The room didn't feel the same anymore.
What had started as excitement…
Now felt like something fragile.
Alicia stood still, her fingers tightening around the edge of the table.
"They saw it," she said quietly.
No one needed to ask what she meant.
Daniel continued working quickly, eyes locked on the screen.
"I'm trying to trace the access point," he said.
"They covered their tracks well."
Michael stood beside him, calm—but not relaxed.
"Then don't rush it," he said. "Get it right."
Across the room, Sophie moved closer to Alicia.
"Hey… it's okay," she said softly.
Alicia shook her head.
"No, it's not. What if they copied it? What if"
"They didn't," Adrian cut in firmly.
Everyone turned to him.
"They accessed it," he continued. "That doesn't mean they had time to replicate it."
Alicia looked at him, searching for certainty.
"You don't know that."
"No," Adrian admitted.
"But panicking won't help you."
Sophie nodded quickly.
"He's right for once."
Adrian raised an eyebrow.
"For once?"
Sophie ignored him.
Alicia exhaled slowly, trying to steady herself.
But the doubt had already settled in.
Later that night
The house was quieter than usual.
Even the walls seemed to hold their breath.
Alicia sat alone in the studio again.
The same designs.
The same work.
But now…
They didn't feel safe.
A soft knock came.
She didn't answer.
The door opened anyway.
Michael stepped in.
"You should be resting," he said.
"I can't," she replied.
He walked closer, stopping just beside her.
"You're overthinking."
Alicia let out a small, bitter laugh.
"Am I?"
She turned to face him.
"What if everything I worked for is already gone?"
Michael didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he reached for the sketch on the table.
Studied it.
Carefully.
Then
"They can copy your design," he said.
Alicia's chest tightened.
"But they can't copy you."
She froze.
"They don't think like you," he continued.
"They don't create like you."
A pause.
"And they don't understand what this means to you."
Something in her expression shifted.
The fear didn't disappear
But it weakened.
"What if I lose?" she asked quietly.
Michael met her gaze.
"Then you try again."
A long silence followed.
Then Alicia nodded slightly.
"…Okay."
For the first time that night
She breathed normally.
Downstairs, Sophie paced back and forth.
"I don't like this," she muttered.
Adrian leaned against the wall, watching her.
"You don't like anything uncertain."
"This isn't just uncertain," she said. "This is wrong."
Adrian stepped closer.
"And we're going to fix it."
Sophie looked at him.
"You sound very sure."
"I am."
A pause.
Then she said softly
"You really care about this, don't you?"
Adrian didn't hesitate.
"Yes."
Her heart skipped.
"For her?" Sophie asked.
Adrian's gaze shifted briefly
Then back to her.
"For all of us."
Sophie didn't respond.
But she didn't look away either.
In the study
Daniel finally stopped typing.
"I found something."
Michael turned immediately.
"What?"
"It wasn't random," Daniel said.
"There's a pattern."
Michael's expression hardened.
"Explain."
Daniel pulled up the data.
"The access point… it's been watching longer than we thought."
A pause.
Then he added
"Someone's been tracking this house."
Silence filled the room.
Michael's voice dropped slightly.
"How long?"
Daniel looked at the screen.
"…Long enough to know her routine."
Across the mansion
Alicia stood by the window again.
Unaware.
And somewhere outside
The enemy watched.
Closer now.
More confident.
Because doubt had already begun to do their work.