Vance had already returned his attention to the next paper he had to look at by the time the door opened. He didn't look up as the visitor entered. The door closed harder than he would like which confirmed his suspicion about their identity. It was quite clearly Ophelia. Still he did not look up to acknowledge her until he finished his task. It was a power play that had always been a thing between him and his daughter. It was almost as if he had always been working to teach her exactly how she should keep her power. Not that he ever really thought she would be trying to play him. Vance made a point of finishing and setting aside the work he was doing before he looked up. His blue eyes moved over. Well she clearly had something she needed to discuss.
Vance did not prompt her. They honestly would have simply stared at each other if Ophelia hadn’t spoke. There was no preamble, no small talk before getting to the point. Vance appreciated that. He did not want to waste his time pretending to be friendly. Ophelia’s statement was both surprising and not at all surprising in different ways. She showed her intelligence by working things out, which was mildly surprising of late. It seemed to fail her in choice of lovers. Her boldness in clearly making an attempt to protect her sister was unsurprising. He nodded once before setting aside his pen.
“And what is your goal in this conversation, Ophelia?” he asked, “It is clear you and not here simply to discuss.”