Isn't it way too early for Valeria Ironwood? The thought screamed in Kaelen's mind, a frantic counterpoint to Valeria's polished smile. In the novel, their first major encounter wasn't for another fifty chapters, at a charity gala. This casual restaurant meeting was off script. Way off script.
System. System. Heeyyyy, what's going on? she mentally shouted, a silent plea amidst the table's frozen tension.
A familiar, sterile block of text materialized in the corner of her vision, superimposed over Valeria's confident form.
User Query Acknowledged.
Analysis: Plot deviation detected. Character "Valeria Ironwood" has entered the narrative ahead of projected timeline.
Probable Cause: User's previous actions, specifically the public altercation at the toy store and the subsequent school drop off, have increased the social visibility of the user's connection to "Seraphina Vesper." "Valeria Ironwood" maintains a proactive surveillance network on rival corporations and their key affiliates. The anomaly is a direct consequence of user initiated changes to the established sequence of events.
Recommendation: Maintain character. Adhere to core personality traits of hostility and territorialism towards rival Alpha "Valeria Ironwood."
Kaelen's internal panic spiked. So this is my fault? My trying to help Iris… made the heroine show up early? The System's cold logic was infuriating. It was like being punished for building a sandcastle and then blamed when the tide came in early.
She was jerked back to the present by the sound of Valeria's voice, smooth as silk and sharp as a blade.
"...can I join?" Valeria was asking, her question directed at Sera but her eyes briefly, dismissively, flicking to Kaelen as if she were a mildly interesting piece of furniture.
Sera, who had been pale and tense, seemed to straighten under Valeria's attention. A faint, real smile touched her lips a stark contrast to the cold mask she wore for Kaelen. "Valeria. Of course. It's good to see you."
Of course it is, Kaelen thought bitterly. The heroic savior has arrived.
An extra chair was procured. Valeria sat, effortlessly commanding the space around their table. She immediately turned her full attention to Sera, leaning in slightly. "I heard there was some commotion at your daughter's school today? Something about a couple of bullies being put in their place by a Blackwood." She said the name with a subtle distaste. "I wanted to make sure you were both alright."
Sera's eyes widened slightly, then darted to Kaelen with a new, complicated look. Shock? Reluctant acknowledgment? It was gone in a flash, replaced by a weary gratitude aimed at Valeria. "It was handled," Sera said softly. "Thank you for your concern. It's… more than most would offer."
Kaelen felt a hot spike of jealousy, sharp and unexpected. She focused on Iris, who was looking between the adults with wide, confused eyes.
"Are you finished, sweetie?" Kaelen asked, her voice softer than she intended. She pointed to Iris's plate, where a piece of broccoli remained.
Iris nodded. Without thinking, Kaelen picked up her own fork, speared the broccoli, and offered it to the girl. "Last bite for strength," she murmured, a phrase her own mother had used.
Iris obediently opened her mouth and ate it.
The simple, domestic action seemed to suck the air out of the conversation. Sera and Valeria both stopped talking and stared. Sera's expression was one of pure, unvarnished shock. Valeria's was one of deep, analytical curiosity. The act was so utterly antithetical to the publicly known character of Kaelen Blackwood that it was more shocking than if she'd started throwing punches.
Warning: Significant behavioral inconsistency detected. Hostile interaction with rival Alpha expected.
A sharp, warning throb pulsed behind Kaelen's eyes. Right. She was supposed to be hostile.
She slowly put the fork down and lifted her gaze to meet Valeria's. She forced her features into a mask of cold disdain, the one she'd practiced in the mirror.
"Ironwood," Kaelen said, her voice dropping into a lower, more aggressive register she'd learned from Cassian. "Don't you have a security firewall to be failing somewhere? Or are you so desperate for clients you have to poach them over dinner?"
It was a weak jab, but it was on brand. The System's warning pain receded.
Valeria's polished smile didn't falter. She turned her head slowly, as if just noticing Kaelen was there. "Blackwood. Still relying on your family's name to do the talking for you, I see. I was merely checking on a friend. Something I'm sure is a foreign concept to you." Her eyes flicked to Sera, a silent message of solidarity.
Sera looked down at her lap, uncomfortable being the prize in this unspoken Alpha posturing.
The meal concluded soon after under a cloud of thick tension. Valeria exchanged a few more quiet words with Sera, completely ignoring Kaelen, before taking her leave with a promise to "be in touch."
As Valeria walked away, Sera stood up abruptly. "Let's go," she said to Iris, her voice tight. She didn't look at Kaelen.
They rode home in a silence even heavier than before. Kaelen had followed the System's orders, she'd been hostile, but it had cost her. She'd seen the look in Sera's eyes when she'd fed Iris a flicker of something that wasn't hatred and she'd been forced to snuff it out. Valeria's early arrival had changed the game, tightening the walls of her cage just as she'd found a tiny crack. The heroine was here, and Kaelen was still the villain.