Sorry, everyone! I accidentally switched the chapter order. Please read the next chapter first before continuing. Thank you for your patience!
The letter from the Council of Light lay on Azrael's desk like a poisonous snake, everyone watching it but no one touching. Lyanna had shown it to him immediately after Victor left, and they had spent hours debating about the impossible choice they were being forced to make.
Now, three days later, they had reached a compromise that satisfied no one but seemed like the only way forward: Lyanna would go to the preliminary meeting, but not alone. She'd bring human representatives loyal to vampires. They weren't guards or vampires, so technically she wouldn't be violating the Council's terms.
It was decided that Azrael and Lyanna would lead the delegation as king and queen. Adrian, who had returned from the Eclipse Court, would be in charge of a small security force, and Helena would be the chief diplomat, helping them negotiate the terms.
