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Vyk grunted. “Being captured to get closer to the target and then breaking out does seem like an Inferno Force strategy. Is that what you believe he’s done?”

I considered the question, my mind slipping easily into my brother's thought patterns. It had always been this way. While he charged ahead, I analyzed, anticipated, and calculated. We were two sides of the same coin, though most only valued the side that shone brightest.

“I do. He’s brash and bold but he’s not foolish. If he got caught, it was part of his plan.”

Vyk nodded slowly. "Then he might have escaped by the time we arrive.”

"If he can escape,” Torq added grimly. “It’s a Kronock prison, after all. They’re known for torture.”

The words struck deep, though I kept my expression carefully blank. The possibility that my brother might be tortured by the Kronock had haunted me since his disappearance. Despite our differences and despite the distance that had grown between us, I couldn't bear the thought of him being hurt.

"He's alive and well,” I said with more certainty than I felt. "So is the human pilot."

Vyk's eyes narrowed. "You sound very sure."

I released a long breath. “It’s preferable to doubt, Commander. Especially before a mission like this one.”

The lie slipped easily from my lips, which was another skill honed through Shadow training. Of course I wasn't certain. My brother, for all his skill, had a recklessness that bordered on suicidal. He took risks that made even hardened Inferno Force warriors blanch.

And this time, he'd flown directly into Kronock territory. Alone.

I glanced toward the cockpit where Morgan sat with Ariana, her long, pale hair tied up in a high ponytail. She had her back to me, but I could picture her face with sharp, blue eyes that missed nothing and the slight furrow between her brows when she concentrated.

I shouldn't have told her. The admission had been impulsive, which was exactly what I’d been trained not to be. Yet when she'd caught me transmitting information to my handler, I'd found myself unwilling to lie to her. I’d told so many lies over my career, but I couldn’t lie to her.

"We'll need to calibrate the weapons for Kronock scales,” Torq was saying, drawing me back to the present. “Kann told me that they’ve enhanced their biology to adjust for photon beams.”

I nodded, feigning interest while my thoughts remained on Morgan. There was something about her that drew me to her. I'd watched her for months, noting how she was a shrewd observerwhile betraying little. I suspected that she was at skilled at wearing masks as I was.

She would make an exceptional Shadow. That's what I'd told myself when I'd revealed my true identity to her. A recruitment opportunity, nothing more.

But that didn't explain the quickening of my pulse when she'd looked at me with those startled eyes or the strange relief I'd felt at finally being seen for who I truly was.

"Tivek," Vyk's voice cut through my thoughts. “Do you agree?”

I straightened, schooling my features into the appearance of rapt attention. "Of course, Commander."

He seemed to accept this, turning back to the holographic display. I forced myself to focus, pushing thoughts of Morgan aside. The mission demanded my full attention. My brother's life, and Sasha’s, depended on it.

"We'll split into two teams once we breach," Vyk decided, outlining positions on the display. "Torq and I will secure the primary extraction point, then he can go with you and Morgan to find the prisoners.”

My heart gave an unexpected leap at his words and the opportunity to work by Morgan’s side. “Understood.”

Just don't slow her down," Torq said with a smirk. "She’s fast for a bookish type."

I wrestled a smile. "I'll do my best to keep up.”

As they continued discussing photon calibration, I allowed myself another glance toward the cockpit. Morgan had turned slightly, her profile visible now as she listened to somethingAriana was saying. I found myself memorizing the curve of her jaw and the tilt of her head.

I'd spent my life compartmentalizing, keeping myself divided into carefully managed sections. The loyal adjunct. The second son. The efficient Shadow. Never allowing anyone to see all the pieces and rarely revealing my complete self. Only Admiral Zoran knew the true me.

It was a lonely existence, but a necessary one. Shadows lived in isolation by design. We carried secrets too dangerous to share and knowledge too volatile for others to bear.

But I was tired of secrets and weary of editing what I shared. With Morgan, I found myself wanting to show more, and that was dangerous for someone in my position.

"We'll reach the target soon,” Vyk announced, shutting down the display. "Get some rest while you can."

Torq thumped me on the back. “Soon enough you’ll be taking as many risks as your brother.”