Page 84 of Pocket Wife

“No,” Salo says. “It is becoming pattern.”

That single sentence shakes Corvek more than accusation would have.

I feel Lucy’s gaze on me. The bond holds steady, but grief has entered it now. Not hers alone. Mine.

A Pi’rell liaison helped teach Helix how to erase a living community.

Not my ancestor. Not my direct mentor. Still my history. My people’s fear of extinction was used to map another people’s vulnerability.

I have spent two centuries preserving memory.

Someone from the ruins of my world sold the method of erasure.

Kaun’s voice softens, barely. “Specialist Veyr.”

I know what she is asking without words.

Can I continue?

I turn to Lucy.

Her face holds exhaustion, fury, compassion, and something steadier than all three. She did not come to me asking for a perfect man or an unstained history. She asked me not to hide.

So I do not.

“The record should show,” I say, “that Malrec Vaul was Pi’rell.”

The chamber quiets.

“It should also show,” I continue, “that his betrayal does not reduce the validity of Solaris Valley’s claim. Guilt does not transfer by species. Neither does innocence by institution. We follow the act, the seal, the money, and the record.”

Lucy’s eyes shine.

Kaun inclines her head once. Respect, perhaps. Or apology. There will be time later to decide which one I want from her.

Salo confers briefly with the other adjudicators. “Emergency relocation remains suspended. Preliminary scope is expanded pending authentication of the Kade-Vaul correspondence. The expanded review will include Authority misconduct, corporate predecessor activity, witness intimidation, and fraud in historical classification. Director Kaun, secure all Kade-Vaul records. Specialist Veyr, you will remain historical analyst under direct tribunal instruction.”

Sen objects.

Salo ignores her.

Corvek’s display flickers. For one heartbeat, his polished calm vanishes and leaves only calculation behind.

Then he smiles.

That smile disturbs me more than anger.

Corvek says, “Then I suppose we should all welcome the full record.”

The right side display goes dark.

The seventy-two-hour suspension still blocks relocation, but it does not stop Helix from shifting the fight to infrastructure. A moment later, every drone outside the council chamber lifts away from the windows.

Torren’s comm begins shrieking.

He checks it, and the blood leaves his face. “Lucy.”

She turns.