Chapter 24
ANNIE
I commandeered one of Havoc’s cars in the garage. I didn’t want to chance one of Cipher’s men being my driver and alerting Cipher to my distress.
The normally thirty-minute drive felt like hours. Every red light was an eternity. Every slow car in front of me, a personal attack.
By the time I reached the entrance to the Labyrinth, I felt like I was going to hyperventilate. Number Sixteen directed me to Cipher’s lab with a curious look.
I nodded my thanks and hurried down the corridor, trying to compose myself. My heart was pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat. What was I going to say?
Deep breath. In. Out.
I smoothed my hair, straightened my blouse, and tried to look less like someone who’d just run a marathon in heels.
The doors to the lab slid open with a soft hiss. Cipher stood at his workbench, back to me, his shoulders hunched in concentration. Two drones hovered above him, their mechanical arms extending to hand him tools or hold components in place.
I hesitated at the threshold, unsure how to begin this conversation.
“Annie?” Cipher’s head snapped up, his hands freezing mid-motion.
He turned, setting down whatever he was working on. His eyes narrowed as they swept over me, taking in what I assumed was the look of barely contained panic on my face. “What’s wrong?”
The drones retreated to their docking stations as Cipher crossed the room. His hands settled on my shoulders, warm and steady.
“Tell me.”
I opened my mouth, closed it, then opened it again. “Valor gave an interview.”
His fingers tightened slightly on my shoulders. “And?”
“He told the press we’re engaged.”
Cipher’s face went completely blank, that terrifying stillness that meant he was processing something too intense for normal human expression.
“He what?”
“After you interrupted our dinner at Elysium, he did a follow-up interview with Heroes En Vogue. I wasn’t there to supervise.
” I was babbling now, words tumbling out faster than I could control them.
“He just announced it. Made the whole thing up. And now it’s everywhere, and Alliance PR is backing him, and they’re sending me a ring, and there’s an event tonight—“
“Stop.” Cipher’s voice cut through my rambling. He released my shoulders and took a step back, his eyes never leaving mine. “Let me understand this. That narcissistic piece of shit announced you’re engaged, without your knowledge or consent, and now the Alliance is forcing you to go along with it?”
I nodded miserably.
“And you’re here to tell me... what? That you’re going to play along?” His voice had dropped dangerously low. “That you’re going to stand next to him and smile for the cameras while he parades you around?”
“I don’t have a choice.”
“Bullshit.” The word exploded from him. “You always have a choice. Did you tell the Alliance to go fuck themselves?”
“I don’t have a choice,” I repeated. “The Aegis approved this. They’re making me—“
“Making you?” Cipher’s laugh was sharp. “Let’s examine that, Sparks. How exactly are they making you? Did they threaten to throw you in a cell? Did they put a gun to your head?”
“They don’t have to!” I shot back. “If I refuse an Aegis directive, I lose my job. I lose everything.”
“Ah. There it is.” I backed up as Cipher advanced on me until I ran into a workbench.
He leaned over me and planted his hands on either side of my hips.
“The Aegis knows you’re terrified of what happens if you step outside their gilded cage.
They know you’d rather play the compliant Keeper than risk losing your safety net.
They aren’t forcing your hand, Annie. They simply priced the cost of your rebellion higher than you’re willing to pay. ”
The accusation in his voice made my chest tighten. “I came here to warn you—”
“To warn me?” Another laugh, this one colder than the last. “How considerate.’”
I flinched. “Stop it.”
“No, you stop it. You’re so fucking eager to follow their rules that you’ll let them pimp you out to boost some Hero’s ratings.”
“That’s not what this is!” But it was.
“Isn’t it? Tell me, Annie, what exactly are you planning to do when he tries to kiss you tonight? When the cameras are watching and everyone’s expecting the happy couple to share a moment?”
My stomach twisted. I hadn’t thought that far ahead.
“I thought so.” Cipher’s smile was vicious. “You’ll do whatever they tell you to, won’t you? Always the perfect little Alliance Keeper.”
“I came to you first. I thought you deserved to know.”
“How generous of you.” His words dripped acid. “What did you expect? My blessing?”
“I expected you to understand I’m trapped!”
“Look at the board, Annie.” He turned away, running a hand through his hair before glaring at me.
“You give them a fake engagement today to keep the peace. What do they ask for tomorrow? A fake wedding? You think compliance buys you security, but it only hands them a longer leash to choke you with. You’re giving them the playbook on how to control you. ”
“I can’t just—“
“You can.” He stepped into my space again. “You’re just too scared of the fallout. You’ll let them use you because it’s easier than standing your ground. You’re so fucking terrified of breaking the rules, of stepping out of line, that you’d rather break yourself instead.”
“That’s not fair.”
“You want to talk about fair?” Cipher huffed out a humorless laugh. “You’ll wear his ring in front of the whole world because the Alliance told you to. You will smile for the cameras and let him claim you in the light. But me? The man you supposedly love?”
He leaned in, his voice dropping to a vicious whisper. “I get the shadows. You know what’s not fair, Annie? Giving you fucking everything and still knowing I’m just your dirty little secret.”
“You think I’m keeping you a secret?” My voice shook with rage. “Are you fucking kidding me right now?”
Cipher’s eyebrows rose, but his expression remained cold.
“I told the Aegis about us! The goddamn Aegis!” I slammed my palm against his workbench, sending a small tool clattering to the floor.
“I told them I’m sleeping with you. I told them you would kill Valor when you found out.
And you know what they said? They said they’d ‘handle it’ and told me to proceed as planned. ”
I watched his face shift, surprise breaking through the anger for just a moment before his features hardened again.
“You told the Aegis.” His voice was flat, disbelieving.
“Yes! The people who could end my career with a snap of their fingers.”
He studied me, his head tilting slightly. “And they didn’t care.”
“They didn’t give a shit!” I threw my hands up.
Something dark flickered in Cipher’s eyes.
“So you’ll go.” The statement dripped with contempt.
“I don’t have a choice!”
“And tonight, you’ll wear his ring. That gaudy piece of Alliance-approved jewelry they’re sending over.”
I swallowed hard. “It doesn’t mean anything.”
“He’ll put his arm around your waist,” Cipher continued, stepping closer, “right where my hands were last night. He’ll lean in close, whisper in your ear for the cameras.”
“Stop it.”
“And when the moment’s right, when all those flashes are going off, he’ll kiss you.” His eyes burned into mine. “He’ll press his mouth against yours, and you’ll let him. You’ll smile afterward like it meant something.”
“I said stop it!”
“Maybe he’ll get carried away. Slip his tongue into your mouth. Put his hand on your ass.” Cipher’s words were precise, clinical, and all the more devastating for it. “And you’ll stand there and take it because you’re too fucking scared to say no.”
Tears welled up in my eyes, and I hated myself for it. Hated that I couldn’t keep it together, that he could reduce me to this with just his words.
“Fuck you,” I whispered, turning away so he wouldn’t see me cry.
I pressed my palms against my eyes, willing the tears to stop. My chest felt too tight, like someone had wrapped steel bands around my ribs and was slowly tightening them.
I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.
This wasn’t how this was supposed to go. I’d come here thinking—what? That he’d understand? That he’d help me find a way out? That he’d hold me and promise it would be okay?
Stupid. So fucking stupid.
When I turned back to him, Cipher’s eyes glittered with a cold light I’d never seen directed at me before.
“What happens when it’s time for the fake wedding, Annie?” His voice dropped to a whisper. “Will you walk down the aisle in white? Stand at the altar with him while I watch from the shadows?”
“That won’t happen!”
“Won’t it?” He laughed, the sound sharp. “You think they’ll just let this narrative die? They’ll milk it for every drop of publicity they can get.”
I shook my head, desperate to deny the truth in his words. “I’ll find a way out before then.”
“How?” He grabbed my wrist, not hard enough to hurt but firm enough that I couldn’t pull away. “By following more rules? By asking permission?”
“I don’t know!”
“Let me paint you a picture.” His thumb traced slow circles on my pulse point in a mockery of tenderness. “You in a white dress. Him waiting at the end of the aisle. The cameras flashing. Everyone watching the Hero get his happy ending.”
I tried to pull away, but his grip tightened.
“And where will I be, Annie? Watching from the back? Or maybe they’ll invite me as the Villain of the piece—the perfect dramatic tension for their little show.”
“Stop it,” I whispered.
“Will you fuck him on your wedding night?” The crude question landed like a slap. “Or will you sneak away to me, still wearing his ring, so I can bend you over and remind you who you really belong to?”
Heat flooded my face—shame and anger.
“You want me to be the Villain you fuck in the dark while playing perfect Keeper in the light.”
“That’s not true!”
“Then what do you want?” He released my wrist suddenly, making me stumble back. “Tell me what you want me to do when they announce your engagement party. When they release the wedding date. When they publish the photos of you in your dress.”
“I want—” My voice cracked. “I want you to trust me.”