Chapter 34 · Neon Deadline: Glitch Hunt - Chapter 34: Hunter Turned Prey

"Get out of my head, Kaelen! Now!"

Seth’s voice didn't just ring in my ears; it tore through my nervous system like a jagged blade. He slammed me back against the cold, metallic wall of the safehouse, his fingers digging into my shoulders. His eyes were blown wide, the pupils swallowing the iris, pulsing with a rhythmic, sickly violet light. That was the curse. It wasn't just a glitch anymore; it was eating him alive from the inside out.

"I can't!" I yelled back, my voice cracking. "The link is fused! If I rip out now, your brain fries like a cheap circuit board!"

He didn't listen. He shoved me harder, pinning me so tight I could feel the frantic, erratic thumping of his heart against my chest. He was shaking—not from fear, but from a neurological storm that would have leveled a normal man. He looked at me, and for a second, the violet light flickered. The cold Enforcer was gone. In his place was someone terrified, someone drowning.

"Fix it," he rasped, his forehead dropping to rest against mine. His skin was burning, a fever that smelled like ozone and burnt copper. "Kaelen... please. Fix it."

I froze.