Chapter 51 · The Keeper Found

"Mara, get away from the console!"

Ronan's voice hit the control room speakers before his hand even touched me.

I spun around.

He stood six feet away, soaked to the knees, one palm pressed against the steel door. Blood ran from a cut at his temple. His eyes locked on mine.

Then the speakers crackled.

"Mara," the same voice whispered from inside the walls. "Come closer."

Ronan's jaw clenched. "That isn't me."

"I know what your voice sounds like." I backed away from the console. "You rejected me on every screen in Briarport, remember? Kind of hard to forget."

His mouth tightened. "This isn't the time."

"You don't get to pick the time. You don't get to use my name when it suits you, then call me a threat when the Council starts asking questions."

The control room bucked beneath us.

Black water punched through the floor grate between us. It surged across the cables, blue sparks snapping over the surface. Every monitor flashed red.

GATE SEVEN: KEEPER SIGNAL DETECTED.

Ronan shoved away from the door. "They found us."

The locks slammed down behind him.

One.

Two.

Three heavy bolts drove into place.

An intercom crackled.