Page 59

Ziva

“Wait!” I shout, the sound echoing through the control room. Myall stops struggling, allowing the Enforcers grip to tighten around him like a vice. “I’ll tell you everything. Just… don’t hurt him.”

Colvin pauses, his pale hand hovering over the wires connecting our device to the mainframe. “What now,” he says, his voice laced with menace.

Taking a deep breath, I pray I can keep his attention just a little longer. “The truth is, Regent Colvin, your perfect system has always had a flaw. And we’ve found it.”

My eyes search the room, desperate for anything that might help.

The sleek control panels, the rows of monitors, the sterile white walls—they all mock me with their unyielding neutrality.

Catching Arden’s gaze, I silently plead for help.

She shakes her head minutely, her usually mischievous eyes now filled with grim resignation.

Dr. Vance remains frozen in place on the floor, her face a mask of pain and sorrow.

The internal struggle is clear in her wide eyes—the scientist who helped build this system now forced to face its brutal reality.

The machines in the room whir, drowning out my thoughts, while my heartbeat echoes in my ears, a drum of dread.

“A flaw, you say?” His voice oozes with contempt as he drops his hand. “How quaint. And what, pray tell, is this supposed flaw?”

I swallow hard, my mind racing. “It’s… it’s in the emotional feedback loop. The way the NeuroMod interprets—”

“Spare me your technobabble,” Colvin interrupts, taking a menacing step towards me. “You’re stalling, Ms. Emerson. And my patience has run out.”

My heart sinks as I realize the futility of our situation.

A tight knot forms in my stomach, as the reality sets in.

the Enforcers outnumber us, their weapons trained and ready.

There will be no backup from the others outside.

Colvin’s eyes bore into me, seeming to strip away any illusion of control I thought I had.

My muscles lock with the strain of the decision.

“You’re right,” I say, forcing my voice to remain steady. “I am stalling. But not for the reasons you think.”

Glancing at Myall, his eyes meet mine with a mix of concern and grim resignation as he remains held in the Enforcers vice like grip. I’m faced with an impossible choice—save the man I love or free the city from emotional control.

How am I supposed to choose between them?

Fear and love clash within me, each vying for control. Sweat clings to the back of my neck, my fingers twitching, desperate to take action, to make a choice. The suffocating pressure of my indecision nearly crushes me as I weigh the consequences.

Sabotaging the systems could liberate thousands, but at what cost? Myall’s life hangs in the balance, and the thought of losing him makes my chest tighten with a pain I can barely contain.

“What’s it going to be, Ms. Emerson?” Colvin’s harsh voice cuts through my inner turmoil. “Your precious rebellion or your… lover?”

My nails dig into my palms. With a deep breath, I make my decision.

“I choose Myall,” I declare. The words leave my mouth almost mechanically, like they’re being pulled from somewhere deep inside, against every instinct that screams at me to turn away. I avoid Arden’s and Dr. Vance’s gaze, my stomach sinking with the weight of their unspoken judgment.

Colvin’s eyebrows rise in mock surprise. “How touching. And utterly predictable.” His voice is cold, clipped, as if he’s already decided our fate.

I step toward Myall, every muscle coiled with tension. It’s like I can feel the floor beneath me, each step measured, a quiet tremor running through my legs.

“You can let him go now,” I order, my voice shaking slightly.

“Oh, I don’t think so,” Colvin sneers, a cruel twist of his lips. “You see, you’ve both proven to be quite the thorn in my side.” His voice drips with contempt, but I’m past the point of caring. the Enforcer raises his gun once more and takes aim at Myall’s forehead.

Myall resumes his struggle against the two Enforcers pinning him, his arms straining against their iron grips. Each twist of his body, each shout of frustration, sends a surge of helpless fury through me.

And then, it happens. The snapping point.

Something inside me, something primal and raw, breaks free.

It’s like the string of a bow that’s been pulled too tight, ready to snap.

A deep, guttural growl rips through my throat, primal, uncontrollable.

I don’t even think; I just move, adrenaline flooding my veins, my vision narrowing to Myall and the Enforcer who has his gun aimed.

“Ziva, don’t!” Myall shouts, but it’s too late.

I lunge, fueled by pure adrenaline, my fingers outstretched for the Enforcers throat. My nails rake across flesh as we crash to the ground, bodies skidding over the polished floor. A loud bang echos through the room. Blood slicks my fingers, warm and metallic.

The impact is brutal. My knees slam into the unforgiving floor, sharp pain lancing up my legs, but I barely feel it. The rage is a tide, drowning out everything else, making me feel untouchable, unstoppable.

I’m on top of the Enforcer, breathing ragged, his blood coating my fingers.

the Enforcer grunts, disoriented, blood leaking from a wound in his torso.

I take advantage of that split second, scrambling to my feet, my heart pounding against my ribs like a war drum as I kick the weapon out of his reach.

“Arden, now!” I yell, my voice hoarse, raw with the force of my desperation.

To my relief, Arden doesn’t hesitate. Her long hair whips around as she tackles one of the guards restraining Myall, the sound of the guard’s body hitting the floor a sickening thud.

Dr. Vance, wide-eyed but determined, grabs a dataport and swings it at a third Enforcer, the metal striking with a resounding clang.

The room is chaos with the sounds of bodies crashing, the hum of tech, the wild, panicked shouting of Colvin and his Enforcers. My senses are on fire, every nerve screaming, every movement a fight for survival.

Colvin’s eyes snap to me, narrowing as he realizes his control is slipping. His face hardens. “Subdue them!” he barks, his voice cutting through the noise, sharp and commanding. His gaze flickers nervously to the mainframe.

He’s already moving toward it when I rush him, my boots pounding against the floor, heart a steady drumbeat in my chest. The pulse of the countdown timer flickers in my peripheral vision, each second an eternity.

“Not so fast, Regent,” I spit, my words sharp, laced with fury.

Colvin whips around, his face a mask of disdain. “You foolish girl,” he sneers, his fingers already closing around the dataport, the cord snaking from it like a lifeline to his doomed empire. “You have no idea what you’re dealing with.”

I don’t care about his threats. I reach out and seize his suit jacket, tugging him closer.

The fabric is smooth but resistant, like trying to hold onto a shadow .

His suit stretches as he tries to pull away from me.

My muscles burn as I pull him from the mainframe, away from the device that could undo everything we’ve fought for.

My elbow connects with his solar plexus with a sickening crunch, sending a shockwave of pain up my arm as he stumbles back, his breath coming out in a wheeze. A metallic tang clings to my mouth as I struggle to keep him off balance, my body trembling with the effort.

“I know exactly what I’m dealing with,” I pant, my gaze snapping to the countdown timer, its blood-red digits ticking ever closer to zero. “A tyrant who’s about to lose everything.”

Colvin lunges, a blur of rage and violence, but I’m already moving, dodging his wild grasp. I shove him with all my strength, using his momentum against him. The dataport slips free from his grasp, the cord swinging wildly from the mainframe.

The timer’s red numbers flash—each one an agonizing countdown. The deafening roar of fighting fills my ears, louder than anything else, and I know that if we don’t act now, this moment will slip away from us forever.

“Tell me, Regent,” I taunt, circling him like a predator. “What does it feel like to know your perfect system is about to crumble?”

Colvin’s eyes flash with fury. His breath comes in ragged gasps, but there’s something else now—fear.

“You underestimate the power of order. This rebellion of yours has been doomed to fail from the start.” His voice cracks, just slightly, and in that moment, I can see it—his power is slipping through his fingers.

I risk a glance at Myall. His face is bruised, his expression grim but focused as he struggles against two Enforcers. Our eyes meet for the briefest of seconds, and in that look, I see everything—the fight, the fear, the love. I won’t let this be our ending.

“We’re not done yet,” I murmur, heart hammering, blood roaring in my ears.

A shout jerks me back to the chaos. “Ziva, catch!”

I turn just in time to see Arden toss me a dataport.

My fingers wrap around it instinctively, and without a second’s hesitation, I slam it into the nearest control panel that stands between Colvin and the mainframe.

Sparks explode in a brilliant burst, and the sickening screech of electrical overload fills the air.

An alarm blares overhead, its shrill wail slicing through the mayhem.

“No!” Colvin roars, his voice cracking with rage and disbelief as he lunges for me, but it’s too late.

The countdown reaches zero.

A deafening silence fills the room as the machines power down.

The oppressive hum of the NeuroMod and Sentinel systems—their constant, suffocating presence—vanishes, leaving only the sharp sound of our breathing.

My legs threaten to give way beneath me as the full weight of what we’ve done crashes into me.

We did it. Against all odds, we did it.

“It’s over, Regent,” I spit. The words carry a bitter triumph, like the final blow to a weary war.