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Her fingers moved across the display, pulling up the Central Review authorization with its cold, administrative seal. “This is the order that reclassified me.” Another file bloomed beside it, this one bearing the stark insignia of armed enforcement. “And these are the officers they sent to collect.”

Anik read the insignia. “Review Enforcement.”

“The same division.”

His eyes lifted. “Armed?”

“Very.”

He looked at me. “Casualties?”

I kept my gaze level. “There were.”

“How many?”

I did not blink. “Not relevant.”

Anik’s stare sharpened. “Still you.”

I met his gaze. “Some things remain consistent.”

For the first time, something close to old familiarity passed through his expression. Then vanished.

Talia continued. “They were carrying the same routing structure as my reclassification order. Same administrative source.”

Anik’s expression went cold and still, like stone. “The Veil?”

Silence.

Even in this room, the name landed with a kind of gravity. It meant some parts of the program was still sealed—even from him.

I pulled the mission data onto the display. “My assignment was Talia.”

Anik’s expression changed. “Assignment?”

“Recovery.”

He waited.

I did not make him ask twice.

“Termination authorized.”

The blue beneath his skin flared. Not faintly this time.

Talia glanced at him.

I continued before he could interrupt. “The original case against her was fabricated.”

I showed him the timeline.

Mission creation. Evidence insertion. Alleged theft. Flight designation.

Anik stared at the timestamps until his expression went very still.

“This evidence predates the acts.”

“By several hours.”