Chapter 8 · Blood and Static

"Don't you dare touch that button," Elias hissed.

His hand clamped down on Nora's wrist like a vice. She jerked back, but the bond flared—a hot, jagged spike of shared adrenaline that pinned her in place.

She glared up at him, chest heaving. "My sister is in that convoy, Elias! I'm not letting her get hauled into the Core while you're busy having an identity crisis over your twin!"

"It's not a twin," he snapped. He didn't let go. His thumb pressed hard into the soft skin of her inner wrist. The heat of it made her breath hitch. "It's a ghost. A puppet. Trigger that hidden route now and you're not saving her—you're ringing a dinner bell for every Enforcer in the sector."

Nora twisted, nearly slipping his grip. "Then give me a better plan! Watching her on a screen while some freak with your face plays house with her life isn't cutting it."

Elias yanked her closer. His chest brushed her shoulder. He smelled of ozone and old blood—sharp, suffocating.

"We don't just hit the convoy," he murmured, his voice dropping. "We dismantle it. I need that transport intact.