Chapter 26 · Then you left

Ayla stared at him. "Did I?"

"Then you left."

The words landed harder than the shaking floor.

The door cracked. A thin blade punched through the metal from the other side.

Kade released her hand and turned toward it.

"We have maybe thirty seconds," he said.

"You counted?"

"I count everything when I'm scared."

"You said I was the one pretending."

"I never said I was good at it."

The blade ripped sideways. A gloved hand reached through.

Ayla pulled the short iron baton from her belt and smashed the wrist. The hand vanished with a curse.

"Company guards," she said.

"They'll seal the chamber from outside."

"Can they stop the core?"

"They don't want to stop it. They want to wake it."

"Of course they do. Rich people never meet a disaster they can't invoice."

Kade caught her elbow. "Ayla. We need a choice."

The core cracked again. This time, a piece of black crystal fell away and struck the floor. It didn't break. It crawled.

Ayla watched it drag itself toward her boot.

"The mark," the voice whispered. "Give the mark. Receive the lost day."

Kade moved in front of her. "Don't touch it.