The invite doesn’t say meeting.

  Arthur clocks that first. Tilts his phone, frowns at the wording. “Availability check. That’s deliberate.”

  Tony snorts. “That’s corporate for ‘don’t bring your mates’.”

  Cameron’s already moving. Jacket on. Phone away. He doesn’t wait for either of them.

  Arthur falls in beside him. “You don’t even know where it is.”

  “I do,” Cameron says.

  Tony jogs a couple of steps to catch up. “Since when.”

  “Since it landed.”

  Arthur shakes his head. “That’s not comforting.”

  The building isn’t new. Same concrete. Same lift that groans halfway up like it always has. The same flickering strip light is near the doors.

  Tony taps the wall. “They couldn’t even spring for a refurb.”

  “They didn’t need to,” Arthur says. “This isn’t about appearances.”

  The lift doors open faster than Cameron expects.

  Tony notices. “Oi. That was quick.”

  Inside, a woman waits with a tablet already awake in her hands. Neutral stance. Neutral expression. Calm that doesn’t belong in the room.

  “Cameron,” she says. “Thanks for coming promptly.”

  Tony points at himself. “He’s punctual now. Big growth.”

  She doesn’t look at him. “This is a limited attendance session.”

  Tony laughs. “Is it, yeah.”

  “It is.”

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  Arthur steps forward. “On what grounds?”

  “Operational relevance.”

  Tony opens his mouth again.

  Cameron glances back once.

  Tony raises his hands. “Alright. Cool. I’ll wait outside. Don’t take too long becoming management.”

  The doors close.

  Tony’s voice cuts off mid-word.

  Arthur exhales slowly. “This is bad.”

  “Maybe,” Cameron says.

  The woman taps the tablet. The screen lights immediately.

  No preamble.

  A map.

  A pulsing marker.

  A thin ring expanding outward.

  Arthur leans in. “That ring’s live.”

  “Yes,” the woman says. “Active.”

  “What am I looking at,” Cameron asks.

  “A developing incident,” she replies. “Residential. Gas pressure irregularity.”

  Arthur frowns. “That’s three blocks from here.”

  “Yes.”

  “And the ring.”

  She taps the screen. The ring pauses, then begins to shrink.

  “Authorised intervention window,” she says.

  Arthur stares. “That’s it.”

  “That’s the window.”

  “How long,” Cameron asks.

  “Two minutes,” she says. “Just under one now.”

  Arthur swears under his breath. “That’s not enough time to even—”

  “It is if you’re nearby.”

  “And if we’re not.”

  The woman doesn’t change tone. “Then the system proceeds.”

  Cameron watches the ring contract. Not fast. Just steady.

  “What happens if I act after it closes,” he asks.

  “Then it’s unauthorised.”

  “And before,” Arthur says.

  “Then it’s cooperation.”

  Arthur lets out a sharp laugh. “That’s a hell of a way to phrase it.”

  Tony’s voice crackles through Cameron’s phone. “You gone quiet in there, or am I imagining it?”

  Cameron answers without looking away from the screen. “Where are you?”

  “Outside. Two streets down. Why.”

  Arthur glances at the timer. “They’ve timed this.”

  The woman nods. “We did.”

  Cameron pockets the phone and turns.

  Arthur steps in front of him. “Kam. Listen. This isn’t helpful. This is ownership.”

  “I know.”

  “They want a name attached.”

  “I know.”

  “And if you step in”

  “The window locks,” the woman says.

  Cameron stops.

  Arthur looks at her. “Locks how?”

  “Operational attribution,” she replies. “Whatever occurs within the window is assigned to the intervening party.”

  Arthur’s jaw sets. “So if it goes wrong”

  “It belongs to him.”

  The ring tightens.

  Tony’s voice again, louder now. “Oi. Why am I hearing sirens from inside the building?”

  Cameron turns toward the door.

  “Kam,” Arthur says. “You don’t have to take this.”

  “Yes,” Cameron says. “I do.”

  The woman adds, almost conversational, “If you don’t act, the system will.”

  Arthur laughs once. “You make that sound humane.”

  The timer drops.

  00:18

  Cameron opens the door.

  Tony’s right there. Breathe quickly. Adrenaline is still hot. “What’s going on?”

  Cameron steps past him. “You’re not in this.”

  Tony blinks. “Say that again.”

  Arthur calls out, “Tony”

  Tony grabs Cameron’s arm. “You don’t freeze me out mid-run.”

  Cameron pulls free. “You don’t fit the timing.”

  Tony stares. “That doesn’t mean anything.”

  00:07

  Arthur’s voice cracks. “Kam. Please.”

  Cameron looks back once.

  “I’ll explain after,” he says.

  Tony shakes his head. “That’s never true.”

  The ring collapses.

  The screen flashes.

  WINDOW LOCKED

  Alarms begin to scream somewhere above them.

  Cameron turns and takes the stairs two at a time.

  Tony stops at the threshold.

  “What the fuck does that mean,” he shouts.

  Cameron doesn’t slow.

  “It means,” he calls back, “this one counts.”

  The door swings shut.

  Tony stands there, fists clenched, staring at the blank screen on his phone. No ring. No timer. Nothing was waiting for him.

  Arthur comes up beside him. Quiet now.

  “They didn’t just pick him,” Arthur says. “They excluded you.”

  Tony laughs once. Short. Flat. “Yeah.”

  Above them, something breaks.

  Not loud.

  Not clean.

  Arthur looks up.

  Somewhere else in the city, another ring begins to close.

  And this time, Cameron isn’t the only one inside it.