Rain hammered the window like it was personal. I sat on the edge of the mattress staring at the cracked phone screen. Same date as the night I died. Three months before the alley. Before the blood. Before Mara looked me in the eye and said "sorry, it's just business."
My head throbbed. Not a hangover—something colder. Like someone had slipped a wire into my skull.
Then the voice came. Not loud. Almost bored.
"Trade me a secret. Any secret. I'll give you something useful in return."
I laughed once, hoarse. "Yeah? Like what?"
"Try me."
I thought about it for maybe five seconds. The stupidest, smallest thing popped up.
"When I was twelve I stole my mom's wedding ring to buy cigarettes. Never told her. She thought the neighbor's kid did it."
Silence. Then—
"Accepted. Low value. Reward: Perfect recall for the next 24 hours."
Suddenly the room snapped into focus. Every stain on the wall, every scratch on the doorframe, every number on the alarm clock. I could smell the cheap instant noodles I'd eaten two days ago still lingering in the trash.
Weird. Useful, maybe.
I stood up. Legs felt normal. No stab wound phantom pain. Yet.
The mirror showed the same tired face—dark circles, three-day stubble, eyes that looked older than twenty-eight. But clearer. Sharper.
I went to the window. Across the street, Mara's old building. Light on in the third-floor window. She was probably counting cash from whatever side deal she was running tonight.
My stomach twisted. Not anger exactly. More like… hunger.
I whispered to the empty room, "What if I trade something bigger?"
The voice answered immediately. "Name it."
I looked at my reflection again. "The night Mara sold me out. The exact words she used when she called the hitman. The price they agreed on. All of it."
A pause. Longer this time.
"High value. Dangerous. Accepted."
Then it hit me like a truck.
I saw her sitting at the bar we used to meet at. Phone to her ear. Voice calm. "Yeah, it's him. He knows about the shipment. Fifty grand, clean. Alley behind the docks, midnight."
Her face in the dim light. No regret. Just business.
I stumbled back, hit the wall, slid down. Chest tight. Not crying—just breathing hard, like I'd run ten blocks.
The voice spoke again, softer. "Reward: Shadow Step. Move unseen in low light for up to thirty seconds. Cooldown: one hour. And one more thing—her current location, right now."
A faint tug in my mind. Like a compass needle. Pointing straight across the street, third floor, same window.
I stared at the rain-streaked glass.
Three months early. She hadn't betrayed me yet. Technically she was still my partner. Still the girl who'd laughed at my dumb jokes and split takeout when we were broke.
But I remembered.
I grabbed my coat. The knife I always carried felt heavier tonight.
Maybe I wouldn't kill her. Not tonight.
But I was going to look her in the eye and see if the lie was already there, waiting to come out.
The voice in my head stayed quiet. No more trades for now.
Just me, the rain, and a secret I wasn't supposed to know yet.
I stepped into the hallway. Door clicked shut behind me.
This time I wouldn't be the one bleeding out alone.
To be continued...