Sin’s gaze flicks over my face, reading me the way he always does. Anger. Hurt. Determination. And something else.Loneliness. Because betrayal does that. It isolates you. It makes you feel like the world is full of people wearing masks.
I swallow hard. “If I don’t do something, I’m going to feel powerless. And I refuse to let him make me powerless.”
Sin’s expression doesn’t change, but I feel his grip loosen slightly. Not agreement. Consideration.
“You’re thinking,” I say.
“I’m assessing,” he replies.
“Same thing,” I mutter automatically, then catch myself. Not the time.
Sin sits up fully, running a hand over his face. He looks exhausted for half a second before the control slides back into place. “You’re not going alone,” he says.
Relief hits so hard I almost cry. I don’t. I blink it back. “I don’t want to leave you stranded,” I say quickly. “I know your brothers need you. I know you’re already stretched.”
His eyes lock on mine. “You’re not stranding me. You’re my mission.”
My chest tightens again, warm and painful. “That’s not what I meant.”
“I know,” he says. “But listen to me. If we do this, we do it my way.”
I nod immediately. “Yes.”
Sin’s gaze sharpens. “Don’t agree until you hear the rules.”
“I’ll still agree,” I admit.
His mouth tightens like he’s trying not to smile. “That’s a problem.”
“It’s a personality trait,” I counter.
He exhales once, like I’m wearing him down with sheer stubbornness. “Fine. We go. But this isn’t a confrontation. This is reconnaissance.”
I frown. “I want to talk to him.”
“You don’t,” he corrects. “Not yet.”
My frustration flares. “Sin.”
He holds up a hand. “Rule one. You don’t walk up to him. You don’t corner him. You don’t accuse him to his face in a public space. Not until we know where his loyalties sit in the moment.”
“But—”
“Rule two,” he continues, voice firm. “You don’t go anywhere alone. Not to the bathroom. Not to grab something from your desk. Not to ‘just check one thing.’ You stay in my line of sight.”
I swallow. “Okay.”
“Rule three. We keep this low profile. We get in, we look for anything useful, and we get out.”
My mind races. “How are we getting in unnoticed?”
Sin’s eyes narrow slightly, like he’s already planned the logistics. “We’re going to approach from the back entrance. Service access. Less traffic. I’ll cover. You’ll move.”
I stare at him. “You sound like you’ve done this before.”
“I have,” he says. That sends a chill up my spine. He leans closer, gaze dropping to my lips for a fraction of a second before snapping up to meet my eyes. “Rule four. If I say move, you move. No questions. No argument. If I say down, you get down. If I say run, you run. You trust me?”
I swallow. “I do trust you.”
