Coulson clenched the hand hanging at his side into a fist.
Although Lucian had seemed perfectly agreeable from beginning to end, even wearing a gentle smile the entire time, he had neither used his psychic power to scramble their brains nor buried them in concrete and dumped them into the sea.
But Coulson had spent half his life living on a knife's edge. He understood better than anyone that this agreeableness rested entirely on one fragile premise-his team still had value to Lucian, and their goals happened to overlap.
If he rejected the goodwill being offered and refused Lucian's terms to his face...
Coulson glanced at the tightly shut bulletproof door.
He did not mind dying here himself, but every member of the team aboard the plane, including Skye, May, Ward, and those two young, inexperienced scientists, would have to vanish here along with him.
In the face of absolute power, trying to reason was the stupidest choice.
Under someone else's roof, he had no choice but to bow his head.
Coulson let out a long inward sigh. He raised his head, the hesitation on his face replaced by helpless compromise.
"Mr. Lucian, I can accept your proposal."
Coulson's voice grew a little hoarser, a trace of pleading showing in his eyes.
"But... could you let me see them first? Let me say a few words to them. Those two kids only recently left their ivory tower. They're innocent, and a little stubborn. I'm afraid that in an unfamiliar place, they might say something they shouldn't or do something foolish and offend you needlessly."
The bitterness and protectiveness in his words seemed to weigh down even the air in the room.
Looking at this starter-village chief with his careworn face, Lucian felt a hint of appreciation.
"There's no need to