The second door led into a sleeker room black leather chairs, glass walls, and a wall of screens that pulsed with real-time code.
Kieran moved like someone who didn't need to rush to be in control. He crossed to the main desk, switched on a monitor, and gestured for her to sit.
"You'll be shadowing me for the next three days," he said, his eyes on the screen. "After that, we'll see if you can stand on your own."
No welcome. No smile.
She sat, spine straight, notebook open. "I'm sure I'll learn a lot."
"You'll need to."
His tone was calm, but the weight behind it made her feel like he'd already guessed she wasn't here for the reasons she claimed.
As he spoke about Neurox's system, she listened with two minds one cataloguing his words, the other searching for cracks in the walls he built around himself. Every so often, he flicked a glance her way, and each time, she felt a sharp pulse in her chest.
Then his hand brushed her chair as he reached for a file. Barely a touch, but it jolted something else a memory.
Two years ago
Rain on glass. Coffee steam in the air. Daniel sliding into the seat across from her with that leather jacket and reckless smile.
He was charming. Persistent. Different.
For months, he made her believe she could be normal. No hacking. No lies. Just laughter, coffee dates, and the warmth of someone who looked at her like she was enough.
Until she learned his "side projects" weren't harmless. He'd been using her skills to pull jobs he didn't have the brains to do himself.
When she confronted him, he kissed her instead of answering. She kissed him back angry, aching and then she left.
That was the day she decided love was just another con.
"Are you taking notes, Miss Lin?"
Kieran's voice cut through the memory.
"Yes," she said quickly, flipping her pen across the page.
His gaze lingered on her a second longer than necessary before returning to the screen.
By two o'clock, her head was full of numbers and acronyms she could already see pathways through.
Kieran stood, buttoning his jacket. "The audit team is waiting."
Audit Room 2:00 p.m.
The place was a quiet hive. Fingers tapped on keyboards. Spreadsheets scrolled endlessly. No one looked up when she entered.
She took her seat near the end of the table. Kieran sat opposite her.
At first, she kept her eyes down. But she could feel it his gaze cutting across the room now and then. Once, she risked looking up. He didn't look away.
Three seconds. Maybe four. Long enough for something unspoken to tighten in her chest.
When the meeting ended, Kieran didn't give her time to breathe.
"Come with me."
They walked down a dimmer corridor, past security doors and unlit rooms, until he stopped at a glass-walled chamber.
Inside, a black cube pulsed faint blue on a pedestal.
"This," he said, stepping in, "is Lucent."
Up close, it looked alive light shifting inside it like water.
"It's more than security software," he said. "It adapts to emotional patterns. Almost like it thinks."
She tilted her head. "Feelings… in a machine?"
"Not feelings. The echo of them." His tone softened, almost like this mattered to him in ways she couldn't see.
She stepped closer, curious and careful.
Her mission whispered: Use this. Get closer.
Her gaze lingered on his face a moment too long. She shifted her stance, subtly letting her perfume drift between them.
His eyes flicked once to her mouth.
She closed the space between them just enough to feel the warmth from his body.
Her fingers brushed his sleeve.
He didn't move away.
The silence thickened.
His hand came to her waist, slow, almost reluctant.
Her pulse kicked hard. His breath was warm against her cheek.
Then his mouth was on hers heat, surprise, restraint snapping in one sudden rush.
Her fingers curled in his jacket. His grip tightened, drawing her in.
For a moment, she forgot everything her brother, Black Swan, the reason she was here.
And then reality crashed back.
She stepped away. He let her go.
Neither spoke. The air between them was heavy with something both of them refused to name.
By the time they left the Lucent room, his expression was back to steel.
So was hers.
That night, her phone vibrated.
BLACK SWAN:
Stay on track. We don't pay for kisses.
A second message:
Day 3 is coming. Don't get sloppy.
Then a photo appeared.
Her brother. Sleeping. Oxygen mask in place. A shadow standing in the corner of the hospital room.
BLACK SWAN:
We're watching.