I had said: I’m formally withdrawing my recusal on the Thorne Industries defense audit. He had said: Understood, Colonel. I had said I’d oversee the execution personally, by the book.

He had said fine.

It is the single clearest memory of my adult life. I could recite it in my sleep and have.

“I remember the call,” Mercer said.

“Sir, I need to know what you remember about the authorization specifically. Whether you understood yourself to be granting a formal withdrawal of recusal, or—”

“Evelyn.” He put his coffee down. “Stop being a lawyer. You’re bad at it and you’ve got one sitting right there.”