Chapter 12
Upstairs, the heavy silence of the study was shattered by the sound of heavy tactical boots stomping across the hardwood hallway floor. Chloe stood protectively over the velvet couch where Leo lay unconscious, her sparkly shoes planted firmly on the floor as she gripped a heavy marble bookend in both hands. The door to the study swung open violently, splintering against the wall as the lead operative with the scarred jaw stepped into the room.
Two other tactical agents flanked him, their suppression weapons raised and ready.
“Step away from the asset, Miss Sterling,” the lead operative ordered calmly, his voice echoing through the ruined room. “The transfer protocol is nearly complete. Resistance is entirely illogical.”
Chloe’s chest heaved with heavy, ragged breaths, her eyes blazing with fierce defiance.
“You’re not taking him!” Chloe screamed, raising the heavy marble bookend. “If you take a single step closer, I swear I’ll smash this terminal and destroy the data myself!”
The operative let out a cold, humorless chuckle. He slowly reached down to his tactical belt, pulling out a small, sleek electronic remote with a single blinking blue indicator light.
“You can’t destroy what’s already in the cloud, Miss Sterling,” the operative replied smoothly. “And more importantly... you can’t stop the transfer unless you’re willing to take the paralysis back into your own legs right now.”
Chloe froze, her arms trembling under the weight of the marble bookend.
“What... what are you talking about?” she whispered, horror washing over her features.
The operative pressed a button on the remote. Instantly, a sharp, piercing electronic tone emanated from the microchip embedded in Leo’s trousers. The boy’s body arched violently on the couch, a soft gasp escaping his lips as his eyes fluttered open in sheer agony.
“The prototype shoes were designed with a biological safety valve,” the operative explained coldly, taking a slow step forward. “If the host rejects the burden, the system automatically redirects the neural trauma back to the original recipient. Within sixty seconds, your legs will lock up again, and you’ll be back in that blue wheelchair permanently.”
Chloe looked down at her hands, then slowly down at her sparkly shoes. She could feel the warm, vibrant life pulsing through her calves—the incredible gift of freedom she had dreamed of every single night for four long years. The temptation to drop the bookend, run out the door, and save herself screamed loudly in the back of her mind.
Instead, Chloe lowered the marble bookend, letting it drop heavily onto the Persian rug with a dull thud.
“Then do it,” Chloe whispered defiantly, tears streaming down her face as she knelt back down beside Leo and grabbed his cold, trembling hand. “Take it back. I’d rather spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair than let an innocent boy suffer for my life.”
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The operative stared at her in utter astonishment, completely unprepared for an act of genuine human sacrifice.
Before he could raise his weapon to stop her, the study window behind him exploded outward in a shower of glass as a rope dropped swiftly from the roof above.
