MY CRUEL PROTECTOR
It was our trap.
"Ruby... get out..." Nevan’s thought was a faint, broken thing. He was trying to stand, his hands clawing at the blood-stained tiles. "The self-destruct... Vance... he’s triggered the purge."
"I'm not leaving without you," I said.
I stumbled away from the ruined servers, my legs feeling like they were made of lead. The violet light in my eyes was dim, flickering like a candle in a storm. The Heir was silent, sulking in the dark of my womb, its digital ambition thwarted by a mother who chose a man over a god.