The third loss didn't arrive as data.
It arrived as interruption.
---
Evelyn was in the middle of a call when the line cut.
Not dropped.
Cut.
Clean.
Deliberate.
---
For half a second, the silence was absolute.
Then—
Her private line rang.
Not mobile.
Not internal.
The third line.
The one almost no one had.
---
She answered.
No greeting.
---
"He's moving faster now."
Cassian.
---
Evelyn's voice stayed level.
"What happened?"
---
A pause.
Not hesitation.
Containment.
---
Then—
"He took one of mine."
---
The sentence landed differently.
Not business.
Not structure.
Personal.
---
Evelyn went still.
---
"Alive?"
---
"Yes."
A beat.
"For now."
---
Silence.
---
Cassian continued—
"He didn't remove him."
A pause.
"He changed him."
---
Evelyn's eyes cooled.
---
"How?"
---
"He made him choose."
---
The words settled.
Heavy.
Precise.
---
And suddenly—
Evelyn understood.
---
This wasn't escalation.
---
It was evolution.
---
Leon wasn't just breaking systems.
---
He was rewriting people inside them.
---
"Where?" she asked.
---
Cassian gave her a location.
---
Evelyn didn't hesitate.
"I'm coming."
---
"No," Cassian said immediately.
---
"Yes."
---
A pause.
---
Then—
Cassian didn't argue.
---
Because they both knew—
This wasn't optional.
---
This was the first time—
Leon had drawn blood.