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CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

Knight

It’s three hours until dawn, and I’m still digging through code. The new sequence in front of me has override protocols unlike anything I've seen before. Most viruses can be stopped remotely if you know what you're doing, but this one ...

"Motherfucker." The curse emerges through clenched teeth as understanding hits.

My fingers fly across the keyboard, expanding the sequence. The code confirms what I'm seeing—stopping this thing requires manual override from inside their secure systems. The virus will deploy itself, but the only way to prevent catastrophic damage is to access Horizon Tech's core infrastructure directly. It can't be stopped remotely.

Victor's signature is all over the design. He's made sure the override can only be executed by someone who understands exactly what they're doing. Someone who can prevent their entire infrastructure from being rewritten from the inside out.

I run calculations. Horizon Tech's security is military grade. Getting past their perimeter security will be hard enough, but reaching their core systems is a whole different level of impossible. It means risking exposure.

My eyes burn from hours of staring at code, but I can't stop. Not when the sequence I'm seeing changes everything about how this virus operates.

The logs hide more information disguised as errors—access points, patrol patterns, systems controlling specific sectors of the building. Victor has made sure I have everything I need to get inside. Like he's daring me to try.

I push back from the desk, my chair hitting the wall behind me, and pace the small room, easing out kinks from being hunched over computer screens for hours. Everything I’ve discovered rolls around my head.

The timing. The way Victor has documented Horizon Tech's vulnerabilities. He’s made sure I'd have exactly what I need. But for what? To break into the company and stop the virus … or is he just showing me that I can’t stop it from happening?

Footsteps in the hallway pull my attention from the screens. Glitch appears in the doorway, sleep-rumpled but alert. Something in me softens at the sight of her, in my space, like she belongs here.

"You didn't sleep." It's not a question.

"Found something." I turn back to the screens, ignoring how her presence changes the air in the room. "The virus needs manual deactivation. Someone has to be inside Horizon Tech to do it."

"So we need to get inside."

" We don't." I cut her off. " I handle this part alone." I don’t know I’ve made a decision until the words are out there.

"No." The steel in her voice would be admirable if it wasn't so frustrating. "My brother?—"

"He's not worth you risking your life over." The words come out harder than intended.

"That's not your choice to make." She steps closer, refusing to back down. "I'm not staying behind while you walk into whatever trap is being set."

" I’m the one who needs to get inside." I emphasize the singular. " You're staying here where it's safe."

Her eyes narrow. "Like hell I am." There’s determination in her eyes, and it makes my frustration spill over.

"This isn’t a discussion." I rise to my full height, using it to try and intimidate her.

It doesn't work.

"You're right, it's not . My brother might be in there somewhere. He might be the one they're forcing to help them." She matches my tone. "I'm going with you. Either we do this together, or I'll find my own way in."

"Horizon Tech has military-grade security." I fight to keep my voice steady. "One mistake gets us both killed."

"Then we better not make any mistakes." She tilts her chin up, meeting my glare. "I'm done being a pawn in someone else's game. I’m not going to sit here and watch from the sidelines while other people make choices about my life."

“I said no .”

"Because you can't control every variable if I'm there?" Her chin lifts in challenge. "Because having someone else involved means admitting you might actually need help?"

The accusation hits too close to home. "You don't understand what you're asking."

"I understand perfectly." She steps closer, forcing me to look at her. "This is about control. About you needing to handle everything yourself because trusting anyone else means being vulnerable."

My hands clench at my sides. " Stop ."

"Why? Because I'm right?" Another step. "Because Victor already proved he could get to you by using me? Is that what really bothers you—that someone found your weakness?"

"This isn't about you." But the words sound hollow even to me.

"No?" Her eyes narrow.

The distance between us crackles with dangerous possibilities. With truth I don't want to acknowledge. With attraction I've been fighting since that first kiss in my workspace.

"Glitch ..." Her code name comes out rough. A warning.

"I'm going with you." Her voice softens but carries no less conviction. "Because whatever game your mentor is playing, he chose me for a reason."

The truth in her words burns. They strip away every defense, every wall, every barrier. The last threads of my control snap. My hands come up to frame her face, my hesitation vanishing as I pull her into a kiss. Not the hesitant exploration from before, but something harder. Deeper . A claiming and a surrender all at once.

She meets me halfway, her fingers curling into my shirt, pulling me closer. Her mouth opens under mine, and I lose myself in the taste of her. In the small sounds she makes when my tongue slides against hers. In how perfectly she fits against me.

When we finally break apart, we're both breathing hard. Her eyes are wide, her lips parted. Something primal and possessive surges through me at the sight.

"Eva." Her real name falls from my lips like a confession. Like surrender.

She shivers at the sound, maybe she can hear what it costs me to use it. Her hands smooth over my shirt where she gripped it, but she doesn’t let go.

"If we do this," I rest my forehead against hers, "we do it my way. No arguments. No heroics. You follow my lead exactly."

"As long as your way includes actually letting me help." Her fingers curl against my chest. "I'm not staying behind while you try to handle everything alone."

I should argue. I need to keep my distance. There are a thousand reasons why this is dangerous.

But I don’t move away, and I don’t let her go. Instead, I kiss her again, softer this time but no less intense. Because she's right. I can't control everything. Can't predict every variable. Can't keep fighting this pull between us.

And maybe that's exactly what Victor knew would happen when he chose her to breach my defenses.

I just hope being right about my weakness doesn't get us both killed, because right now, with her pressed against me, with the taste of her still on my lips, with her real name hanging in the air between us, I'm not sure I care.