"If we're going to do this," Serina said, "we do it on our terms. Not theirs."
We cleared the observatory of dust, broken chairs, and forgotten relics. By dawn, it was more than a hideout. It was ours.
A base. A line in the sand.
We started with the names Serina had.
Three lords. Two advisors. One heir. All present at the original hearing. All who said nothing.
I handled the social threads. Serina took the paper trail.
Within a week, we had enough to shake one of them.
"Lord Ferin loves gambling," she said. "Especially on things he thinks no one knows."
"Then we make sure he loses. Loudly."