Chapter 34 · No Grave for Ghosts

Rian's gun is pointed at my chest.

I don't move. Don't breathe. The collar around his neck is still smoking from where it unlocked, and his hand is steady. Too steady. Like someone else is pulling the strings.

Selyra's voice crackles through his comm, tinny and cold. "Kill the Ghost."

Taren steps between us. Doesn't draw. Doesn't yell. Just stands there, blocking the shot.

"Move," Rian says. His voice is flat.

"No."

"She's a traitor. Commander's orders."

"Commander's orders are shit," Taren says. "And you know it."

I watch Rian's eyes. There's something wrong in them. Not fear. Not anger. Just empty. Like someone scooped out whatever made him Rian and left the shell.

"Taren," I say quietly. "Get out of the way."

"Not happening."

"He's not in control."

Taren's shoulders go tight. He knows what that means. Neural override. Black ops tech that turns a person into a remote-controlled weapon. Illegal in every system that signed the Accord. Which means Selyra's not just dirty. She's running tech that could start another war.

Rian's finger twitches on the trigger.

I move.

Not toward him. Toward the console behind me.