The Infernal lunged.
Chloe moved.
It wasn't thought. It wasn't plan. It was something older, buried in her memory clawing its way out when danger got close enough. She'd told herself she was going to sneak it. Hit Lila before Lila got strong. Because that's what they'd said, wasn't it? The more they moved, the more they evolved. The more they bled, the sharper they got. So end it early. Cripple it before it learned how to kill.
She miscalculated.
Her body didn't ask permission. Her feet shifted, weight dropping low, knife flipping in her hand like she'd been born holding it. She'd never practiced this. Never trained for it. But the muscles remembered anyway. Memory that wasn't hers, or maybe was and she'd just forgotten where she'd put it.
