Double Edge | WATTYS 2023 SHORTLIST + AMBYS 2023 WINNER

Chapter 05

A loud ping rang in my ear. My hand stopped midway, hovering over Ruben's face. I couldn't bring it down; electricity pulsed through my body and stopped me. Closing one eye, I hissed. Safety overrides are a bitch.

"Gio, don't," Kimi's voice echoed. "Look at him. You don't want to do this."

For months I told Kimi I wanted to do this. I deserved this revenge. Could it have potentially involved murder? Sure, but I trusted her. It could've remained my secret; I would've done it all behind her back. I told her my plan because I wanted him. I didn't wish to have a conscience.

My vision blurred as I looked down at Ruben. He hadn't moved. Still clutching the wrench, he looked up at me with tears. He thought I was being remorseful. No—I had no regrets, no guilt. Someone needs to pay for what happened to me.

"Let me go," I hissed to Kimi as I glared at Ruben. "He won't talk, so he's gotta go."

Ruben's eye twitched. He tilted his head, confused. "What?" he whispered.

In my ear, Kimi responded, "The fact that you're giving him a chance means you don't want to do this. He's got a family, Gio—"

I clenched my jaw. "So did I."

"He has a daughter who needs him and—"

My muscles burned. The tiny mechanics implanted around my bones sparked, creating fire under my skin. I hated this feeling, forced to be calm and behaved. Griff wanted me to be a monster. I planned to give him that data. Kimi just needed to let me go.

"Manual override implemented. Muscle percentage dropping. Ninety percent."

"Kimi," I hissed.

Beneath me, Ruben scooted back. His knees slid across the oil on the garage floor. Tears slid away from his face, dropping into the mess, mixing his fears with the inevitable.

Let me do this, Kim.

"Gio, just listen to him. He's telling the truth," she said. "Can't you see it? It's on his face, in his eyes. Shit, I can see it from here. He's worried. If he leaves, then his family—"

I tugged at my hand. The muscles contracted, painfully pulling against the wires in my body. They stretched and whirred; my mechanical eye switched from infrared vision to standard like a broken TV. Static. Snow. Buzzing.

My arm snapped as it bounced back against me. I stumbled. Ruben took a moment to run. I gritted my teeth and shouted, "No one cared about my family! My daughter! They wanted me to die, Kim!"

I turned, forgetting about Ruben. Kimi pissed me off. I had this planned for months; it was all I dreamed about. Nightmares that granted me joy. "Gio, wait—" Kimi's voice echoed; worried, concerned, fearful.

Ruben screamed behind me. I turned. His wrench aimed at my head. Lifting my arm, I blocked the blow. Ruben gritted his teeth; saliva dripped down his lip. "We didn't want you to die, Gio!" he shouted.

Regardless, he lifted the wrench again. Before he swung it back at my face, I caught his wrist. I pulled him close; his quivering face was an inch from mine. "Then tell me why. Tell me who. Tell me who deserves this!"

He tried to yank his hand free, but I squeezed. He screamed in pain; a bone snapped. He dropped to his knees, blubbering.

"Tell me!" I screamed.

Saliva splashed onto his chin. He tried to compose himself, tears sliding down his face like waterfalls. He trembled, hissed, and said, "He made me do it, Gio..."

His words echoed. Finally, an answer. Was Kimi right? If she knew he was innocent, why hadn't she told me? Not that it mattered; I wouldn't have listened. I pulled Ruben up from his knees. "Who?"