Selene’s POV
Nobody moves for a moment.
The slip of paper sits in Lucian’s hand and the word fear is still on his face, which is somehow more unsettling than anything Corrin said in this room ten minutes ago. I have seen Lucian controlled. I have seen him raw, in a kitchen, at five in the morning. I have not seen him afraid.
“Who,” I say. “Who are they sending.”
He hands me the paper instead of answering.
It is short. Formal in the way official pack correspondence always is, stripped of warmth, written by someone whose job is precision rather than courtesy.
The Northern Council has elected to dispatch an Observer ahead of the scheduled hearing, in light of recent developments regarding the Ironveil situation. The Observer will arrive tomorrow to assess conditions firsthand and submit
