The vault door slammed shut like the world had stopped breathing.
Anais spun around, her pulse skidding. “What the hell was that?”
No one answered.
Cassian had already turned back toward Julien, who was still strapped into the neural rig, his body eerily still except for the subtle rise and fall of his chest. The screen beside him flickered with the countdown: 00:09:47.
They had nine minutes left before Fallpoint completed its final sync and wiped everything.
But outside the door—no sounds. No footsteps. No help coming.
Maris tried the console. “It’s not a mechanical lock,” she said quickly, voice tense. “It’s coded. Sealed from the inside.”
Anais stared at her. “Then how do we get out?”
Maris shook her head, typing faster. “We don’t. Not unless I c***k this override.”
Cassian did
