A minute later George hung up, satisfied he’d done the right thing. Certainly Chaz looked happier. Now, only time would tell if he’d made things worse or protected his agenda.
• • •
Sasha’s plane had flown disturbingly close to Mount Rainier on the way over the Cascades, but the view of the mountain from her hotel room was stunning. The helpful pilot had also pointed out St. Helens and Mount Adams, two of the other volcanoes in the region, as he guided the plane into its final approach to Seattle. A chill slithered over her skin at the memory, but she resisted the urge to close the drapes. She had to get used to the sight eventually, and the sooner the better.
Granted the three peaks were beautiful, but she knew their truth. Underneath all that magnificent splendor beat the cold hearts of killers. At times unstable, always unpredictable, and when the mood hit, totally lethal. Even if the mountains didn’t do the killing themselves, they also harbored the Others, crazed murderers from another world. Sasha couldn’t just enjoy the volcanoes’ rugged beauty, not when she knew about the trained warriors who lived and died under those scenic slopes, all to keep people like her safe.
The Paladins—a society shrouded in secrecy. Even working for the Regents, she’d caught only an occasional glimpse of the St. Louis contingent. Her father had done his best to protect her from the world the Paladins lived in. Even with her limited experience, she knew why.
They were warriors in the finest sense of the word—alpha males in all their glory, the kind of men who attracted women wherever they went. But not her. Not again. She knew better. It’d been another secret she’d kept from her father and the Regents; if they’d found out, they might have terminated her employment immediately. Despite the passage of time, the memories remained sharp and clear; the pain still ached like an old sports injury that acted up whenever it rained.
But enough of that. It was time. Ignoring the flutter of butterflies in her stomach, she picked up her briefcase and left her room. Her first meeting with her new charges was scheduled in less than an hour.
Devlin Bane, a legend in their world, hadn’t been happy when she’d refused his request to meet with him one-on-one ahead of time. He’d raised some valid points in their brief flurry of e-mails, but she didn’t want anything to color her first impressions of the Paladins stationed in the Seattle area. Besides, it was pretty much a sure thing that they’d close ranks to shut her out. Fine. They had good reason not to trust the Regents anymore. She expected to have to work long and hard to break through their firmly ingrained “us versus them” mentality.
If she could reestablish a positive working relationship, though, she’d guide them back into compliance with the regulations established by the Regents for the good of all. The Paladins were the best at what they did, but somehow this bunch had gone way off track—to the point of harboring the enemy among their ranks.
Her father and some of his associates were all for shipping the ringleaders out, scattering them over the globe. She’d managed to convince the Board as a whole that to do so would only spread the contagion.
No, containment was the appropriate goal and her first in a long list. As the elevator whisked her down to the ground floor, a surge of pure adrenaline hit her veins. The battle for control was about to begin.
It was time to report to the conference room. Larem had reluctantly agreed to attend the meeting as the sole Kalith representative in the crowd. Barak and Lusahn had offered to come, too, but Devlin had advised against it. At least he’d agreed that one of them should be there to hear what the representative had to say. Larem had no idea why the Paladin leader had picked him and hadn’t bothered to ask.
Larem joined the long line of Paladins making their way toward the meeting place. A fair number simply ignored him, tolerating his presence only because they’d been ordered to. Inside the room, he paused to locate his friends, who had promised to save him a place. Lonzo and Hunter stood along the back wall near one of the exits. Lonzo was on duty and needed to be the first one out the door if the barrier crashed.
“Hey, roomie, thought maybe you’d changed your mind.” Lonzo scooted to the side to make space for Larem between himself and Hunter.
D.J. joined them in the back, his eyes flitting around the room. “Rumor has it the new administrator has been ducking Devlin. What’s up with that?”
Lonzo shrugged. “Maybe he’s afraid of the big man.”
Hunter laughed, his ruined voice holding little humor. “If so, maybe the guy is smarter than we gave him credit for. Think if one Regent rep went missing, they’d get the message and leave us the hell alone?”
Larem ignored the banter, focusing instead on a sudden stir at the front of the room. Devlin had walked in, but for once he wasn’t the one leading the parade. Whoever had entered just ahead of him was too short to be seen over the assembled Paladins and guards.
Interesting.
Few in the crowd had even noticed that the party was about to begin. Devlin looked back to bark something at Trahern, who had followed him into the room. The other Paladin nodded and immediately stuck two fingers in his mouth and blew hard. The shrill whistle brought all conversation to a screeching halt.
Devlin walked up to the podium and glared around the room, his eyes locking up with Larem’s briefly. He gave a slight nod before moving on, maybe expressing his approval that Larem had dressed in jeans and a flannel shirt to better blend in with his companions. He’d also tied his hair back with a leather thong, although Larem wasn’t the only male in the room sporting hair down past his shoulders. Devlin himself wore his dark hair long although it lacked the sprinkling of gray that gave the Kalith people their distinctive look.
“Okay, everybody, listen up. I’d like to introduce our new administrator, who’s here on behalf of the Board of Regents.”
Before he could complete the introduction, the crowd turned restless as several Paladins shouted out comments and questions. Larem didn’t bother to join the chorus of angry voices, figuring it wouldn’t accomplish anything. Still, there was part of him that was glad the Paladins weren’t going to make it easy for the Regents’ representative to impose his will over them.
Devlin obviously had a different take on the situation. When the rumbling continued, he shouted, “Will you guys shut the fuck up!”