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CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Interpol Headquarters, Lyon, France, Friday, January 25, 2013, Afternoon
The meeting with global officials was going well. The participating organizations were far more interested in enhancing their protective and investigative capabilities than treating the supernaturals like the enemy. Everyone recognized that their organizations existed because there would always be individuals who operated outside the law and the bounds of conventional morality. They also understood how outmatched humans were against supernatural rogues.
Ash and Luca presented their plan to the group during the first hour. Representatives from every agency in attendance, and the several dozen participating remotely, voted to establish the Supernatural Protection Alliance and Response Knights immediately. As the daughter of veterans, Ash was adamant that anyone who served at SPARK was taken care of for life. Her plan included a healthy pension and built-in safeguards to help manage battle fatigue, post-traumatic stress disorder, and any other mental health challenges presented by their work.
“What about the people working behind the scenes at meetings like this? Is there a title for us?” The MI5 official’s tone carried enough humor that she could play it off as a joke.
Ash thought about it and grinned. “Sure. It’s gonna take a lot of grunt work to get SPARK up and running. If we’re sticking to the order of chivalry, that would make us Squires.” She thought it was funny, but the majority of the group looked back at her with interest.
“Yeah! That sounds great. I want to tell my great-grandchildren I was part of this, Your Majesty. Squire, Chevalier, Knight, I don’t care. You’re changing the world. I want to be on the right side of history here.” He beamed. “My name is Russell Vexler. At your service.”
Ash laughed and picked up her pen as she stood. “We will have an official ceremony later, but for now, I dub thee Squire Russell Vexler.” She pointed her pen at his left shoulder, then the right. “Welcome to the team.”
The room erupted in laughter, and Ash made a mental note to do something special. She hadn’t realized how their work would impact people beyond the ones they saved, and she was touched to see that they cared beyond the job. As they quieted, another man stood and called for her attention.
“Before we proceed, I would like to say something, Your Highness. My name is Coen Spaling, and I am with the Dutch Royal Marechaussee.”
Ash smiled. “Of course.”
“My colleague was correct. We are on the right side of history, but it is more than that. You have given humanity a gift beyond description. The revelation of your world could have gone very differently if you had not presented so many more reasons to cooperate than to fight. You’ve let humanity get out of its own way so we can enter the next era.
“I don’t know if anyone has said it to you specifically, but thank you. Reading between the lines, it isn’t difficult to see you were the key to a lot of this. My apologies to the king, but I don’t think we would be here without you. Everyone here has seen the worst people have to offer, and we understand human extremes. Civilians might not know the extent of what you’re doing, but we do.”
Luca grinned. “No apologies necessary. You’re right. None of this could have happened without her. My father would have killed me, and Nadya would have destroyed him, with humanity as the collateral damage.”
Ash wiped at the tears stinging her eyes and laughed. “You’re welcome. I try to use my powers for good.”
They settled down and got back to work soon after that, although the room felt electrified with the energy of so many people working in unison. Their thoughts tugged at her mental shields, but Ash maintained control and allowed them as much privacy as she could.
Four hours into their meeting, she and Luca were seated at a table centered at the front of the large conference room, with the attendees on the tiered platforms facing them. It reminded Ash of Luca’s classroom at the college where they’d met, and she smiled. Luca discussed the practicalities of supernatural forces working with the SPARK team. They hoped that a witch, a shifter, and a vampire would be included in all missions. That would maximize their ability to handle otherworldly situations.
Ash’s purse vibrated. They’d contemplated leaving their phones at the apartment to focus on the meeting but decided that either might get a call they couldn’t ignore. The compromise had been to stash their phones in Ash’s purse on vibrate. Luca’s phone had the message.
It’s your phone. Want me to check?
Yes, please. I’m on a roll.
Ash unlocked his phone and read the message, and the color drained from her face. Eyes blazing, she stood, her chair scraping loudly across the floor. Luca looked at her in concern.
“He has Dani. I have to go. Now.”
She dropped the phone in Luca’s lap and disappeared in a flash of golden light. Luca picked up the device and saw the message from Jules on the screen.
Fucking hell. That moron.
Luca cleared his throat. The newly-titled squires stared at him in astonishment. He shook his head and grinned, then ran a hand through his hair. “That was unexpected. The queen received a message that her sister was kidnapped from the Therian palace in a foolish attempt to prove we don’t care about our people. We wanted to start our reigns with open access and transparency, but apparently, that created gaps in operational security. I don’t suppose you could offer any recommendations about being available to the people and still protecting the vulnerable in our care?”
He’d asked so they would get involved. Luca had plenty of ideas on improving security at the palace, though he’d hoped not to have to. Perhaps that had been an idealistic dream, but he was who he was, and it was too late to change now. Ash would handle the situation far better than he could, but anxiety still gripped his heart at the thought of his mate and her sister in danger.
Thinking about what Ash might do if they’d caused Dani irreparable harm sent fear racing through his veins. She was only beginning to discover her powers, and Maerlin’s warnings kept him awake at night. Ash was a gentle soul who had taken on a lot of responsibility, and if she harmed innocents, it would devastate her.
Forcing himself to refocus, Luca continued the meeting.
Jules’ Safe House, Russian Countryside, Night
Ash teleported to Dani’s side. She didn’t stop to think about how the magic worked or whether she could. She just did. She was in a sitting room on the other side of the world, and the sky outside was dark. Her mind fought to adjust to the time difference, but thoughts of time zones fled when she saw her sister.
