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Is that pride I hear in his voice? It is. Back off, she’s mine!

I get it; I know why Torben’s happy she slipped me. He too wants her to survive. We all do. Rylan is a curious new creature who has just invaded our land. Her mistake. Our gratitude. We needed fresh air. It’s been asphyxiating! Thick and exhausting. Fresh meat makes all our mouths salivate.

I hear Torben’s engine rev as he prepares to chase her.

“Stand down,” I order him.

“Excuse me?” His laughter slithers through the phone, echoing off the cinderblock walls.

My grip tightens on the railing, knuckles straining as I force myself to breathe. The faint hissing of the fluorescent bulbs in the stairwell does nothing to calm my nerves.

The air feels too thick, every sound amplified. My mind screams at me to chase Rylan.

Not yet.

When your prey panics, that’s when you learn the most about them. How far they’re willing to go to survive. And I’m not just talking about Rylan, because her running away from me is going to cause absolute pandemonium.

Wow, who knew you could smile while enduring pepper spray?

If it were anyone else, they would know better than to question me, but Torben is my little brother. His mouth has no filter when it comes to infuriating me. Usually, I welcome it; it’s nice to have a sparring partner.

“Stand down!” I reach the door, feel for the handle, and shove it open.

I have never been pepper-sprayed before. Shot, stabbed, burned, almost drowned, but believe it or not, the spray is a pretty shitty feeling. The only thing that makes it bearable is the fact that I have been trained to lose a sense. No hearing one day; another day, no sight. It’s part of survival. Rylan would have to try harder to stop me.

The world Rylan’s just entered calls me The Poacher. My job is to hunt down spies. Fools who think they can gain info from BANKS Corp.

“But she’s getting away,” Torben grumbles.

Yeah, that’s the point.

“Why are you botching the job?” Torben questions. Suspicion thick as tar coats his voice, making me take slower steps.

“I’m not,” I lie. Oh, I am. I just need to tell him in person. “Let her run. I want to see what she will do.”

“Why?”

I don’t gift him with my reply. This is my mission. Rylan is my target.

Say it, Steffen. Say it!

I’m letting her run because I’m not ready to admit the truth.

CHAPTER 3

Rylan

Four months later

There is something a little off with me, or rather, my taste buds.

Grabbing the bag of candy corn, I toss it into my shopping cart without a second glance.

What can I say? I prefer old Halloween candy. The kind a cheap grandma would give out. Candy Corn and my favorite, Tootsie Rolls.

Yes, you there, pushing your cart filled with Snickers. Judge me, hard. I’m a classic candy eater in a world filled with over-saturated colors. I mean, look at my Tootsies. Yes, I like candy that looks like artificial shit; brown little logs filled with sugar and more chemicals than a nuclear lab—but it tastes so yummy.

Calm your tits; I brush my teeth to the point of gum-bleeding pain after I eat it.