'It's finally done!'
Lynx's eyes locked onto the final page of the deciphered file, her hands shaking as she held the document out in front of her. The information that she wanted was finally in her grasp.
As per the woman's request, Jack had successfully made two copies of the original file. One physical copy and one that was uploaded to a secure flash drive. The payout was finally within reach, and with it, the chance to escape Utopia. This hollow, godforsaken, extravagant iron tube in the middle of space that suffocated its residents was about to be nothing but a memory.
However, at this very moment, Lynx's mind refused to focus on any of it. Not now.
A cold sweat began to coat the woman's forehead, stinging as it dripped down. Lynx then took a moment to lean back in the creaking metal chair that she was currently sitting in. Her breathing suddenly became shallow and ragged, and every inhale started to feel like a sharp scrape against her chest. It suddenly dawned on the woman that the heightened stress of the situation she found herself in might've been a contributing factor to her current condition. However, the jubilation that she was feeling about finally having something go right for her made her push those thoughts off to the side.
'It's getting late.' Lynx then thought to herself while looking out the safehouse's tiny window.
She didn't need to look at the clock to know what time it was, thanks to how the colony's lighting system worked. Very few people would be moving around at this hour, aside from some of the night shift workers and the escorts that operated in the area. Well, except for one notable exception. Isaac Korrin's hired guns were definitely still out there, searching for the stolen files. On top of that, one of the infamous Angels, a ruthless killer who could instill fear in the toughest of soldiers, was out there as well.
The pressure was immense. But it wasn't just the job that was weighing on Lynx's psyche at the moment. It was the gnawing hunger inside her, the tremors in her hands, the dryness in her throat that made her want to scream. It was the crushing feeling of being suffocated from all sides, the pull of her addiction dragging her down. It was the rising panic, the terror, and the memories that just wouldn't leave her alone. Everything was starting to happen all at once.
"Lynx." Jack's voice cut through the fog. He sat across from her, eyes focused on the last pages of the files. "I'm done downloading the file. Whatever you decide, just make sure that you- Hey, you good?"
Lynx didn't answer right away. She swallowed thickly, the sudden lump in her throat making it hard to breathe. She should probably respond, or at least say something to reassure him, but her throat felt like sandpaper. Her hands trembled again, and she clenched them into fists on the table to stop them from shaking.
"Jack, I... I can't..." She whispered, her voice barely audible. "I-I can't do this anymore."
Her head throbbed, and the room was starting to tilt as the walls seemed to press in deeper with each passing breath. Her vision blurred, and her heartbeat thundered in her ears. Lynx wanted to scream, to smash something, to run out of this safe house and find the nearest dealer, anything to escape the gnawing emptiness that was tearing her apart.
"Lynx." Jack's tone softened, uncharacteristically gentle from what it usually was. "Focus! You can't fall apart now. Remember what you're doing this for. Finish this job, and you get out of here. You'll be free of Utopia. You wanted a way out, remember?"
His voice held a note of sympathy, but Lynx knew he couldn't understand. Jack hadn't been in her shoes. He didn't know what it was like to crave something that could consume everything in your soul, to feel the slow unraveling of your own mind. To know that your body was at its limit.
As the room spun around her, memories flickered through the haze. Her father's face. A man who had always been there for her, who promised he'd keep her safe. The laughter of her childhood, the warmth of family-until it was all ripped away from her in the blink of an eye. Her father was gone. She was left to put the pieces of her broken life back together. All on her own with no one to help her.
Her mother had disappeared long before that-abandoned her when she was still just a child, leaving her father to raise her alone. He was the only person who had ever truly cared for her. And then he was gone, taken by something as ordinary as a heart attack in the middle of the night. That loss had shattered her.
Lynx still remembered that faithful night. The tears, the paramedics shaking their heads, telling her there was nothing more they could do, the memories flashed through her mind in horrific detail. She was still just a child, alone in a sterile, cold hospital room. No one was there to comfort her, to assure her that everything would be okay. No one except her father.
Tightening her eyes shut, she tried to block out the voices. 'You're alone. Always alone. No one's coming for you. No one ever will.'
"Lynx!" Jack's voice again, distant and muffled by the storm inside her chest. "Get it together!"
Tears pricked at her eyes, but she fought them back. She didn't have time to be weak. She had a job to finish. She had to be strong. But the loneliness, the pain, and the craving all felt like a black hole, threatening to swallow her whole.
The ache in her chest deepened, and she knew-she knew she couldn't do it anymore. She couldn't hold on any longer. The pull of glitter was overwhelming. She could almost see Malik's disgusting face, hear his promises of peace, of escape. Just for a moment.
"Jack." She choked out the words slipping from her before she could stop them. "I need it. I need it now."
"Don't!" Jack snapped, his voice hard. "You're not going back to that, Lynx. Don't do this to yourself. You're stronger than this."
But her thoughts were already spiraling. She couldn't stay here. She couldn't focus. She had to get away from this pain. Her heart raced, her breath coming in desperate gasps.
Then, in the midst of the chaos, something inside her clicked. A realization, cold and sharp, cut through the fog. She had a job to finish. She couldn't let this addiction define her. She couldn't let it destroy everything she had worked for. Not when she was so close to finally getting out of here.
If she didn't finish this, Isaac Korrin would finish her instead. The files, the money, the chance to leave Utopia, all of it would've been a waste. This wasn't just about her anymore. She had come too far to let it all fall apart now.
She shook her head, forcing herself to focus. No. Not now. Not like this.
"Jack." she said, her voice steadier now, though still hoarse. "I know what to do. I know how to end this."
Jack's eyes softened with concern, but there was a flash of relief in them when she took a deep breath. He didn't say a word-he didn't need to. He simply nodded and turned back to the screen.
Lynx swallowed hard, pushing past the pain, the memories, the addiction. The documents were the key. The way out. Her future. She just needed to hold it together.
She wasn't going to break. Not this time. She couldn't.