The hum of the shower filled the air, the water sputtering through the old pipes as Kain disappeared behind the bathroom door. The lock clicked, leaving Haley alone in the dimly lit safe house.

  She exhaled, the tension from the day’s fight lingering like smoke. But even now, something else gnawed at her — Maw’s words, the cryptic accusations, the lingering doubt she hated to admit had taken root.

  The faintest shimmer rippled through the air, pixelated fragments dancing like static before knitting themselves together. In a blink, a sleek, black device perched on the shelf blinked to life — Haley's Pixel. It had been quietly observing, like a watchful eye beneath its cloaked exterior.

  With a low hum, a holographic figure materialized.

  Freya.

  She was dressed in what passed for relaxation, an oversized gray hoodie slipping off one shoulder, paired with flannel pajama pants patterned with little crescent moons. Her platinum blonde hair was swept up in a loose bun, stray strands curling around her face. Yet, even in her downtime, the sharp gleam in her eyes spoke of someone always working, always calculating.

  “Finally,” Freya said, her voice smooth, tinged with a dry amusement. “Thought I’d be waiting all night for you two to stop playing house.”

  Haley’s brow arched. “Jealous you didn’t get an invite?”

  Freya snorted. “Hardly. I prefer my chaos in moderation.”

  Haley rolled her eyes but couldn’t quite hide the smirk tugging at her lips. Freya had that effect — irritating but oddly charming.

  “Alright, what do you want, Freya? I’m guessing you didn’t pop in just to check on our relationship status.”

  “Bingo,” Freya quipped, but her expression sobered quickly. “Per your request, I’ve been digging. On Seth...Kain whatever.”

  Haley’s posture stiffened. “And?”

  Freya’s hologram shifted slightly, as if pacing through the data only she could see. “On paper, Seth’s identity checks out. Birth certificate, school records, medical history. All neat. All perfectly aligned.” She paused, her gaze narrowing. “Too perfectly.”

  Haley frowned. “Meaning?”

  “Meaning it’s fake.” Freya’s tone was blunt. “A construct. Someone went through a hell of a lot of trouble to stitch it all together. And it’s convincing — the kind of fake that passes every government database without a hitch. But once I started pulling at the seams, it unraveled fast.”

  Freya flicked her fingers, and a holographic map blinked into view, glowing in midair. Various red markers pulsed along it, all centering around Bakersfield.

  “The only real activity under the name ‘Seth’ starts here. A few months back. Sightings, reports. All tied to local incidents — rogue anomalies, criminals, operations gone bad. Always just out of the public eye, but always there.”

  Haley’s mouth tightened. “He’s been cleaning house.”

  Freya nodded. “Scum that slipped through the cracks. Seatizen laws are good, but not perfect. And Kain — or Seth, whatever he wants to call himself — seems pretty damn good at handling what others can’t.”

  “But that doesn’t prove he’s not who he says he is.”

  Freya tilted her head. “No, but it makes things… interesting. Especially when you consider where he first popped up.” She zoomed the map in, and a new marker flashed. An ominous one.

  “La Biblioteca,” Freya said softly.

  Haley’s blood ran cold. “Doc’s place.”

  “Exactly. The explosion took out most of the estate, and any evidence that could’ve given us clearer answers burned with it. But you know the rumors. Some say it wasn’t just a lab — it was a vault. A nexus of arcane knowledge.” Freya’s gaze sharpened. “And who was the only survivor?”

  Haley didn’t answer. She didn’t have to.

  “Kain.” Freya’s voice was cold. “Or at least, someone calling himself Kain.”

  For a moment, the room was silent except for the distant rush of water. Haley’s thoughts twisted and turned. She wanted to argue, to call Freya paranoid — but that damn seed of doubt had already been planted.

  “Look,” Freya said, her voice softening. “I’m not saying he’s your enemy. But people don’t just crawl out of nowhere with no past. Not without a reason.”

  Haley clenched her jaw. “And if that reason was survival?”

  Freya didn’t answer right away. “Then I guess the question is — what exactly did he survive?”

  The water shut off abruptly. Steam billowed from the crack under the bathroom door.

  “That’s your cue,” Freya said, already flickering. “Keep your eyes open, Haley. And don’t let your guard down.”

  The hologram dissolved into pixels, leaving the room eerily quiet.

  Haley sat there, the weight of Freya’s words settling heavily. Whatever the truth was, she’d find it.

  But one thing was certain — Kain wasn’t the only one running from his past.

  The shower shut off with a groan from the old pipes. Droplets clung to the cracked tiles, their trails slithering down like lazy rivers. Steam coiled around the room, thick and heavy, turning the light from the single bulb above into a hazy glow.

  Kain ran a hand through his damp hair, water dripping down his face, tracing the jagged lines of old scars. For a moment, the heat drowned everything else out — the ache in his muscles, the static that still hummed beneath his skin. But the second he pulled the towel from the rack, the world outside the steam crept back in.

  He rubbed at his neck, staring at the fogged-up mirror. His reflection barely held shape, just a dark figure behind the mist. Maybe that was fitting. Seth. Kain. Whatever the hell he was now.

  But as the steam thinned, something shifted.

  The first hint was the laughter — low and smooth, like a card being flipped in a gambler’s hand. Kain’s eyes narrowed. The mirror still reflected only him, but that sound… it lingered. Familiar.

  Then came the voice.

  “Well, well, look at you. All grown up and still trying to scrub the dirt off your soul.”

  Kain didn’t move. Didn’t even breathe.

  A figure leaned lazily against the corner of the foggy mirror. Sharp jawline. Hair combed back with that always-too-perfect shine. A white button-up, sleeves rolled up just enough to show the ink swirling along his forearms. Doc, yet younger then he had ever seen him. Although he still had that same damn smirk curled at the edge of his mouth, the one that used to promise you the world — for a price.

  “Miss me?”

  “Like a hole in the head,” Kain muttered, dragging the towel over his face. “You’re suppose to be a voice.”

  “And yet,” Doc’s grin widened, teeth flashing like polished ivory. “Here I am.”

  A gruff scoff broke through the room, followed by the distinct clink of metal. “Don’t flatter yourself, snake.”

  Kain’s eyes flicked to the other side of the mirror.

  There stood Belmont. Broad-shouldered, clad in his worn leather coat. His eyes, sharp and unyielding, burned like embers beneath his heavy brow. The great hunter. The executioner of monsters. The voice of all the judgment Kain had tried to outrun.

  “You think your power’s the only thing growing?” Belmont growled, his presence like a storm rolling in. “It’s clawing at you. And so are we.”

  Kain’s jaw tightened. “You’re both in my head.”

  “Maybe,” Doc shrugged, tapping his temple. “Or maybe you’re just starting to listen. A little power goes a long way, kid. Especially when it’s stitched together from things you barely understand.” He gave a low chuckle. “Old habits die hard, don’t they?”

  Belmont’s glare hardened. “Or maybe it’s your guilt. You think you can hide from it? From us? You’ll face it, Kain. One way or another.”

  Kain turned away from the mirror, the towel dropping from his hands. He didn’t need this. Not now. But the echoes followed him.

  “All those secrets,” Doc crooned, his voice dripping with amusement. “Seth’s little act won’t hold up forever. And Haley? Oh, she’s already wondering. She’s smart — even if she tries to pretend otherwise.”

  “She deserves to know,” Belmont’s words were like gravel, unrelenting. “No more running. No more hiding.”

  Kain’s fists clenched. “I’m not hiding.”

  “No?” Doc stepped closer, though his reflection never touched the ground. “Then why the name? Why the act? Seth. Such a tidy little mask.”

  Kain’s gaze hardened. “Because Kain died in that explosion. Along with both of you. Because..I...we are being hunted.”

  Doc’s grin twisted into something cruel. “Oh, kid. If that were completely true, we wouldn’t be here.”

  The weight of their words lingered, heavy and sharp. Kain shook his head, the tension coiling through him like a live wire. But he didn’t respond. Not to them. Not to the voices.

  He grabbed the door handle and swung it open, the sudden rush of cool air cutting through the lingering steam.

  “Just shadows,” he muttered under his breath. “That’s all you are.”

  But even as the bathroom light clicked off behind him, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the shadows were still watching.

  From down the hall, the sound of soft clanging echoed — the hum of a stove turning on, the scrape of a skillet against the burner.

  Kain ran a hand through his damp hair, already dreading whatever Haley was cooking up. She had struck him as more of the kind of girl with a particular talent for using “whatever was lying around” — which usually ended in something that could strip paint vs cooking.

  Still, the smell wasn’t entirely threatening. Eggs? Maybe some kind of sausage? One could hope.

  He exhaled sharply and stepped forward, but that damned smirk from Doc still lingered in his mind.