Valdis bit back a sigh, despite Jacob's attempts to hide his feelings, they were there and she could feel them. Her eyes narrowed at the perceptible threat that spiked when he described his affliction. How dare he judge her for something she couldn't control, he had seen her memory, just as she had seen his. He didn't seem to care that they had both been traumatized by the event, perhaps he was more selfish than she thought.

A sharp, acrid scent drew her attention from the conversation and her own thoughts. She knew that smell, or at least she had smelled something similar many times before. She was moving before Jacob even called out his warning. Trusting the other immortal to protect Pepper, Valdis grabbed Tony, spinning him around and pushing him after Cain and Pepper, putting her body between him and the machine.

The machine exploded, metal shrapnel flying in every direction, flames billowing outward and the force shattering glass and knocking over tables.