Chapter 22: A Fractured Trust
Author: MrLostLetter
The silence in the safehouse was suffocating. The tension that had been simmering between Ethan, Lena, and Dorian was no longer something that could be ignored. It was there, thick and unyielding, pressing down on all of them. Ethan could feel it with every breath.
Dorian paced near the console, his cybernetic implants flickering as his systems scanned the perimeter for any sign of movement. His expression was unreadable, but the stiffness in his shoulders told Ethan everything he needed to know. Dorian was on edge.
Lena stood near the far wall, arms crossed tightly over her chest, her gaze fixed on the floor. She hadn't said a word since their conversation earlier. But Ethan didn't need her to speak to know what she was thinking.
She didn't trust him anymore.
"Perimeter's still clear," Dorian muttered, but his tone was distracted, like his mind was elsewhere.
"Good." Ethan's voice was low, but even he could hear the tension in it.
No one moved.
Ethan felt the weight of their unspoken doubts pressing down on him. The Codex pulsed quietly in the back of his mind, but he forced it into silence. He couldn't let them see how close it was getting.
Not yet.
"We can't keep doing this."
Lena's voice was barely above a whisper, but it cut through the tension like a blade.
Ethan's eyes flicked toward her, but she didn't look up.
"What do you mean?"
Lena's jaw tightened.
"You know exactly what I mean."
Ethan's pulse quickened.
"Lena..."
"Don't." She finally looked up, her eyes hard and distant. "Don't act like everything's fine. It's not."
Ethan's throat tightened.
"I'm in control."
Lena's expression didn't change.
"Are you?"
Ethan felt his grip on the situation slipping.
"I know what I'm doing," he said quietly.
"Do you?" Dorian's voice was sharper now, his eyes narrowing as he turned to face Ethan.
Ethan's jaw clenched.
"Dorian—"
"No." Dorian took a step closer, his tone cold. "I've been watching you, Ethan. We both have."
Ethan's heart pounded harder.
"You're not the same."
"Nothing's the same," Ethan muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.
"That's not what I mean."
Dorian's cybernetic eyes scanned Ethan, his expression unreadable.
"You're... different. The way you move. The way you think." His voice was quieter now, but there was no mistaking the concern in it. "It's like... you're not even trying to hide it anymore."
Ethan felt his stomach tighten.
"I'm fine."
"No, you're not."
Lena's voice was softer now, but the doubt in her eyes hit Ethan harder than any accusation.
"We know the Codex is changing you, Ethan."
"I'm handling it."
"Are you?"
Ethan's fists clenched at his sides.
"Yes."
"Then why do I feel like I don't even know you anymore?" Lena's voice cracked, and for the first time, Ethan saw the fear she had been trying to hide.
"You do know me," Ethan said softly.
"Do I?"
Lena's gaze held his, and for a moment, Ethan could see the uncertainty, the pain, and the fear she was trying so hard to bury.
"I don't know what's worse..." she whispered. "Losing you... or watching you turn into someone I don't recognize."
Ethan's heart pounded louder in his ears.
"Lena, I'm still me."
"Are you?"
The question echoed in his mind, louder than Crowe's whispers.
Ethan took a step toward her, but Lena stepped back, her arms tightening around herself.
"Lena..."
"We can't keep pretending, Ethan." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "Not anymore."
Dorian's eyes narrowed.
"If we don't know who we're fighting with..." His tone was colder now. "How do we know we're not fighting against you?"
Ethan's blood ran cold.
"Dorian."
But Dorian didn't move.
"We need answers, Ethan."
Lena's eyes met his, and for a brief moment, Ethan saw the pain beneath her guarded expression.
"If we can't trust you... we can't follow you."
Ethan's throat tightened, but the words wouldn't come.
"Ethan."
Crowe's voice was barely a whisper in the back of his mind.
"They're turning against you."
Ethan's jaw clenched.
"I'm not losing control."
But even as he said the words, doubt crept in.
"Then prove it."
Dorian's voice was steady, but his eyes told a different story.
"How?" Ethan's voice was quieter now.
"Let us see the data."
Ethan's heart pounded harder.
"The Codex data," Dorian clarified, his expression hardening. "All of it."
Ethan froze.
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because..." Ethan's throat went dry.
"Because you know what we'll find."
Lena's voice was soft, but the weight in her words hit Ethan like a punch to the gut.
"You don't trust us," she murmured.
Ethan looked away.
"I'm protecting you."
"From what?" Dorian's voice was sharp now.
"From me."
The words slipped out before Ethan could stop them, and the moment they did...
The room fell silent.
Lena's eyes widened, her expression shifting from doubt to fear.
"Ethan..."
Ethan's hands clenched at his sides, his jaw tightening as he fought to keep control.
"I'm fine," he murmured, but the lie was getting harder to believe.
"Ethan," Dorian's voice was barely above a whisper now.
"If you don't let us in... you're going to lose us."
Ethan's chest tightened, but the words wouldn't come.
"Please."
Lena's voice was softer now, but it broke something inside him.
"I can't."
The silence that followed was deafening.
Dorian's expression hardened.
"Then we have a problem."
Ethan's heart pounded in his ears.
"We can't follow you if we don't trust you," Dorian said quietly.
"And right now..."
Lena's eyes filled with unshed tears as she whispered the words Ethan had been dreading.
"We don't."
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