Gloria POV
Lyra stood frozen near the edge of the grand dais, her face turning pale as paper while Evelyn stepped smoothly away from her to rejoin Julian. I watched Lyra's hands shake as she tried to adjust her blue dress, her eyes darting toward me with a silent terror before she swallowed hard and backed out into the crowd.
"What did she say to her?" Martha whispered, leaning over my shoulder as the applause died down across the hall.
"I do not know," I said, keeping my eyes fixed on Lyra's retreating form. "Whatever it was, it terrified her."
"Evelyn is playing a dangerous game," Martha muttered, her eyes narrowing as Julian raised his glass again. "She knows her family lacks true authority without the emblem, so she is going to move fast."
"Let her move," William said quietly besi
