The Lost Heir
Permanent.
Soren opened it without ceremony.
"We're here to determine the status of Celeste, former beta of Stonehaven, regarding asylum." His voice was measured, the voice of a man who knew how to hold a room. "The floor is open. Speak plainly."
A beat of silence. Kendra stood.
She had changed since the truck stop — clean clothes, hair down, but the same stillness in her body that the compound had built into her. She stood at the end of the table and looked at the council and spoke the way she did everything — without performance, without hesitation.