The Wicked (Elder Races #5.5)(5)

Instead, she picked up her suitcase and pack, carried them into the large conference room, set the pieces along the wall with the heaps of other luggage, and then sat at the large conference table, several seats away from anybody else.

The floor never did open up and swallow you, no matter how badly you might wish it.

Chapter Two

When nine people in total entered the conference room, Carling nodded to one of the men, who shut the double doors. The striking man in the sunglasses remained motionless beside the Vampyre, hands clasped behind his back. He appeared to be studying the occupants in the room, his strong features impassive.

Aside from Carling, there were four women and four men present. Two of the men were Wyr, including the man at Carling’s side, and one male was an Elf. Olivia guessed that the fourth male was human. Of the other three women, there was one Djinn, of course, a Light Fae and a woman whose heritage and race Olivia couldn’t quite place. Her coloring was similar to Carling’s, her strong face attractively hawkish. She wasn’t quite human. Olivia suspected that she was of a mixed race.

“Good afternoon,” Carling said. “We have the agency plane waiting for you on the tarmac, so I will keep this meeting as short as possible. It is public knowledge that I have become estranged from one of my progeny, Julian Regillus, the Nightkind King. Julian and I are having several disagreements.”

Several of the people sitting at the table exchanged glances. Carling and Julian’s estrangement had, in fact, hit several major news websites and many tabloid sites, but Olivia could tell that nobody had expected Carling to speak so frankly.

Carling continued dryly, “The relevant disagreement today is regarding my library, which is located on a small island in an Other land that has a single underwater crossover passageway located in the ocean just outside the San Francisco Bay.

“I filed a suit with the Elder tribunal, which Julian countered with his own suit. I claim I have the right to retrieve my property, since it is located in a place outside of Julian’s legal jurisdiction. Julian claims that he has banished me from the Nightkind demesne. Since the crossover passageway is located in his demesne, he has the right to bar access to me.

“My suit involved an offer of resolution where I would send a team that would travel to the island on my behalf. That team would pack my library and transfer it completely out of the Nightkind demesne. As some of you already know, the tribunal has granted my petition and ordered Julian to allow my team access to the harbor in order to transport my library. Upon completion of this task, I relinquish all rights and claim to the island. Since I also filed documentation about a sentient species that lives on the island, rights to that land will revert to them.”

Carling turned to the man who stood beside her. “This is your expedition leader, Sebastian Hale. He has final say on all decisions. He has a full security team, most of whom will remain on board a yacht in the harbor. The three of his staff who will be traveling to the island are present here—Derrick, Tony and Bailey. Derrick is the medical doctor who will be traveling with the team.”

Two men, the Elf and the human, and the Light Fae woman nodded to the group as Carling mentioned their names. Then Carling gestured to the hawk-faced woman of mixed race. “This is your head librarian and symbologist, Dendera Amin. Dendera is the department head for Magical Studies at the National Library of Turkey. She has final say regarding anything to do with the library itself. Her team has two other symbologists—Steve and Olivia.”

The symbologists gave each other assessing looks and nods. Dendera’s expression remained reserved, while Steve, a Wyr of some kind with a thin, intelligent face, gave Olivia a quick smile.

“Last,” Carling said, “but certainly not least, there is one Djinn on the team, Phaedra, who will stand guard over the underwater crossover passageway while you are on the island. All of your resumes are on file with the tribunal. Phaedra, only these seven people are legally permitted to travel to the island. Certainly no Nightkind, nor anybody that Julian might suggest sending with you, should be allowed access. Julian will most likely keep a yacht in the harbor to make sure that we actually fulfill the terms of the petition.

“You have three days to make the crossover and start the removal process. If for any reason you fail to do so within that time frame, my petition becomes null and void, and I lose all legal claim to my library. It is Sebastian’s job to see that this does not happen, and that you depart for the island well within that deadline.”

The Vampyre paused to look at each one of them before she continued. “You’re all excellent at your jobs, and that didn’t happen by accident. I have been collecting that library for thousands of years. There are many items that are old, fragile, dangerous and valuable. Before I was forced to leave, I destroyed some of the darkest items, but I did not have time to safely contain or destroy everything. Stay on top of your game, be careful and work as a team. It’s the responsibility of Sebastian and his team to safeguard both you and the contents of the library. Good journey and good luck.”

With those final words, Carling strode out of the room, and Sebastian Hale faced the group alone.

“Dendera and I have already been thoroughly briefed,” he said. His voice was as striking as the rest of him, strong and deep and rich. “I won’t add anything else right now. We have several hours on the plane where we can get acquainted with each other and run through details of the expedition, so for now, get your luggage and make your way downstairs. There’s transportation waiting to take us to the airport.”