Revelation

Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

 

                “What the hell is she doing here?” Zach Ibanez asked, glancing at Barton who squeezed in behind the other three people who were blocking the doorway. Darius really hoped that Barton’s trick worked, because if they were that angry to see Niki, he didn’t even want to think of how they’d react to him.

                Of course, Zach seemed to be the only one who was really angry. Justice Starkey just seemed surprised. The third person, a woman standing behind Zach and Justice, was unfamiliar to Darius and she looked a little confused.

                “I asked her to be here,” Barton said, stating the obvious. “I told you before you agreed to this assignment that we’d be operating in some gray areas. Ms. Sokolof is part of that gray area, and she will be very useful for us.”

                “She’s a traitor,” Zach said. “How can you trust her?”

                “She has never once gone against anything I’ve ordered her to do,” Barton responded. “Perhaps she betrayed the Anitreh, but not me. I won’t ask you to trust her, but please, Mr. Ibanez, trust my judgment.”

                Zach said nothing else and walked to the far corner of the room, where he stood with his arms crossed over his chest. Darius glanced over to Niki, wondering how she was handling it, but her face was expressionless. Even knowing her as well as he did, he couldn’t tell what was going through her mind.

                “I guess if I’m here,” Justice said with a shrug as he walked into the room. “Why not bring Sokolof in too? I’m actually glad you’re here, Sokolof. I’ve got some questions that you have answers for.”

                “Uh, yeah, maybe later,” Niki mumbled.

                “All right,” Barton said, instantly drawing all the attention in the room. “First things first. I believe you all know Niki Sokolof here, or at least heard of her.” Barton glanced to the woman in the doorway as he said that last part.

                “That’s Zach Ibanez sulking in the corner,” Barton said, this time to Darius. Of course, Darius already knew who he was since he had been roommates with him for years, but Blake Kuijpers didn’t know him. “And this is Justice Starkey with the aardwolf.”

                Darius nodded to Justice, as Barton finished up the introductions. “And still standing in the door is Arwa Hashem. And here at the table is Blake Kuijpers, our expert from Europe.”

                “Expert on what exactly?” Justice asked. “I still have no idea what’s going on.”

                “I couldn’t risk any of you accidentally saying the wrong thing to the wrong person until we arrived here,” Barton said. “Especially some of the captains. But as you all know, Anitreh have been targeted for several years now, and we’ve yet to find out who is behind it. From the report given by Sokolof, however, I’ve been able to piece a few things together. Keep in mind that none of this is certain just yet.

                “What I believe we are dealing with is a group known as the Sumicalts. I’m sure you’ve all heard of them, and I have good reason to believe that they are a real threat. Mr. Kuijpers has more information on that. But before we get to that, our mission is to find proof that these Sumicalts exist, and then, if it is them, prove that they are the ones that are behind the attacks. While you may feel free to talk about Sumicalts to whomever you wish, this next part needs to be kept strictly between those of us in this room.”