Chapter 9 · The Memory They Buried

"Hold him down, or I cut the tether." The surgeon pressed a silver tool against Nyx's chest port while Kael's wrist was locked under a metal brace.

"Touch her again and I'll break your hand," Kael said.

The surgeon glanced at him through a cracked visor. "You can barely move your fingers. Try me."

Nyx turned her head on the clinic table. Her eyes flashed pale blue, then stuttered into static. "Kael. Don't threaten people you can't reach. It makes you look desperate."

"You're welcome."

"I didn't ask for rescue."

"You also didn't ask to be carved open. Funny how the night keeps ignoring your preferences."

The surgeon tightened the clamp around Nyx's shoulder. Metal clicked against the synthetic shell under her skin. Kael felt the same pressure bite into his ribs through the contract tether. His pulse jumped. Nyx's fingers curled.

"Stop doing that," she snapped.

"Doing what?"

"Panicking. Your heartbeat is feeding back into my system."

"Then stop making the doctor reach for a saw."

"It's not a saw."

The surgeon lifted the tool. A thin blue edge hummed at its tip.

Kael stared at it. "That is absolutely a saw."

"It's a port separator," the surgeon said.