"That this was planned months in advance," Liora said with cold precision. "That someone in your pack was bought by my father. That the footage was deliberately edited to hide something crucial. That nothing about this attack was random."
"It doesn't prove you're innocent of the murders."
"No," Liora agreed, her voice flat. "But it proves there's far more to this than you thought. It proves someone went to enormous trouble to make sure I'd take the fall."
"Why you specifically?" Thessian asked, studying her face. "Why not frame someone else?"
"Because I'm expendable," Liora said coldly. "Because nobody cares about the forgotten middle princess who's never done anything of importance. Because my father could hand me over without political consequences, and nobody would ask difficult questions or demand a proper investigation."
"Your own father orchestrated framing you for mass murder?" Thessian's voice held disbelief despite the evidence.
