Hale didn’t wait.

That was how Danny knew they’d cut close to bone.

The next adjustment came before the previous system state had fully stabilized—too fast, too eager. Hale was no longer letting the machine finish its work. He was reaching in midstream, hands on the controls, steering by instinct instead of discipline.

Danny exhaled slowly through his nose.

“There,” he said. “That’s impatience.”

Chloe stood beside him now, no longer pretending distance. Her shoulder brushed ...