Chapter 23 · The Man Outside

Charlotte didn't lower the gun. Marcus stood three feet away, hands open, mouth shut. Ivy's voice still buzzed in her earpiece. Kill the man you've never met. The engineer. Not Marcus.

She let the barrel drop half an inch.

"Smart," Marcus said.

"Shut up." She flicked the safety on and shoved the gun into her jacket. Her pulse hammered in her throat. "Ivy. Where's the engineer?"

Static crackled. Then Ivy's flat tone came through. "Two blocks east. Blue van. Plates XJR-4491. He's running diagnostics on the core node. You've got twelve minutes before he moves."

"Diagnostics," Charlotte repeated. "That means he can access it."

"Yeah. That also means he's wired six ways to Sunday. You spook him, the whole grid knows."

Marcus tilted his head. "You want me to sit this one out?"

Charlotte looked at him. His jacket still had her blood on it from two loops back. "You're coming. You try anything, I'll make sure you don't wake up in the next round."

"Fair."

They moved fast. The streets were empty this hour, just the hum of overhead drones and the occasional steam vent hissing. Charlotte kept Marcus on her left, one step behind.