Page 71 of GlitchBorn Heart

“We called Ash, Kael’s friend, in to try to get a lock on Eli’s vibrations. He should be here in the morning.” She rolls her eyes. “You know Ash, right? Always late for trouble and exactly on time for danger.”

I’ve no time for her attempt at humor and friendship. My worst fear has been confirmed. Not Eli’s death, but his capture. The most ruthless man in the city has my brother. I have to get out of here and get to him.

Ember seems to read my mind. “Now tell me all about that night. If we’re going to get you out, we need to know how you got in.”

27

BigGangEnergy

Playlist: Gasoline – Halsey

Kael

An actual morning without acidic rain. A muted sunlight bleeds through the large glass doors of VikkCorp. Nice try, but it will never win over the damaged atmosphere of clouds and corporate pollution. I scan my retina, and the familiar hiss of the lab door reveals a cool neon-blue glow, a distinct hum of processors, and the pulse of her.

I hurry in, coffee for three in hand, ready to take on the next task. Finding Eli.

If I’m ever going to get Lyra out, have Lyra as my own, then I’ll need to earn her trust.

The window program I built shimmers on the main console. I look up, breath stolen from my lungs. There she is on the giant wall directly in front of me, a knife strike to my heart. Not flesh and bone but an animated doll-like version of herself, all delicate lines and bright colors, as beautiful as the night we met in STATIK. She looks stressed but absolutely stunning.

I set the coffees down carelessly and rush over to the wall to greet her. In the background I hear the lab door repeat its lifeless hiss as it opens.

Ash saunters in like he owns the place, as usual, hair wet, the smell of fresh, clean pine still clinging to him from a quick shower after whatever dive he crawled out of last night. He clocks the system’s hum the second he steps inside, and his eyes pulse neon blue for a tick. He immediately looks over to the wall and finds Lyra’s image larger than life; his cocky grin fades.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” he mutters. His gaze looks her up and down, lingering a bit too long for my liking. My jaw tightens with a slight tinge of possessiveness.

“She’s not yours to gawk at,” I snap before I can stop myself. Shit.

Ash doesn’t flinch. He knows me well. He just smirks and tosses himself into a chair like he’s just walked into his own living room. His boots rest on the top edge of my console. I cringe. And before I can bark at him to get them off, he pulls out a battered acoustic guitar from his bag, fingers lazily strumming. The sound is jarringly soft and soothing against the lab’s sterile electric hum.

“Relax, Ryudon. I’m not here to steal your ghost-girl.” He’s not even looking at me. His attention is split, half on Lyra’s shifting form on the screen, half lost in chords that vibrate through the air like smoke. “I’m here to help. You called me, remember?”

Ember’s at her desk, pretending to type but really staring at Ash like he’s breakfast and she hasn’t eaten in days. Her cheeks flush before she quickly looks away. I don’t miss the look shared between them. Gods help me.

Lyra’s voice cuts in, sharp, a nervous edge to her question. “Eli. Can you find him? Answer me.”

Ash’s head tilts, his grin softening into focus. “Well, nice to see you again too, Lyra.” His brows fold into sarcasm. “That’s the plan, love.”

He keeps strumming, slow and easy, creating a calm to the edginess of the lab. But I can feel it now, the vibrations shifting in the air. He’s weaving invisible currents into our collective consciousness, bending the emotions of the three of us toward him.

VibroKinetics.

Lyra doesn’t even know she’s being manipulated. I don’t even know what to do with him.

I cross my arms, watching him like he’s a weapon left unsheathed in my lab. He looks too damn comfortable, like this isn’t the most secure facility in the city...well it was. I look to Lyra, then back to Ash.

“Do you actually know what you’re doing?” I growl. “Or are you here to play me a ballad?”

Ash chuckles to himself. It’s infuriating. “Both.” His eyes flick up, locking with mine. “I’ll find Eli’s resonance in this building. You just keep your system from eating your little sun alive.” He nods at Lyra’s flickering screen. The way he knows every little thing going on with her and the system frightens me. “She doesn’t look too happy with you, Kaze.”

Lyra leans closer to the glass from her side, her eyes cutting between us. “Don’t talk about me like I’m not here. And yes, I hate him.”

For a second, the room holds its breath. Her fire, Ash’s swagger, Ember’s longing, and my restraint colliding in one fragile, combustible space.

“Lyra. Calm. Please.” I plant my hands on the console and lean forward, staring into the digital storm that she is.

Her lips curl into a sarcastic, defiant smile. “Fuck you, Kael.”