Episode Nine: The Summons

 Vincent Thys was in the Summerfield Library a little before ten o'clock. He had spotted Katherine's SUV sitting in the front parking lot when he drove in. He drove past, went around to the side, and parked in the shade of a large oak tree. He got out of the rental car, locked it, and strolled into the lobby and the main entrance. He glanced around but did not see Katherine, so he stood patiently near the circulation desk. A young black woman came up to the front desk and smiled at him. "May I help you, or are you waiting for someone?" she asked.

 "He's waiting for me," Katherine said walking up to him. "Can we use one of the study rooms, Chandra?"

 "Sure, room one is free," Chandra replied. 

 "Thanks," Katherine replied. She glanced over at Thys, "I don't expect we'll need the use of the room for more than an hour, tops!" Chandra nodded sagely and Katherine moved off to the room. Vincent followed her and as they got to the door, he slipped past her and opened it.

 "After you, Ms. Van Dermeer."

 "Thank you." She replied and stepped into the room. She laid her backpack on the table and pushed it to one side. Vincent was immediately beside her and pulled the chair out for her. She nodded silently her thanks and sat down. Vincent took the chair across from her. He pulled the chair back away from the table, sat down, crossed his legs, and unbuttoned his jacket. He was silent as she openly studied him with a critical eye. He studied her as well, making his assessments of the last Potential. 

 She was an attractive woman, but she hid it with clothes that were loose and skimmed over her body not revealing any of her curves. She was of fair complexion and had large deep blue eyes that currently looked as if she had not slept well in weeks. There were circles of fatigue under her eyes, and she held her body stiffly and poised for flight. She had very long blond hair that was pulled into a messy bun at the back of her head and held in place with a long lethal-looking pick that pierced a leather tooled hairclip. 

 Finally, she sat forward, "How did you get access to my checking account."

 "I did not access your checking account, Ms. Van Dermeer," he replied. "My client deposited the money, paid all of your debts, and has made all the arrangements for your travel."

 Her blue eyes widened, and she sat back in her chair. "Travel? I can't travel. I don't even have a passport! Besides, I can't accept that money not any of it!"

 "Why not?" He asked. "You were in trouble financially, that has been eliminated and you are free of all debt."

 "What do you want?" Katherine demanded instead of answering his question. She had inadvertently raised her voice, and though the study rooms were somewhat soundproof, her voice had carried enough to make Chandra glance their way. Katherine anxiously glanced out the glass windows then looked back to him and lowered her voice. "I mean, why me?"

 "You make it sound like something terrible has happened to you," Vincent said. "I can't see why you would resent it so much."

 "Have you ever heard the saying, there's no such thing as a free lunch?" She frowned at her backpack and reached around to twist it around, so it faced her. She pulled her smartphone out of the front pocket and waved it at Vincent like a pocketknife. "I have five hundred grand in my checking account, and I don't know who or why it's there or why you're back haunting me again!"

 He smiled. Katherine thought it odd he would have such a reaction to her angst, but she had to admit he was handsome in a thin European way. He was in his late twenties and looked like he had stepped out of a GQ magazine. His charcoal grey suit was expensive -- Italian, as were his leather shoes. His dress shirt was pale grey with a tie that matched his suit but was a silk brocade that caught the light in just a certain way that highlighted the fleur de lis designs worked in silk threads. He was tanned and sported a recent tinge of redness on his face and neck from being somewhere out in the sun without a hat or sunscreen. He was of average height, with dark brown hair, and light brown eyes. From his crisp English accent, he sounded like had been educated in England, but she was not certain. He might have been of French descent, the name Thys might have even been Dutch. He wore a gold signet ring on his right hand and there was some sort of pin on the lapel of his suit jacket. It looked heraldic in design. There were stylized leaves with seven circles that clustered around a sun, its rays blazing out in different directions. 

 "I will tell you why I am back," Vincent began. "But first I must ask you, a question; Have you ever heard of the Seven Noble Houses?"

 Katherine tilted her head in thought, casting her eyes upward, "Of Brussels?"

 "Then you have heard of it?" Vincent said looking hopeful.

 "I am a schoolteacher, you know!" she flung back at him. "That's not even a thing anymore."

 "Oh, but it is a thing," Vincent said. "A very real thing – of which you belong."

 Katherine laughed. "You can't be serious!" When Vincent did not respond she shook her head at him. "You can't be serious!"

 Vincent drew a breath and reached into the inner pocket of his suit jacket. When she flinched and drew back, he froze in his actions then reached into the jacket pocket slowly and drew out the sealed summons with two fingers. He held it up for her to see the envelope. "It is not a viper, Ms. Van Dermeer - only a letter, for you."

 She relaxed slightly and stared at the wax-sealed letter he extended to her. He held it lightly between his thumb and index finger. She took it and looked at the red wax seal, turning it up toward the overhead lights. There was an elaborate emboss in the wax. "Septum Noblium Familarum," she murmured, "Seven Noble Families."

 "Of which you belong. I was sent from the Dominus—"

 "The Dominus?" She repeated and turned the parchment letter over. "Sounds a bit medieval." her name was written in fine calligraphic lettering. It was not printed but hand-written she could see where the nib of the pen had caught on the grain of the paper before the flourish was finished at the end of her name. 

 "Yes, the Dominus, the leader of the Seven. Your family, Van Dermeer is part of his family."

 "This Dominus have a name?" Katherine asked looking up from the envelope at Vincent.

 "Nicklaus Alexander Vanderau." Vincent said.

 "Very impressive!" Katherine turned the letter back to the wax seal and she broke it. It snapped softly and she carefully opened the parchment paper. "It's written in a language I don't understand." She said.

 "Allow me," Vincent offered. "I will translate it for you."

 She handed the letter over to him. He looked at the writing. It was in Vanderau's hand. That was unexpected. Most of the summonses sent were written by one of the people employed by the Chamberlain. "To Katherine Elena Van Dermeer, you are hereby summoned to appear for testing by the Sept on 20 September. 

My consul and Indago, Vincent Michele Thys is empowered to provide limited information regarding the execution of your duties as they pertain to your family. You will cooperate with our consul, and we expect to see you in Geneva for preparation no later than September 1. Dominus Vanderau."

 "That's two days from now!" Katherine declared. "And I am summoned? What the hell?"

 "It is urgent that you come and represent your family," Vincent told her, glancing up from the letter. "You will be the first from his family in more than a century so, yes," Vincent replied and handed the letter back to her. "It is a summons. There is a jet waiting now at a private hanger, waiting to take us to Geneva."

 "For what kind of testing?" Katherine asked. "What kind of testing takes two weeks to prepare for?"

 "I cannot answer what I do not know," Vincent replied. "I only know that there have been people like me traveling all over the world searching for people like you. We are given a charge to free people like you, from any financial problems, clear away all problems that stand in the way of the summons, and make sure they arrive at their destination at the appointed time and place. You are the last and are more than three weeks past due."

 "Because I wouldn't talk to you the first time you showed up on my front steps?" Katherine guessed, raising a wry eyebrow at him.

 Vincent tried not to let her get under his implacable demeanor, but she had thwarted him, and he had been forced back to the Dominus in defeat! It still rankled him. "Yes," he intoned flatly. "Had you given me the time to explain it would not now be imperative!"

 She smiled pertly at him then folded her arms over her chest. "And if I refuse?" Katherine demanded. "What would you do then? Kidnap me?"

 "No," Vincent said softly and leaned forward, "Not that it has not been done before out of necessity -- but we are in the twenty-first century. But I can tell you this: You will have all the instructors and teachers - the best in their field to give you their knowledge and expertise. And then when it is time, members of the Sept will question you. It is an interview and testing of your abilities. If you are found lacking you come back here to your home and your life goes on normally."

 "And what about that 500 grand in the bank," Katherine asked wryly. "I suppose that evaporates if I am found -- lacking?" She found that word offended her for some reason.

 "No, consider that payment for being inconvenienced by whatever training and preparations you are put through," Vincent replied.

 "This is unreal!" Katherine said looking at the parchment letter. She waved it at Vincent, "And dodgy not to mention risky and cultish!"

 "I understand," Vincent replied. "You have never dealt with anything like this before. Nor have I, but I have heard of only one individual who understood what was happening."

 "What happened?" Katherine asked.

 "He was tested and was lacking. He went back to his home in Germany." Vincent replied. "As I believe, he was very disappointed."

 There was that word again! Lacking. What did that mean exactly? Rather than draw him into another line of questioning she sat back in her chair and mimicked how he was lounging in the chair. "How long have you worked for this organization and Vanderau?" she asked him.

 "My family has been in the employ of the Sept since 1329. We have always been special consuls to the families. My grandfather was consul to the Vanderau family, and I have been consul and Indago for the last three years to the Dominus." Vincent replied.

 "Nearly seven hundred years ---That's a long time!" Katherine said. "In all that time, this is what your family did? Hunt down unsuspecting descendants of shadowy families and haul them up to be poked and prodded by seven members of a syndicate? I suppose if I try to escape this gilded prison I'll end up at the bottom of the ocean?"

 Vincent grinned at her. "You have a bloodthirsty imagination, Katherine. But to answer your question – No. No one I've ever heard of has ever ended up weighted down in chains to the bottom of Lake Geneva." 

 Katherine sighed and rolled her eyes heavenward. "You're not going to leave me alone are you?"

 He shook his head. "I cannot, Katherine. This is too important to the Vanderau family. I must do my job." 

 Katherine scrubbed at her face wearily. She studied him for a long time staring between the fingers she held over her face. As they sat there, she felt something oddly familiar click in her mind. She was not sure if she had dreamed this scenario, or if it was déjà vu but she suddenly realized that she was going to agree to the summons. She dropped her hands to her lap and sighed with a weariness that revealed to Vincent just how fatigued and worn down she was.

 Vincent also felt the surge of power flow from Katherine over him and he knew absolutely in his heart that she was the Potential the Sept had been waiting for! Time seemed to come to a halt. The time between heartbeats slowed to a near standstill. He saw something in her wake and as quickly as he spotted the power -- it was snuffed out. He waited in the silence that continued to grow and fill up the small study room. Finally, she nodded in agreement. "Okay! My prospects here at the moment are dried up. So, I guess two weeks in Geneva, Switzerland, wouldn't be a horrible summer vacation."

 Vincent began to breathe again, and he nodded, lowering his head just a second in silent thankful prayer. "May I ask you a question?" He asked as he looked up at her.

 "Go ahead," Katherine replied. "Ask away."

 "Do you speak any other languages other than English?" 

 "Not really, I took French in high school and college, but I didn't retain much. I suppose with practice I could converse with someone who spoke French." She said, "Why do you ask?"

 "I do not want you to be offended when I make my call to notify my superiors that you have agreed to come to Geneva. I will be speaking in French." Vincent pulled his smartphone from his inside jacket pocket and pressed a listing that immediately dialed the number. It rang twice and she heard a man's greeting voice. Thys nodded at Katherine and then spoke in rapid French that she only caught a word or two. But as Thys spoke, one word stood out from the rest. The word was 'gladio.' She would remember to look that word up when she got home. 

 "Done," Vincent replied and slid his phone back into his jacket pocket. "Now do you have anyone you need to notify of your departure?"

 "No," Katherine replied. "I have no family to speak of. I may let Mrs. Ellis know that I'll be gone for a few weeks, and to look after Ruby for me."

 "Ruby?" Vincent repeated. "A pet?" 

 "My car," Katherine said ruefully, "You've met Mrs. Ellis, she's my neighbor. She doesn't drive anymore, but she knows how. She drove a medical supply truck when she was in the army. When her eyesight went, they took her driver's license away, but she can make sure Ruby stays running while I'm away."

 "No one else?" He asked.

 She angled a fierce look at him. "If you're picking around for the name of my ex – it was Taylor Ballard and I have not heard from him since he moved in with his office manager."

 Vincent decided not to reveal he had seen the break-up nor that he had been happy to see him go! Instead, he shrugged his shoulders lightly, "I will take your answer as: No." 

 "He is a therapist," Katherine added. She could not hold back on the sarcastic tone in her voice and Vincent did not probe any further. He knew the boyfriend had been a therapist in the same office practice as the psychiatrist she had seen. He nodded silently. 

 "How do I travel without a passport?" Katherine asked. "You can't throw out a wad of money and just get a passport."

 "You can, and all your paperwork is in order," Vincent told her. "You will have a valid international passport waiting for you. There will be a few documents we will need to go over, but we can do that on the flight. It will be quite a long flight with a brief stop in London."

 "I can't believe I am going to do this!" Katherine said more to herself than to Thys. 

 "Think of it as an adventure of a lifetime!" Vincent replied.

 They both rose from the table, and she picked up her backpack. As she slung the strap over one shoulder she angled a sideways look at Vincent, "Do you like barbeque, Mr. Thys?"

 "I have not ever had American barbeque," he replied.

 "Come by the house and I'll take you to the best-smoked barbeque in Atlanta. My treat, I can afford it now." 

 "What time shall I arrive?" Vincent asked.

 "About 6:30 and dress is casual for this establishment." She said with a tight smile. "This is a diner."

 He inclined his head in a slight bow, "I will be appropriately attired, madam."

 She rolled her eyes at him, and he chuckled. She was not as intractable as she presented herself to be. Vincent thought his dinner date with Katherine would be one he would thoroughly enjoy.