"You're going to lose," Aria said quietly. "I need you to understand that. Not as a taunt....as a factual statement. You've already lost. The moment your men put me in that ambulance, your life as it currently exists ended. Whatever you do in this room, whatever footage you send, whatever you think you're achieving .....it doesn't change that outcome. It only determines how much additional time you serve."
Harold smiled. And this version of the smile was the one she'd been most wary of....the one that suggested he'd considered this possibility and made his peace with it.
"I know," he said simply. "I know exactly what's going to happen to me after tonight. I made that calculation weeks ago." He leaned forward. "The question was never whether I would walk away from this. The question was whether it would be worth it."
The admission settled over the room like something cold.
