“Shut it down.” The command came from the second intruder, sharp and stripped of control. Not a suggestion. Panic, barely hidden.
The screen didn’t respond. Data kept shifting, lines rewriting themselves faster than thought. Names layered over names, connections twisting into something deeper, wider.
Adrian stepped in front of me again. Not fully blocking. Just enough to take the first hit if one came.
“You’ve lost control,” he said.
The fourth figure didn’t deny it. That was answer enough. “This wasn’t the plan,” they muttered, eyes locked on the screen. For the first time, their composure slipped, not shattered, but strained. I watched the file in the center, highlighted, unavoidable. “Who is that?” Adrian asked, his voice low. No one answered. The silence stretched too long.
“That’
