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“Because the only way this works,” I say quietly, “is if you don’t do exactly what he wants.”
She stills.
“What do you mean?”
I hold her gaze.
“He’s not coming at you directly,” I say. “He’s shifting you.”
Her breath catches.
“He’s making you pull back,” I continue. “Making you isolate. Making you think that’s control.”
A beat.
“That’s not control, Scout.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Real.
“That’s him winning.”
That lands.
Hard.
I see it.
The moment it clicks.
The moment her mind turns—
Not inward—
Outward.
Reassessing.
Reframing.
“Logan…”
Her voice is softer now.
Not closed.
Not distant.
There she is.
“I’m not your weakness,” I say quietly.
Her eyes lift to mine.
“You’re not something he gets to use against me.”
