ves. My first stop was the cemetery. The air was cool and damp, the sky a blanket of grey.

ry, David," I whispered, the words catching in my throat. "I'm sorry I let them hu

I stayed for a few minutes, a silent communion with the brother I had lost twice

nd tolerance for late-night noise. I let myself in with the key he' d given me years ago, a key I' d kept on my ring eve

half-assembled gadgets covered every surface. In the corner, next to a whitebo

side, nestled in protective foam, was the prototype. It was a sleek, silver glove, intricately wired and humming with a faint, latent energy. Beside it w

ootsteps pounding up the old wooden stairs. My blood ran cold. I

He wasn't wearing his usual tailored suit, but a cas

the room. His eyes immediately locked onto the s

e him, my body a shield in front

practiced charm. "David would have wanted Emily to have it. Her c

th scorn. "You mean the right thing for you and your obse

w what you're talking about! I made a promis

ark!" I shot back. "Or did our en

reaching out to grab my arm. "

und, refusing

fingers digging into my skin

him, stumbling back against the workbench. "Get out!" I screamed

t my grief-fueled determination. He was bigger, stro

You're thinking only of yourself, as always. You're letting your grief make you c

my voice shaking with fury. "And you

rute force wasn't going to work, not right now. He changed tact

We'll talk about this later, after the funeral, when you're thinking more rationally." He ran a hand thro

till thought he held all the cards.

mily's name on the screen. His entire demeanor changed in an instant.

'll be there soon. I promise." He hung up and shot me a look of pure disgust, as

ence he left behind was deafening. I stood there for a long mome

knew it. But he woul

or. As I watched the locksmith work, I held the cold, heavy prototype in my hands. It was

a. He' d just saved up enough money from his part-time job to buy a beat-up old car. He was so proud. He' d turned to me, his eyes bright with earnes

d my brother. Because the man who had stood in David's apartment, the man who had put his hands on me in anger and whose fir