Wrong Place, Wrong Time

Chapter 18

***This is pretty much the aftermath of last chapter - it needed to be in the book to keep things realistic and easy to follow LOL I should have something more substantial for you Wednesday. I'll try for tomorrow, but don't hold you breath - unless I get a burst of wakeup energy, I'm taking advantage of a day I can sleep in before going to class/work <3

Also, I'm thinking this book is going to take until the beginning of November to finish. Not posting everyday has really helped me focus better/enjoy my chapters better, as I'm sure you can imagine. But I'll post the cover and foreword (no book material) for "I Always Wished" on November 1st, and I'll start giving you guys the story within a day or two of finishing this one. Right now, it looks like it'll be about the length of INK.

I'm surprised Celine Dion hasn't shown up in the series yet, but here she finally is. I apologize for my 90's vibe lately LOL And this song is semi-cringworthy, just a warning.

You guys are the best!***

***(Lloyd's POV)***

Kai's the one to pick us up from town. Jay and Nya were oddly silent throughout the walk there, which bothered me. Jay would usually be complaining about why the heck we had to walk to town if we had service at the water tower. Of course, a vehicle driving along the backroad to the water tower would draw attention, that's why, but Jay doesn't typically think those things through.

But the fact that he was so lost in his own thoughts, he didn't complain at all...that's weird.

We're currently all seated in the Ultra Stealth Raider – Kai's driving, I'm next to him, and Jay and Nya are awkwardly sitting a seat apart in the back.

Nya said they hid under a blanket, but it sure looked like it was a lot more than that to me.

I clear my throat. "So, um, Kai, we found out Mr. Peters is actually Nadakhan. Which makes sense – I was wondering why someone from foster care would give off such weird vibes."

"And say so many pervy things," Nya adds. "That guy just plain gave me the creeps from the start. Cole should've let me knock him over the head with the pan earlier! We could've trapped that slimy Djinn!"

"Wait – Peters is Nadakhan?" Kai exclaims. "Well, no wonder we didn't find anything on him on the Internet! I knew he was too weaselly to have no record!" Kai slams his palm against the wheel, jerking the vehicle roughly to the side.

This is why we never let him drive on missions.

Jay pulls out his phone. "I'll call Cole and let him know what we've found out. I guess if the six ninja bring the news to the foster care system that they have a phony in their midst, they'll probably listen to us, right?"

"I would imagine so," I reply. "And when they reevaluate the monastery as a foster home, I want all of you to be prepared! That means Nya and Seliel will be fully clothed and playing dolls together, Kai won't be coming to the kitchen for any queso, Cole will not be the one to show the government official around – "

Nya rolls her eyes. "And you won't leave the training course open. What's up with you lately? You're so distracted."

"Nothing's up with me," I huff.

Just...that I hate myself for still loving Harumi after all she's done. I haven't had the guts to tell Kai, Nya, or the police about Harumi and the nudes yet, but I'm sure the conversation with Rumi was caught on security camera at Kryptarium. The staff there trust me with Harumi, given that I could blast her to next week if I needed to. They typically don't monitor our visits.