Chapter 11 · Then I was on them. God, we were

Then I was on them.

God, we were fast.

I slammed one into the concrete wall so hard the wall cracked. He slid down, out cold. The second swung a shock-baton at my head. I caught it mid-swing. The electricity crackled over the black on my arm and did nothing.

"My turn," I whispered.

I drove my elbow into his chest. He flew back five feet and didn't get up.

It was quiet. Dust settling. Three bodies down. I was breathing hard, but not tired. Buzzing. Like I'd stuck my finger in a live wire and liked it.

"Sylvia?" Cassian said inside, softer now. "Are you still with me?"

"I'm here," I said, and my voice was mine again, hoarse. "Holy shit. Holy shit, Cassian, what was that?"

"That was me. Us. When we stop fighting each other."

I looked down at my hands. Black veins were fading, retreating. But they were slow. Too slow.

And his presence was right up against me. Not just in my head anymore. Around me. Like he was standing behind me with his chest to my back, his hands hovering over mine.

"You need to let go a little," I said, my throat dry.