Chapter 17 · The Core's Bloody Ticket

“Don’t even breathe,” Kane hissed, his hand clamping over my mouth so hard I could taste the salt on his skin.

He slammed me back against the cold plating of the ventilation shaft. The metal groaned under our combined weight, a sound that felt like a scream in the oppressive silence of the Core Zone. I struggled, my nails digging into the leather of his sleeve, but he didn’t budge. He was a wall of muscle and engineered rage, pinning me in place while the red emergency lights of the corridor below swept past us like a rhythmic heartbeat.

“We’re too loud,” he whispered, his lips grazing my ear. The heat of his breath sent a shiver down my spine that had nothing to do with the freezing air. “One more twitch, Mara, and I’ll let the cleaners have you.”

I managed to twist my face away from his palm, gasping for air. “You’re the one who’s shaking, Kane. Is the big corporate prince scared of a few guards?”

He didn’t smile. He didn’t even blink. He just tightened his grip on my waist, pulling me flush against him. I could feel it then—the rhythmic, heavy thrum of his chest.