Chapter 166: What the Quiet Reveals
Lyria's POV
Earl Hawthorne did not look impressed.
If anything, his expression darkened further, like Corvin's words had only added weight to something already poorly tolerated.
There was a stillness to him now that felt sharper than movement. The kind of stillness that came from restraint.
He looked at Corvin for a long moment before speaking.
"Am I to understand," he said carefully, "that you intend to justify raising your hand against her on the basis of… familiarity?"
Corvin let out a short, dismissive breath.
"I did not intend to hit her," he said quickly. "I was merely… there were flies. It was an instinctive motion."
A silence followed that statement.
A very, very pointed silence.
A small sound escaped me—half disbelief, half amusement.
It came out sharper than intended.
Both men turned toward me at once.
Corvin's gaze tightened immediately, like I had just confirmed something unpleasant in his mind.
