The recorder wasn’t the only copy. The envelope wasn’t the only record. The shower room wasn’t the only witness.

Mercer had arrived ready to write the incident report.

Aria had arrived having already written the truth.

The MPs separated the room without waiting for Mercer’s instruction. One moved Harlow off the wall and told him to sit on the bench. The other asked Aria if she needed medical attention or a privacy cover before they continued.

That question, simple as it was, changed the way the men looked at her. Not because she needed saving. Because someone in uniform had finally treated her as the person harmed instead of the problem to solve.

Aria accepted the privacy cover. She didn’t take her eyes off Mercer while she wrapped it around her shoulders.