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"Run, or the next bolt goes through your heart." Cade shoved Evelyn behind a stone support as a crossbow bolt punched into the wall where her head had been.
"You say the sweetest things when you're panicking," she snapped.
"I'm not panicking."
"Your hand is bleeding."
"Your mouth is worse. Move."
He caught her wrist and dragged her down the service steps. The black ring around her finger flared hot. A matching ring on Cade's hand answered with a sharp pulse, and pain tore up both their arms.
Evelyn stumbled. "You feel that?"
"I feel everything you feel. Keep moving."
Behind them, boots hit the upper platform. Three soldiers. Maybe more. Their gray coats carried the Court's silver rail badge, and the men weren't shouting for arrests.
They were shouting for her death.
"There! Cut them off at the south gate!"
Cade pulled Evelyn through a half-collapsed archway. His shoulder slammed into hers. His body was hot against her side for one breath, then he shoved her forward again.
"Where are we going?" she demanded.
"The old rail tunnels."
"Those were sealed twenty years ago."
"Then hope the seals are as bad as the city records."
A bolt struck the iron door beside them. The metal screamed.
Evelyn twisted toward him. "You knew they were coming."
"I knew the order went out. I didn't know the whole watch would be waiting."
"That is not better."
"Do you want to argue or live?"
She grabbed his coat and yanked him close enough to feel his breath brush her cheek. "I can do both."
For half a second, Cade's eyes dropped to her mouth. Not fear. Not surprise. Something tighter. Something he buried fast.
Then he shoved the iron door open. "After you."
They dropped into darkness as the soldiers reached the archway.
The door crashed shut behind them.
Evelyn landed hard on a narrow maintenance ledge. Cade came down beside her, one hand braced against the wall and the other clamped around her waist. His fingers dug through her coat to keep her from sliding into the black shaft below.
"Take your hand off me," she whispered.
"Fall first, complain later."
"I don't need you holding me."
"You need the ledge holding you. I'm the only reason you're still on it."
She looked down. The rails below vanished into a pit. Far beneath, something metallic scraped against stone.
Cade leaned close. His voice touched her ear. "Three steps left. There is a ladder."
"You can see in this?"
"I can see enough."
"Convenient."
"Evelyn."
The way he said her name stopped the next insult. It wasn't a command. It sounded like a warning he didn't have time to explain.
She moved left. His hand stayed at her waist until her boot found the ladder. Then he dropped after her.
The soldiers began hammering on the door above.
"They'll break through," Evelyn said.
"Yes."
"You sound almost cheerful."
"I save my cheer for better company."
She climbed down first. "Keep talking like that and I'll leave you for the soldiers."
"You tried leaving me on the street. The ring dragged you back."
"The ring has terrible taste."
"It picked you."
She stopped halfway down. Cade nearly collided with her boots. His chest pressed against her back, steady and warm through both their coats.
"Don't," she warned.
"Don't what?"
"Stand that close."
"You're on a ladder. There are two feet of space."
"Then stop breathing on my neck."
His breath paused.
Good. She had found one thing that could unsettle him.
A second later, he said, "If I stop breathing, you fall."
She hated that he was right.
They reached the tunnel floor just as the iron door above buckled. Cade drew his short sword. Evelyn pulled the thin memory blade hidden inside her sleeve. The blade wasn't much use against soldiers, but it could cut a name out of a guard's mind if she got close enough.
A lantern dropped through the broken doorway.
"Officer Rourke!" someone called. "Stand aside and surrender the thief. The order carries the High Court seal."
Cade's jaw tightened.
Evelyn noticed. "You want me to believe you didn't sign it?"
"I want you to stop asking questions we can't survive answering here."
"So that's a yes."
He caught her elbow. "Listen to me. If they take you, they don't execute you in public. They take the memories first. Every name. Every face. Every reason you have left to fight. Then they burn what's left."
The words landed harder than his grip.
Evelyn stared at him. "How do you know?"
"Because I've watched it happen."
"To who?"
His gaze flicked toward the dark tunnel. "Keep walking."
"Cade—"
"Now."
She should have fought him. Instead, she followed.
The tunnel ran beneath the city, squeezed between old brick walls and rusted rails. Water dripped from the ceiling. Every few steps, the black ring on Evelyn's finger pulsed, pulling her toward Cade whenever they drifted apart.
The soldiers entered behind them.
"They're in the lower line!" one shouted.
Cade shoved Evelyn through a narrow gap between two support beams. He followed, shoulders scraping stone. The space was so tight their bodies pressed together from chest to knee.
His palm settled beside her head.
"Don't move," he breathed.
"I wasn't planning to dance."
Boots clanged past the other side of the wall.
The ring tightened. A thin band of black heat crawled around Evelyn's finger and snapped toward Cade's.
She winced.
His eyes dropped to their hands. "The bond is reacting to distance."
"I noticed."
"It gets worse every time we separate."
"Then we separate less."
"That sounded almost sensible."
"Don't get used to it."
His face was inches from hers. The tunnel left no room for the usual sharp gestures, no room for her to step back or him to hide behind rank. She could feel the warmth of his breath. She could also see the dark smear of blood at his collar where the first bolt had grazed him.
"You're hurt," she whispered.
"It's a scratch."
"You keep saying that like it makes blood disappear."
"Do you care?"
The question came too fast. His eyes held hers, hard and direct.
Evelyn's fingers tightened around the memory blade. "I care if you slow me down."
"Liar."
"Officer."
The soldiers moved away. Cade backed out first and offered his hand.
She looked at it. "If I take that, you won't drag me somewhere stupid?"
"I make no promises."
"At least you're honest about one thing."
She took his hand.
His fingers closed around hers, firm enough to stop her from slipping. The contact lasted one beat too long before he let go.
A loud metal groan rolled through the tunnel.
Evelyn turned toward the sound. "What was that?"
Cade looked past her. "The midnight freight."
"The rail line is dead."
"Not this line."
A woman stepped out from behind a stack of broken signal boxes. She held a wrench in one hand and a knife in the other. Her dark hair was tied back with copper wire. A smear of grease crossed one cheek.
"You brought the execution officer," she said.
Cade raised his sword. "Nora Bell. Put the knife down."
"You first."
Evelyn moved between them. "We need the vault entrance."
Nora's knife shifted toward her. "Who told you about it?"
"Your brother."
Nora went still.
Cade's sword lowered by half an inch. "Where is he?"
"You tell me." Nora's voice turned rough. "Your watch took him from the rail yard an hour ago."
"I didn't order that arrest."
"Your seal was on the warrant."
Evelyn's head snapped toward Cade. "Funny. That's the second order today with your seal on it."
"Keep your voice down," he said.
"Why? Afraid the walls will recognize your signature?"
Nora stepped closer. "He signed the burn order too?"
Cade's expression went flat. "I signed a transport order. Not an execution. Not a city purge. Someone copied my seal."
"And I should trust you because?" Nora asked.
"Because the soldiers chasing us are carrying orders to kill me as well."
A beat passed.
Nora glanced at the blood on his collar. "That could be staged."
"Then stab me and find out."
Evelyn grabbed Cade's sleeve. "Are you trying to get murdered?"
"It would save time."
"You don't get to die before I get answers."
His eyes cut to her hand on his arm. His expression barely changed, but she felt the tension run through him beneath the coat.
Nora noticed. Her mouth twitched. "So that's the bond."
Evelyn released Cade. "It's temporary."
"Everything is temporary down here."
The rail beneath their feet began to shake.
Nora turned toward the tunnel. "The freight's coming. We have four minutes before it reaches the old switch. If it crosses, the vault entrance collapses with the line."
"Your brother is inside the vault?" Evelyn asked.
"He's locked in the maintenance cage beside it. The train crew uses the cage as a storage pen."
Cade stepped forward. "Then we get him out."
Nora blocked him with the wrench. "You don't give orders here."
"Your brother dies if we stand around."
"He dies if I lead you to him. The Court wants the vault, and you work for the Court."
Evelyn moved beside Nora. "He doesn't work for the people who sent those soldiers."
Cade looked at her. "You trust me now?"
"No. I trust that you hate being used."
His mouth tightened. "That may be the nicest thing you've said to me."
"Don't ruin it."
Another tremor shook dust from the ceiling.
Nora pointed down the tracks. "We move together. Nobody runs. Nobody lies. If one of you breaks the rule, I leave the other behind."
"You can't leave me behind," Evelyn said. "The ring won't allow it."
"Then I cut off the hand."
Cade's sword came up again. "Try it."
Nora smiled without humor. "There he is. The Court's favorite knife."
Evelyn stepped between the blade and the wrench. "Enough. We need a deal."
"A deal with him?" Nora asked.
"A survival contract. Three rules. We save your brother. You open the entrance. Cade doesn't hand me over."
Cade looked down at her. "You don't get to make promises for me."
"You want to complain, or do you want to keep your head attached?"
"Both. Apparently that's your favorite answer."
Nora pulled a small copper disk from her pocket. Symbols were scratched across its surface. "Blood seals the deal. Break it, and the contract burns through your memory. Not your skin. The memory itself. You forget the last person you saw, then the last name you learned, then why you came down here."
Evelyn held out her hand. "Fine."
Cade caught her wrist. "You don't know what it takes from you."
"You just heard the rules."
"Memory is your weapon."
"And your soldiers are behind us. Pick one problem."
His thumb pressed against her pulse. Warm. Steady. He leaned in, close enough that his voice stayed between them.
"If you sign, I sign. No matter what it costs."
Evelyn searched his face. "That sounds almost noble."
"It isn't. If you lose a memory, the ring takes part of mine too."
That changed the air between them.
"You didn't mention that," she said.
"You didn't ask."
"I hate you."
"Get in line."
Nora held out the disk. "Decide now."
The rail screamed in the distance. A headlamp appeared around the bend.
Evelyn drew her memory blade across her palm. A thin line of blood welled. She pressed it to the copper disk.
"I swear to get your brother out," she said. "I swear not to abandon the entrance. I swear not to trade Cade's life for my own."
Cade's eyes sharpened. "You added that last part yourself."
"You noticed."
He took the blade from her hand. His knuckles brushed hers. He cut his palm and pressed it to the disk.
"I swear to get Nora's brother out," he said. "I swear to keep the entrance standing. And I swear Evelyn leaves this tunnel alive, even if she has to hate me for it."
The copper disk flashed.
Pain ripped through Evelyn's hand. The ring tightened around her finger, then a red line raced from it up her wrist. Cade jerked beside her, his face turning pale.
"What did it take?" she asked.
He flexed his fingers. "Nothing yet."
"That's not an answer."
"The contract waits until one of us breaks a rule."
Nora snatched the disk back. "Then don't break one. Move!"
The train thundered closer.
They ran.
Nora led them along the track, leaping broken ties and ducking under hanging cables. Evelyn kept pace with Cade, though the ring tugged every time the distance between them stretched. Behind them, the soldiers burst through the service door.
"Stop!" a guard yelled. "Evelyn Morrow, by order of the High Court—"
"They know my full name now," Evelyn said.
"You're popular," Cade replied.
A bolt flew past her shoulder.
Cade shoved her down. The bolt struck him high in the arm.
He grunted and dropped to one knee.
Evelyn spun back. "Cade!"
"Don't stop."
"You just got shot."
"Grazed."
"It went through your coat."
"Still a graze."
She grabbed the bolt shaft and snapped it short. Blood spread beneath the torn fabric.
"You bleed for everyone except yourself?"
"We can discuss my habits after your next attempt to get killed."
"You don't get to make jokes while I'm trying to save you."
His hand closed around the back of her neck. Not hard. Just enough to pull her close and make her look at him.
"Then stop looking at me like that and run."
Her breath caught.
"Like what?"
"Like you already decided I matter."
The train horn blasted behind them. The sound shook the tunnel.
Evelyn shoved his hand away. "You're delirious."
"Probably."
She hooked his good arm over her shoulders. "Lean on me."
"You hate me."
"I can hate you and carry you. Try not to enjoy it."
They reached the old switch platform. Nora slid beneath a metal gate and kicked the latch from the other side. Cade followed, dragging Evelyn after him.
The freight train roared past on the main line. Heat punched through the tunnel. Wind ripped at Evelyn's coat and sent loose stones skittering across the platform.
Nora pointed to a steel door half hidden beneath the rails. "The entrance is behind that."
"It looks locked," Evelyn said.
"It is."
"You said you could open it."
"I said I knew where it was. Those are different promises."
The train began to slow. Its rear cars passed above them, each wheel striking the rail like a hammer.
Cade pressed his bleeding palm against the door. "There has to be a release."
Nora shook her head. "The old vault doesn't use keys."
Evelyn glanced at the black ring. It was burning again.
"Then what does it use?"
Nora's eyes shifted to Cade's hand. "A living seal."
The soldiers reached the platform behind them.
Cade drew his sword with his good arm and stepped in front of Evelyn. Blood dripped from his sleeve onto the rail.
"Get the door open," he told Nora.
"Keep them off me."
"That was the plan."
Evelyn caught his coat. "You can't fight all of them with one arm."
"I don't need all of them."
"You need me."
His gaze locked on hers. The train thundered overhead. His chest rose against her knuckles.
"I know," he said.
It was quiet. Too honest.
Evelyn let go first. "Don't make me regret hearing that."
Cade turned as the first guard charged.
Steel rang against steel.
Evelyn dropped beside Nora and searched the door for a latch. The metal was covered in old numbers, most scratched away. Under the grime, one symbol remained: a circle split by thirteen lines.
"This is the clock mark," Evelyn said.
"Don't touch it."
"You should've led with that."
"I did. You were busy being reckless."
Nora pulled a coil of wire from her belt. "I can bypass the outer lock, but the inner gate needs a seal."
"Cade's seal?"
"Maybe."
"You said you knew the way."
"I know the way in. I don't know what wakes up when we get there."
Behind them, Cade drove one guard into the wall. Another raised a pistol.
Evelyn saw it first. "Cade, down!"
She threw her memory blade. It struck the pistolman's wrist. His weapon fired into the ceiling. Stone cracked above them.
Cade looked over his shoulder. "You missed."
"I hit the important part."
"You hit his hand."
"Exactly."
Nora jammed the wire into the lock. "I need thirty seconds!"
"You have ten," Cade said.
He kicked one soldier onto the tracks. The man rolled away from the train's last car by inches. Cade staggered, blood running down his sleeve.
Evelyn caught his shoulder. "You signed the contract. Don't die before we get her brother."
"Bossy."
"Bleeding."
"Still standing."
"Barely."
He leaned close, forehead nearly touching hers. "If I fall, don't use the ring to drag me."
"Why not?"
"Because it will tear you apart too."
"Then stay up."
His eyes held hers for one hard second. Then he turned and lifted his sword again.
Nora cursed. "The lock's open."
The steel door groaned inward.
A narrow stairway dropped beneath the tracks. Cold air rushed up from below, carrying the smell of old metal and burned oil.
"Get inside!" Nora shouted.
Evelyn grabbed Cade's belt and pulled. "Move, officer."
"I can walk."
"Then prove it."
They stumbled down the first steps as the soldiers fired again. A bullet struck the doorframe. Nora slammed the steel door behind them and threw the inner bar.
For three seconds, nobody spoke.
Then something deep below them clicked.
Once.
Twice.
The black ring on Evelyn's finger turned cold.
Cade looked at it. "That wasn't supposed to happen."
"You say that a lot," Evelyn whispered.
Nora raised her lantern and pointed past them.
At the bottom of the stairs, a round vault door stood beneath a web of dead clockwork. Three locks covered its center. Two were rusted shut.
The third had no keyhole.
It had the shape of a signet seal.
Nora's face drained of color. "Cade."
He stepped down beside Evelyn. "What?"
Nora lifted the lantern toward the blood on his palm. "The old vault doesn't need your orders. It needs your seal."
Cade stared at the lock.
Evelyn felt the ring pull her hand toward him.
Nora pointed at the mark on Cade's palm. "Put that against the door, and the vault wakes—"