His first client was an old woman named Radha. She had three days left to live. Her meter read 72 hours. He gave her a month. She cried. He didn’t.

The master seed chimed.

His crime wasn’t theft. It was .

Shinde was holding a small, empty syringe. “That chip in your neck broadcasts a unique signature. The TA will find you in six minutes. But I have a blank slate—a dead man’s chip I confiscated last year. Transfer the master seed to it. Then give it to me.”

The caption on the back read: “Zara. 7 years. Balance: 4 hours.”

Karan looked at the photograph of the little girl again. Zara. Four hours left.

Karan pressed his back to the opposite wall. His hands were trembling. The master seed was inserted into a port on his own neck, just above the scar from his fake death. It was booting. Thirty seconds to activation.