Page 61 of Forgotten Promise

Was that too slow? Was she right on schedule?

Kailani had no idea. Frankly, the keyholder protocols were stupid. They needed to be updated, damn it. Encrypted emails would have been instantaneous, just as secure, and all three keyholders could have been in Hawaii within twelve hours of the call.

Now, best-case scenario, they were at the waihona this evening Hawaii time.

The chauffeured black SUV pulled into the long, curving drive, stopping at the front door.

Kailani was sliding across John’s lap to get out even as the driver asked Benjamin if he should wait.

John exhaled heavily—she might have accidentally elbowed him—as she all but fell out of the car. He followed her. Kailani shivered despite the sweater. She’d packed for Boston, but no matter how many layers she wore, she always felt cold when visiting this part of the world.

Her boots splashed through a small puddle at the foot of the white steps as she raced for the door. It had been a gamble coming here at this hour. The keyholder might be at work. Finding them at their job could prove time-consuming, given what they did for a living, so she’d pinned her hopes on this person being at home.

Kailani dug one hand under the high cowl neck of her sweater and pulled out the key, while the other raised the brass knocker set in the center of the black door.

John stepped up beside her, one hand going to her back in a faint touch before dropping away. A reassuring “I’m here if you need me” touch.

Footsteps thudded on the other side of the door, and then it swung open.

The man who opened it looked pissed.

He was black, tall and broad, appearing broader when he crossed his arms. The tight Henley he wore clung to the muscles of his arms. His gaze bounced from her, to John, to a spot just over her other shoulder, where Kailani guessed Benjamin was standing.

The man groaned in disgust. “There’s three of you. That means this is some cult shit.” He turned away from the door, stalking back into the house. “Other cult members are here, and I’m not in the mood for this!” he yelled out as he walked away.

Kailani blinked, glanced at John, then looked the other way, at Benjamin, who’d stepped up beside her.

“Lovely manners,” Benjamin said mildly.

There was the clatter of feet on the stairs, at the same time they heard a door open and close somewhere in the house.

A white man wearing thick black-framed glasses approached the open door, his frown of confusion more curious than pissed. A slender woman with Asian features and long dark hair came down the steps, ducking as she did in order to see the door.

“Hello,” she said, voice formal and a bit cool as she cleared the bottom step.

“Tell them I still have ‘Baby Shark’ queued up and I’m not afraid to use it!” The first man’s voice echoed from somewhere in the house.

Okay, so these three were…odd. Kailani ignored that, focusing on the woman. “Dr. Tanaka?”

Doctor Selene Tanaka, professor of theoretical nuclear physics at Cornell, smiled as she approached. “I’m Professor Tanaka.” She frowned, glancing between Kailani and Benjamin, then shook her head. “And you are?”

“Members of your same organization,” Benjamin said in a cool, collected tone that matched hers.

“So you say,” she agreed. She was calm, waiting, but gave off the impression that she was so intelligent most conversations were beneath her.

“Dr. Tanaka—” Kailani started.

She raised one brow. “I prefer Professor Tanaka. Technically professor is a higher title than doctor.”

Kailani cleared her throat, refusing to let the fact that she was intimidated by this woman derail her. “I believe you have another title…” Kailani touched the chain, drawing attention to what she wore around her neck. “Keyholder.”

Selene’s eyes widened, her mouth falling open. She morphed from intimidatingly intelligent and poised to wildly excited. Her expression was now oddly familiar.

“Oh my God, it’s HAPPENING. It’s happening!” Selene grabbed Kailani’s shoulders. “Keyholders. How cool are we?” Selene yanked Kailani into the house.

“Um, Dr. Tanaka…Professor Tanaka. We need to go. There’s a private plane set to take us to the—”

“The backup Batcave? Excellent. Where are we going?”

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