Grand Reopening [Baccarrat Mansion]

[Helena]

Helena looked around the office with an impassive expression, though the fact she looked at all betrayed interest in her new surroundings. Though she did not linger to read any spines on the shelves, these were the sorts of volumes she might have expected in her own familial libraries back in England – which was to say old and probably valuable. She sat where she was directed, perched with formal stiffness, though she did not look uncomfortable so much as it was simply her usual manner. The drink was accepted with a little smothered impatience for the nicety. She was eager to get straight to business.

“The common goal to shape our world to our liking, Mr Lagueux.” That much ought to be obvious; what else was wealth and reputation for? But she elaborated without a pause for drama or tension. Her gaze was direct and unflinching.

“Left unchecked, these new channelers will overturn order. Death is not a sustainable answer – and it ignores the uses of such gifts, let alone the clear impossibility of the task. The government ambles towards its own brand of control, of course, but you and I both know where the true power in this world lies. We have a responsibility and an obligation to mitigate the chaos.”