Chapter 21 · Candidate Marked

"Victor."

Ada's voice cut through the static hum filling my skull. I opened my eyes—or thought I did. Everything looked wrong. The core chamber walls rippled like heat shimmer, and when I tried to focus on Ada's face, her features doubled, tripled, snapped back into one.

"Yeah," I said. My own voice sounded hollow. "I'm here."

"Where's here?" She didn't lower the gun. Smart.

I blinked hard, trying to force the world to settle. "Core chamber. You just pulled me out of—" The memory felt slippery. I'd been inside the core. The Warden's access protocols had opened like a flower made of razors, and I'd reached in, and—

"Out of what?"

"The system." I pushed myself up on one elbow. The floor felt real enough. Cold concrete. "I got the access codes. We can shut it down now."

Ada took two steps back, putting more distance between us. The gun stayed level. "Tell me something only you would know."

"What?"

"You heard me." Her eyes were flat, calculating. "One detail. Right now."

I stared at her. "Ada, what the hell—"

"Answer the question, Victor."

The gun didn't waver. Neither did her expression.