Chapter 56 Jonah
Jonah
Location: Subterranean Holding Chamber — Staging Node
Time: Unknown
The door doesn’t open right away.
That tells me the failure worked.
They’re arguing about it.
I hear muffled voices beyond the wall—low, irritated, clipped. Not panic. Not urgency.
Confusion.
That’s the sweet spot.
The lights brighten incrementally, then dim again. A system cycling through options it doesn’t like.
Finally—
The lock disengages.
The door slides open halfway and stops, jerking slightly as if it hesitates.
A man steps inside.
One guard. No rifle raised. Sidearm holstered. Utility kit slung low at his hip.
Maintenance escort, not security response.
Exactly who I hoped for.
He glances first at the ceiling, then at the control panel embedded beside the door. Frowns. Taps it twice.
“Stay seated,” he says without looking at us.
Accent Eastern European. Professional. Bored.
The woman doesn’t move.
Neither do I.
Good.
The guard crouches by the wall panel, pulling the cover loose. Sparks flicker faintly as he disconnects a cable and reseats it with more force than necessary.
Impatient.
He mutters again, sharper this time.
That’s when he steps closer—to my side of the room.
Too close.
I feel the tension ripple through the chain at my ankles as he kneels, inspecting the floor plate beneath the bench.
He presses his palm flat against the metal.
Right where I tested it.
My pulse steadies.
He leans in farther, squinting.
“Stupid temporary nodes,” he mutters.
Then—inevitably—he reaches for the chain.
Just to check it.
Just to confirm nothing’s wrong.
That’s the mistake.
The instant his fingers curl around the links, I move.
Not fast.
Not violent.
Precise.
I roll my wrist inward, twisting the cuff so the sharp edge bites deep into the seam I weakened earlier. The metal gives—not breaking, but flexing just enough.
At the same time, I shift my ankle outward and kick—not at him, but at the chain itself.
The sudden tension snaps the compromised seam open with a muted crack.
The guard’s eyes widen as the chain slips free from the floor plate.
Confusion flashes—then fear.
I don’t give him time to shout.
I surge forward, shoulder slamming into his chest as my freed ankle sweeps his legs out from under him.
He hits the floor hard, breath whooshing out of him in a silent gasp.
I land on him, one knee pinning his ribs.
My still-cuffed hands come up and lock around his throat.
I squeeze.
Not crushing.
Cutting air.
His eyes bulge. His hands claw at my wrists, but the angle is wrong—his leverage gone, his training useless in the close quarters.
I lean in, mouth near his ear.
“Don’t fight,” I whisper. “You’ll pass out in six seconds. You won’t die if you don’t make me kill you.”
Tears spring to his eyes.
Good.
Behind me, the woman hasn’t screamed.
She hasn’t moved.
Perfect.
The guard’s struggles weaken.
I ease pressure just enough to let him breathe—but not enough to recover.
“Keys,” I murmur.
He shakes his head frantically.
I tighten my grip again.
Once.
Twice.
He nods.
I release one hand and strip the keycard from his belt, then the utility knife. I slide the blade between my cuff and wrist, wedging it—not cutting skin, just adding leverage.
I twist.
The cuff pops open with a soft metallic click.
Freedom burns.
I rise slowly, keeping one foot pressed against the guard’s chest.
“Stay,” I tell him quietly. “If you move, I’ll break your throat before you can scream.”
He freezes.
I turn to the woman.
Her eyes are wide—but focused.
Not panicked.
“You’re coming with me,” I say. “Now.”
She stands immediately.
I cut her cuffs in one clean motion.
The lights flicker violently overhead.
Too violent.
This time, it’s not an inquiry.
It’s alert.
Somewhere deeper in the facility, Malenkov’s system just realized something went wrong.
I grab the guard’s radio, flick it off, and toss it into the corner.
Then I take a breath.
Because the controlled failure just became an active breach.
And Ronan Pierce?
He’s going to feel this moment like a pull on a wire.
“Move,” I tell her.
We slip through the door just as alarms begin to wake.
And for the first time since they took me—
I’m not waiting anymore.