Here you are!

Chapter 10

Sophie gulped. What was she about to get herself into? She forced her legs to move towards the front door. Brant wouldn't try anything with Fitz and Keefe there would he? She knocked. No answer. Somehow it didn't surprise her that no one answered. There was no need to knock again. She could sense no one was at home. Her hand twisted the doorknob, and she walked inside. A weight suddenly landed on her shoulder. It was Fitz's hand. Sophie didn't flinch. It gave her confidence knowing that he was there. She looked around. There was dust everywhere. It looked like there hadn't been anyone here for a long time.

There was only one thing that was out of place; a silver box in the middle of the floor. Sophie walked over to it. It was shiny, and there was no dust on it. She had just reached down to touch it when it emitted a loud beep. Sophie was startled so bad she fell backwards-right into Keefe's arms. "S-sorry. What was that?" But Keefe didn't have time to answer. A figure was appearing right over the box. It looked like some sort of hologram. The figure gradually gained its shape. It was Brant. Chills went down Sophie's spine, and multiple feelings coursed through her body. Confusion? But she wasn't confused. Why did she feel this way? Then it hit her. Keefe was still holding her. Her empath powers had picked up on his emotions. She gently shrugged under his grip, and he let go. He must've realized it too.

The figure opened up his mouth and Brant's unforgettable raspy voice echoed throughout the room. He spun around and his gaze fixed upon Sophie. He let out a croak that must've been a laugh. "So, you thought you found me did you? I'm not that easy kid. Oh no. I'm not easy at all. I'm powerful. Powerful enough to kill." Sophie stared. Kill? "My mind's not broken. I'm not insane. In fact I'm the closest thing to sane. All these people have power, but they don't use it. They could do so much more. You could do so much more, Sophie. But, oh no. Use your powers for good. That'll get em'." He let out another croakish laugh. "I've been planning this for a long time. All those years in isolation were not wasted. They helped me. I needed to be alone. To reach my full potential. To finally understand who I really am. To plan my revenge."

His crooked line of a mouth twisted into a sneer. "Enough chit chat. I'm guessing you're wondering where I am. Find me. I don't think it'll be that hard. Here I'll be nice and give you a little motivation. If you don't find me in the next 24 hours, someone will die. Someone you care about. Do you want a hint? Of course you do. They have periwinkle eyes." Brant winked. The hologram flickered then disappeared. Sophie swayed on her feet. Fitz reached out and steadied her, but she hardly knew he was there. He had Dex. Anger burned through her body. Brant was supposed to leave other people out of this. If he wanted her, she'd let him take a go at her, but no one touched her friends. Fitz suddenly withdrew his hand from her shoulder with a look of pain on his face.

"Sophie! You're hot!" It took Sophie a minute to realize which definition of hot he had been using. The tips of her hair were smoking. She calmed down. "What time is it Fitz?" He told her the time. "Okay, keep track. We only have 24 hours. Let's go." Keefe and Fitz just stood there. Sophie turned around in exasperation."Come on. Don't you see? He has Dex. What are you waiting for?!" "Sophie, aren't you going to tell anybody? He sounds dangerous. We could get some help from my dad." Fitz said uneasily. Sophie clenched her teeth. "He is dangerous, and he has Dex. Brant wants me, not your dad. I have to go. If you don't want to come, fine, but I have to do this." She stormed out. They were supposed to be on her side.

Tears were filling up in her eyes; she could feel them, but she wasn't going to let them fall. She was going to be strong with or without Fitz and Keefe. Suddenly she sensed a presence behind her. She turned around and let out a sigh of pleasure. Fitz and Keefe were standing there. "We're coming." Before she could stop herself, she had run over and pulled them both into big hug. She let go and saw that both of them were blushing furiously. "Come on. Let's go!" At that moment though it dawned on Sophie that she didn't know where to start. A overwhelming feeling of despair rushed over her.

She closed her eyes and did the only thing she thought might work. She felt for Brant's thoughts. Her mind pushed farther than it had ever gone before. Her brain was pounding. A tickle of a feeling pricked at Sophie's conscience. She had to keep a connection. Her hands tightened into fists. She…was…going… to… make… it… "Ahhhhh," she gasped as Fitz grabbed her shoulders. "Sophie! Sophie! Come off it! Can you hear me? Are you alright?" Somehow she knew he was there. Somewhere. Wait, was she upside down? She didn't know; it felt like it. Swirling colors danced behind her eyes. Her head was going to burst, she was sure of it. Slowly all the colors faded and the real world came into a blurry focus. Sophie stumbled. "Fitz?" she said uneasily. "I'm here, Sophie. Don't worry.

Sophie couldn't see clearly but it felt like his arms were wrapped around her. "Here let me take her." said Keefe. "Uhh no. It's okay. I got her." Bitterness covered Fitz words. Despite Sophie's muddled mind, she could sense an argument coming on. "Guys, it's okay. Just set me down." Fitz sighed heavily and set her down. Slowly the world became clear. "Why did you break my concentration?" Sophie asked the two boys angrily. "I was almost there." "Uhh, Sophie. You were turning into the color of the moon juice," Keefe said. Sophie's mind flashed to the bright maroon liquid. "I was what?!" "You were turning purple Sophie." said Fitz camly. The slender blonde looked down at her hands. They were tinted a faint purple. "But- I- that's never happened before."

"It's probably just a side effect of your abilities. And I hate to break it to you, but we're wasting time." "Right. Yes. Okay, I did get a slight connection from over there." Sophie pointed towards the forest. "I don't know if it was just a glitch or something. It was really faint. I could've just been so desperate I thought I made a connection." Keefe shrugged. "It's worth a try." The three companions set off towards the forest not quite knowing what they were getting themselves into.

At Havenfield…

"I'm here. I'm here. What's the problem?" "It's Sandor. He's- oh I don't know- he's not moving." Edaline said. "You mean Sandor, Sophie's body guard?" "Yes. He's upstairs." Elwin ran up the stairs and stopped when he saw Sandor on the ground. " Give me a hand here?" Grady asked with impatience as he tried to lift Sandor and place him against the wall. "Right. Sorry. I just- I thought Sandor was-" Elwin's voice trailed off. "Yeah we all did." Grady heaved Sandor's back up so he was leaning against the wall. With a grim expression, Elwin bent down and started examining the large body guard. "He's alive." "Oh thank God." Edaline said as she appeared at the top of the stairs. Grady let out a sigh of relief. "I'm going to go tell Sophie."

Grady approached his study and found the door unlocked. His heart skipped a beat. "Sophie?" He opened the door. "Sophie?!" his voice was panicky now. "Oh my Gosh. Oh my-okay. Okay." Grady pulled out his imparter with shaky hands. Alden's face appeared on the screen in seconds. "Alden we have a problem…"