#Chapter 77: Side by Side

Emily When I arrived at the meeting Logan was already seated at the head of the table, a stack of documents in front of him, untouched. His jaw was tight, his posture rigid. His eyes flicked up when I entered, softened for a breath, then sharpened again when Reid followed behind me. That’s when I felt it. The current of tension in the room. Reid sat three seats down and never once looked in Logan’s direction. Which would’ve meant nothing—except that Reid always looked. He tested boundaries. Teased, prodded, challenged. Today, he was silent. Composed. Almost reserved. Something had happened. I took my seat quietly, glancing over the schedule of topics: land boundary proposals, supply chain checks, a few rotating updates from the outer settlements. Routine work. But Logan’s responses were shorter than usual, his fingers tapping against the table when Reid spoke. Partway through a discussion about trade route patrols, Logan cut Reid off mid-sentence. “We’ll restructur