Chapter 21 · Mirror Image

"Step away from her, Cain. You're out of your league, and we both know it."

Victor’s voice was a ghost. A perfect, haunting echo of the boy Lyra had grown up with.

He didn't look like a monster. He looked like Leo. Same slope of the nose. Same wide, innocent eyes—only now they were cold. Stripped of everything that made Leo *Leo*. He stood in the sterile white light of the vault, relaxed, like he owned the air they were breathing.

Lyra’s knees buckled. She didn't hit the floor because Cain’s arm snapped around her waist, hauling her back against his chest. He was shaking. Not fear—rage. She could feel it radiating through his tactical gear, hot and jagged.

"He's a fake," Lyra whispered. Her voice cracked. "That's not him. My brother is... he's in that machine."

She pointed a trembling finger at the pulsing mass of wires and flesh in the center of the room. The real Leo. Or what was left of him. A living battery. A scream frozen in circuitry.

Victor laughed. It was light, melodic. It made Lyra want to vomit.

"Fake? Darling, I'm the upgrade. I'm the version of your brother that didn't break.