Chapter 8 · Neon Zero - Chapter 8: The Back-Alley Deal

"Keep him awake!" Tessa slammed a metal tray onto the clinic table. "If Knox drops, Mara drops with him."

"I’m right here," Knox snapped.

"Then stop bleeding on my floor and be useful." Tessa shoved two fingers against the cut near his temple. "Mara, your hand. Now."

My palm was locked around the black upgrade core. The thing had fused into my skin during the fight, pulsing every time Knox’s heart kicked. His pulse jumped. Mine followed half a second later.

The link flashed across my vision.

MARA VEY — LIFE: 31% KNOX ARDEN — LIFE: 31% SYNC FAILURE: 04:18

I nearly fell off the table.

Knox caught my wrist before I hit the floor. His hand was hot, steady, and way too strong for a man who had just taken down six elite guards with me.

"Don’t look at the numbers," he said.

"Easy for you to say. Your body isn’t attached to mine."

His eyes pinned me in place. "It is now."

Tessa shoved a cracked scanner against the core in my palm. Blue light crawled over my fingers. The machine coughed, sparked, and displayed another warning.

SYNC INSTABILITY.