Stellan sits at a table surrounded by ten or more men, focusing on the door. Alec’s lips are pressed into a thin line. She and Meg have done me a favor by hosting this meeting, but Leigh’s glaring absence speaks volumes.
Did she go back to Borealis? Or is she lying dead in a ditch somewhere?
I bring my phone to my ear again. My muscles twitch with each unanswered ring. Just as I’m about to hang up, Leigh bursts through the door with Gianna behind her, their faces flushed. Relief fills me to the brim, but there’s no time for questions because Leigh is rushing toward me, and anger is burning in her eyes.
“You won’t believe what just happened.” Leigh grips my arm as if to pull me away, but Stellan’s been waiting nearly twenty minutes. Whatever she wants to say, it can wait. I’m not going anywhere.
“Tell me later. Stellan’s waiting,” I say. Leigh frowns, glancing behind her. I follow her gaze, but there’s no one there—Is she waiting for someone?
After the Brigid fiasco, I searched for Leigh, wanting to make things right between us. Instead, I found Bennett sitting with Pallas in heavy silence at the kitchen table. Bennett informed me he would be attending the meeting with Stellan as a representative of the Council. I agreed to find him when it was time to leave. However, I went without him at the last minute. Bennett doesn’t need to stick his nose where it doesn’t belong. Leigh and Stellan must come to terms with each other before the Council gets involved.
I lead a glaring Leigh toward Stellan.
“Well, this will be interesting . . .” Leigh’s words trail off as Stellan rises from his seat.
He grins, and Leigh stiffens in my grasp.
“Your Majesty,” Stellan says. Leigh bares her teeth, and I suspect I was right about her coming here to confront him, not to collaborate. But we allneedto work together.
“Say something.” I nudge her. She scowls at me.
Alec meanders around us, cautiously carrying a water pitcher and two glasses. She sets them on the table before Stellan, her hand trembling as she pours.
“Please, sit,” I say. “We need to do this for the sake of our people.”
She hesitates for a moment, her eyes never leaving Stellan’s. I can see the wheels turning in her head, a calculated plan forming behind those fiery eyes. Finally, with a curt nod, she sinks into the chair opposite Stellan.
“Fine,” she says, her voice sharp as a blade.
I take my seat beside her, suddenly uneasy. I know Leigh, and I know that look in her eye. She’s on a mission. Something happened, something big, and I’m in the dark.
“Thank you for coming,” I say to Stellan, keeping my tone neutral. “We have differences, but we all want what’s best for our people. Shall we begin?”
Leigh leans forward. “Yes,” she says, her voice dripping with disdain. “Let’s begin with the truth, shall we?”
“That is my specialty,” Stellan replies, challenging.
Leigh snorts. “Hardly. You hide behind your computer, using your keyboard to crumble a regime, but you aren’t the brains behind your master plan. You have made a huge mistake.”
I blink. What is she talking about?
“By mistake, do you mean creating a safe place for the Nebula people after your people persecuted us for a war we didn’t start?” Stellan mocks.
I place my hand on Leigh’s shoulder.Come on, Leigh, work with me. We all want the same thing.
Stellan reaches for his water glass.
“It’s funny,” Leigh muses.
“What is?” he asks before taking a sip.
“How do you expect me to believe you are operating with the Nebula people in mind when you’re sacrificing the same people you claim to care about to the wolves?”
I balk.
Stellan sits straighter. “How do you mean?”
“Well, first, you are working with Lua to ensure your enclave happens while leaving the rest of us at their mercy. They are on their way here, aren’t they? When are they scheduled to arrive?”
