The distorted voice echoed through the conference room long after the audio stopped; static crackled once more before the file ended completely. Nobody spoke immediately.
The city outside Ashford Tower had fully shifted into the morning, but the room still felt trapped somewhere between exhaustion and tension.
Elias stared at the paused audio screen. "That was not random intimidation."
Lucien muted the playback system calmly. "No."
Seraphina remained very still beside the table; the sentence itself did not frighten her anymore. What frightened her was how precise it was; someone understood enough to weaponise truth without fully exposing it.
Lucien looked toward her carefully. "Sit down."
She blinked once. "I am fine."
"You have not slept." He said.
Neither had he, but he ignored his exhaustion entirely while noticing hers immediately. Seraphina lowered herself slowly into the chair anyway, not because he ordered it, but because arguing suddenly felt pointless.
