Chapter 13 · The Signal Trap

"Move your hand, Lyra. Now."

Cain didn't ask. He grabbed my wrist and yanked me away from the console. The screen was still pulsing a frantic, violet glow—the exact encrypted ID signature of my brother.

"He's right there!" I shouted, wrenching my arm back. "Cain, the signal is less than two sectors away. He's actually here!"

Cain didn't let go. He slammed my arm down onto the metal desk, pinning me between his chest and the cold edge of the workstation. I could feel the heat radiating off him, the sharp scent of ozone and burnt circuitry clinging to his gear. He leaned in, his voice a low, dangerous vibration against my ear.

"You're seeing a ghost," he whispered. "And you're about to walk right into its mouth. Look at the frequency again. Tell me what you see."

I stopped struggling. My breath hitched as his chest pressed hard against my shoulder blades. I looked. The signal was too clean. Too perfect. It wasn't a beacon; it was a lure.

"It's... a loop," I whispered. The hope in my chest curdled into ice.

"Exactly." Cain snapped. He released my wrist, but he didn't move.