Page 59 of An Uncertain Claim

Put Sabrina, Allison, and Lincoln on Peyton, I sent the thought to Tanner, not wanting to stop the meeting to send a text. Lincoln was our newest enforcer, and while I trusted him as much as the others, I needed my team to be in sync with me for this mission.Ephraim is already on perimeter duty, I want him to double the guards and make sure there is no lag between shifts.I purposefully kept Ephraim out of the rotation for guarding Peyton because though she hadn’t said anything, I had the feeling he made her uncomfortable.Gather the rest of the enforcers and meet me at the tactical gear storage ASAP.

Done.

Returning my full attention to the vampire brothers, I stated, “You still haven’t explained why you want me to do this. Why not go to the European ISC and request a meeting through their Fae representative?”

Lucien drew his hand through his long, white hair and blew out a frustrated breath. “We have fallen out of the Council’s favor at the moment.”

I narrowed my eyes and crossed my arms, leaning back in my chair, waiting for him to explain.This ought to be good.

“Suffice it to say, I took something that belonged to another and then did something incredibly stupid. Now I’m stuck with the results of my lapse in judgment.”

“This has to be about a woman,” I drawled.

Lucien glared at me, and I stared back deadpan until he sighed. “Oui.”

I considered my options and the threat of a war breaking out between species held more sway than being politically correct. “I’m going to help,” I announced. “But I have conditions.”

Lucien’s icy blue eyes darkened, and his mouth tightened. The de la Coeurs did not take well to doing anything they were told. They preferred to be owed favors and collected them like currency. Finally, he nodded and gestured his hand toward me. “Parlez.”

“Convince the royal family to replace Melinda now, rather than dragging it out and pissing me off.” Unlike Europe, which was broken into sections that had been fought over and claimed hundreds of years ago, the Americas were ruled by three families—one for North America, one for South America, and one for Canada, despite it technically being North America. However, the Canadian vampires had settled there with the French humans and while it was not an official hierarchy, everyone knew they bowed to the de la Coeurs. In addition Lucien had great influence with the royal family that ruled over North America because they were blood related to French royalty. It was one of the reasons he ran New York as if it were his own personal playground. And because I allowed it. Royalty or not, no one fucked with me if they wanted to live.

So, if he nudged, they’d stop acting like spoiled children and assign a new rep to the Council. Well, perhaps I wouldn’t be so lucky as to have them stop acting like spoiled children, but one could hope.

“Second,” I added, “if I can’t contact you with the time and place within twenty-four hours, I’ll cancel it. So you might want to leave your direct contact information.”

Usually, the only way to contact Lucien and Phillipé was by sending word to their club. They were rather elusive and often disappeared off the radar, but they were always in contact with The CrimsonCalice.

Lucien’s cold gaze bored into me as he contemplated his options. Finally, he leaned forward and picked up a pad of notepaper from the table in front of him and held his hand out to his brother. Phillipé withdrew a very expensive pen from his breast pocket and put it in Lucien’s hand. The French King scrawled down some information, then returned the pen to the Prince.

I put out my hand and waited. After a minute of thick silence, Lucien placed the paper in my palm. “The only voice I should ever hear calling this number is yours,comprenez vous? Anyone else, and I’ll assume they are donating their blood to me.”

Nodding, I read over all three notes, memorizing the contents. I didn’t have Peyton’s eidetic memory, but I still had a great aptitude for memorization. Which came in very handy when you lived in a world where being covert and leaving no trace was key. I stood and took them over to my desk where I put them in a small wooden box that had an intricate lock. Then I grabbed my cell and stuck it in a pocket before pivoting and stalking toward the door, where the brothers were waiting. “I’ll reach out to the Fae through my contacts,” I told them as we stepped into the hall. “You’ll hear from me as soon as the meeting is set up. But I expect to know the name of the new Council member in the next forty-eight hours.”

Both of them inclined their heads in acknowledgment and we walked to the elevators. My phone vibrated, so I took it from my pocket and read a message from Asher.

Asher:Be there in five.

I dropped the royal vampires in the lobby on my way to the armory and tactical storage. Before the doors shut, I put my hand out to hold it open. “Lucien.”

The king paused and turned to face me.

“If it comes to war, I will choose the right side. Whether it’s yours or not. Is that clear?”

He stared at me for a stretch of silence before raising his chin a small fraction. “Oui.”

I’d never quite come to a conclusion as to whether Lucien and Phillipé were villains or anti-heroes. I wasn’t entirely sure they knew either. But, as long as they stood in my corner, I chose to believe the latter.

Once I reached the underground level six, I exited the elevator and dialed Peyton’s number.

“If you’re calling to whisper filthy nothings in my ear, I’m happy to stay on the phone with you. But, otherwise, I’m not ready to talk about anything.”

“Hello to you too, baby,” I responded in a dry tone.

“Well?” she asked impatiently. “Which is it? Option one or two?”

“Option three, unfortunately. I called to let you know I have to make a last-minute trip. Allison, Lincoln, and Sabrina are going to take shifts with you, and I should be back by morning.”

“Oh, okay. What’s going on?”

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