I step closer, resting my hands on the tailgate beside him.
“You said the Architect wants me alive.”
He doesn’t answer.
Russ taps the rifle slung over his shoulder.
“Silence isn’t helping your situation.”
The man exhales slowly.
“You wouldn’t understand.”
Adam tilts his head slightly.
“That’s usually when people start explaining.”
The man finally looks up at me.
“You think you walked into this investigation.”
I shrug.
“Didn’t I?”
“No.”
His voice is steady now.
Almost calm.
“You were predicted.”
The word hangs in the cold air.
Adam doesn’t react, but I see the slight shift in his stance.
Blade mutters quietly.
“Predicted?”
I lean forward a little.
“By who?”
The man smiles faintly.
“The system.”
I shake my head.
“That’s not an answer.”
“It is if you understand the model.”
Adam steps closer.
“Explain the model.”
