I had been in the comms room when it came in.”
Cross stared at the memory card.
Daniel’s fingers closed around it.
“I kept a copy because I thought someday someone might ask the right question.”
Cross took one step toward him.
Ares exploded.
Not forward.
Up.
A single bark cracked through the enclosure like a gunshot.
Cross stopped.
Ares stood against the glass, teeth exposed.
I had never touched him.
Never commanded him.
He had made his choice.
Whitfield stared at Cross.
Then at the dog.
“What happened in Kandahar?”
Cross said nothing.
Whitfield’s voice became quiet.
“That was not a request.”
Cross looked around the room.
At Hargrove.
At Daniel.
At the contractors.
At me.
Then he made the mistake that ended him.
He said, “Dole was supposed to follow the altered route and stop asking questions.”
Silence.
Total.
Absolute.
Even Cross seemed to hear what he had admitted only after it existed in the room.
Whitfield’s face changed.
“Altered by whom?”
Cross’s mouth tightened.
“I didn’t say—”
Daniel lifted the memory card.
“You did now.”
Cross moved fast.
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