Chapter 23 · Skin-to-Skin

"Get your hands off me, Sloane."

I spat the words out, but my voice cracked. I was slumped against the rusted metal of the shipping container, my legs feeling like they were made of wet cardboard. The glitching in my vision was getting worse—jagged streaks of neon violet tearing through the world every time I blinked.

Sloane didn't listen. She stepped into my space, her boots clicking hard against the concrete. She grabbed the collar of my jacket and hauled me up, pinning me against the cold steel with a force that knocked the wind out of my lungs.

"Shut up and look at me," she snapped. Her face was inches from mine. I could smell the ozone and cheap coffee on her breath, feel the heat radiating off her skin. "Your pulse is spiking. You're crashing, Kael. If we don't stabilize the sync now, your nervous system is going to fry like a cheap circuit board."

"I'm fine," I lied, even as a violent tremor shook my right arm. I tried to push her away, but my strength was gone. She didn't budge.