stepped out into the biting October air. The doorman, a man named Henry who had a

noise. She didn't stop walking. She gripped the handle of her battered le

ised. He watched her go, conf

sting nuts, and damp concrete filled her lungs. It was gritty, dirty, and re

g was fading, leaving behind a cold clarity. She had no home. She had no job. Sh

she had a map of the futur

tation. The buildings here were older, the shadows longer. This was

ttered the m

errified, and c

life-before Sterling, before the facade of the trophy wife-she had learned to survive in places far worse than

ow alleyway about twenty feet ahead.

e was a woman alone with a sui

ry, overlapping with her own sile

tcase. She moved toward the alley, h

pack, oversized hoodie, terror wide in her eyes. One man had her pinned against a dumpster. The

scaffolding, sat a sleek black Maybach. Its win

en displayed a complex financial report on Asian market fluctuations. His face was a mask

s, said, his voice tight. "There's a sit

baritone, smooth and cold like polished stone. He had seen enough v

nt caught his pe

wo

dressed in a simple coat that looked too thin for the weather. She

d the tablet

nounce her presence. She picked u

thre

from the knife-wielder's head. Glass shards

. Her tone was conver

It was an ugly, wet sound. "Lo

nged

sped. "Oh God, she's

forward, his

the knife toward

try to overpower him; she didn't have the strength for that anymore. Instead, she used ph

a sicken

amed, droppi

nning him around and slamming his face into th

guard, driving her elbow into his solar plexus. It wasn't a knockout blow, but it was precise

down h

way, his eyes wide with disbelief. He looked at his two fallen com

d. She adjusted her coat, smo

urned and bolte

ent slid to the

bach, sile

en. "Did you see that? That w

ro wasted movement. She fought like someone who knew exactly where the human

raves noted as sirens wailed in

up to the curb, blocking the alley entran

are merely witnesses. Wait here until the offic

the girl's pupils, her hands steady. She looked up, her eyes scanning

im, but he felt sh

ckle at the base of his skull.

lias said

i

e clear us, fin

-