Chapter 1 - The Sugar Trap
The crystalline bell of L'Étoile Dorée echoed like a gunshot in Maya’s ears.
She stood paralyzed on the immaculate white marble, dripping gray slush onto the floor. The heat inside the patisserie was overwhelming, a suffocating wall of vanilla and melted butter. Sam whimpered in her arms, his small body convulsing as the sudden warmth shocked his freezing system.
From the back of the shop emerged Madame Aris, a woman draped in crimson silk, her face a mask of surgical perfection. She didn't scream. She didn't call the Enforcers. She simply stared at the puddle of icy mud forming around Maya’s bruised feet.
"Please," Maya croaked, her throat raw. "Just a crust. He’s dying."
Before Madame Aris could answer, the heavy bronze door flew open again. Two Zenith Enforcers stepped in, their black polymer armor absorbing the amber light. Their visors glowed with thermal scanners.
"Routine sweep, Madame," the lead Enforcer droned. "We tracked a thermal anomaly crossing the Promenade border."
Maya’s heart stopped. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the crack of a stun baton.
Instead, a soft, warm hand grabbed her shoulder and shoved her violently behind the massive mahogany pastry counter.
"A thermal anomaly? In a bakery?" Madame Aris laughed, a high, musical sound. "My ovens are running at four hundred degrees, Commander. If your scanners are malfunctioning, take it up with the Engineering Guild. Now, buy a brioche or get out. You’re letting the cold in."
The Enforcers hesitated, then turned and walked out.
May you like
Maya peeked over the counter, trembling. Madame Aris locked the door and flipped the neon sign to FERMÉ. When she looked down at Maya, her surgical smile was gone. In its place was a look of grim terror.
"You little fool," the baker whispered, reaching for Sam. "They weren't tracking you. They were tracking him."
