Chapter 1001
“Not biologically,” Julian said. “He believes in the transfer of consciousness. He believes that if he creates the perfect vessel — the perfect circumstances, the perfect trauma — he can imprint her essence onto a new host. He tried with your mother. He tried with you.”
“The cage,” Skye realized, the word barely a breath. “The torture. It wasn’t just cruelty. It was conditioning.”
“He was trying to shape your mind to match hers,” Julian said. “To make you the perfect vessel.”
“And Gemma?” Alistair asked.
“A failed experiment,” Julian said. “Plastic surgery can change a face, but it cannot change a soul. You, Skye — you are the only one who survived the process intact.”
“I am not her,” Skye spat at the glass.
“To him, you are,” a voice boomed from the shadows.
Skye spun around.
𝗔𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗴𝗮𝗹𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘀.𝗰𝗼𝗺
High above the chamber floor, a section of the rock wall slid open to reveal a reinforced observation deck separated from them by a sheer drop. Standing behind ballistic glass, leaning on a cane topped with a silver skull, was an old man. His face was a map of deep lines and decades, but his eyes were sharp and predatory — the eyes of someone who had never once conceded defeat.
The patriarch of the Graves family. The man everyone believed was dead.
The Administrator.
Flanking him stood a dozen armed guards.
“Welcome home, granddaughter,” the Administrator said, his smile slow and certain. “You brought the keys. And you brought the spare parts.” He gestured toward Liam and Julian.
“Now,” he said, “let the ritual begin.”
The chamber doors slammed shut, locking bolts engaging with a sound like thunder.
“You’re trapped,” the Administrator called down, his voice amplified by the acoustics of the dome. “There is no way out. The ventilation is sealed. In ten minutes, the oxygen scrubbers will reverse and pump nitrogen into the room. You will simply… fall asleep.”
“You sick bastard!” Liam yelled, running toward the balcony. A shot rang out, sparking off the floor inches from his feet. He skidded to a halt.
“Don’t be rude, boy,” the Administrator chided. “Your grandfather knew his place. He provided the funding for this facility. You should be honored to die in it.”
Skye looked at the cryogenic pod. Then at the old man above.
“You want me?” Skye shouted. “Then come get me. Why kill me?”
“I don’t want to kill you,” the Administrator said. “I want to kill Skye Sterling — the weak girl, the one who loves these distractions.” He pointed at Alistair and Liam. “Once they are gone, once your attachments are severed, Elena will finally have room to awaken. You will be complete.”
“And if I refuse?”
“Then you die with them,” the Administrator said, with the indifference of a man discarding a broken instrument. “And I start over with the next one. Science has advanced. Clones are easier to make these days.”
Skye looked at the pod. The woman inside appeared peaceful. Lifeless.
“He loves her,” Julian whispered beside her. “That’s his weakness. He’s obsessed with preserving her.”
Skye glanced at Alistair. Alistair gave a single nod. He understood.
“Liam,” Skye whispered. “Distract him.”
“How?”
“Be loud,” Skye said.
.