chapter Nineteen
Ember's head felt like it had been split open.
The connection was still there, humming in the back of her mind—stronger than before. It pulsed like a second heartbeat, electric and alive, wrapping itself around her thoughts.
Her hands wouldn't stop shaking.
She had done that.
She had reached into someone's mind—taken control—and shut them down like a machine.
Kai's grip on her shoulder tightened. "You're pale as hell," he muttered, scanning her face. "Can you walk?"
She nodded, though she wasn't sure it was true.
"Then we move," he said.
No hesitation. No questions.
Kai didn't ask how she had done it. Didn't demand answers she wasn't ready to give.
That scared her more than anything.
Because if Kai wasn't surprised, if he wasn't shaken—then maybe he already knew.
Maybe he had always known what she was.
The thought made her stomach twist.
But there was no time for doubt.
The enforcers were down, but the drone was still overhead, blinking red. Watching. Recording.
The Regime knew where they were. Again.
"We need to get underground," Rhea panted, pushing sweat-matted hair from her face. "Now."
Kai nodded, already pulling Ember forward. "We'll take the back routes."
Ember tried to shake off the dizziness as they moved. One step at a time.
One foot in front of the other.
The alley twisted into a series of darkened pathways, buildings leaning close together like broken ribs. This part of the city was ancient—abandoned long before the Regime had even existed. The walls were cracked, overgrown with thick vines and graffiti scrawled in languages Ember didn't recognize.
Kai led them deeper, turning corner after corner until Ember barely knew which direction they had come from.
Finally, they reached a rusted-out grate, half-hidden behind a collapsed wall.
Kai crouched, yanked it open, and gestured inside. "Go."
Rhea hesitated. "What if it's flooded?"
"Then we swim," Kai said flatly.
Ember swallowed, pushing her shaking hands against the cold edge of the opening. The tunnel gaped dark and endless beneath her.
The underground smelled like rust and mildew.
The tunnels stretched in every direction, old subway lines that hadn't seen a working train in over a century. Ember could hear the faint drip, drip, drip of water somewhere in the distance, echoing through the metal corridors.
She pressed a hand to the rough wall, trying to steady herself. The air was thick, heavy—like the city itself was pressing down on them.
Kai crouched beside a metal hatch, feeling along the edge. "We'll rest for a minute," he muttered, his voice low.
Rhea slid down next to Ember, wrapping her arms around her knees. Her breath was still uneven. "How long before they find us?"
"They won't," Kai said. "Not down here."
Rhea let out a hollow laugh. "You sound so sure."
Kai didn't answer...
Maybe because he just wasn't sure and maybe because they always found them...no matter where they hide.
Ember stared at her hands. The shaking had stopped, but she could still feel the connection, thrumming like a live wire beneath her skin.
The fear was still there.
But beneath it—something else...
Curiosity.
She had barely touched the surface of what she could do.
And she needed to know more.
What if she could do more than just shut them down?
What if she could turn them against each other?
The thought sent a sharp thrill through her veins. What if she really can put a end to all this?
Kai's voice snapped her out of it. "We need to talk."
Ember glanced up. His face was unreadable, but his eyes...too sharp, too knowing—were locked on her.
Rhea frowned. "About what?"
Kai didn't look at her.
Only at Ember.
"You know exactly what."
The air between them went still.
A lump formed in Ember's throat.
She had been avoiding it, pretending she could push it away.
But she couldn't.
Because Kai wasn't going to let her.
And because deep down, she knew the truth.
This wasn't the beginning of something.
It was the breaking point.