At the head of the table, Grace Piao moved.
One hand lowered to the back of her chair.
A small motion.
Subtle.
Deliberate.
Earlier, at her signal, the room had been allowed to quietly prepare.
That included the assistants.
All of them had returned to their seats.
Not at the main table.
But at their own desks, set at a slightly lower elevation.
From there, they organized documents.
Reviewed notes.
Prepared what their superiors might need once the meeting began.
Everything was done in advance.
Because once it started, they would not remain seated.
They would rise.
Move behind their assigned members.
Stand ready.
To provide anything needed.
At any moment.
The instant their superior finished speaking, they would step back.
Return to their seats.
And continue working.
Taking notes.
Recording what was said.
Marking key points.
So that when the next meeting came, they would be ready.
And if needed—
Those same notes could be used at the end.
When the meeting moved toward its close.
To raise final points.
To question.
To agree.
Or to oppose.
Grace's assistant understood the signal instantly.
She rose, gathered the prepared files, and stepped forward.
Placing one onto the main table.
Grace took it without looking up.
Garfield Everworth.
That was the name written inside.
A man from a family the government had long tried to use.
All for the sake of the diaries.
Despite Nina Piao changing both her name and her child's, the process had never gone through legal channels.
At the time, war had made it impossible.
And because of that, it was never recognized as something her husband would have truly intended.
That single gap became an opening.
One the government never let go of.