The water keeps flowing.
Kenji studies me the way he always has, like he’s already ten moves ahead and mildly disappointed I haven’t caught up yet. The gardens remain perfect. Lantern light. Cherry blossoms drifting. A koi breaks the surface and disappears again, blissfully ignorant.
He thinks this is still his room.
“Why?” I ask.
He tilts his head. “You’ll have to be more specific.”
“All of it.” I gesture vaguely at the ruined skyline behind us, the blood, the bodies, the fact that we’re standing here pretending this is civilized. “If we’re aboutto have a final showdown and only one of us is walking away, what’s the harm in a little reveal?”
He considers that, then nods once. “Very well.”
He clasps his hands behind his back and motions with his head. “Let’s walk.”
I don’t move.
“And put your gun away,” he adds lightly. “It’s disrespectful.”
I hold his gaze for a beat longer than necessary, then slide the gun back into my pocket. Not because he asked. Because I want my hands free.
He starts along the koi pond at an unhurried pace. I fall in beside him, a careful distance between us. Close enough to hear him breathe. Far enough to kill him if I have to.
He sighs. “I’m disappointed in you, Saint.”
“Get in line.”
A faint smile. “It was supposed to be you here with me at the end. Not Tex. Not like this. But… you know what I mean.”
“I really don’t.”
“You had to go and develop a heart.” He clicks his tongue softly. “I tried very hard not to teach you that. Perhaps you can’t help it, being a woman.”
I snort. “Perhaps it’s just because I’m not a fucking dickhead.”
He chuckles, amused on the surface. I know better. He files the insult away, sharp and precise, for later.
“You wouldn’t understand,” he continues calmly, “the necessity of this power balance. Someone has to control the superpowers of the world. Checks and balances.”
“Oh,” I say. “So this is supposed to be some heroic act for all of mankind?”
“There will always be someone sitting at the top, Saint.”
He stops walking and turns to face me.
I don’t slow. I stop with him. “I’m going to make sure it’s not you.”
His eyes warm, almost fond. “Your confidence was always one of your best traits.”
“And my worst?” I ask.
He turns and resumes walking.
I follow.
“So you’ve been selling the Guild,” I say. “Trading power. Killing for profit and influence. Starting wars so you can be the elite asshole sitting at the top of the pyramid.”
“Essentially.”
