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“No!" I lunge back down the stairs, crossing the distance between us in seconds. "You don't get to make that call. That's not your choice to make."

Alex's face remains impassive, as if he's already resigned himself to this fate. "It is my choice. The only one that makes sense."

“The hell it is!" I grab his shirt, bunching the fabric in my fists. "You don't get to decide who's worth saving and who isn't."

“I'm being practical.” His voice is maddeningly calm. "You need Talon. You need the twins. They ground you, protect you, give you what you need."

“And you don't?”

“I'm the expendable one, Vesper.” He gently pries my fingers from his shirt. "The one who doesn't fit. The one who's already broken beyond repair."

“Stop it. Just stop.”

“It's the truth. I've made my peace with it. If something goes wrong tomorrow, I need to know you'll be okay. And for that, you need them.”

“I need all of you. Especially you.”

He shakes his head. "Vesper?—"

“Promise me, Alex. I need to hear you say it." He studies me for a long moment, something shifting in his expression.

"I'm sorry." His thumb brushes away a tear. "I can't make that promise."

"Then I'm coming with you," I declare, my voice steadier than I feel. "If you won't promise to come back, I'll make sure of it myself."

Alex's jaw clenches. "We've already been through this."

"And we'll keep going through it until you understand. I refuse to send you off like some sacrificial lamb."

"It's not a sacrifice if it's a choice."

"It's not just your choice to make!" The words burst from me, echoing off the concrete walls. "You think your life belongs only to you? That what happens to you doesn't affect the rest of us? Affect me?"

"I don't understand why you're fighting so hard for this," he says quietly. "For me."

The vulnerability in his voice cuts deeper than any of his earlier confessions. This is the real Alex, I realize—not the calculating mastermind or ruthless hacker, but the man beneath it all who truly can’t understand why anyone would fight for him.

"Because you matter to me," I say simply.

Alex stares at me, something shifting in his expression—disbelief warring with a desperate need to believe.

"You don't mean that.”

"I do. I've lost too much already. I won't lose you, too."

He closes his eyes, breath shuddering between us. For a moment, we stay like that, heartbeats syncing in the quiet of the basement.

"I'll try," he finally says. "That's all I can promise. I'll try to come back."

It's not the absolute guarantee I wanted, but it's honest. More honest than he's been about anything else.

TALON

I'm not a praying man,but if there was ever a time to start, it would be right now, watching Alex drive like he's auditioning for Fast and Furious while explaining how easy it is to "borrow" a plane.

"You're telling me," I say, gripping the door handle as he takes another curve too fast, "that some random dude on the dark web is just lending you an aircraft? No questions asked?"

"Not random. And not lending. It's a business transaction."