My mouth went dry. "Are you threatening me?"
"I'm warning you. There's a difference." Vale adjusted his sunglasses. "Your rapid improvement is impressive but suspicious. Your physical transformation is remarkable but unexplained. Your ability to coordinate a previously dysfunctional squad is noteworthy but unprecedented."
Each point felt like another nail in my coffin. He'd noticed everything. Probably had files documenting my progress, my stats, my relationships.
"So what do you want?"
"I want you to succeed. Really succeed. Not just survive until graduation, but become something greater than a lottery winner who got lucky." Vale's tone shifted again, becoming almost fatherly. "But that requires making smarter choices than breaking into federal facilities for pocket change."
"We needed the money."
