“Come in,” Vasile said loud enough to be heard.
The door opened, and Nissa walked in with Cindy Morgan and three other women. Lilly recognized one of them as the queen of the sprites. She couldn’t remember the names of the other two. Though she’d been to the sprite realm several times over the past couple of months, her brain was overflowing with information and she couldn’t remember every name of the sprites she’d met.
“Vasile, Alina,” Nissa said as she gave a slight bow.
“Nissa, thank you for being willing to help with travel,” Alina said as she stood and walked over to the high fae.
“It’s the least I can do. The fae have sat back for far too long. We realize that now. I am sorry that it has taken so much loss and pain for us to join Peri in her cause,” Nissa said.
She stepped to the side so the other four women could come further into the room.
Cindy stepped forward first, hugged Alina, and shook Vasile’s hand. “It’s good to see you,” she said.
Alina chuckled. “It’s good to see you, as well, Cindy, and I am sorry about the magic I used on you. I wish I had known you weren’t human.”
“You were protecting your pack. I understand that. Sally loves you all, and I know she is safe with you.” Alina started to interrupt but Cindy held up a hand to stop her. “What happened to Sally is not your fault. It is nobody’s fault except those who took her. It could have happened in our care, as well, probably much sooner, and it could have been worse.”
“You are gracious, Cindy Morgan,” Vasile said as he stood and moved next to his mate. “And we thank you for that.”
Cindy nodded and then motioned to the three women beside her. “Please allow me to introduce Andora, the sprite queen, Diedre the leader of the luminous sprites, and Aurora, the leader of the elemental sprites.”
Andora stepped forward and bowed her head to Vasile and Alina, who did the same in return.
“It is an honor to meet you, Vasile and Alina of the Romanian Grey Wolves,” Andora said and then turned to Lilly. “It is good to see you, as well, Lilly.”
“Thank you, Queen Andora,” Lilly said.
“I must admit, it has been over two centuries, nearly three, since I have thought of the sprites,” Vasile said as he motioned to the seating area in his office. “The last time anyone even spoke of the sprites was when I was a child. That was when a new queen ascended the throne.”
Andora settled herself on the couch, folding her hands in her lap, her long silver hair cascading down her shoulders. A small smile formed on her lips. “Yes, it’s been about three centuries since I took my mother’s place as queen. And they tend to try and keep to themselves, though I realize that it wouldn’t be prudent of us to stay silent in the current state of affairs.” She paused, her eyes becoming momentarily unfocused as she seemed to get lost in thought, but the diversion lasted only for a second. “We have much to discuss, Alphas,” Andora finally said as she looked at Vasile and Alina. “The Order is on the move, attempting to recruit supernaturals, and they aren’t being secretive about their actions.”
“That either means they’re confident or desperate,” Cypher said as he stood, leaning a shoulder against the wall next to the door. Lilly noticed he hadn’t joined them on the couches and, when she met his eyes, she could see his worry.
“Which do you think?” she asked him.
“Probably desperate.”
Vasile nodded. “I agree. They are acting out of haste.”
“I think we must not hesitate at this critical juncture,” said Andora. “I suggest we have all of the leaders of the supernatural communities meet. We need to know who will align with us against the Order. We also need to know and understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses. As such, we shall be made stronger. For example, Aurora and the rest of the elemental sprites can control the weather. This might allow us to bring unplanned chaos to the Order, thereby offering us an advantage. We can attempt to thwart their plans while we try to organize our own.”
“I agree,” Vasile said. “And thank you for being willing to take such risk upon yourselves.”
“We must all take such a risk or there won’t be any of us left to worry about,” Andora said. “Things are going to get worse before they get better.”
Lilly felt a churning in her stomach as she leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. “Have the seers seen something?” She glanced at Cindy, though she didn’t ask the other woman out loud because she didn’t know if Cindy wanted others knowing about her ability. Cindy gave a small shake of her head.
“Nothing specific,” the queen said. “Only the usual gloom and doom that comes when contending with complete psychopaths.”
Vasile stood and turned to the high fae who had been quietly listening. “Would you please ask Peri to come? I know she has a lot going on in the fae realm and a home full of healers and wolves, but I believe she needs to be involved with this.”
Nissa gave a tight nod and then flashed from the room. In a matter of minutes, she was back with Peri at her side.
Peri glanced around the room, and her eyes widened a bit when they landed on the sprites. “They’ve managed to get you to leave your realm,” Peri said to the sprite queen. “So either you’ve suddenly become a glowing socialite or all hell is about to break loose.”
Andora’s lips twitched ever so slightly. Lilly was intrigued by the high fae’s ability to get an emotional reaction out of the sprite queen, no matter how small. In the time Lilly had gotten to know Andora, she’d only seen the woman smile a handful of times. The sprite was a tad frigid, though not unkind.
“It is good to see you, as well, Perizada,” the sprite queen said coolly. “It is a nice change to see the fae, too, interested in affairs other than their own.”
