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The lights were on in Ethan’s office. A cold bottle of water, condensation patterned along the sides, sat on a coaster on his desk, waiting for him.
“Bless you, Helen,” he said, sitting down, uncapping the water, and taking a heady drink. When he was done, he held it out to me, but I shook my head.
“I’ll grab something in a minute and go downstairs. But before I do that, I think I have an idea about Balthasar. About how to call him out.”
“I’m listening, Sentinel.”
“He wants an opportunity to show himself, show off his power. And I don’t think he’s the only one—the vampires outside, they come to you for help, for reassurance, for advocacy. They trust you as much as the vampires of your own House. But they haven’t seen you formally Invested.” I smiled cannily. “I think we need to fix that.”
But Ethan frowned. “The AAM hasn’t decided if there will be an Investiture.”
“You’re an AAM member, and you’re all equal, according to Nicole. Tell Nicole it’s important in Chicago to acknowledge the Master’s new roles. Call it an Investiture, a coronation, a GP Independence Day celebration. Whatever the name, make it a very big deal—something the media outlets will pick up on. And don’t tell Balthasar. But let him find out.”
o;Oh, I questioned him,” Morgan said, crossing an ankle over the opposite knee. “He wouldn’t give her up. Played the dutiful soldier.”
“You think he supports Irina’s faction?”
“I don’t know,” Morgan said. “And I haven’t yet decided how or whether to play that particular card with her. I’m not political,” he added, throwing the word out as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.
Ethan let that pass. “We were discussing rehousing the Navarre vampires? We need to reduce the risk they’ll be targeted, used by the Circle to punish the House, or you.”
“We propose to divide them among the safe houses by blind lottery,” Scott said. “They’re the only ones who’ll know where they’re going. That reduces the likelihood they’ll be found, targeted.”
Morgan shook his head ruefully, tapped fingers on the table. “It will take time to get that arranged. We’ve got nearly one hundred and twenty in residence.”
“We’ve got our Novitiate liaisons working together on it,” Scott said. “Our hope is to arrange the housing and transportation tonight, possibly move a first group of vampires. The rest would go at dusk. We’re now unfortunately skilled in the mass transport of vampires.” Grey House had been targeted by vampire-hating firebombers, forcing the vampires to move. They’d sheltered temporarily at Cadogan before taking up residence in a high-rise.
He looked at Ethan. “We propose to handle the transportation. While Cadogan handles the Circle.”
I wasn’t sure how much “handling” we could do of the Circle, but Ethan nodded his agreement. “Acceptable terms.”
“I don’t see any way around it,” Morgan said, looking briefly around the room, perhaps realizing that he had no Navarre vampires to commune with. His Second had mutinied, his captain and one of his guards were in custody, and there was apparently a faction of vampires eager to see him dethroned.
“And Morgan will come to Cadogan House,” Ethan said.
Morgan looked torn between argument and praise. “Because?”
“Because you’ll need to be involved in the negotiations.”
“For what?”
“The Circle wants something from Navarre House,” Ethan said. “They’ve decided they have a right to it. We determine what they want, and we figure out how to get it to them.”
“And you don’t think it will be money?” Morgan asked.
“We don’t,” Ethan said, then gestured at me, apparently willing to let me share my previous realization.
“Navarre has money,” I said. “Even if not liquid, there are antiques, art, property. And the Circle has legal and accounting connections to the House.”
Scott didn’t react to that announcement, so Ethan must have filled him in. But Morgan scowled, probably irritated the House’s dirty laundry was becoming ever-more public.
“If the Circle had wanted money,” I continued, “they could have simply taken it. They’ll want something else. Power or blood, or possibly both, like with Sanford King.”
Ethan let heavy silence descend, then leaned forward in his chair. “Let’s get your vampires safe. And then we’ll deal with the Circle.”
* * *
It was nearly two by the time we made it back to the House, but paparazzi still waited outside the door, supplicants in the foyer. A few of the faces looked familiar—vampires from the night before Ethan hadn’t had a chance to get to.
