He's been watching out for me since before I even knew I needed it. I don't know if that makes me feel safe or furious.
Both, as it turns out. Simultaneously. In proportions I can't separate.
He doesn't make me wait for it. Doesn't hedge or qualify or work up to it the way people do when they're hoping the approach softens the landing. He just looks at the note on the desk between us and says:
'I pulled your records after Blackrock.'
I don't say anything. I wait.
'I have contacts from the assessment network … people who've been in Academy service long enough to access documentation that doesn't circulate openly. Your father filed three suppression requests in the last four years. Your combat records. The training assessments that preceded your exclusion from the senior trials. A testi
