Page 166 of Keeping Kasey
“Not yet,” James answers. “But it’s only been a few hours, so we haven’t been able to do a full assessment of our men. If this is a traitor, we should have a name by the end of the day.”
“The only name you need isKasey. Bringing her back here was a mistake, and now we’re suffering the consequences,” Matteo grumbles.
Damon laughs humorlessly. “You realize she’s here so we can getridof the traitors, right?”
He shrugs. “As far as I know, she’s here to distract us long enough to organize the traitors into launching an attack.”
“She’s not,” James says, the certainty in his tone pulling our attention to him.
At my questioning look, James sighs, standing to pace. “We talked while Ford was in here yesterday, and when I asked her if she would’ve gone back for Kane if given the time, she said no—that it would’ve been harder to stay hidden. But she also said she thought he wasbetter offat the manor.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Matteo asks in a clipped tone.
“Kane isn’t just her dog—he’s herfamily. Having to leave him out of necessity is one thing, but she’d never think her family wasbetter offin the hands of enemies she’s actively scheming against.”
“Or maybe she just knows you’re not evil enough to slaughter an innocent dog,” Matteo suggests.
“Maybe,” James grants, “or maybe she knows we’d never hurt Kane because we’d have no reason to. She might hate us, but she doesn’t want to hurt us.”
Why the hell is this the first time I’m hearing about this conversation?
“What else did she say?” I ask curtly and, as if reading my mind, James flashes a brief apologetic look.
“That she wasn’t in contact with anyone while she was gone—no one who would know her location, sell her out—”
“Or leave me a note,” I finish.
“She’s just as much in the dark as we are,” he says with a nod.
“All of this is assuming she’s telling the truth,” Matteo notes. “And we know for a fact that she’s lied before. Why are we taking her at her word now?”
“Because she’s different,” Damon tells him, a kind of distant look in his eyes. “Whatever happened while she was gone, it changed her.”
“Why do you say that?” I ask.
“She’s been off since she got back—not just angry, snarky, and her usual stubborn, but distracted. Almost sad. Today has been the worst yet.”
So, I’m not the only one who’s noticed.
“Distracted by the plans she’s making and guilt-ridden,” Matteo explains, dropping his hands into his lap with an exasperated sigh. “You’re just proving my point.”
“Why would she make the Seeker if she was planning to go after our family in the long run? Why go through the trouble?” Damon asks.
Matteo shrugs. “To sell it to the highest bidder. To distract us from whatever she’sreallyplanning. To fulfill the orders of whoever she’sactuallyworking for. And let’s not pretend it’simpossible that there is noSeekerto begin with. It could be an elaborate ruse to distract us so she can install something worse. I can think of countless reasons why she’dgo through the trouble.”
“And none of them are correct because Kasey isn’t behind this,” I grit out. “That line of thinking is a waste of time. We’re done entertaining it.”
“With all due respect, the odds of this being unrelated to Kasey are minuscule,” Matteo argues, but he’s dropped the defensive edge in his tone.
Damon folds his arms over his chest. “He’s not saying it’s unrelated, just that she isn’t responsible.”
“We need more information to form our next lead,” I state. “Matteo, handle everything at the warehouse. Tell soldiers there’s been an error that we think is purely clerical, but it’ll be investigated thoroughly. James, if this is a traitor, I want to know immediately so we can sic our team on them before they get far.”
James nods and immediately leaves my office. Matteo sticks around for a moment longer, making his disdain for the course of action abundantly clear before he follows.
When it’s only Damon and me, I ask, “How is today worse than normal?”
“She seems tired. It’s the same disheartened look she had the night she came back,” he says. “Did something happen last night?”
