Page 3 of Elven Lies

With a disgruntled huff, Zida slumped back in her chair and folded her arms.

That definitely looked like a haughty smirk on the healer’s wrinkled, puckered lips, but it was hard to tell with Zida.

Rebecca didn’t think describing her short stint of self-medicating with Zida’s vials of instant energy before being voted in as Shade’s new commander was an appropriate way to open this meeting.

She did, however, wait for Maxwell to take his seat at the table before she got started. Now that she had everyone here, gathered in one place and all of them staring expectantly at her, it was surprisingly easier to kick things off than she’d expected.

“There’s no right way to go about this,” she said, “so I’ll just dive in. As you already know, late last night, while Hannigan and I led an emergency rescue team to recover our captured operatives held at that abandoned theme park, someonemanaged to infiltrate this compound and our active security systems before abducting Nyx from the infirmary.”

Rebecca’s gaze drifted all on its own toward Maxwell again. She didn’t know why, and she wasn’t looking for anything from him. But when he looked up at her from a worn spot on the table and offered the barest hint of a nearly invisible nod, it felt like he approved of her decision to start the meeting this way. Like he was encouraging her to keep going.

Shehadto keep going, because whatever happened next as a result of this meeting, there would be no turning back for any of them.

She glanced around the table one more time, noting the range of expressions from apathetic boredom to concern bordering on panicked hysteria. No one would like this next part, but it had to be done first, before they got too far ahead of themselves.

Swallowing thickly, Rebecca found herself gazing at the cream-colored stone figurine she’d set on the corner of her desk, then instantly averted her gaze. “And I know who did it.”

2

“Iknew it!” Leonard shouted, thrusting a finger at Rebecca as he leaped from his chair. The office filled with the noisy screech of the chair leg scooting back across the floor.

Maxwell’s low, warning growl dominated all other sound. “Take a seat.”

Leonard gawked at Rebecca. “Know, if you know who took her, you have to know where she is. Wehaveto get her back!”

“Which is why the Roth-Da’al called this meeting first thing,” Maxwell said.

“We’re wasting time.” Leonard stood fully from his chair, glancing back and forth between Rebecca and Maxwell with wide eyes before he slammed both hands onto the table. A flare of uncontrolled yellow sparks burst beneath his palms. “So why is everyone justsittinghere?”

“There’s a lot more to say and a lot more to discuss,” Rebecca said, forcing herself not to stare at the mage’s hands or theevidence of him having lost control of both his composure and his magic. “That’s why we’re all sitting down here this morning. It’s a process.”

“What took you so long to figure it out?” Whit asked.

“Oh Blue Hells.” Zida rolled her eyes. “And we need to have ameetingabout it?”

“Sounds to me like something we definitely should’ve moved on as soon as you confirmed who it was,” Whit added.

“Meeting or no meeting,” Leonard said, his voice rising in pitch again with his excitement, “Nyx needs us. And if you already know where she’s being held, then why the hell haven’t you sent a team to bring her back? She was unconscious, for crying out loud!”

“In your seat, mage!” Maxwell barked, his voice low and threatening without ever having raised its volume.

Leonard gawked at the shifter, as if he hadn’t known Maxwell had been sitting right there the whole time. Then he dropped back into his chair and clamped his mouth shut.

Rebecca had known she would face these questions. She just had to get to the part where she could answer them in an orderly fashion that made sense based on what she was about to propose.

“Listen,” she said, “I know racing in after Nyx right off the bat is a knee-jerk reaction. Maybe even thebestfirst plan of action when one of our own disappears—”

“Disappears?” Bor asked with a snort. “I thought she was taken.”

“Any questions for the Roth-Da’al can wait until she’s finished,” Maxwell growled.

For a moment, all eyes centered on the shifter and his glowing silver eyes—which revealed his frustration with their brighter and faster pulses of light, even when his voice and demeanor didn’t.

This whole thing definitely would have taken even longer if Rebecca hadn’t pulled her Head of Security into it with her, that was for sure.

“Trust me,” she continued. “That was exactly what I wanted to do last night too, when we found out Nyx was taken. And you’re right, Leonard. Shewastaken. But I’ve also had the night to think it over, and I believe we need to go about this one a different way than normal.”

“Are you kidding me?” Leonard shouted, this time throwing himself forward against the edge of the table as he gaped at her. “Oh, so the ambush that took down our convoy last night gets a whole team sent out right away to bring them in, but Nyx has to waitovernightfor anyone to do a damn thing about it?”

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