Chapter 24 · Break the Wire

"Nolan, get down!" Evelyn slammed both hands into his chest just as the shock whip snapped around his neck.

The metal coil tightened.

Nolan hit the floor on one knee. Blue current crawled over his jaw, lighting the veins beneath his skin. His hands clawed at the wire, but every touch sent another violent pulse through him.

"Don't touch it!" he rasped.

"I wasn't planning to hug it." Evelyn grabbed the emergency axe from the wall and swung.

The blade struck the whip. Sparks jumped across her gloves. The impact knocked her backward, but the coil only tightened harder.

A guard stepped out from behind the reactor housing. Black armor. White mask. The Director's elite unit had no badges, no names, and no mercy. He held the shock whip's control handle in one hand and a compact rifle in the other.

"Step away from Vale," the guard ordered. "The fugitive is property of the Authority."

Evelyn pushed herself up. Her palms burned through the gloves.

"Then come collect him yourself."

The guard tilted the rifle toward Nolan's head. "You have three seconds."

Nolan's eyes found hers through the strobing blue light.