Chapter 18 · The Pulse Line

My knife slipped under the copper plate, and Carson caught my wrist.

"Don't cut that one."

His voice crackled in my ear, rough and far too close. He was pressed against my back inside the repair bay, one arm braced over my shoulder. His other hand held the bomb steady between us.

The timer flashed red.

00:41.

"You said the blue wire," I snapped.

"The blue wire connected to the outer coil."

"There are three blue wires."

"Then stop cutting like you want us both dead."

I twisted free. "You wired your heartbeat into a bomb, Carson. You don't get to criticize my technique."

His jaw tightened beside my temple. Heat leaked through both our clothes. His breath brushed my cheek, quick and controlled, while the ward panels around us died one by one.

Click.

The repair bay sealed with a brutal metal slam.

A red strip lit above the door.

LOCKDOWN.

"Your people did this," I said.

"Not my people."

"The men trying to blow up the city are wearing your enforcement crest.