Page 104 of GlitchBorn Heart

“She’s not caged. I’m not the one that put her there. And I’ve been able to create a couple of programs that allow us to communicate!” I have no clue why I feel the need to explain anything to him, but I continue. “But LINK is, I fear, evolving and learning to be more human, while Lyra is learning to be more machine. Her humanity could be entirely stripped away if we don’t act quickly. They aren’t playing nice together.”

Ash interrupts. “Digital catfight. Nice!”

I sigh at his fake stupidity. “I have a solution. I’m building a bridge. A cybernetic body. Not a puppet, not a husk, but a vessel. If I finish it, she walks out of here, flesh and blood. Free. But I’ll need your magic to make it happen.”

I turn and throw down my DigiCard, it hits the top of the console with a slap. “For your help, I’m prepared to make a sizable donation to the rebellion. Anonymously, of course.”

Jett scowls like something’s crawling under his skin. “You think money can buy us? You think handing over credits makes this rebellion yours to manipulate? That it makes you anything other than another corporate asshole trying to buy himself a conscience?”

I stiffen. Ember tenses behind him. He doesn’t back down.

“The rebellion is fueled by solidarity, commitment, and by the blood of your generation, Ryudon. The ones who don’t have the luxury of choosing who gets erased and who gets rescued from the rubble left by StarFell.” Jett sees only men like Vikktor when he looks at me.

I don’t pull the card back. “I’m not trying to buy the rebellion,” I say quietly. No defensiveness to it. Just pure truth. “If I were, I’d be offering you infrastructure, weapons, names. Not credits.”

That gets him listening.

“This isn’t leverage,” I continue, “it’s insurance. I need to know you’ll stay. That you won’t vanish the moment this gets complicated. That when I do this, when Lyra’s soul is halfway between systems, you won’t decide the cost is too high and walk away...again.”

Still air stretched to its maximum.

“You did before,” I add, not an accusation, a fact. “And I can’t afford that happening again.”

Jett’s expression tightens, the old unresolved wounds between us reopening, raw and exposed. “So that’s what this is about,” he says slowly.

I don’t deny it. “I’m not handing her life over to someone who might decide tomorrow that the rebellion needs him somewhere else.”

He laughs under his breath, bitterly. “You still don’t trust me.”

“I trust your conviction,” I say. “I don’t trust your ability to follow through.”

That lands hard. As intended.

For a long moment, neither of us speaks, a battle of darkness raging between us. Neither willing to break eye contact.

Finally, Jett nudges the DigiCard with one finger. He doesn’t pick it up, just acknowledges its existence. “I’m not taking your money,” he comments.

“Then I’m calling in my favor.” Ash moves between us breaking the stalemate. “You still owe me.”

His eyes meet Ash’s, unblinking. “But I’m not walking away either.” Jett’s tone becomes softer, like a higher purpose is calling him to respond.

I nod once.

“For her,” he adds. “Not for you. And don’t ask me why. Because I can’t tell you.”

Again with the cryptic bullshit. It’s not peace; he’s offering a temporary truce. Deep down, I know this moment will come back to haunt us both.

Jett tilts his head, studying me with his unnerving eyes. “And you think she’ll choose to walk into your arms after what you’ve done and live happily ever after?”

“She’ll want to,” I snap. “But I will give her a choice. That’s more than Vikktor ever offers.”

Funny time for Ash to have nothing to say. He remains between us, arms folded across his chest, calming the stormy waters.

Finally, Jett speaks. Another one of his “truths” he delivers to motivate the masses. “I’ll say it again, Kael, your compliance still means your hands are dirty. You can dress it up with your genius and your promises, but in the end, you’re still Vikktor’s pawn. Don’t make her another casualty of your dilemma.”

I force a smirk, though my pulse is a storm brewing inside my veins. “Then stay out of my way. Because whether you approve or not, I’m finishing this. I’ll do it with or without your magic if I have to.”

The corner of Jett’s mouth curves ever so slightly. “No. You won’t.” He gives my shoulder a squeeze to assure me that he’ll help even though he doesn’t agree. “Perhaps it can be just like old times, just this once.” He clasps his hands in front of him. “Now, who do I have to fuck to get a drink around here?”