"Don't move a single muscle."
My outstretched hand stopped mid-reach toward the glowing Starakian Matrix, fingers mere inches from its humming surface.
I started to turn my head to identify who had discovered me, but immediately felt the distinct pressure of a gun muzzle pressed firmly against the back of my skull.
"Didn't you hear me the first time? I said don't move," the voice repeated.
That voice... I recognized it instantly from the corridor conversation I'd overheard just minutes ago.
Lucy.
It seemed she'd returned to this area and discovered my presence. Either through exceptional instinct, routine security checks, or simply bad luck on my part.
Damn it. This complicated everything.
"Stand up slowly," she said. "Keep your hands where I can see them."
I complied carefully, rising from my crouched position with non-threatening movements—showing I understood the danger of having a firearm pointed at my head from point-blank range.
"Raise your arms above your head."
