Raphael's expression darkened further. "A newly emerged Fae representative. Someone claiming legitimate succession to their vacant seat, arriving conveniently now, with a legal challenge already prepared."
"Convenient," Damon said, his voice hard. "Too convenient."
"My thoughts exactly," Raphael said. "Someone helped them. Someone with knowledge of ancient Court law, someone with resources to locate a legitimate Fae claimant after two centuries of vacancy, someone with motivation to destabilize your rule specifically now."
"Malachai's allies," Eve said quietly. "The ones who scattered after his fall."
"Possibly," Raphael said. "I have no proof yet. But the timing, the sophistication of the legal argument, the resources required to track down a valid Fae heir, it doesn't feel like coincidence."
The fire crackled in the silence that followed, the only sound in the room as everyone processed the implications.
