The SCAR units struggled within their suits. They moved around like confused zombies with a little more speed.

  Sydney leaned against the wall. Leaving would be a mistake. She needed to take these two out. However, she needed to wait for them to exit their suits.

  The EMP stunned communication with anyone for five minutes. It also stunned the gadgets Sydney carried, as well as the suits, making this an even matchup.

  Finally, they exited the suit. Both were bald with orange beards. They looked similar. A little too similar. It was like they were brothers. Twins, even. They wore the same button-up shirt, though in different colors. One in dark blue, the other in bright yellow.

  “Cheeky little stunt,” the one in yellow said, his teeth the same color as his shirt.

  “EMP. What a cheap trick.” The other said.

  Sydney smiled. “We’re even on the playing field.” She kicked herself off the wall. “I’m here for the hostages. I hope we can shake hands and not pursue a fight.”

  The one in blue scoffed. “You’re serious?” He turned to his partner. “Is she real?”

  “I am offering you mercy. You tell me details about the hostages. Where they are, and what has happened. In return, you can walk out of here alive.”

  “You sound serious.” The one in yellow said. “Melet, what do you say?”

  “We are not going to negotiate with a criminal. Ipin, we must do our duty and kill the women.”

  “The other girl. She went forward. What are the chances she runs into Greg’s crew?”

  Sydney spoke. “She’s more than capable of handling herself.” She opened her arms. “I want the best of both worlds. You guys go home and forget this happened. Otherwise, I will have to kill you.”

  “Threatening us with a straight face.” Melet pressed his lips and balled his fists.

  Sydney sighed. “Alright,” she said. “That answers that.”

  From inside her jacket, she drew a compact handgun. The suppressor was longer than the barrel.

  The twins barely had time to register it.

  Phff.

  Melet’s head snapped back. He dropped instantly, knees folding before his body caught up.

  Ipin froze, shock flashing across his face.

  Sydney adjusted her aim half an inch.

  “Wait, wait, wait!” He threw his hands up. “I—I’ll give you anything. Please don’t shoot me—I—I have a—”

  “Save it,” Sydney said, interrupting him. “What do you know about Ridley and the hostages?”

  He shook his head. “Nothing. Nothing at all. We—all we know is he’s here with Avery. That’s all. I don’t know anything. He doesn’t say anything. He—He told us we would be getting overtime pay for this gig. That’s all. I swear.”

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  His voice was in full–panic, which made him sound genuine.

  With the gun still pointed at him, Sydney asked, “Do you know anything of use?”

  He made random mouth movements while humming his thoughts. “Yes. I–I can–I know something. This place. I’ve gigged here multiple times. This place hides something. I don’t know what it hides, but Ridley mentioned we aren’t needed since there’s already absolute security here. I don’t know what he means. It’s just something he said before.”

  “Absolute security? Cameras?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. He’s teased a few times that the ground would crumble.”

  Sydney shook her head, confused. “What? Are we standing in a cave–in?”

  “I don’t know. I swear, that’s all I know. Please, just don’t shoot—”

  Phff.

  Ipin collapsed beside his brother.

  The silence afterward was worse than the shots. Sydney stood there for a moment, gun steady, waiting for alarms that didn’t come. The EMP had done its job. No comms or alerts. She stepped forward and nudged one of the bodies with her boot. No movement.

  “Wrong place, wrong time.”

  She holstered the weapon. She felt no adrenaline spike. No shaking hands. Nothing. This wasn’t her first time.

  Sydney stood over the bodies. Death reeked in the air. There was only the quiet aftermath. She crouched. There was no dirt here. No soil to dig into. Just cracked concrete and steel, and the cold.

  Usually, she would dig deep enough to mean something. A cigarette dropped into the hole, burning alone before the dirt covered it. A small, pointless respect for a life taken. A way to keep the weight from following her.

  Here, there was nothing.

  Sydney brushed her fingers against the concrete anyway, tracing a small circle between the two bodies. Her nails scraped lightly, uselessly, as if the floor might suddenly soften out of courtesy.

  “…Yeah,” she whispered. “I know.”

  She reached into her jacket and pulled out a cigarette. She didn’t light it. She held it between two fingers, hovering it over the imaginary grave, then let it fall.

  The cigarette hit the concrete and rolled.

  For a second, she bowed her head. Not in apology. Not in prayer. Just acknowledgment.

  Then the ritual was over.

  She stood, crushed the cigarette under her shoes.

  ***

  “Five minutes. I should’ve put a timer.”Sydney exhaled and sat against the unfinished structure. “Might as well wait for comms to work before going in.”

  She glanced at the bodies again. No movement.

  “Absolute security,” she muttered under her breath. “Sure.”

  Her thigh became a drum for her restless fingers. The EMP attack's activation window was a silent countdown in her mind. Five minutes sounded enough in theory, but in practice, the time was disappearing.

  Her eyes drifted upward.

  The ground would crumble.

  She frowned. “That better not be literal.”

  Sydney pushed herself up, careful not to make noise. She crouched and placed her palm flat against the floor. The concrete was cracked and uneven. Beneath it, nothing she could feel.

  A cave-in didn’t have to be dramatic.

  She stood and paced a few steps. The corridor ahead sloped downward. That was where Jill had gone. That was where Ridley was. And Roger.

  Sydney rolled her neck once, loosening tension she refused to acknowledge.

  “Can’t sit forever,” she said quietly, to no one.

  She reached up and tapped her earpiece again.

  Static.

  “Come on, any time now.”

  Her gaze flicked back to the twins one last time. Their life was gone in the blink of an eye. That was the truth of it. Training didn’t matter if you underestimated the wrong person.

  A faint vibration buzzed against her ear.

  Sydney froze.

  “—ney? Sydney, you there?”

  Alice’s voice crackled through, distorted but unmistakable.

  Sydney let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. “Yeah. I’m here. Two SCAR agents down. EMP’s wearing off.”

  “Copy,” Alice said, groaning.

  “Everything okay?” Sydney asked.

  “We’re going to need to speed things up,” Alice said with a hint of panic.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Let’s just say… things got a little more complicated.”