#Chapter 67 – All Business

Victor straightens his tie and clears his throat. God damnit, he thinks, pay attention, Victor. For the life of him, he can’t seem to keep his mind on the subject at hand.

For some reason –

Well, God damnit, I know the reason, he thinks, gritting his teeth –

He just can’t seem to focus on the conversation at hand, his ears instead filled with the sound of rustling grasses.

“Victor,” Annabeth Prath says, leaning forward to look him in the eye. “Are you all right? Do you need a minute?”

“No, thank you,” Victor says, clearing his throat again. “I apologize. I’ve got…a lot on my plate.”

“You surely do,” says James Willard, leaning back in his chair and surveying Victor with a smirk. “You sure you can handle it all, m’boy?”

Victor narrows his eyes at Willard for that one, putting his hands on his desk and leaning his weight onto them. “Thank you both for coming today, as my guests,” he says, emphasizing the term as he stares at Willard, reminding him of his place. “I’m looking forward to discussing with both of you the next steps regarding the Prath school.”

“For me,” Annabeth says, her eyes flitting between the two men, sensing the odd tension between them, “the priority needs to be strictly on the education that the children receive.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Victor says, nodding at her and standing up straight. “We need to create a school that can stand up against the best human schools for educational quality, to give our children a strong start in the world.”

“This is where we disagree, then,” Willard says, contrary. “I believe that the emphasis should be on inculcating identity, culture.”

Annabeth frowns at him. “What do you mean?”

wolf heritage together in one school is that we can begin

sounds awfully close to indoctrination,” Victor

shrugs, not denying it. “It’s an opportunity to shape the future by raising children who

expense of their quality of education? At the creation of critical thinking skills?” Annabeth raises

who have a rather stunning intellectual ability. I’m not going to send them there just to be brainwashed into some conservative

boys,” Willard says, meeting Victor’s dark gaze. “They are purportedly full of great potential. They could

indeed been all over the news, but what

on the same page in thinking that the greatest service we can give to them, and thus to our culture, is a rigorous education that helps

stop the conversation in its tracks. “How are you already aware of my sons’ abilities? This is something

at him, surprised. “From

respond to Annabeth’s words. From the corner of his eye, he can see Willard smirking at

John Walsh said to

having secret meetings about your children. It’s the only conversation he wants to have with

eyes shift to Willard, noticing that he makes no such denial of personal conversation with Walsh. Instead, Willard’s smile grows, taking pleasure in watching Victor struggle under

emerge from his fingertips, scraping the fine wood of

rage. “It looks to me,” Willard says, standing and buttoning his suitcoat, “that you need a minute to get your ducks in a

door. “I’ll be in touch in a few days, Victor. In the meantime, I suggest you begin to pay better attention to the political

truly let a little bit of power go to his head. He’s always tried to portray himself as just the humble leader of

breathing, willing his claws to retract. “I concur. It was, perhaps,

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