Page 37 of The Heir
CHAPTER9
Pissing Off Territories
Thor
Our arrival in France was celebrated by the locals with people lined up in the streets to greet us. Victor and his fellow four delegation members stood in front welcoming us like old friends. The pomp and splendor amused me because the last time we arrived Victor hadn’t bothered showing up.
Freya had informed the French that Linea was stepping in for Aubri this year and so it made sense that they were curious to meet her.
As per tradition we had an informal arrival dinner on Friday night. I always enjoyed this part of the week because it was great to catch up. Despite our cultural differences most of us delegation members had known each other for thirteen years and shared many fun experiences together.
What I didn’t like was how Isaac and Simon flirted with Linea at the party and how she laughed at their stupid jokes.
At least Victor hadn’t shown her much interest so far. I suspected he would have if he hadn’t been distracted by his long-standing feud with my sister. From the first summit, Freya and Victor had gotten into discussions about the smallest things. Usually, I found their debates entertaining, but as we began our first meeting on Saturday morning, I was focused on representing the Northlands.
France was a poor country and with their history of living underground they had a distorted relationship with proportions. Where we in the Northlands liked space, the French optimized every square inch. The meeting was held in the ministry of education where Simon worked. The room was barely large enough for all fifteen of us to fit and it was a far cry from the beauty of the Gray Mansion. As with everything else in France, what the room lacked in size and charm, they compensated for with color.
One wall was glass from floor to ceiling while the other three walls looked like they had been decorated by kids who were given free rein with buckets of bright-colored paint.
I sat in the middle of our delegation with Freya and Mason pressed close to me. As the least influential member of our delegation, it made sense that Linea was on the outskirts, but it stressed me out that Isaac had taken the seat next to her and that he kept flirting with her whenever he had a chance.
It wasn’t because I was jealous.
Linea could do as she pleased. My concern for her was simply because as the leader of the delegation, her safety was my responsibility. She didn’t know the French like I did. Not that any of them would hurt her physically, but Linea could easily get her heart broken.
As I listened to the Motlanders present their points for this week’s agenda, I found it hard to concentrate. They were always eager for the French to open up their borders and this time they had brought different incentives to tempt them.
When Holly and Doreen asked about the status of the Explorer program that Aubri ran, I asked Indiana to answer. With me being gone for so long, he knew more than me anyway.
As Indiana spoke, I felt on edge. These past two weeks of catching up with family and friends had involved a lot of explaining why I left. So far everyone had expressed relief that I was back, but a handful had straight up told me they were angry at me for leaving them in the dark for that long. There were definitely wounds that I needed to repair in order to get back to where we were.
“So anyway, long story short, our Explorers are doing a phenomenal job and making massive strides in their cleaning efforts. Culturally there have been some challenges, but we’re constantly improving our training to eliminate the same issues in the future.”
“Thank you, Indiana.” Doreen, who was from the Motlander delegation, had arrived with her short hair colored bright pink as a tribute to our host country’s love of colors. “It’s so wonderful that a project born during last year’s summit is now benefitting the world. It shows that our yearly meetings have an impact.”
Indiana dipped his head.
Turning her attention on the French, Holly’s lips drooped as she spoke with soft compassion. “Please carry our wishes of a speedy recovery to your prime minister. We understand he’s been sick for some time now. That must be hard for you all.”
Victor and Celeste accepted the greeting, and more wishes of recovery were expressed by all the Motlanders.
I, on the other hand, cut through to the important part. “How long are you going to wait until you elect a new prime minister? Moreau has been sick for more than six months now.”
Victor was spinning a spoon in his hand when he answered, “That’s something we’re discussing internally.”
I pressed further. “Don’t you have laws for when this sort of thing happens? Who is leading your country while he’s at home?”
“Thank you for your concern but I assure you that our country is still doing fine. That’s the advantage to having a government instead of a single ruler.”
I leaned my head to one side and was just about to fire a snarky reply back at Victor when Doreen from the Motherlands interjected.
“We’ve heard rumors of another collaboration between our countries. Is it true that Shelly Summers will be working with you soon, Victor?”
Victor straightened up in his chair. “Oui.She is coming here in a few weeks. We’re all honored to have her assistance on this important project. We know Shelly Summers is a national treasure for you Motlanders.”
I was waiting for Victor to mention that Freya would be involved in the project as well, but he didn’t. Moving in my seat, I cleared my throat.
“Before Victor takes all the glory for the project, let me make it clear that the collaboration was facilitated by the Northlands. It was Freya and Aubri who convinced Jonah and Shelly to help. Furthermore, Freya has agreed to be part of the project herself to secure a positive outcome.”
