Chapter 17 · The Voice Beneath the House

"Don't touch it." Kane's hand closed over mine before my finger reached the second line on the damaged record core.

His palm was hot. His grip wasn't gentle.

I looked at his fingers, then at his face. "You just told everyone you chose my side. Was that a lie, or do you only mean it when people are watching?"

The guards lined the archive wall, bruised and silent. Tomas kept one hand pressed to his bleeding shoulder. The captured guard sat tied beneath the dead communication panel, staring at the screen like it had already passed judgment.

Kane's jaw flexed. "Step away from the core."

"No."

"Evelyn."

"You know Oscar Venn." I tore my hand out of his. "You recognized his name before the record finished. Now the file is trying to show us what he did with your voice, and you want me to back off?"

His eyes cut toward the guards.

There it was. That tiny pause. Kane's favorite move. Hide the wound before anyone found the knife.

I laughed once. The sound came out sharp. "Right. We can't talk in front of your people. How convenient."

"You have no idea what you're touching."

"Then explain it.