### 1. PROSE EVIDENCE
*   **Early:** "The 'Severing' wasn't a clean cut; it was a jagged tearing of skin from muscle."
    *   This effectively visceral metaphor establishes the physical stakes of Lena’s magical loss without relying on abstract "energy" descriptions.
*   **Mid:** "She saw the mold on the brickwork of a crumbling double-shotgun house, but it didn't speak of growth or decay. It was just... there. Inert."
    *   This successfully illustrates the "hollow deafness" by showing the reader the absence of Lena's usual spiritual connection to nature.
*   **Mid:** "The shadows in the corners of the room began to stretch, reaching toward Lena like obsidian fingers."
    *   While atmospheric, the "obsidian fingers" simile feels slightly generic compared to the more unique swamp-based imagery used elsewhere.
*   **Late:** "Maribelle's voice slithered clear through the static, dripping with a terrifying, motherly honey."
    *   The contrast between "slithered" and "honey" perfectly captures the predatory nurture of the antagonist.

### 2. CHARACTER VOICE AUDIT

**Lena Duval**
*   **Line:** "Gator's truth—I can't feel a thing beyond these four walls except the hum of the 'Wall."
*   **Signature Tics?** YES. Uses "Gator's truth" to state an undeniable fact.
*   **Forbidden Patterns?** YES. She avoids "I give up" or preemptive apologies.
*   **Consistency?** YES. Her register is panicked/clippped, reflecting her 50% arc state of sensory overload.

**Jax Harlan**
*   **Line:** "If we’re going to move, I need the rest of it. You said Phlegethon isn't just a name."
*   **Signature Tics?** YES. Matches the "protector to investigator" arc (25% progress) by demanding tactical information.
*   **Forbidden Patterns?** YES. Remains grim and hyper-vigilant.
*   **Consistency?** YES. His focus on "the map" and "the leak" remains true to his outsider-navigator persona.

**Aunt Maribelle (Voice/Intrusion)**
*   **Line:** "Come home, cher, or watch the Bend rot with you."
*   **Signature Tics?** YES. Uses "cher" as an endearment, which aligns with the Duval family's Cajun roots.
*   **Consistency?** YES. Her tone is aggressive and manipulative as per the World State.

### 3. STRENGTHS TO PRESERVE
*   **Tactile Grounding:** The use of Jax and organic matter as a "battery" for Lena.
    *   *Reference:* "She reached out... her palm finally slammed against his forearm—skin on skin—the world jolted back into focus." This aligns perfectly with the known secret that her tremors subside with physical contact.
*   **Rhythmic Chanting Prose:** When Lena explains Phlegethon, her voice shifts to the requested "swamp vine" meandering.
    *   *Reference:* "The developers... Terrebonne Corp... they don't want the timber. They want the 'Heart.' There’s a pocket of gas and ancient peat..."
*   **The Industrial/Natural Duality:** The way the locket reacts to machinery.
    *   *Reference:* "It was syncing with the industrial hum of the city power lines outside." This maintains the "Frequency Shift" key term from the project context.

### 4. MUST-FIX -- CONTINUITY
*   **ORIGINAL:** "The 'Neutral' was a man who looked like he’d been carved out of driftwood... 'I am Malleus,' the man said..."
*   **PROBLEM:** The Project Context/NPC Memory defines the "Neutral Contact" as "UNMET." While meeting him in this chapter is the logical progression, the prompt's World State describes him as a "Rumored safe harbor." Malleus’s sudden introduction and naming of himself as a "Neutral" feels abrupt, and his immediate knowledge of the "Heart" and "Phlegethon" risks an info-dump that bypasses Lena's own discovery arc.
*   **FIX:** Ensure Lena or Jax mentions they were *looking* for Malleus specifically by name based on rumors, or have Malleus be more suspicious of their identity before revealing his own.

### 5. MUST-FIX -- CLARITY
*   **ORIGINAL:** "I need... a muffle," she panted. "The Wall is killing me, and my aunt... she’s using the gap to get in."
*   **PROBLEM:** The term "The Wall" is used twice in two paragraphs with slightly different meanings (The Urban Wall interference vs. the literal walls of the shop vs. a metaphorical shield). 
*   **FIX:** Differentiate the terms. "The Urban Wall's static is killing me... I need a muffle to close the gap."

### 6. OPTIONAL SUGGESTIONS
*   **Suggestion:** (Optional) Enhance the "Frequency Shift" theme by describing the specific rhythmic vibration of the locket as "staccato" or "mechanical" to contrast the "lazy pulse" of the swamp.
    *   *Quote:* "It was syncing with the industrial hum..."
*   **Suggestion:** (Optional) Use Lena’s "magnolia and mud" scent profile to contrast the apothecary’s "vinegar and sage."
    *   *Quote:* "...smelling of damp earth and crushed mint."

### 7. FORBIDDEN CHANGES / NON-GOALS
*   **Do not remove:** "No no, not that, no no." This is Lena's imperfection signature/nervous tic when panicked.
*   **Do not remove:** "Hellfire" or "By the bayou's bones." These are fixed voice-signature stress expressions.
*   **Do not smooth out:** The sentence: "The cypress don't lie, cher—the roots whisper what your heart's too stubborn to hear." This is the core example of her dialogue and must remain intact.

### 8. VERDICT: PASS
**SCORE: 92/100**
**Justification:** The chapter flawlessly integrates the "Voice Signature" requirements, specifically the tactile grounding and the "Gator's Truth" tic. The prose is atmospheric and aligns with the 50% "Severing" arc. The "Must-Fix" items are minor terminology clarifications and do not require a structural rewrite.