@page { margin-bottom: 10.000000pt; margin-top: 10.000000pt; } CHAPTERTHIRTEEN “I’d like you to meet our Swords, John Baldwin and Grace Cabot,” Ed said after he’d welcomed Gloriana and her parents to the private dining room in the Boston HeatherRidge the following Saturday. “John’s on the Defenders Council and will be with us at every event. Grace is head of the Defenders for New England.” “It’s nice to meet you,” Gloriana said as she shook hands. While Ed introduced her parents, she looked the three over. Short, balding, sturdy Baldwin practically radiated magical power and an air of command. Cabot combined the look of “old money,” refined and elegant, with a no-nonsense attitude. “We’ve heard the tapes from Austin, and we’ve devised a plan for order,” Baldwin stated. “We have a Sword in each overflow room, and Grace and I will be in the ballroom. I don’t anticipate problems.” “I hope not,” Gloriana said. “Our rehearsal at home showed that simply discussing the subject can be volatile, even among friends and family.”
