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My mind was spinning, trying to think of a way out of this mess. “Evelyn, would it be all right if I still led the meeting? I’ve prepared for it, and—”
“Of course. I’ll just be here in case I’m needed.” Evelynturned her attention to Frederick and Reggie. “And who might you be?”
“My name is Reginald Cleaves,” Reggie replied, eyes still on Mr. Richardson. His voice managed to hide his seething hatred, but just barely. He gestured to Frederick. “This is my friend, Frederick.”
“Do you have a connection to the Wyatt file?” Evelyn continued, looking confused.
“You might say that.” Reggie raised an eyebrow at Mr. Richardson. “John, do you want to explain to everyone why Freddie and I are here?”
Mr. Richardson looked as though he were about to make a run for it. He hadn’t moved since he entered the conference room, his body taut as a bowstring.
At length, a muscle twitched in his jaw. “I have no idea why you’re here,” he said. His tone was terse, but he remained calm. As if the person his organization had been hunting for years weren’t sitting less than ten feet away from him. “It seems a rather foolish decision on your part.”
Evelyn, suddenly thrust into the middle of a feud between centuries-old vampires and armed with nothing but the skills she brought with her as a CPA, was struggling to make sense of what was happening. She turned to me and asked, in a quiet voice, “Are Reginald and Frederick disgruntled members of the Wyatt Foundation board?”
I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from bursting into hysterical laughter.If only it were that simple. “Something like that,” I managed.
“Freddie and I came because we want to talk, John,” Reggie said, ignoring both of us. He stood up and started making his way slowly to where John Richardson still stood motionless by thedoor. “There’s a lot you and your friends think you understand, but the reality is—”
Reggie didn’t get a chance to finish that sentence. “I need to make a phone call,” Mr. Richardson cut in abruptly. “Ifyouare here, there are other people from The Collective who need to be here as well. They’re angry, Reginald Cleaves.” And then, leaning in closer, he added, “You have been a very naughty boy.”
He fished around in his pocket for his cell phone. His hands shook.Good, I thought.He’s nervous.Without another word, he stormed out of the conference room, fingers jabbing furiously at the screen.
“One of us should probably follow him,” I said, trying to stem my rising panic. “You know how disgruntled board members can get.” John Richardson wandering the halls of my firm meant this situation was rapidly spiraling out of control. What would happen if more members of The Collective showed up? Frederick and Reggie didn’t attack humans anymore—but I had no idea what these other vampires might do.
Evelyn nodded her agreement. “Yes. I’d prefer they not be allowed to wander the building. Perhaps we should place a call to security and not allow them in?”
“I don’t know if that will help,” Reggie said, before shooting me a meaningful glance. “Call security just in case, Ms. Anderson, but I’ll go follow John just to be on the safe side.”
“Not by yourself,” Frederick said. “I’m coming, too.”
“He’s not going to do anything stupid in a building full of hum—” Reggie cut himself off, catching the mistake he’d been about to make at the last minute. He cleared his throat and tried again. “He won’t do anything stupid in a building full ofaccountants.”
“May I remind you that this is not a group known for makingcarefully reasoned decisions?” Frederick said. “Or a group that is used to being around this many…accountants…who aren’t expecting them? You’re not facing them alone.”
“Should we call in a mediator?” Evelyn’s eyes darted back and forth between Reggie and Frederick. She obviously realized she’d lost the thread of the conversation at some point, but Evelyn Anderson was not someone used to being caught flat-footed. “Mediating board member disputes typically falls outside what we offer clients, but if calling in a mediator would help—”
“It wouldn’t,” Frederick said bluntly, rolling up his sleeves. “This is something we should be able to resolve amongst ourselves.” He looked at me. “Especially if you’re there with us, Amelia.”
I stared at him, eyes wide. “Me? What good will my being there do?”
Reggie nodded towards the pile of papers on the conference room table. All the hours of work I’d done to prepare for this meeting. “You more than anyone else here should be able to end this…board member dispute.” His eyes softened. “You’ve worked so hard, Amelia. You’ve got this. You’ve gotthem. We need you.”
“Agreed,” Frederick said. “Reginald and I have certain arguments we can make, but you’re the one who knows exactly how much trouble they’ll be in if they don’t…go along with what the rest of the board wants to do.”
I turned back to Evelyn. She was the partner here as well as my boss. If she wanted to follow us as we went to confront The Collective, there was nothing I could do to stop her. But if shedidcome along, god only knew how messy this might get.
“I’ll make sure they know any decisions made on their file come from the firm, not from me,” I said, thinking quickly.
“Fine,” Evelyn said. “I’ll stay here. This seems like a situationwhere the more people in the room there are, the more explosive things could get.”
“Explosive,” Reggie said, snapping his fingers. “Good word.”
I let out a huge internal sigh of relief. “Thank you, Evelyn.”
Evelyn said something in response, but I didn’t quite hear what it was. I was already halfway out the door.
“How will we know if the others have gotten inside?” I asked when we arrived at the elevator. “How will we find them?”
