Page 196 of Villainous Rise

I concentrated on Annie. On her scent, the way her eyes crinkled when she laughed at my jokes. The way she recited regulations when she was nervous. The precise way she folded her clothes. How she looked sleeping beside me, finally at peace.

The pressure in my mind wavered, just slightly.

I seized that moment of weakness, pushing back with everything I had. My fingers twitched. Then my hand. Progress.

The voice in my head grew more insistent, but I focused on the sound of Annie’s sob. Something was wrong with her.

She needed me.

That thought shattered the hold on my mind. My body was mine again, the fog receding.

I spun around, gasping for breath, and froze at what I saw.

Blue energy danced just beneath Annie’s skin. A chaotic force sparked through her veins, a visible manifestation of power casting a faint blue glow in the shadows of the rooftop. She looked like a goddess descending to pass judgment on us all. The sight of that lethal energy coursing through the woman I loved was terrifyingly beautiful.

But as the fog fully cleared from my thoughts, the reality of the situation crashed into me.

Annie was kneeling on the ground with her hands clamped over her mouth, tears streaming down her face. Her eyes were wild with terror, pupils dilated to black pools. She was shaking violently, her entire body convulsing with sobs.

Havoc beside her, frantically working on her cuff. The power dampener that kept Halcyon’s stolen abilities locked away.

The cuff that was now completely dead.

CHAPTER 35

CIPHER

Oh fuck. When I’d used the Hammer...

I’d been so fucking reckless. The EMP pulse I’d sent out had knocked out everything electronic—including Annie’s cuff. The one thing keeping her safe from the power she feared most.

I rushed to her side. “Annie⁠—”

Annie shook her head frantically and sobbed, stumbling backward.

“The cuff’s dead,” Havoc said, his voice tight. “We need to get it back online now.”

I activated the Hammer, feeling the familiar surge of power through my forearm. Focusing on the delicate circuitry of Annie’s cuff, I sent a precise pulse of energy, just enough to jumpstart the systems without frying them completely.

The energy flooding her veins extinguished and my suits sensors told me the cuff was active again. But the damage was done.

“It’s okay,” I soothed. “It’s back online.”

Annie just shook her head, not dropping her hands from her mouth.

Gently I pulled and got them away but Annie was still sobbing uncontrollably. “I used it,” she whispered, her voice broken. “I made you stop. I controlled you.”

“Annie, it wasn’t your fault.”

“I swore I’d never use it,” she gasped between sobs.

I shifted my gaze from Annie to take in the full aftermath of what had just happened. Valor stood frozen, eyes vacant, still caught in the grip of Annie’s command.

But Helios?

He was on his hands and knees, gasping like he’d been gut-punched. His entire body trembled, fingers clawing at the rooftop surface as if trying to anchor himself to reality. The look on his face, pure, unfiltered horror, was directed straight at Annie.

I moved instantly, positioning myself to block Annie’s view. The last thing she needed was to see that expression, to carry that memory along with everything else that had just happened.