Nell observed that with great interest, remembering quite suddenly that Seer's past illusions had vanished at similarly unusual times. The first, when he had shot her, had gone away when Derek had pulled her to her feet and told her it wasn't real. The only other time had been less than half an hour ago, when he had pretended to be Ben.
It's only when you know for sure that it's fake, she thought to herself, unsure of her own conclusion.
While the one guard stumbled back and tripped over his own feet, the other flinched once, like Nell, and held his ground.
Seer's attention turned back to Nell. She was mostly unfazed because she didn't see what he was pretending was real. She did see his face, and there was madness in his dark eyes. Being who she was, with the job she had, Nell recognized crazy eyes. Derek had them when he was thinking about violence. When he'd shouted at her and forced her to leave his computer room, he'd had them. Platform had crazy eyes, but they were subtle and showed only with her smile.
This man's eyes were different, but Nell couldn't say how. He told her, "Last chance to make me a weapon."
"I can't," she said flatly. Bravely, she locked gazes with him. She was frightened, and then she thought at him, Derek will kill you. He knows what you do and he will slaughter you like an animal.
Thinking that, Nell felt brave. Seer tore the gun from the still-cowering grunt he'd frightened and pressed it against the side of Nell's arm so that if it fired, it would only cut her badly and wouldn't hit any major arteries.
It's just another illusion, she thought calmly.
He shot her in the arm. She screamed reflexively. Yelling decreased pain. Any moment now, and the lie would go away. She'd be healed.
"You think that's not real? You think I wouldn't shoot you, Fixer? You're wrong," he growled in a voice that was so low and animalistic it could not have been human.