Chapter 16 · The Death Gamble

"Hold still, you idiot! If I slip, your head becomes a confetti cannon!" Vera’s voice was shaking. Her fingers were jammed into the seam of the collar, her breath hot and frantic against the side of my neck.

I leaned back against the cold steel of the doorframe, the alarm screaming in a high-pitched, rhythmic pulse that vibrated through my skull. *Beep. Beep. Beep.* The countdown was visible in the tiny red LED window of the collar: 00:42.

"Just do it," I grunted. My voice sounded like gravel grinding together. "I've died ten times this week, Vera. A little confetti isn't going to kill my mood."

"Shut up!" she snapped, though she pressed closer, her chest heaving against my arm. I could feel the heat radiating off her, the scent of ozone and old sweat. She wasn't just trying to hack the thing; she was trembling. "This isn't a game. This is a military-grade termination sequence. The second the circuit breaks without the override, it detonates."

"Then override it," I said. I reached up, my clawed hand hovering near her shoulder. I didn't touch her—not yet—but I could see the way her pulse jumped in her throat.