Chapter 22 · Whispers in the Blood

"Get your hands off the console before I fry your nervous system from the inside out," Eve spat, her voice trembling but her aim steady. The barrel of her pulse-pistol was pressed hard against the base of Kai's skull, the cold metal biting into his skin.

Kai didn't flinch. He kept his fingers dancing across the holographic interface, the blue light reflecting in his eyes. "You're shaking, Eve. That's not the protocol crashing. That's fear. Or maybe you just like it when I'm the one in control for once."

"Shut up," she hissed, pressing the gun closer. "The chip. Now. Or I'll see if your 'Forbidden Key' can reboot a dead brain."

Kai let out a short, sharp laugh. He leaned back, his shoulder brushing against her chest, feeling the rapid, frantic thrum of her heart through the thin fabric of her Syndicate suit. The air between them was thick, charged with something that wasn't just hatred. It was a hunger—the kind that happened when two people spent too long pretending they wanted to kill each other.

"You want the chip?" Kai whispered, his breath ghosting over her ear. "Then stop pretending you're the one holding the leash.