. But she still tended to wear them as backup.
Maybe it was time to start believing that abilities truly could be controlled.
“I can help him,” she told Grady, pulling her hand free and continuing forward without going back for her gloves.
“I hope you’re right. But finding him is going to be harder than you think. I watched him spin to a random facet on his pathfinder and leap wherever it led.”
“Was it a blue crystal?” Sophie asked, feeling her stomach go thud when Grady confirmed it.
Keefe really was in a human city.
And the city could be anywhere.
Grady gently pulled her closer. “I know you hate letting your friends take risks. But Keefe can handle himself—”
“No, he can’t! Keefe doesn’t know how the human world works. He doesn’t have any money, or any kind of ID, and he doesn’t speak their languages.”
Well… he was a Polyglot now, so he might be okay with the last one—but that wouldn’t get him very far.
“Humans have tons of laws about loitering and trespassing,” she added, “so you can’t just show up and expect to find shelter—or food and water. They have a million other rules too, like when you’re allowed to cross the street, and how late you’re allowed to be out at night. A lot of times it can be hard just finding a bathroom! And every country is different, so if he moves around, that’s only going to make it worse—especially since Keefe’s terrible at keeping a low profile. Even if he tries to keep his head down, people are going to notice how good-looking he is—by human standards,” she quickly clarified, feeling her cheeks burn. “I lived with humans for twelve years, and I doubt I’d be able to hide there without ending up with Child Protective Services or something. He could get himself arrested. Or hit by a bus. Or—”
“I’m not saying you’re wrong,” Grady jumped in. “But… I think you’re also forgetting that Keefe’s not exactly safe around here.”
He wasn’t.
But neither was she, as everyone loved to keep reminding her.
And they never would be, until they stopped the Neverseen—which they’d have a much better chance of doing if they worked together. Yes, Keefe’s new abilities were probably scary—and his mom was absolutely going to try to exploit them. But there had to be a way to use his powers against her.
“I have to try,” she said, stepping away from Grady. “If I can’t find him…”
She didn’t know how to finish that sentence.
Hopefully she wouldn’t have to.
Grady dragged a hand down his face. “Just… promise me you’ll stay in the Lost Cities.”
“She will,” a high, squeaky voice announced from the hallway. “I’ll make sure of it.”
Sophie fought the urge to roll her eyes.
She’d had enough experience with her overprotective goblin bodyguard to know that Sandor would be coming with her. She’d honestly been surprised he was willing to let her out of his sight after he brought her home from Solreef. And she was grateful to have his protection. She needed it now more than ever.
But she was also done being cautious—and Sandor was going to have to get used to that.
If Keefe was in the Forbidden Cities, she would be going after him.
Still, she’d learned to fight Sandor one battle at a time—and at the moment, she needed more information before she could figure out the smartest plan. So all she told him was “Let’s go” as she headed upstairs to the Leapmaster.
“Go where?” Sandor, Flori, and Grady asked as they trailed behind her.
Sophie studied the giant orb made up of small, glittering crystals dangling from the roof of Havenfield’s cupola. “Ro wasn’t with Keefe, right?”
“He was alone,” Grady confirmed.
Sophie had no idea what lengths Keefe must’ve gone to in order to sneak away from his ogre bodyguard. But she was sure Ro would do everything in her power to find him—mostly so she could torture Keefe with humiliating punishments.
“Splendor Plains,” Sophie called, turning to Flori as the Leapmaster shifted into motion. “Are you coming with us?”
“I’d prefer to have Flori stay here and continue organizing the new security,” Sandor cut in.
“As you wish.” Flori closed her eyes, swaying like a tree in a storm. “I hope our moonlark doesn’t worry too much. I hear songs of change in the air. But they’re not unhappy melodies. They sing of freedom. And new opportunities.”
Sophie wished she could hear the same tunes.
The only sound in her ears was her heartbeat, hammering like a war drum as she took Sandor’s hand and stepped into the light, letting the rushing warmth carry them away.
TWO
JUST AS I FEARED,” SANDOR muttered as he marched through the main entrance of Elwin’s colorful home.
Sophie peeked around his huge gray body. “Really? You were afraid we were going to find this?”
The downstairs level of Splendor Plains was framed by glass walls with panes in every tint and tone of the spectrum—a giant, empty space, save for a single armchair and table in the center, which were both toppled over. Elwin and Ro were crouched beside them, in the middle of some sort of bizarre showdown. The ogre princess held several stuffed animals with her sword pressed against their throats, while Elwin seemed to be using telekinesis to make a dozen shimmering vials hover around Ro’s head.
“Hey, Dr. Sparkles could’ve spared his snuggle buddies if he’d taken me to find Funkyhair!” Ro shouted, angling her blade to target the stuffed boobrie. “Instead, he chose to be stubborn. So now his little birdie needs to pay!”
“Harm one thread on Boo Boo,” Elwin warned, “and I’ll have glitter pouring out of your body for the next three days!”
Ro gritted her pointed teeth. “I told you, I’m not afraid of your elf-y potions! But it looks like I won’t need your help anymore.” She nudged her chin toward the letter still clutched in Sophie’s hand. “Let me guess. Captain Mopeypants told you he’s running away forever, and you’ve dragged Gigantor here on a quest to save our reckless boy from his terrible life choices.”
“Pretty much,” Sophie agreed. “Any idea where he went?”
“Not at the moment.” Ro sheathed her sword with a little more force than necessary. “I’d been planning to catch him at your place, since I knew he’d never disappear without some sort of mushy goodbye—but someone refused to take me.”
“Refused?” Sophie stumbled back when Elwin nodded.
“It’s not how it sounds,” he promised. “I found Ro crawling around upstairs with two dead legs, and—”