“The first fabulous contestant,” Carwyn said, leaning back in his seat, “is Jean Desmarais in Marseilles.”
“Not a surprise,” Tom said. “He and Terry have been doing business for years.”
“It’ll be good to see Jean,” Carwyn said. “Haven’t spent much time with him since Rome.”
“He’s in the Mediterranean, yes?” Anne asked. “Mary mentioned something about cargo from the Eastern Mediterranean as being of some concern when she briefed me.”
“It is,” Murphy said. “Most of the shipments of Elixir we’ve intercepted have had origins in the Eastern Mediterranean with final destinations in the north.”
“But Mary also mentioned several countries. A Greek ship. A Bulgarian one. Turkish—”
“It would be shortsighted”—Carwyn broke in—“to take human borders or labels into account in that region. The Eastern Mediterranean has some of the oldest shipping interests in the world. Human governments change by the decade sometimes, but the council in Athens has not changed significantly in the past thousand years.”
“A thousand years?” Anne said.
Declan said, “Rumors are the Athenians don’t even move some years. Literally. They don’t move. Their court treat them as gods and bring humans for them to feed.”
Carwyn shrugged. “Rumors are only that. Rumors. Rome watches Athens with suspicion, and Tripoli does not lower its guard. Don’t ever discount the Greeks. They control the Bosphorus, and most of the factions in the Eastern Mediterranean owe them some kind of allegiance, even if it is symbolic.”
“Does Jean Desmarais?”
“No. He may have some interests in the Mediterranean,” Murphy said, “but the majority of his interests still lie in the Atlantic, and he’s a known ally of Terry’s. I expect he’ll be there for information. I don’t think France has been heavily infected.”
“He’s also Terry’s rival,” Declan said. “He and Terry have been competing to enter the blood-wine market the past two years.”
“Blood-wine is… a whole other issue,” Murphy said. “Who’s next?”
“Leonor in Spain,” Brigid said. “Another ally.”
“And another blood-wine competitor,” Declan muttered, drawing glares from both Murphy and Tom. “I’m only pointing it out.”
Tom said, “Leonor had a challenge a few years back, yes? Got that all straightened out?”
“She has,” Anne said. “Mary and Leonor have open communication. I think Leonor’s leadership is very solid.”
She’d wrested back control of the Iberian Peninsula the same way Mary kept Northern Ireland, ruthlessly and with little conscience.
“Jetta Ommunsdotter will be there,” Carwyn said, nodding at Anne. “I believe Mary sending Anne was the decider on that one.”
“I can’t take credit,” Anne said. “Everyone knows Mary and Jetta are friends who hate each other.”
Everyone around the table laughed.
“What is it the human girls say?” Brigid asked. “Frenemies?”
“Something along those lines,” Declan said. “Good to know even the oldest of us never outgrow those impulses.”
“The older I get,” Carwyn said, “the more the vampire world resembles a human schoolyard.”
“Our party, Terry, Jean, Leonor, and Jetta make five,” Murphy said. “None unexpected. So who are the surprises?”
“Two that surprised me,” Carwyn said. “Cormac O’Brien is coming and bringing his youngest daughter, Novia.”
“New York is coming to the party?” Tom said.
“Cormac doesn’t particularly surprise me, but the daughter does,” Carwyn said. “When I say young, I mean young. She hasn’t been immortal more than five years.”
Anne’s eyebrows rose of their own volition. “He must be grooming her for something important.”
“The O’Briens are a mob,” Murphy said. “Half of them are swindlers, and the other half are gamblers.”
“Swindlers and gamblers,” Anne said. “So that makes them different from you how?”
Brigid snickered, but Murphy only let the corner of his mouth turn up. “I grew up. They never have.”
Anne had her doubts about his growing up, but she let them remain silent. This wasn’t about her and Murphy, it was about something far more important.
“I can’t deny that the O’Briens are clannish and can be a bit… odd,” Carwyn said. “But Cormac is the most legitimate of them. He’s the youngest of the brothers and trying to take his people in a new direction.”
“While fighting with his brothers every step of the way.”
“Perhaps this Novia is the new face of the O’Briens,” Tom said. “New generation. Less isolated. More political. That might be why he’s bringing the girl.”
Carwyn nodded. “That’s what I suspect. We’ll watch and see. Cormac owes me a few favors he doesn’t want me to collect. If we can twist any information out of the greedy bastard, I’ll count it a win.”
“Anyone else?” Anne asked, making notes as fast as her hand could write. It was a mountain of information to take in, and she’d have to translate all of it for Mary before she rested for the day.