Page 252 of Operation: Defiance

I see Raine whenever I blink. The way she goes still when she’s working out a problem. Her hand on mine. The light in her eyes as she takes her first sip of coffee in the morning.

She’s still out there. Still fighting. If Northbridge came through, she’ll be building the second packet by now. That steadies me.

My vision narrows for a second, darkness closing in at the edges. I use Raine’s breathing trick. Four beats in. Hold. Six beats out. It helps. My job is to stay conscious. Keep them doubting. Keep them focused on me, not Ellen or Tessa or anyone else.

The camera hums faintly. I curl my toes in my boots, then flex my calves. My thighs. My glutes.

They’ll come back in with something new soon. If they’re following the handbook, this next round will start with patience. Understanding. Sympathy. Anger is easier to deal with. Anger doesn’t leave long silences. Patience does.

Interrogation 101 - Never Fill the Silence

Interrogation 201 - Fewer Words, Fewer Mistakes

Interrogation 301 - Protect What Matters

If I get out of this—if Raine and I do get that future together, I could teach a Master Class on the subject. That thought boosts me until the door bangs open.

Two men stomp into the room, their expressions hard and angry.

The shorter of the two sets a darkened tablet on the table and takes a seat. The other paces behind me.

How unoriginal. Chad and Mark’s understudies are here for the overnight shift. GSD must make all these guys watch the same training video.

“Get his fucking hands out of my face, Jay,” the man in the chair says.

Jay slams his key into the lock, twists, and in one violent pull, hauls the sliding rings until they hit the stop inches from my torso. Blood rushes back into muscles starved for it. Pins and needles race from my fingers all the way to my shoulders.

“Rough night, gentlemen?”

Jay lands a sharp punch to my left side, right over the bandage.

My vision goes white, and I grab the rings so I don’t pitch over onto the floor. Blood wells hot under the gauze. I struggle to sit up, but my body is so fatigued, I start slipping by degrees.

“You think you’re a comedian now?” Jay grabs my arm and slams me against the back of the chair.

“No,” I gasp. “Just…reading…the room.”

The seated man leans forward, glaring at me. “How did you know Raine Calder was receiving treatment at the Centralia facility? Who told you?”

“Finally. A new…question. Was…getting bored…of the old ones.” My throat aches with every word. If I thought they were still playing by the rules, I’d stay quiet until they brought in another bottle of water. But they’re off book in a big way, which tells me something’s happened.

Raine happened.

“Who told you?” Jay snaps from behind me.

My thoughts take too long to come together. If I say nothing, they assume Raine has help and might decide I’m no longer useful. But the truth…they’ll burn time verifying it. And it still gives them nothing.

“No one.” My voice holds. Barely. “I was there for someone else. Wrong place. Wrong time. Story of my life.”

The man across from me frowns. “You expect us to believe you pulled the wrong person out of Coherent Path and didn’t care?”

Jay snorts. “He’s fucking with you, Phil.” Snatching the tablet from the table, he taps the screen, then slides it in front of me. “Calder showed up on a security camera at Tacoma Memorial Hospital two hours ago.”

I blink hard. Raine stands perfectly still. No hat. No disguise. Wearing…my coat? This has to be another deep fake. But the corners of the image are clear. No strange light artifacts. No angles that don’t belong.

Under the coat, she’s wearing her hoodie. Her leggings. The shoes I bought her. I can still see the bruises fading at her jawline. And her left hand…her thumb brushes her index finger.

Fuck. This is real. Is she hurt? She knows they’re watching the hospitals. She wouldn’t go unless she had no choice.