Page 182 of Operation: Defiance

I did. I’m the restricted subject.

Someone at GSD is escalating agents whose names sit too close to mine. Not because they failed, but because I did. Because I escaped, and whoever’s in charge wants me to understand the price.

I terminate the session carefully, backing out of each screen, clearing the cache, and closing the browser before I shut down the VPN.

My next step is clear. But the decision isn’t mine to make alone. Not when it could put Asher directly in the line of fire.

He sets two bowls of stew on the table, followed by a plate of biscuits. “This was supposed to be chicken and dumplings, but I thought that texture might be…a stretch.”

He’s constantly shifting around my needs as if they’re perfectly reasonable. No ceremony or fanfare, just quiet competence. Like adapting a recipe he’s probably made dozens of times is second nature. No one has ever made space for me so easily before. Not even my parents, though they did try.

The scent of the flaky, golden brown dough reminds me of them. Of Thanksgiving dinners and summer barbecues. I break off a small piece. It practically melts on my tongue.

He watches me, a hint of a smile curving his lips. “Good enough?”

“Better than my sourdough.”

His easy chuckle warms the room. The meal is so utterly normal, I don’t know what to do with it.

Coherent Path stole normal from me. I want it back.

“Before GSD activates a new recruit, they put them through extensive psychological testing,” I say. “Those files are sealed unless you’re a director or higher. But in one of my after-action briefings, my handler let it slip that mine showed ‘advanced pattern recognition’ and ‘high justice sensitivity.’”

Asher nods. “I can see that.”

“They know I won’t disappear quietly.” I dip the spoon into the bowl. “And they’re going to make it hurt.”

“How?” he asks.

“By marking people I’ve worked with for escalation.”

I give him the basics. The legacy system I exploited to gain access to GSD. The general shape of the files. The rapid burst of updates.

“The last file I opened…” I flick my gaze to his for a brief moment. “It belongs to a field agent I worked with a few years ago. He’s scheduled for a ‘reassignment’ meeting tomorrow morning. They’ll take him then. Like they took me.”

He swears under his breath, then stills. “You want to warn him.”

“If I don’t…it’s on me. I can’t help Ellen. Even if I could, she won’t let me. But Jonas…he still has a chance.”

“How would you do it?” Asher takes a second biscuit, then tears it into pieces before dropping it into his bowl.

“Encrypted message to his public email. I can route it through an anonymizer in Switzerland and another in Australia.”

“You’ll be giving them proof of life.”

“I gave them that by accessing the archive in the first place. But this tells them I won’t quietly disappear. They won’t just look for me. They’ll actively hunt me.” I reach for his hand, curling my fingers around his wrist. “And you.”

“Given how hard they’re squeezing Mason Locke, they’ve already made up their mind about me. If he so much as breathes near a traffic cam, they’ll be on him in a heartbeat.”

He’s right, but hearing him say the words does nothing for the unease churning in my stomach. “That level of pressure is nothing, Asher. We won’t just be on the run. We might never be able to stop running.” I pause, hating how needy I’m about to sound. “Are you willing to take that risk?”

“I made my choice the moment I knew what they were doing to you. It hasn’t changed,” Asher says, his blue eyes softening. “They don’t get to erase the innocent and call it care. Warn your field agent friend. Whatever the fallout is, we’ll face it together.”