The Inquisitor's Forbidden Contract

He was a nobody gear-rat. One touch of the forbidden Resonance Core makes Kael Augusta's most wanted fugitive. Inquisitor Sloane doesn't offer mercy. She offers a brand. A soul-contract seared into his flesh: he will repair the ancient forbidden weapon for her, she will keep him alive. In her tower, in her bed, in her head - their minds are linked. Every heartbeat echoes. Every lie burns. He is her prisoner, her tool, her secret obsession. She is his cold, dominant captor who hates that she needs him. But the floating city runs on a lie. Deep in the Foundry, Kael finds his father - alive, nailed to the city's Heart like a living battery. The Resonance he trusted is a leash. Victor, the Archon, wants Kael back to finish the circuit. To save his father, Kael must betray Sloane. To save the city, Sloane must sacrifice him. Break the contract and die. Keep it and lose each other forever.