My vision flickered.

The room seemed to tilt slightly to the left.

The weight of the rifle in my hands suddenly felt immense, almost impossible to lift.

“The water was dark,” Caroline said, her voice sounding closer than it actually was. “The ice was thin.”

“Stop,” I whispered.

“The quiet girl under the water,” she said.

The words were a key turning in a lock inside my own brain.

My knees felt weak, the muscles in my thighs trembling as the conditioning fought against my conscious will.

The red dot of my laser sight danced wildly across Voss’s chest, then slid down to the floor.

“Drop the weapon, Colonel,” Voss said, his voice now carrying the weight of authority.

“No,” I gasped, my teeth grinding together so hard my jaw ached.

“You cannot fight the programming, Natalie,” Caroline said, stepping closer. “We spent ten years ensuring you would always obey this sequence.”

“I’m… not… your… toy,” I forced the words out through clenched teeth.

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to find the memory of my father’s voice in the basement.