Caught(2)
The entire ploy was to gain control of the Artefact, and if the reptilian hadn't shown her cards now by speaking, Daneel would still have remained clueless.
Now that it was all exposed, though, he almost felt like a blockhead.
Not even a moment after this realization struck him, one of the blows of the one from the Church who had gone head-on with the Head before was deflected in just the right manner to fly towards him at a dazzling speed that showcased the fact that he had not stayed idle over all these months.
He was much more powerful than he had been before, and if Daneel had not had the system upgraded recently… He would have had no option but to activate all of his barriers and take the blow, which would have shattered quite a few of them and left him worried for his life.
If he had not seen through the acts of the assassins, this blow might even have seemed totally random…even though the feline creature had done it on purpose.