Shattered by Susan Kaye Quinn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Where "Temptation" (Debt Collection 13) failed, Shatter (Debt Collection 14) succeeded. I liked it. 3.2 stars. Not enough to bring it to 4 stars but enough to let you know you will enjoy this episode.
I highly recommend you stop reading this Cliff Notes spoiler edition review if you want to enjoy it yourself.
It opens in Sterling Cybernetics. Alexandra Morgan Sterling is being escorted by Zachariel as Moloch's leash on her. Alexandra has a very brief time to prove herself to Moloch. Her life continues to depend on passing Moloch's tests to see if she's really fit to join his Gehenna organization, which has been at the heart of all her anti-Sterling, anti-her-late-father's-wishes, anti-Lifetime Organization activities that has to be confusing everyone who has ever known her.
Cliff Notes Spoiler
Alexandra still can't trust Zach, her current leash holder despite his overture that he might be trusted. She can't have him hovering over her as she takes care of the business Moloch has sent her to do at Sterling, so manages to convince him she needs a 30 minute "recess" from Zachariel, or she will fail Moloch's assignment.
During Alex's 30 minute recess to do Moloch's bidding she is also attempting to let some people she can trust know enough to derail the work she must do for Moloch. She bullies her way through her CEO to make the purchase of a tech company that Moloch wants in under 10 minutes giving her 20 minutes to get to her other key people, set them in motion with as little explanation as possible before Zach comes with his leash.
Wyatt, Alexandra's personal assistant manages to learn she's in the building and gums up her plans. Complicating matters, Zach only gives her 25 minutes instead of the 30 minutes he promised her. He is on her while she's tying to push Wyatt out of harms way. Alexandra barely succeeds before Zach reaches her.
Jax, who is Alex/Wraith's Alfred Pennyworth character reaches her at the same time Zach arrives. Fortunately she's alert enough to realize she will have to walk by Wraith without a glance.
When Jax enters the lab with Miral and Wyatt, Alexandra realizes her cover as a "secret" debt collector and her "private" life will explode as Jax, Wyatt and Miral will all converge while Zach removes her back to Moloch's lair. Alex/Wraith consoles herself that at least her suicide letter is in their hands now, but she's uncertain it will be enough to stop Gehenna and Moloch's plans.
Returning to Moloch's Los Angeles lair Moloch offers Alex another test. The debt collector who killed her father. This has been Moloch "enticement" and "control" over Wraith previously in a contrived and difficult to believe plot point.
Alex seeing the debt collector being brought in as her father's murderer, she immediately realizes this debt collector works for Moloch and the collector was only a weapon used by Moloch. Moloch is who ordered her father killed. As they drag the kid to her to be killed, Moloch's thug debt collectors drain him of all life energy except what was left of her father's life energy. Moloch expects Alex to kill the weapon debt collector he used as his murder weapon.
Knowing it will likely mean her death, she instead gives the kid a mercy hit. (Giving him life energy rather than taking it) When Moloch realizes what is happening, he kills Wraith, draining her of nearly all her life energy. He stops only to taunt her before he finishes her off.
Zach carries her dead body out and manages to revive her and in the process he gains her trust.
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