"Drop the knife, Stefano! Please!" Elena's voice was a jagged mess of terror.
Stefano's hand, white-knuckled and trembling, held the scalpel millimeters from his own carotid artery. His eyes were wide, but the pupils had vanished into a blinding, milky light.
"I can't... move my arm!" Stefano hissed. The words sounded like they were being dragged through gravel. "It's not me! Elena, get back!"
"He is property," Stefano's mouth moved, but the voice that came out was cold, ancient, and hollow. It was the voice of a man who had never known a day of physical labor in his life. "Property must be reclaimed. If the vessel is compromised, it will be terminated."
"Ghost! Do something!" Elena screamed, her eyes darting between Stefano and the hacker.
Ghost was a blur of motion. His fingers hamm
