Page 94 of Silver Elite

Despite my better judgment, I reach up and touch him. “Is that what you want me to do? Ask you to take me back to your quarters?”

His breath hisses as my fingers trace the line of his jaw. God, that’s a strong jaw.

“Because I can assure you, that’s not going to happen. I’m not interested, Captain.”

I see his lips curve before he leans in again. His breath tickles my ear. “Stop lying.”

I open my mouth to protest, but the words get caught in my throat, choked off by the raw intensity radiating from him. There’s no denying the pull between us.

Somehow, I manage to find it—control. Restraint. The strength to conquer the weakness that seems to grip me in his presence.

I square my shoulders. “You’re drunk. Go find somebody else to bother tonight.”

A mumbled curse escapes his lips. After a long beat, he steps aside and lets me walk away.

Chapter 22

For tonight’s city drills, a Command craft flies us to the Point, landing on a paved lot with a backdrop of sprawling warehouses, small factories, and low-rise buildings. There’s a heavy, oily scent to the air, a mixture of exhaust fumes and a burnt odor that makes me wonder what they’re doing in those buildings. While my fellows gather around awaiting instructions, my gaze is busy searching for an escape. If the network wasn’t ignoring me, they could have taken advantage of this. Attempted a rescue while I was off base.

You’re not important enough to rescue.

Right. I forgot.

Kaine grins and sidles up to me. “Hope you’re not scared of heights.”

“No. You?”

“Not scared of anything, cowgirl.”

I believe him. I’ve yet to see Kaine bat an eye during any of the exercises and mock ops we’ve done this week, even the ones that brought butterflies of trepidation to my stomach.

I shift my gaze to the task at hand. The night drapes over the two buildings like a heavy cloak. Tonight’s mission is simple: climb thefirst building to the rooftop and jump to the second building one story below.

Did I mention we’re doing both the climbing and the jumping without any safety gear?

Bryce balks at this. “In a real op, we would have a harness,” she says with an irritated huff of breath.

“Would you?” An amused Struck glances at Ford, and I remember her on his lap. His lips kissing her neck. “Hey, Xav, did we wear a harness the night we scaled a cliff while tracking that Faithful camp?”

He snorts softly.

She refocuses on Bryce, her tone sharpening. “Listen, Granger, I know Daddy talked your way into the Program, but he’s not here to smooth the way for you anymore.”

I try not to raise a brow. Everyone whispers that Bryce is a staple, but this is the first time an instructor has stated it out loud.

“So climb the building or get out of my sight,” Struck snaps at her.

Ford snickers. It’s rare for Struck to lose her cool, but even I have to admit Bryce name-dropping Daddy is getting tiresome. Only so many times you can say “My father is in Command Intelligence” before people want to smack you.

We’re divided into four heats and told the team that completes the mission the fastest wins Lux credits. This will be a hard one to sabotage, unless I purposely choose to plummet to my death, which doesn’t appeal to me. I’m working with Lyddie, Roe, and a recruit named Jones. I can’t for the life of me remember Jones’s first name. All I know about him is that he’s the male equivalent of Bryce, a staple whose father is one of the wealthiest capitalists on the Continent.

A metal ladder extends vertically along the side of the first building, only sections of it are missing. We’ll have to climb the wall itself when we reach those gaps.

My team is up first. Ford nods at us as we get in position. “Time starts now.”

Roe takes the lead, followed by Lyddie and then me, with Jones taking up the rear.

We ascend the ladder at a good clip. When we approach the first gap between rungs, my pulse quickens. The weathered exterior of the gray brick building doesn’t appear very sturdy. Each handhold feels precarious, each step a gamble.

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