She didn't bother trying to interrogate Alistair.
The Chief Administrative Aide was currently running around the estate clutching a clipboard to his chest, looking so incredibly stressed and sleep-deprived that she feared a single question might actually cause him to spontaneously combust.
But Seraphina didn't need the adults to tell her the truth.
She was the CEO of the Obsidian Network.
She had eyes in the walls.
****
Later that night, the heavy oak door of Seraphina's bedroom was locked. The fireplace crackled softly, casting warm, dancing shadows across the plush blueberry carpets.
Seraphina sat cross-legged in the absolute center of her massive, four-poster bed.
Crinkle.
From the shadows beneath the heavy velvet drapes, a single, silver-threaded origami duck waddled out. Its tiny paper eyes glowed with a faint, pulsing violet light. It hopped onto the edge of the bed and marched up to her knees.
