“And it involved that little card you have there.”

I look down at the SD card I’m still holding between my fingertips. My out. The only thing I’ve been living for all year was this card and the promise that Nick would come back and get me. We’re gonna save everyone. We’re gonna make everything right again.

I look back up at the man called One and shake my head. “You can’t have it, I don’t care who promised you. I won’t—”

He’s got me by the throat before I can finish, the inner crook of his elbow a crushing force against my windpipe. I forget everything. Everything! My hands are clutching at his arm, trying to pry it away as my vision begins to black out. And then I hear Sasha scream, a sharp prick to my inner arm, and… nothing.

Chapter Thirty-Seven - James

“One,” I yell, as Harper’s body goes limp in his arms. She’s got a red streak around her neck, like she was strangled. “If you—”

“Don’t come any closer, Tet. She’s out from the asphyxiation, but she’s drugged too. It was a big dose. She needs an antagonist stat.”

Fuck. “I will f**king kill you. I will f**king—”

He holds up the SD card in his hand and a wave of defeat washes over me. “I’m leaving, she can stay,” he says, lowering Harper to the ground. “Because it was Nicola I always wanted, Tet. And before you get all big brother on me, you should know, this was her idea.” He smiles as I internalize what he just said.

The betrayal sinks in. The set up sinks in.

“You think I’m lying? I’ll send you proof when we’re safely away.” And then he nods his head at Sasha. “That useless kid over there is also your problem. The Admiral gave you an order, so I imagine you’ll know what to do with her to get back into his good graces once he learns of this coup.”

Sasha is actually pointing her gun at him, but the shock in her eyes renders her helpless.

“I’m leaving, and if you’re smart, you’ll go get your naloxone and save the Admiral’s daughter, because Nicola doesn’t need saving, Tet. She’s right where she wants to be.” He grins. “With me.”

“She’s turning blue, James,” Sasha says in a voice that should not be that calm.

“Better go get it, Tet. She’ll be dead in a minute or less.”

I bolt back into the hallway, take the steps three at a time and crash through the door that leads outside. I practically tear the gate off the hinges and slam into the garage door as I key in the numbers to open it up and get to the first-aid kit in the Hummer. I punch in the wrong code and get a red flashing light, it cycles through a mandatory waiting sequence before I can try again, and I force myself to breathe deeply as my shaky finger presses each number correctly. The door slides up and I drop to the ground and shimmy underneath as it rises. I open the cargo area and then the tub where the first-aid kit is stored.

I grab the naloxone rescue pen and retreat at a full run back to Harper’s apartment. When I get there, Sasha is kneeling down next to Harper, shaking her and calling her name over and over again. “She’s dead! She’s dead!”

No. I push Sasha out of the way and stab Harper with the pen, then press the plunger. I check her pulse. So weak. So very, very weak. I lean down on her chest and hold my breath as I listen for hers. Nothing.

Sasha is screaming now, hysterical. But my world goes silent and I only see Harp. “Lionfish,” I whisper in her ear as I position her neck for rescue breathing. “Lionfish, you’re not getting out of here that easy.” I hold her nose, cover her mouth with mine, and breathe.

I breathe into her. I place a hand on her chest to make sure her lungs are inflating. I do this over and over again.

Sasha is crying.

Harper is not breathing on her own, but that’s OK.

I’m breathing for her.

That’s all I hear. My lungs drawing in air, then her lungs taking it from me. It’s a comforting rhythm that calms me down. A minute passes. Then two. Her heart is beating and that’s all that matters. As long as I breathe for her, her heart beats. As long as her heart beats, she’s alive. Three minutes pass, then four, and five.

Her eyes fly open and she takes a long gasp of air. She struggles to sit up. The naloxone has dissociated the drug from the receptors in her nervous system, rendering it inert.

I hug her. Tight. Sasha squirms her way in and hugs her too. Tight.

Harper starts to cry and my whole body goes cold. My blood turns to ice.

I will get that that motherfucker.

I will get. That motherfucker.

I will torture him using techniques he’s never heard of before. I’ll flay the skin off him, one layer at a time, until he’s screaming for death. He will beg for death.

But death and I have an understanding. A deal. He can have them in the end, but I always get them first.

Chapter Thirty-Eight - James

I put Harper in the back of the Hummer with Sasha. They are both silent, but they are both alive. “Sasha, make sure she doesn’t fall into a deep sleep, OK? You need to check her pulse so we can make sure she’s not still drugged and give her another dose. Check her every ten minutes.” I explain how to do that and hand Sasha my watch so she can keep time. Then I give her the rescue pen, in case Harp needs more meds.

When Sasha looks up at me, she’s crying. “I’m sorry. I should’ve shot him. I didn’t know what to do! It’s the city! It’s not the same. I didn’t know what to do.”

Harper leans over the stupid table hump in between the two bucket seats and grabs her hand. “Don’t cry, Sasha. I’m fine, OK? I’m fine.”

I push Harper back into her seat, lean over both of them so I can find her belt, and then drag it across her body. “Just keep still.”

“James, that guy said he sent you to get the card.”

“Don’t,” I growl at her. She recoils a little but I don’t care. “Don’t mention him again. I’m gonna take care of it. But I’m not gonna explain what happened, because I’m not sure. So no more.” I pull back and stand at Sasha’s door. “We’re not talking about today. Ever. Do you understand?”

They just look at me and I guess that’s as good an agreement as I’m gonna get, so I shut Sasha’s door and open mine. Harper is on the passenger side in back, so I can keep an eye on her as we drive. She’s still drowsy so I’m hoping she’ll fall into a light sleep as we make our way to the airport. I can use some quiet time to sort this all out.