He wanted to argue that it's not like he hasn't done this before, just in a different way. It was his signature on every back door, trip wire, and virus that he'd used to infiltrate everything from government facilities to criminal enterprises, and he hadn't let that stop him from doing it. They came after him, so be it.

So it's hard for him now to let someone else be risked for what he is doing. He hasn't before, and he hates doing it now. Especially to Cougar.

"Since when has anything we've ever done been safe," he argues, softer though, not willing to concede defeat, but not fighting anymore either.