Page 158 of Conform
Then I had seen her break before my eyes, while I had stood helpless, something in me severing at the sight.
A jolt shot through my left arm. I took a steadying breath.
While my hands were tied, the others’ were not. Their grid might have been restored, but not before it had been modified, a ticking time bomb set. The supplements had been successfully funneled to those in need. My supporters and spies in the clouds remained my secret alone.
I wasn’t leading a rebellion. That ardent drive in my soul burned brighter, stronger. This was a revolution. I would upend everything. Their buildings in the clouds would crumble.
Footsteps sounded, light and gentle. I let the mask I had crafted slip into place, washing away anything besides what I had become all those years ago. The ones I loved, their safety. The things the Illum had put me through at the Academy—the things they had taken from me. The mask settled and everything, everyone, fell away.
But my love for her clung to me—as stubborn as she was. Even if she would never return it, the mask it fought against the very thing that made her hate me. It was safer this way.
I buried it—her.
The footsteps stopped.
“Imagine my delight in knowing you are here,” the owner of the footsteps said, her voice victorious.
I didn’t take the bait. I stood silently, head against the wall, eyes still closed.
“Tell me, Reaper, are you ready to talk now?”
They had broken me once. I wouldn’t break again.
“That depends,” I drawled, opening my eyes.
“On what?”
“What you want to talk about.” I looked at the figure before me.
“I always wondered what would break you.”
The woman’s smile gleamed in the dark.
