Chapter 23 · The Ex Who Stayed Quiet

Ethan had one hand on the office door and the other wrapped around a gun.

Celine saw the weapon before she saw his face.

"Don't," she said.

His finger stayed off the trigger, but he did not lower it. "You need to come with me. Right now."

Behind him, the hallway alarm started screaming.

Mira's office filled with red light. The wall screen kept playing the last three seconds of the recording on a loop.

Celine-00.

Celine-00.

Celine-00.

Her own voice had approved the Blackwater trial. Her own voice had called the test subject stable. Her own voice had paused before saying the name of the sole survivor.

Not Mira.

Celine-00.

"You brought a gun into a private office," Celine said. Her throat felt scraped raw, though she had not spoken much. "That's your big redemption move?"

Ethan's eyes moved to the screen. He looked tired. Not regular tired. The kind of tired that had lived in his bones for years and finally learned how to stand up.

"The security team is coming."

"Let them come."

"They won't arrest me. They work for Mira."

"Mira isn't here."

"That's why they're coming.