"It's a tour stop," Griffin said evenly.
"Of course. Though I imagine there's something different about operating on familiar ground. Understanding how systems here function." Soo-jin tilted his head slightly. "Or how they can fail."
Griffin was silent.
"Well, I should let you focus." He glanced at me. "If you need anything tonight, let the team know."
Soo-jin walked away.
"He knows we intercepted the message," I whispered.
"Yes. He's confirming what this is really about." Griffin's voice was low. "Testing me."
"Meaning you're the actual target?"
His jaw tightened. "Yes."
***
Climate Pledge Arena opened around us, a modern renovation wrapped around historic bones.
Chief Kang approached Diana Reed, head of venue operations. "This is Griffin Hale, primary detail for Violet Frequency."
Diana smiled weakly. "Griffin. Welcome back to Seattle."
"Diana. You were assistant operations during the Redwater detail."
"I was. Different circumstances." She kept her tone professional. "But I remember."
She remembered. The ambush. The leaked information. Griffin's termination.
A local contractor approached. "Griffin, this is Ashley Woolsey. She's coordinating backstage access tomorrow."
Ashley offered her hand. "I pulled the old Redwater detail files when I heard you were coming back. Your documentation was thorough."
"Those files are accessible?"
"For staff with proper clearance. Part of venue security protocols."
Griffin followed Ashley backstage. I watched them disappear.
A thought crystallized. Seattle was dangerous for Griffin. It knew his history and knew his failure. The local security community was a tight one. There was nowhere to hide.
I wasn't the target. I was the lever.
Taemin stepped up to my elbow. "You okay?"
"Yeah. Just thinking about how complicated this city makes everything."
"Because of what happened before?"
"Because of who remembers it." I glanced over to where Griffin had disappeared. "People here know him. They know what he's supposed to have done wrong. So every decision gets measured against that."
"Even if the narrative is wrong?"
"Yes. He can't prove you didn't fail. He can only try not to fail again. If he's too careful, it looks like overcorrection. Not careful enough, and it looks like he learned nothing."
Back at the hotel, Griffin waited while I unlocked my door.
