Page 133 of Hunted to Be Mine

The choice twisted sharply under my ribs. Doctor. Psychologist. Every instinct screamed not to abandon someone bleeding out. But this was the man who had hunted us, threatened Mattie, nearly killed Wolfe.

And still.

I met Wolfe’s eyes. “No one deserves to be trapped in their own mind. Not him. Not if he’s fighting this hard.”

Blue and red flashed at the far entrance now, flickering against steel and steam.

“Sometimes survival demands impossible choices,” he said.

“The police will stabilize the scene and call for help,” he added after a beat. “It might give him a chance.”

He reached into my pocket and lifted the small device—the SENTINEL emergency tracker. One of the only lifelines to a group that might help Blackout instead of exploiting him.

“Promise me,” I said, fingers closing around his forearm. I held his gaze. “If he survives, we find a way to help him. The way I helped you.”

He didn’t look away. Then a single nod. “I promise.”

I set the beacon on Blackout’s chest and pressed the activator. A steady red pulse answered.

“This will guide SENTINEL to him,” I said. “Damon will know what to look for. If they get here before Dresner’s people…”

“He has a chance.” Wolfe rose and offered his hand. “We have to move. Now.”

I took one last look at Blackout—Xavier Hale. “We’ll come back for you,” I said, barely above the noise. “I won’t leave you in there. I’ll tell your sister.”

Wolfe steadied me as we made for the emergency exit. Every step was a bargain with pain, and I took it.

At the doorway, something made me glance back.

The landing was empty.

“Wolfe.” The word scraped out of me. I froze. “He’s gone.”

Wolfe spun, reaching for his weapon. The beacon lay alone on the grating. A wet trail led from the spot where Blackout had been, straight to the water.

“Did he fall?” I moved toward the rail before Wolfe’s hand checked me.

He didn’t answer, already pulling me into motion. “We can’t stay. Units are coming through the main gate.”

Cold air hit as we slipped into the night. I looked back once, just before the door sealed. The beacon blinked on the empty metal, its red flash skittering across the dark water.

Chapter 31

Dresner

I tapped my finger against the glass desk. The rhythm calmed me, ordered my thoughts. Outside my window, Geneva spread below, the lake’s surface rippling with afternoon light.

Behind me, the door opened. No knock. Alban always entered like that, asserting some minor defiance to remind himself he still possessed free will. A delusion I allowed him.

“Director,” he said, voice already carrying an apology I hadn’t asked for.

I continued tapping, watching my reflection in the window rather than turning to face him. In the glass, I could see his nervousness, the shifted weight, the tablet clutched too tightly, the perspiration at his temples.

“Two assets lost in forty-eight hours. Three total,” I said finally. “Unacceptable.”

Alban swallowed audibly. “Sir, I’ve prepared the full damage assessment—”

“Blackout is missing. Specter has escaped with Dr. Crawford. The warehouses in Zagreb were compromised.” Each fact emerged with clinical precision. “The conditioning protocols for the Quinta generation have proven unexpectedly vulnerable. Our CuraNova facility in Geneva has been breached. These are not isolated incidents.”