She thought further, looking for anything she could use to her advantage. Her rifle was on the far side of the room, but she still had her sidearm. Would it be of any use at all? Partial soldiers had vision enhancements, and better night vision in particular; it also stood to reason, given that they’d started the attack by cutting the lights, that they had some additional way to see in the dark, perhaps light amplification goggles. That would put Kira at a distinct disadvantage, but if she could turn it around, blinding them with the beam of her flashlight, she might be able to get off a shot before the target recovered. She drew her pistol in her right hand and her flashlight with her left, holding it across her body, aimed straight ahead with her finger on the switch.

A boot crunched down on something, echoing through the silence. One of the attackers had stepped on something, probably the shattered glass from Afa’s screen. Was Afa okay? She shook her head. Focus, Kira. If someone had stepped on Afa’s glass, then she knew where he was, and she could find him. She slipped from one tower to the next, crouching below the sight line as she moved from cover to cover. A moment later she felt a delayed link response: OVER THERE. This was definitely a Partial, and probably two, using the link to coordinate silently. Two against one, and both of them Partials. They would surround her and trap her, fill her with tranquilizer, and carry her back to Dr. Morgan.

Unless . . .

Kira remembered what Samm and Heron had said after their raid on Afa’s building: She could feel them on the link, but they couldn’t feel her. She was only beginning to learn how to use her link, but it was possible that she only had receptors for link data, didn’t transmit any herself. This weakness was now her greatest advantage. She could link everything, and they couldn’t link her at all.