Red hair flashed like fire in a sea of black suits.
Her dress was strict, a deep emerald shade,perfectly within the dress code yet still drawing every eye.
Her heels touched the marble softly.
Anna.
She stopped at the edge of the stage and, without raising her voice, said:
"Will you dance with me?"
The question sounded so natural, as though this were just an ordinary society evening.
Ethan looked at her with mild surprise,half genuine.
"Now?"
"Right now," she smiled.
"After a speech like that, one needs to… dance a little."
Roy stepped forward.
"Now is not the best time," he said gently.
Anna turned her gaze to him.
"It's an election," she said lightly.
"People should see living people, not shells."
Pause.
Gérard watched.
"Let them dance," he said at last.
"It will add… humanity."
The music grew louder.
Anna took his hand.
Her palm was warm, and those seven minutes felt like some kind of dream.
They moved to the center of the floor.
Vampires parted, forming a polite circle. Cameras swiveled toward them, capturing the image: a human dancing with none other than Anna Corvin.
Anna placed her palm on his shoulder.
"Relax," she whispered as they began to move.
"You look like a man about to do something foolish again."
"Nice comparison," Ethan replied through a faint smile.
They turned slowly.
"Roy suspects something," she whispered.
"I noticed."
"And not just him."
She leaned in slightly closer, as though for an intimate word.
"At least three of them are trying to read you right now."
Ethan's expression didn't change.
"Who?" he asked, looking straight into her eyes.
"Elizabeth, Laurent, and one more,on the balcony, from Boston."
Her fingers tightened slightly on his hand.
"They don't understand what's happening."
"And do you?" Ethan asked again.
She gave a small smirk.
"I know about your plan."
His heart struck once.
The wisteria smoothed the spike instantly.
"Which one exactly?" he asked calmly.
He knew she was aware of the plan, but he wasn't about to give anything away in open conversation,someone else might be listening.
"Don't worry,they're trying to hear you, but they won't get through while I'm with you."
"I'm suppressing their mental reach with my own strength."
She looked directly into his eyes.
"I'm not going to interfere with you."
Step, turn,the cameras caught them in profile.
"Why?" Ethan asked quietly.
"Because not all of us agree with what this is turning into."
The music gently shifted key.
Meanwhile, backstage, everything was in motion.
Flash had already vanished into the technical corridor; his steps were quick. He passed a security post using the temporary clearance Gideon had created remotely.
On a screen in the building's basement, a signal blinked.
"Connection stable," Gideon's voice came through Flash's earpiece.
"You have three minutes before the next channel sweep."
Near the server room, in the shadow of drink crates, a small shadow flickered.
Bullet.
The weasel slipped along the ventilation duct and disappeared into darkness. Her task was simple: distract if needed.
Bruno, meanwhile, continued circulating drinks, positioning himself near the emergency exit. He gave the slightest nod to one of the kitchen staff,the backup route was clear.
In the hall, Anna continued the dance.
"You know," she said quietly, "they're almost always one step ahead."
"Among their people are mine too. Those two nurses behind you,one of them checked your blood."
He made one wide circle so he could glance at them. One of the women made a cute little finger gesture, as though flirting with Ethan.
Anna smiled sweetly.
"And now think,why haven't they exposed you yet…"
Ethan wasn't surprised. He executed one large turn, then dipped her low with him, looking straight into her eyes.
"Almost?" he murmured, leaning toward her ear.
"They know who enters, who leaves."
She leaned even closer; her lips nearly brushed his ear.
"I don't understand how you're resisting."
"I'm just human," he answered.
"No," she shook her head slightly.
"A human can't do that, or else you're using something even I can't predict."
Turn.
Roy watched.
His eyes grew colder.
"If you make one wrong move," Anna continued,
"they'll seal the exits in seconds."
"Then we can't afford to make mistakes."
She smiled.
"It's already too late to avoid mistakes."
At that moment in the technical zone, Flash connected the second module to the main retransmitter.
The screen displayed the broadcast structure.
"I'm in," he whispered.
Gideon, back at base, exhaled.
"You get one shot."
In the hall, one of the vampires on the balcony suddenly frowned slightly.
"Do you feel that?" he asked Elizabeth.
She never took her eyes off the dancing pair.
"Yes."
Anna slowed her step.
"They're increasing the pressure," she whispered.
"We need to move very carefully now."
Ethan felt it,a faint tightening around his temples.
The wisteria flared warm again.
Anna looked at him with genuine astonishment.
"Incredible…" she whispered.
"You're like a glass wall."
The music reached its climax.
Light reflected in her red hair.
"When it starts," she said, "don't look at Roy."
"He'll try to break you with his gaze."
"And you?"
She smiled,this time like a fox.
"I'm just dancing."
And somewhere beyond the wall, deep inside the building, the upload indicator reached one hundred percent.
Anna continued dancing with Ethan in the very center of the hall, every step graceful.
She led him confidently,light touch of fingers on his shoulder, a subtle turn of the hip that made her dress flare under the spotlights.