The reaction was infinitesimal, a hairline fracture in an otherwise impenetrable facade.
Athea's blue eyes, usually so sharp and calculating, went flat and cold for a single, terrifying heartbeat. Her pupils dilated almost imperceptibly, twin black holes of shock that swallowed the light before her mask of cool detachment snapped back into place with the precision of a steel trap closing.
It was a crack in the glacier, and for Viora, it was enough. More than enough. It was confirmation, revelation, and a dozen new questions all at once.
Why was her mother so visibly bothered by this single image, however briefly, by the image of this male that Valerie was showing off so casually? What connection did Athea have to him that could pierce through her legendary composure, even for a fraction of a second?
