Agent Moonlark

Chapter Ten

Sophie

Later that day, Sophie was on her way back to Keefe's room when she heard a soft "Hey."

"Hi, Fitz," she answered, avoiding his gaze. There was a time when all she had ever wanted to do was look into into his eyes forever, but now, the last thing she wanted to do was meet his gaze. For years, she had had a crush on him, but it faded when he got angry at her two years ago.

Two years and a week ago, Sophie had gone on a mission with Alden. Two years ago, she had come back, Alden being fatally injured. That day, Fitz had yelled at her for what seemed like hours, enraged that she came back without a scratch when his father might be dying. Sophie had never felt worse than she did that day. She felt ready to leave and never come back. The saying "Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me"? It was wrong. Fitz's words that day had hurt more than anything else Sophie had experienced. They broke her heart into a million pieces.

When had Alden gotten better, Fitz had apologized profusely. Sophie, of course, had forgiven him. But she never felt the same towards him again. And that was yet another thing she hadn't told her cognate.

"Where are you going?," he asked.

Sophie shuffled her feet, fidgeting. "To Keefe's room."

Fitz frowned. "What happened in the meeting room?" He tried to get her to look him in the eye, but Sophie refused to.

"Look, he just reminded me of someone I met."

"Who?"

"I don't know his name."

"Well, when did you meet that person? And-"

"Look Fitz," she said sharply, "I won't talk to you until you make things right with the Collective."

Fitz clenched his jaw and crossed his arms over his chest. Even without looking at him, Sophie could tell he was angry. "I just-"

"I know," Sophie said calmly. She put a hand on his shoulder. "We're all tired of losing so much. We're tired of the Neverseen always pulling the rug out from under us."

Fitz dug his nails into his palms. "We need to step up our game. The Black Swan want to go about this the way we always do, but I think we should try new things. We'll never win if we keep going on like this."

Sophie stayed silent for a few seconds before answering. "I agree. But getting angry at the people on our side, our leaders, is not the way, either." On that note, she brushed past him and marched in the direction of Keefe's room.

Keefe was lounging on his bed, playing with a vial of something green when Sophie came in and sat down next to him.

He looked up briefly. "Hiya, Foster!"

"Hi, Keefe," Sophie responded with less enthusiasm. She still didn't trust him.

Keefe held up the vial to the light streaming through his window. "Who should I prank first?," he murmured thoughtfully.

"Fitz," Sophie said because at the moment, he was being very annoying.

"And who is that?," Keefe asked, not taking his eyes off the vial.

"Biana's brother. Dark hair, teal eyes."

Keefe raised an eyebrow, mischief dancing in his eyes. "Ex-boyfriend, or something?"

Sophie felt the blood rise to her cheeks, and she started choking on air. "No," she said when she finally recovered. "I've never dated anyone before."

Keefe finally took his eyes off the vial and gave her his full attention. "So, what do you need? I mean, you didn't come here to talk about the Fitzster, did you?"

"The Fitzster?," she deadpanned.

"Seems like a good nickname," Keefe shrugged.

"Anyways," Sophie said. "Tell me exactly why you're here and what led up to it. Details needed."

"I might lie," Keefe joked.

Sophie punched his arm. "Not helping your case, here. Even if you lie, though," she shrugged, "it's better than nothing."

"Well, my mom is Agent Gisela, obviously. She called me to her office and said I had to somehow get into the Black Swan. She made me go to Foxfire High, where I met Linh and Dex. I would've told them, but Alvar was watching me too closely-"

"Wait," Sophie exclaimed. "Say that again," she said in a shaky voice.

"I said that Alvar-"

"Alvar Vacker?" Sophie desperately wanted him to say no. Alvar was Fitz and Biana's brother! He couldn't be part of the Neverseen. All she felt was numbness. A traitor. From their side. She didn't know Alvar that well. Nevertheless, her heart still sank when she realized that Alvar was betraying them.

Keefe's mouth made a round 'O.' His eyes darted around. "I forgot," he said softly. "You don't know. Well, we've long suspected the Vackers of being part of the Black Swan-"

"We?"

Keefe looked like he didn't know how to answer. "Well, I may be part of the Neverseen, but that doesn't mean I won't help you." His eyes glazed over, and he stared into the distance. "Maybe one day, I'll leave them. Scratch that, one day, I will leave them." He sat up, determination blazing in his eyes.

Sophie didn't know why, but a faint blush crept up on her cheeks. "Continue."

"So, my mom was ecstatic when he joined. She named him Agent Vanisher."

"Don't we, the Black Swan, already have an Agent Vanisher?"

"That's what I said. But my mom just answered that she wants to confuse you guys."

Sophie was having trouble taking in all this information. "How did you know that Dex and Linh were spies," she asked in a strangled voice.

Keefe moved a little closer. "I don't know. She never tells me anything. And I guess I like it better that way."

"Why?"

"Because I never liked being part of the Neverseen. Even as a little boy."

"But why do they kill?," Sophie whispered. That was what she truly wanted to know. It was the question everyone in the Black Swan asked. Heck, it was the question even the police officers thought about all day.

"Because my mom...she has...this vision. Of our world. She wants to reshape this country. So she's doing that by killing off rich, powerful, influential people. She claims it will be easier for when she - and I quote - "takes over the world." I know, cliché. She sounds like the stereotypical villain in a movie. Even I don't understand, though, why she does all this. I guess it's for us to find out."

Keefe

He wanted to be close to her so bad. At least as friends. But she was right to not trust him. He had told her the truth. Only the truth. Yet he wouldn't blame her if she didn't believe him. In fact, Keefe felt like he would never get angry at her. Never hate her. She was just so...perfect.

"It's 7:00," Sophie said, interrupting his thoughts. She glanced at her watch. We'd better get going. Dinnertime is, well, now."

Keefe nodded. "Lead the way, Foster."

A/N: I wonder who wrote the first kotlc fan fiction XD. I mean, there's always a first. Anyways, thanks for reading this far!