“Take now, for instance,” Samuel said, his voice steady yet edged with an undeniable authority. “You’re holding a knife to a colleague’s throat. That’s a crime stacked on top of another. Cole, put the knife down. You might still have a way out of this. But if you persist, if you keep sinking deeper into this, no one will be able to save you—not me, not anyone.”

The blade in Cole’s trembling hand shifted slightly, no longer pressing as heavily against Yvonne’s ...