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PROLOGUE

2025

The rooht, the lowing in the recessed overhead lights Pulling up fro of electricity crawled over her skin, pooling where the training suit pinched

Concerned, she passed a hand over the spiderweb of white stress lines in the otherwise black leather, frown deepening when her hand turned to pinpricks as the electric field in the fabric phased Seriously? The slick-suit ran froht forerous and sexy, but a wardrobe malfunction would slow her down

“Hey! Excuse h voice laced with de excessive feedback from my slick-suit”

A soft chime fell flat in the tiny room as the audio connection opened “I’ her they knew it “Possible suit malfunctions are acceptable under the parain”

Again the chied with her quick intake of breath She didn’t see the ca everya cocky three seconds, she stretched to show her confidence along with her lithe shape Challenge one: technological fence, she thought, glancing at the locked door pad

In a swiftit into the wall It hit with a startling crack of wood, and she knelt before the pieces Nih until she found a , she padded to the locked door and used it to wedge open the door pad

This task ison the maze of wires until she found the one she wanted Hand fisted, she tensed to yank one of the wires free, then hesitated With her “ out smoke as she tried to reht, following the wire back to the circuit board and shorting the door with the pin instead The ceiling chi as the door slid open Eleven seconds

Pin set between her fingers to gouge, she dove into the cooler air and into a spacious, spongy-floored roohter, and at the far end, a closed door beckoned, the light on the lock already a steady green Beyond it was everything she’d been working for, everything she’d been proet there

A faint whisper of air gave her warning Peri ducked, lashing out with a back kick to send a ht as his slick-suit flashed white But it was fading to black even as she watched He wasn’t out of it—yet

“Nothing personal, right?” she said, her eyes jerking fro toward her Three against one wasn’t fair, but as life ever?

They attacked together Peri dropped, rolling to take out the closest He fell and she swar his throat with her elbow There was the telltale thu His slick-suit flashed white as she rolled to her feet One down