Chapter 34
CIPHER
I kept my distance, flying silently in Valor’s wake. My stealth system rendered me invisible but the rage building inside me was becoming difficult to contain as I watched Valor manhandle Annie.
I’ll drop her.
His words replayed in my mind, and I nearly laughed despite my anger. What a fucking moron. Did he think I couldn’t catch her? Even the worst case scenario, I’d snatch Annie from midair before she fell twenty feet.
But I wouldn’t risk it. Not with Annie. One wrong move from that fucker and she could be hurt.
The Tower loomed ahead, its imposing silhouette cutting against the night sky. I’d have to time this perfectly. The moment Valor released Annie, the very instant she was clear, I’d strike.
The fucker was dead.
I flexed my fingers, feeling the subtle hum of power in my veins. I was ready to unleash far more than what he was expecting from a manufactured Super.
Valor descended toward the Tower’s rooftop landing pad, still unaware of my presence less than ten yards behind him. His grip on Annie tighten unnecessarily as they landed.
The moment his feet touched down, I activated the Tinkerer’s Hammer.
The device pulsed within my forearm and I felt the familiar connection as it interfaced with the Tower’s security systems. One by one, the security measures went dark.
The rooftop was now effectively a blind spot in Havoc’s security network.
Valor didn’t notice a thing because he was too fucking busy playing the wronged Hero.
“You’ve made a fool of me,” he spat at Annie, still gripping her arm.
“Let go of me, Valor,” she pleaded.
“So you can run back to that League trash? The one who just let me take you?” He laughed. “Some protector he turned out to be.”
I hovered closer. The audacity of this fucking asshole.
“Havoc knows, damn you!” Annie tried once again to wrench her arm out of his grasp, but he only tightened his grip.
“I doubt that. But he’ll be here soon enough to see what you really are. Your little Villain didn’t even try to save you,” Valor taunted, leaning closer to Annie. “Just let you go without a fight. What does that tell you about how much you mean to him?”
If he only knew how close I was, how many ways I’d already decided to make him suffer.
Valor leaned in, his face inches from hers. “How many Alliance secrets have you whispered in his ear while he was between your legs?”
I watched genuine fear flicker across Annie’s face. Her eyes darted around the rooftop, searching for help, for an escape. She thought she was alone.
That was it. Enough.
I deactivated my stealth systems.
“Let. Her. Go.”
I’d barely finished speaking when I detected movement above us. Two figures descending rapidly. The unmistakable silhouette of Havoc, with Helios’s golden glow trailing slightly behind him.
Shit.
My mind raced through permutations, odds, mapping potential scenarios but Havoc was chaos incarnate. I couldn’t accurately predict his reaction. Would he side with Valor? Would he listen to Annie? Would he attack me on sight?
I maintained my position, muscles coiled and ready. My mind ran combat simulations in the background. The odds weren’t great, but I’d faced worse.
Havoc landed and Helios touched down seconds later. Havoc didn’t immediately turn to me with accusations or threats, nor did he acknowledge Valor.
“What’s happened, Annie?” he asked.
“She’s been deceiving all of us,” Valor spat before Annie even had a chance to open her mouth.
“I caught her with him.” He jerked his chin toward me, “They were caught by an Alliance patrol, leaving an illegal club. Your precious Keeper has been spreading her legs for a League member while pretending to uphold Alliance standards.”
Havoc only cocked his head.
“She’s been playing both sides,” Valor continued, his face twisted with disgust. “Who knows what Alliance secrets she’s been sharing or how many missions she’s compromised. She’s nothing but a Villain’s whore.”
I wanted to lash out at him as he continued. No one—fucking no one—talked about Annie that way. But I held myself in check. I was furious but not stupid. I needed to see how Havoc took the information before I acted.
Thankfully, Havoc raised a hand, silencing Valor mid-tirade. His expression remained maddeningly neutral, but I could see the subtle shift in his posture, the slight narrowing of his eyes.
“I didn’t ask for your version of events, Valor,” Havoc said, his voice deceptively calm. “Annie? What happened?”
Valor’s face registered shock, then outrage at being dismissed.
“I was out with Cipher, as his girlfriend,” she said simply.
“That’s all that happened. He took me to a club but an Alliance patrol showed up.
I was there as a civilian and Cipher made sure I was able to leave the premises unharmed.
Valor intercepted me as I was putting distance between myself and the fighting.
He then brought me here against my will. ”
I watched as Annie slipped into her Keeper mode, using the same precision and attention to detail that made her exceptional in every aspect of her life.
“Valor has violated Alliance Code 5.3, unauthorized detention of civilian personnel,” she began, her voice steady and clinical.
“Code 7.2, excessive force against a non-combatant. Code 8.9, making threats of bodily harm against an unarmed civilian. Code 12.4, failure to identify himself as Alliance before detainment. Code 14.7, public endangerment through unnecessary aerial transport of an unwilling civilian without safety equipment.”
There was something almost hypnotic about watching her recite regulations from memory, her voice gaining confidence with each violation she listed. Despite the tension of the moment, I felt a wave of pride.
“And most seriously,” she continued, “Code 2.1, using his powers to intimidate and threaten harm to a civilian for personal reasons rather than public safety.”
Valor’s face turned red. “She’s not a civilian! She’s compromised! She’s—“
“Let her go, Valor.” Havoc’s voice was quiet but carried unmistakable authority.
“You can’t be serious!” Valor’s grip on Annie’s arm tightened, causing her to wince slightly and my muscles tensed in response. I was more than ready to tear his fucking arm off for hurting her.
“She was at a League club! With him!” He jerked her so that she was facing him. “You’ve been fucking him this whole time! He’s the reason you couldn’t just do your fucking job. He’s the fucking reason you broke off the engagement!”
Annie didn’t answer.
“I’m aware that she’s seeing Cipher,” Havoc said, his voice finally rising.
I watched with satisfaction as Valor’s face contorted. The perfect poster boy of the Alliance looked like he might burst a blood vessel.
“You knew?” he sputtered at Havoc, his voice going up an octave. “And you allowed it? To make a mockery of me? A mockery of everything we stand for!”
“Annie is permitted to do as she likes on her personal time,” Havoc stated firmly. “Her private life is her own, provided it doesn’t interfere with her duties.”
“But she—”
“Was she on duty tonight, Valor?” Havoc cut him off.
“No, but—”
“Then she was acting as a civilian, not as a Keeper.” Havoc turned his attention to Annie, his expression softening slightly. “Annie, I must ask—have you ever used your knowledge of the Alliance or your position as a Keeper while with Cipher?”
Annie stood straighter “No, sir. That would violate Keeper Code 3.7 regarding the disclosure of privileged information, Code 4.2 on maintaining professional boundaries, and Code 9.1 on conflicts of interest. I have maintained strict separation between my professional responsibilities and my personal relationships.”
I suppressed a smile. God, she was magnificent when she went into regulation mode. I found it oddly arousing.
“I was not on duty tonight,” she continued. “I am, at this moment, a civilian, which means you’ll need to file the report regarding Valor’s violations yourself, sir. But I can recite the codes again if you need me to.”
“Valor,” Havoc said, “let her go.”
Something in Havoc’s tone must have finally penetrated Valor’s thick skull. With a disgusted grunt, he shoved Annie toward me, hard enough that she stumbled.
I caught her before she could fall, steadying her against me.
“Are you alright?” I asked quietly, my eyes scanning her for any signs of injury.
Annie nodded. “I’m fine.”
I pressed my lips to her forehead in a gentle kiss, breathing in her familiar scent. “Good,” I murmured against her skin. “Go inside.”
Annie’s eyes widened and her lips parted to protest, but I was already moving.
I launched myself at Valor. I deactivated every safeguard on my suit, everything that kept my true power caged. I barely registered Havoc swearing before I collided with the golden boy.
The impact drove us backward across the rooftop. My fist connected with his jaw and the wet crunch of bone sent a dark thrill through me. For all his posturing, Valor had no idea what actual violence looked like and I was more than happy to educate him.
”You don’t touch her,” I growled, driving another punch into his solar plexus just to hear him choke. “You don’t breathe her air.” Another blow caught him across the temple, splitting the pristine skin. “You don’t even look at her.”
But I wasn’t prepared for how quickly Valor recovered. One moment I was raining blows on his perfect face, the next he caught my fist mid-swing, his fingers clamping around my knuckles with crushing force.
He snarled, his perfect teeth stained with blood and I barely twisted away from his counterpunch, the air crackling as his fist passed inches from my jaw.
I had underestimated the Alliance fuck boy.
For all of his stupid posturing for the cameras, he knew how to actually throw a punch.
But it didn’t matter. Just because he might be a better fighter than I anticipated didn’t mean I wasn’t going to strip away every ounce of his golden perfection and leave him a broken, unrecognizable mess on Havoc’s roof.