The training arena lay deep within the U.S. Navy base, where the harsh California sun filtered through high steel mesh, slicing the hard-packed dirt into long blades of light. The air was thick with…
CHAPTER 1: THE GRAVITY OF THE STEEL The rain off Fort Liberty didn’t wash the concrete clean; it turned the red North Carolina clay into a thick, dark soup that smelled of wet iron,…
Avery’s world narrowed to the rifle’s weight in her hands, the familiar curve of the stock against her shoulder like a secret finally spoken aloud. Dust coated her tongue, metallic and bitter, but the…
CHAPTER 1: THE GRAVITY OF THE GRAVEL The rain off Fort Bragg didn’t wash the base clean; it turned the red North Carolina clay into a thick, dark soup that smelled of wet iron…
The screen glowed like a judgment from above, casting harsh blue light across the sea of stunned faces. Crystal glasses froze halfway to lips. A server’s tray clattered to the marble floor, scattering champagne…
The rain had been threatening all morning, but the city didn’t care. It never did. Leia Park sprinted down the crowded sidewalk, her cheap umbrella already bent like a broken wing. She was late—catastrophically…