Page 134 of BounBound By Scars

I felt Kaylan’s hand land gently on my thigh. Logan followed a beat later, grounding me.

Then Zane opened his mouth.

“I’m marking Cipher as a rogue asset.”

I snapped my head up so fast the world tilted.

“Fuck you,” I spat.

His sigh wasn’t angry. It was… tired. Like he pitied me.

I knew what they all thought. That I wasn’t in my right mind. That my emotional regulation was off due to my injuries.

But I knew my thoughts were sharp. Crystal clear.

I was angry.

I was devastated.

I was disgusted.

I was fucking disappointed.

“Hold off on that,” Sebastian said, his tone quiet but not uncertain.

It surprised me. I didn’t know why he wasn’t joining the firing squad. But for now, at least, he wasn’t loading his gun.

“Seb, Ineedto mark him rogue,” Zane argued, throwing his glasses onto the table like punctuation. “If I don’t, my team will keep giving him access to secure files.”

He leaned forward, rubbing his face in frustration. “I can’t believe he would do this.”

I finally found my voice again.

“He wouldn’t. Which should tell you everything you need to know—that he had no choice. Or that he’s playing double agent.”

They all went quiet.

But I could see it in their eyes.

They didn’t believe me.

“Amelia, I was given the same choice as him,” Zane said after a long, crushing silence.

His words froze me.

“What?” Zarek asked, his voice low.

Zane exhaled hard, jaw clenched. “They asked me to switch sides. To hand over Sentrix. Offered me more money and protection than most people see in a lifetime.”

He turned to me then—and the rage in his eyes made me flinch.

“But I didn’t. I chose death over it. Because I couldn’t do that to us.”

He looked back at the room, eyes wild.

“But Kabir did. So do the fucking math!”

He all but shouted the last part, the heat of betrayal spilling from every word.

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