Chapter 97

Cartwright Breach

It happened at 3:17 a.m.

The farmhouse's outer motion alarms triggered—silently. Lex caught the flicker on the screen: black vehicles. No headlights. Three figures approaching from the trees.

Cartwright operatives.

He acted fast—grabbed the baby and handed her to Siddharth. "Out the back. Drive west until you reach Micah's coordinates."

Rhea didn't move.

Lex turned to her. "Go with them."

But she didn't.

"I'll stay," she said, calm and resolute. "They're not after you. They're after me. After Muri."

Before Lex could stop her, she walked to the center of the living room and stood still—hands behind her head.

The door burst open. Three masked men entered, guns raised.

"Do not resist," one said. "Asset Muri has been re-identified. Protocol 7: Reactivation."

But Rhea didn't flinch.

Instead, she spoke one word, in a voice that wasn't hers anymore:

> "Override."

The men froze.

For a split second, the chip inside her brain pulsed.

And then two of the men collapsed—neurally fried by the proximity sync with her live signal.

The third backed away, trembling. "You're not supposed to remember—"

She stepped forward, eyes glowing with fury and clarity.

> "I am Muri. And I remember everything now."