Page 80 of Pocket Wife

The change in his face is slight.

I see it anyway.

“What?” I ask.

Rethan looks toward Corvek’s display, then toward the tribunal officers.

“The forensic access logs from First Hall just returned a historical authorization trace,” he says. “Someone opened the archive seal before last night.”

Salo’s expression sharpens. “When?”

“Three decades ago.”

The room tightens around the number.

Rethan’s eyes meet mine.

“And not with Director Kaun’s access,” he says. “With an override belonging to one of her predecessors.”

CHAPTER 30

RETHAN

The oldest lies always know how to dress as procedure.

I hold my gaze on the forensic trace while the council chamber waits around me. Three decades ago, someone opened First Hall with an Authority director’s override. Not a local clerk. Not a Helix technician. Not a frightened administrator pressed into silence.

An Authority director.

The seal glows on my station: Director Arven Kade, Preservation Authority, Outer Settlements Division. Retired twenty-six years. Deceased eleven years. Commendations attached. Memorial archive protected.

Of course it is protected.

Power rarely buries itself in common soil.

Adjudicator Salo speaks first. “Specialist Veyr, confirm the trace.”

I enlarge the access log. “Historical authorization trace confirms First Hall was opened three decades ago using Director Arven Kade’s override. The entry lasted nineteen minutes. The archive door sealed again afterward. No public record of access was filed.”

Advocate Sen recovers quickly. “A historical Authority access trace does not implicate Helix.”

“No,” I say. “It implicates the Authority.”

The room goes silent.

Kaun’s remote seal remains on the display. For once, Director Elaris Kaun does not speak immediately.

That silence tells me more than denial would have.

Corvek leans closer on his screen. “This is an internal bureaucratic issue. Helix cannot answer for every action taken by a deceased official three decades ago.”

“You benefited from the action,” I say.

“Speculation.”

“Sequence.” I highlight the timeline. “First Hall opened. Within four days, Eleanor Hartwell’s water inspection acknowledgment entered regional intake. Within six weeks, Solaris Valley’s water, burial, and harvest sites were reclassified under dormant reserve language. Within a year, Helix-linked trusts began acquiring mineral review options.”

Sen lifts a hand. “Linked by what evidence?”