Chapter 29 · Nine Seconds to Midnight

"Sixty seconds," Nix said. "Fifty-nine. Fifty-eight."

"Shut up." I didn't look away from the screen. My face stared back at me, frozen mid-broadcast, and underneath it a clock ticked down in red. Fifty-four. Fifty-three.

Cade's hand closed around my wrist. "Mara."

"I see it."

"Then move."

"Where?" I yanked free and spun on him. "Where the hell am I supposed to go? It's in my chest. It's in my head. I cut the anchor and it just—it moved."

His jaw tightened. Behind him the server racks hummed, all that stolen memory packed into boxes that didn't care if we lived or died. The broadcast was still running. Somewhere out there, people were watching my face, hearing my voice, learning that their city had been dying and resetting for weeks. But none of that mattered if I didn't make it to fifty-one.

Fifty.

Cade stepped closer. Too close. I could feel the heat coming off him, see the pulse jumping in his throat. "There's another option."

"Yeah?" I kept my voice flat. "What, you shoot me before midnight and hope the reset doesn't stick?"

"No.