For the next quarter hour, the conversation shifted from pleasantries to probability — and none of it good.
Miss Claire spoke with the ease of someone used to threading legal needles while staring down the barrel of ruin. Her fingers occasionally traced the stem of her wine glass as she laid out the situation in neat, brutal lines.
"If this goes to court without hard evidence," she began, "you're looking at more than just a public relations disaster."
Don said nothing. He listened.
"The death toll alone will put most judges on edge. A non-sanctioned intervention turned slaughter, tied directly to two powerful young heroes."
Don leaned back slightly, letting the glass beneath them creak just enough to be noticed. The view below was the same — ocean waves breaking against a shore that didn't care who was on trial.
Claire continued, "Now, if the investigation pulls through and uncovers credible evidence — you have a shot at full exoneration. But that window is razor-thin."
