Daniel Rothstein arrived unannounced with croissants and a flash drive.

He sat across from Sophie and handed her the drive.

“These are the original Vault files that were unintentionally flagged by Echo’s first prototype run. Some of them went public years ago. Some were suppressed.”

Sophie plugged it into her laptop.

Names appeared.

Dozens.

Some she knew.

Some she loved.

Her name was on the list too — flagged as “emotionally volatile, ethically unpredictable, high-stakes potential.”

Her laugh was bitter.

“She coded me out of my own legacy.”

Daniel placed a hand over hers.

“No. She tried. And you overrode her with love.”

When Alexander returned to the estate that...