Rafael steps onto the porch.
“Fuck—wait!”
He lunges after, wooden boards creaking under his boots. His hand is inches from Rafael when hidden slots open on either side of the doorframe.
Glowing devices eject with a click. Cipher’s signature immobilizers. Kane would recognize the circle design anywhere. Another pair deploys near the steps. His arm shoots out on instinct, fingers closing around Rafael’s sleeve.
It’s already too late.
The immobilizers crackle on. Electricity slams through Kane’s body, locking every muscle in place. His vision whites out at the edges. He can’t move, can’t speak. Only his eyes and the corner of his mouth still respond.
Heart hammering, he fixes on Rafael, and his display lights up.
>ID: RAFAEL GUTIERREZ>HR: 110 BPM ↑
“Kane!” Rafael shouts.
“It’ll be okay,” Kane says automatically.
His mind scrambles for how. His scans never picked this up. Cipher must’ve masked the signatures.
Beside the entrance, the security panel flickers on. It’s a vintage hybrid unit with a flat display and physical toggles. A narrow aperture iris opens under the screen, releasing a sweep of light that rakes across them then closes.
Seconds later, a face resolves on the display, features too warped to read.
“Kane O’Connor,” a familiar drawl comes through. “Figured you’d come for me, eventually. I just didn’t think it’d take you this long…”
The hologram’s figure shifts slightly. “…and with a civilian in tow.”
Their voice is rougher than Kane remembers, but he recognizes them instantly.
“Cipher,” he growls. “Release us. I’m not here for revenge. If I were, you wouldn’t see it coming. And like you said, I wouldn’t bring a civilian. I’m here to talk.”
Bitter laughter crackles through the speaker. “Talk? After all this time?”
Already prepared for this, Kane starts to answer. Cipher cuts him off.
“How do I know this isn’t a setup? That you don’t have enforcers waiting on standby? You say I wouldn’t see it coming. Maybe that’s exactly the point. And this whole ‘civilian’ thing?” Cipher’s head tilts. “A—RafaelGutierrez, formerly of VitaCorp—could be another angle.”
Rafael’s pulse jumps in Kane’s visual feed. Kane isn’tsurprised. He knows what Cipher can pull from a facial scan and a V-link scrape.
As he tries to interfere, Rafael speaks up. “I’m…I’m Kane’s partner—boyfriend. We’re not here to fight. He only wants to help.”
Pride flares in Kane, immediately chased by doubt.
Has Rafael said too much?
Cipher steps in before he can decide. “Well, Kane…Your ‘partner’ certainly seems genuine…But sincerity can be faked.”
Kane’s muscles tense until Cipher adds, “However, given Rafael’s clean record and recent ‘leave’ from VitaCorp, I’m inclined to believe you.”
The smile on Rafael’s lips barely registers before the immobilizers retract into the wall with a click.
His body goes slack as he regains control of his limbs, stumbling only a step. Rafael’s hand finds his shoulder, and they both steady themselves.
Cipher clears their throat. “Alright, Kane, I’ll give you a chance to ‘talk.’ But don’t think for a second I’m letting my guard down. One wrong move, and this conversation is over.”
Kane straightens. “Understood. Same applies to you.”