After returning to Oxford, I quickly realized: something had changed. Donovan, who used to require only a concise report from me, now summoned me over every little thing. Misphrased a sentence? A reason to call me in.And there was another strange pattern. Whenever I spent more time with someone from the squad, the next day that person would suddenly be swamped with “urgent” tasks. Dmitry would be sent to endless training sessions, Anna would be locked in the lab with reports, Yan would get assigned to night patrols. Every time, the initiator was Donovan.

Today it happened again. I had barely returned from the hangar, where I’d been talking with Noah and Lester, when I received a short message:“My office. Now.”

The room was dim, with the sound of rain drifting in from behind the curtain. Donovan sat leaning over some documents, but her eyes were fixed on me.

“Wasting your time on things that don’t matter again?”her voice was quiet, but with a metallic undertone.

I reply:“We were discussing work matters.”

“Work matters?”Donovan rose slowly and walked closer.“Funny how after these so-called ‘matters,’ people suddenly find themselves buried under urgent tasks.”

I reply with boredom:“That’s a coincidence.”

“I don’t believe in coincidences.”her steps stopped almost right in front of me.“If someone wants your attention, they need to understand: it doesn’t belong to them.”

I ask in surprise:“Then who does it belong to?”

“To me.”Donovan held my gaze, tilting her head slightly.“And I don’t share.”