Page 47 of Knight

She takes a step away, but doesn’t stray too far. I’m sure it’s more out of necessity than choice.

“But how could he predict all this?”

“Because when he took me on, he trained me in everything, not just how to code. How to handle threats. This entire response pattern might as well have his name on it.” My jaw tightens, while my brain analyzes the position he’s put us in. “He’s using my own methods against me. Probably sitting at his computer, drinking tea and finding it fucking hilarious.”

Vibrations transfer through the concrete as more explosions detonate in the distance. I know without even checking that each blast will be eliminating another escape route. The pattern is becoming clearer with every impact. We’re being systematically cut off from any normal exit.

The parking structure’s ventilation system hums to life, pushing cool air from the space.

The whole setup reeks of careful planning. The parking structure is for the entire gated complex I live in, an area I have no control over. It has its own separate power supply, and independent control systems, everything designed to function in isolation … which makes it easier to hack into and control.

A ding breaks the silence, and the service elevator on the opposite wall opens. The sight sets off every warning instinct I’ve developed.

This is too obvious. Too clean. Everything about it is designed to make it look like it’s our only option.

When Glitch steps toward the elevator, my fingers wrap around her arm, and I pull her back.

“He’s herding us.” I can’t hide the annoyance from my voice. “Each explosion is pushing us in the direction he wants us to go.”

“But—”

“That elevator is bait.”

I move along the perimeter, studying the barriers sealing us inside. The execution has been flawless so far. Every potential weakness covered, every standard escape route blocked.

“He’s not testing my security anymore. This is something else.”

She follows me, keeping pace despite her obvious exhaustion. “What then?”

“He’s proving a point.” I run my fingers along one of the barriers. “Showing how well he knows me by using everything I know against me.”

Another explosion rocks the structure, closer than the others. The vibrations travel through the concrete differently this time. It’s more dispersed, like it’s targeting something specific rather than just creating barriers to stop me escaping.

The ventilation system cycles higher, responding to some automated command. This whole fucking level has been turned into a controlled environment. Every variable accounted for, every reaction anticipated.

“It’s obviously a trap, then.”

“Really? I would never have guessed.” She’s not wrong, though. My eyes shift back to the waiting elevator.

It’s too easy. Which means there’s something I’m not seeing.

I move to the center of the level, turning slowly to take in every detail. Victor’s lessons echo in my mind—about patterns, about looking past the obvious threat to find the real danger. About how the best trap isn’t the one you see coming.

The ventilation system kicks higher. The air moves differently now, currents shifting in ways that shouldn’t bepossible with standard climate control. Another explosion hits, the dispersal pattern matching the air flow changes.

“He’s not just moving us through space, he’s changing the environment itself. He’s using the building’s systems to direct us.”

She wraps her arms around herself, wincing at the pressure against her wrists. “Toward what?”

I track air currents, matching them against the explosion pattern. “I haven’t figured that out yet. But I need to, and fast, before the next move takes away the choice entirely.”

Because that’s Victor’s real lesson. There’salwaysanother layer to the game. Always another trap waiting behind the obvious one. He’s not just testing my security, or my ability to handle threats. He’s testing to see whether I’ve learned to see past the surface. Past the obvious trap of the elevator. Past even the subtle manipulation of the building’s systems.

I need to figure out what the real game is here, and how much it’s going to cost me to win it.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Evangeline

---