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They entered the room to find Agar, Wilhem, Verenus, and Keitaro there. Greetings were exchanged.
“Thank you for coming,” Agar said clearly as each of the wolves took seats. His eyes went to the door as if expecting someone else.
“Santiago?” he finally asked.
“England,” Conall replied.
Agar nodded, and turned to Verenus. “Lucian?”
“Unavoidably occupied,” Verenus answered easily.
He looked to Wilhem. “Tiberius?”
The grand wizard scowled as his fists clenched. “I do not know, Elder. He seems to have disappeared.”
Looking around the table, it was noticeable that there were empty spaces. Two empty spaces for the witches, one for the vampires, one for the wolves. But there were also two extra seats.
As Conall focused on them, Agar spoke. “I have called this meeting to find out the state of the New York Council. Your being here proves that you are willing to continue this interconnection of communities. Am I correct?”
Grunts went around the table, and Conall spoke. His eyes were on Wilhem. “I will sit on no Council with persons who have attempted harm to mine. Tiberius is not here, but if he intends to—”
Wilhem shook his head. His scowl was as fierce as Conall’s. “Tiberius has fled. I’ve searched for him these past days, but he’s nowhere to be found. His covenant, like Maximilian’s, is in the process of choosing another grand wizard.”
“And you had no knowledge of what your brothers planned?”
“It was my plan to stop them before I was ambushed.”
Satisfied, Conall returned his attention to Agar, and nodded once.
“Because we are a fair, representative group, I have called for a representative from the druid community, and one from the warlock community to sit with us. Are there any objections?”
There were none.
Agar lifted a hand to the vampire guard who followed him everywhere, and soon, two others filed in. Conall recognized both. The warlock he’d seen with Max, and the druid was Nicolette. Had the druids decided to settle in New York?
She passed him a smile as she took her seat and turned to Agar.
“Thank you for your invitation, Elder.”
The warlock murmured words of a similar nature.
“Council,” Agar began, standing slightly. “Here sits Nicolette De Gaul, representative of the druid community in this state.” He nodded to Nicolette. “And here sits Kyros Theopolis, representative of the warlock community in this state.” He nodded to Kyros. “Welcome to the New York Council.” He then proceeded to introduce every creature seated around the table to the newcomers.
When he finally sat, shuffling papers as he did so, Conall stared at Nicolette.
“Seats on this council are by community size,” Agar said in a clear, strong voice. He addressed both Nicolette and Kyros, telling them that they would have to send him an account of the members in their communities. When they nodded, he looked around the table. “Is there any other topic you wish to broach, Council members?”
There was no answer. Agar nodded.
“I will send the transcription of this meeting to those who were not here, and those groups whose communities still lack leadership. Thank you again for your time. If there are no objections, Council is adjourned.”
***
“So you’ve settled in New York?” Conall asked of Nicolette once they were outside. The other council members had driven off or were in the process of doing so. His beta had gone over to his car to allow them to speak privately.
“Some of us like New York, particularly the city. It allows for certain eccentricities.”
“There are others elsewhere?”
Nicolette only gave him an amused look. Her eyes sparkled. “Are all of your people concentrated in New York? Of course not. Neither are mine. I see you’re confused? Not only are we strong, Conall Athelwulf, we are fast. We did not contemplate staying in Europe, at least not for a few years, so the rugged lands of America seemed the obvious choice. We’ve been through all of these states, and only a few measured up to our standards. New York was one of them.” When he didn’t ask another question, she changed the subject. “How is my granddaughter?”
“Well,” he replied, smiling as he thought of Vivienne. Nicolette watched him carefully, wondering if her daughter’s mate had been anything like Conall. Her heart tugged painfully and she tried to push the thought away. Her Annabel. The pain she must have known, on her own with no mate and no mother to help her as that black-hearted bastard hunted her down. Annabel had been her only child, and Nicolette had indulged her every whim. In her heart, Nicolette knew Annabel had struggled without the support of another, and it was for that reason, and many others, that she requested such suffering for Cronin. To this day, the knowledge that he was being tortured in Tartarus gave her incredible pleasure. “If you’d like, you can visit her.”
