To tell the truth, Aidou was quick to notice patterns--or changes to patterns, as the case may be. He'd been in the Institute long enough to learn its normal routine and for a mind that analyzed information as fast as his, the changes that had been taking place the last little while hadn't escaped his notice.

His express was still, but the fact that he didn't show surprise probably said enough. Yes, he'd picked up on that. Hard not to with the thinned ranks. People coming and going had been the norm, and now people were just going.

"It hasn't escaped me," he replied. "If he had a say in that, I doubt it means something good for the rest of us. And if he didn't, that still doesn't mean the circumstances are in our favor."

He was calm, the kind of calm that came with knowing the scales were tipped heavily away from him.