When the Shadow Disappears
Seeing that Oliver was finally taking the fight seriously, Lane stopped overthinking.
She had been letting her nerves get the better of her. Every possible outcome had crossed her mind, one after another, until she'd nearly lost sight of what mattered.
But now, with Oliver no longer holding back, things had become much clearer.
She was making this harder than it needed to be.
All she had to do was defeat him in as few moves as possible.
That was it.
There was no need to come up with some complicated strategy. She didn't have time to consider every possibility or worry about what might happen if things went wrong. The more she thought about it, the more likely she was to hesitate when it mattered.
And hesitation could cost her the fight.
She needed an opening.
Just one.
When the chance came, she would take it and end the fight before Oliver discovered her true identity.
Lane drew a slow breath.
