Is this destiny?

"Did you invite me here to sit in silence?", Sarah asked after some time.

"Sarah, this is the Council.", Jarred said while gesturing around the table. Other than Sarah, Jarred was the only one in the light, while the other six people were hidden in the shadows.

"I would say it's nice to meet you, but everyone is sitting in the dark so…", Sarah's voice trailed away.

"Impudence!", Albert hissed. He never approved of Sarah becoming part of the Council and when he agreed that Sarah should come here it was only to prove to everyone that Sarah should not sit at this table.

"Calm down, Albert…", Sinet said and leaned forward so that her head gets into the light. She looked at Sarah. "I am Sinet. At the Council, we practice staying in the dark unless we have something to say."

"Are you talking for everyone here?", Sarah asked Sinet.

Sarah was not interested in exchanging pleasantries. Eve was still pulling details on the people present, but Sarah had enough information to know with whom she was speaking. Each of the people at the table had an impressive area of influence, however, individually none of them presented a threat, so Sarah had no need to be submissive. Well, even if they were much stronger, her pregnancy hormones would not allow her to be docile.

"I can't talk for everyone because here we are all equal.", Sinet said. "We are a group of people who can shake and shape the world as we know it. We believe that you are worthy to join us, and we invited you here in order to confirm if you qualify to sit at this table."

Sarah took a few seconds to process what she heard. Sinet said that they want to confirm if she is worthy and qualified. This rubbed Sarah the wrong way. What do these people think? Are they qualified to talk to her?

Sarah tilted her head and looked at Jarred. "You invited me here so that you can see if I'm good enough to join your group? Is there a test I need to take? Or a hoop I need to jump through?"

"This is mutual.", Jarred responded right away. He sensed Sarah's displeasure. "It's for Council members to meet you in person and also for you to meet the Council and ask any questions you might have. We will respond as long as it does not include disclosing any sensitive information. You should understand that we work from the shadows, and that was the reason I couldn't tell you about the purpose of this meeting in advance. As we share information, you will see that our collaboration is for everyone's benefit."

Sarah nodded faintly in understanding. They are talking about cooperation, but she would be stupid not to notice that they are looking down on her. "Can you tell me what requirements I fulfilled in order to be invited to this meeting?"

"Power and influence.", Jarred responded.

Sloan leaned into the light and spoke: "We are watching you closely, Sarah White. We know that you are at the head of the Lebedev family, and are the founder of the organization called the Army of Chaos."

Sarah looked at the three people who spoke and are visible under the light. She understood that Albert was against her, while three people in the light (Jarred, Sinet, and Sloan) were in favor of Sarah joining. The last three (Rance, Suvedini, and Ksenia) were still observing her in silence for some reason, maybe waiting for the right time to speak, but based on Rance's stiff expression, Sarah guessed that he was against her.

Sarah arrived at this meeting with a negative mindset, and now that she realized they are trying to recruit her, she had no need to be polite. "What's in it for me?"

Albert snorted. "Youth these days has no manners. You came here late, didn't apologize, and you are asking what's in it for you before we even offered you to join us."

"Yeah.", Sarah snickered. "I was late, yet you all waited for me, so it's safe to assume that I have something you want. Or should I believe that you are here out of the goodness of your heart? To make this short, I want to know what you are expecting from me and what am I getting in return."

"We expect cooperation in resources and exchange of information. It goes both ways.", Sinet responded.

Sarah's looked at Sinet. "You said that you can shake and shape the world. Under whose orders? Who is controlling you?"

"No one is controlling us, little girl.", Jarred responded. "We are the ones who make the rules."

"Wow…", Sarah said under her breath. "It seems that I have the honor of meeting with the biggest powers in the world."

"Don't be so arrogant!", Albert exclaimed. "Do you think that you are better than us? You had a good run in the last few years, but if we decide to erase you, it will happen."

Outside…

Aiden, Noah, and Michael had access to see through the drones that were silently hovering above Sarah and they all disliked the situation Sarah was currently in. Others wanted to see as well, but Aiden told them to focus on their surroundings. They need to be ready to accept orders and act swiftly when needed.

Aiden was itchy to storm the place and teach Albert that he should not treat Sarah as a disobedient child, but Sarah told Aiden to stay put and observe as long as she is not in immediate danger.

To keep calm, Aiden was reading Albert's file. He was a politician from Sweden, with influence in Europe. Nothing that a few scandals can't ruin. A man with such temper must have a lot of skeletons in his closet.

Inside…

When Albert was done with his venting, Sarah said in monotone: "It seems you've got everything figured out. I either join you and do your bidding or you will destroy me. Right? Why am I here? You could have just sent me an ultimatum where I either put my resources at your disposal or you will shut me down."

"Pardon Albert's, temper.", Jarred said to Sarah while trying to prevent the conflict from swelling. "Albert gets excited easily. We believe that we can all benefit from this collaboration. You help us when needed, and we will help you in return. Otherwise, everyone is doing their own business without interfering with each other."

"I will need details before deciding on this as well as some guarantees.", Sarah said.

"Details? Guarantees?", Albert asked in disbelief. "Before we decide that you are worthy, there is nothing for you to decide. You should be honored to sit at this table."

"Yet, I don't feel honored.", Sarah responded icily to Albert who so far didn't show his face in the light. It's not that it mattered to Sarah as she could see him sneering at her perfectly, but he was egging her from the darkness while talking like she is the one showing disrespect. 

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