Page 100 of Fated to the Vampire Prince
I nearly lost hold of every restraint keeping me from slaying my kin when I felt Claire’s hand on mine. The gentle pressure and the warmth drawing my attention to her face. Her beautiful face. She was everything all at once.
“Your Grace?” she whispered.
The sound of her voice gave me something else to focus on besides blind rage. Opening our connection, she stared into my eyes, and I was able to find a steady breath again surrounded by feelings of love.
When my senses returned, I found everyone staring at me. Confused and afraid, I shook my head and gripped the bridge of my nose to clear my thoughts.
“Sit,” I instructed my nephew.
Cautiously, he pulled the nearest chair out and did as I commanded. But he didn’t miss the way Claire’s hand was still covering mine. His eyes lingered there for a moment before folding his hands on the table.
“What did I miss?” he asked as if he hadn’t nearly had his head ripped off seconds earlier.
My teeth gnashed together. “We were discussing the rupture in the Blood Treaty. The Kemps chose to disavow and attack during the funeral. A fact you’d already know if you were here on time.”
His mouth hung open in shock. “I can’t believe it. And after the letter we received from Shayla? What’s happening?”
Shayla was a Witch of the Light from the Lawless Lands. One who vehemently disagreed with signing the treaty. She wasn’t in charge, however. Hector was. And Hector was the one I’d been communicating with.
The rest of my advisors shifted uncomfortably. I narrowed my attention. “What news did we receive from Shayla?”
“While this news with the Kemps is most terrible, I fear we cannot hold word from the Lawless Lands, Your Grace.”
Laurent gestured to an attendant who set a wooden box on the table in front of me. The smell of rotting flesh filled the air. My Grand Advisor passed a letter to me.
It read simply, ‘Negotiate this.’
My gaze shifted to the box, and my stomach sank. I knew without opening it what was inside, but I had to look. It was my duty to see the carnage. To witness it. I lifted the lid, and found Hector’s severed head staring back at me. Claw marks slashed across his face. The size and shape resembling Alec’s wound.
Sorrow buried in my heart. He’d been a friend. A man who wanted peace for his people. And who died for it. Unlike me, he didn’t get a chance at a second life to watch that peace flourish and fail for eternity.
Claire gagged, and I placed the lid back on the box, resting my hand on the lid and saying a prayer to Diana, hoping that his spirit found his way to the stars.
“See that he receives the burial he deserves,” I ordered my council, and the box was taken away.
Something was happening within the Witches of the Light. In the Unified Territories and the Lawless Lands alike. What happened to Temperance Kemp and Hector weren’t isolated incidents. I could feel it. I started to reconsider Alec’s story, wondering if perhaps he’d actually seen a werewolf. If the Witches of the Light were making these moves because they’d learned how to harness the ancient power of shifting.
In light of this news, things would need to change. I needed to find a way to keep the peace and prevent war from spilling over into our lands. That was my main duty. That, and keeping Claire safe. I’d told her I was only going to tell the council what they needed to know, which, at the time, didn’t include our marriage. But know, I needed them to know, because I couldn’t do this alone. I had to lean on their advice when I wanted to make rash decisions to protect Claire. It couldn’t all fall on Natalia.
The peace we’d worked so hard for was being tested, and I wasn’t going to let it fall apart because of my pride.
“I’ve been keeping something from you all that I can’t hold any longer.” Natalia shook her head in warning, but I pressed on. “On my recent trip to the capital for my Sanguination Ball, when I met Miss Donadieu, I realized that I’d found my mate.”
I set my hand on Claire’s shoulder to bolster her strength as collective gasps went around the small room and all eyes went to her.
“While I resisted the bond due to my obligations here, it became unavoidable. I love her. And now, she’s my wife.”
The following silence was deafening. “From now on,” I announced, still standing, “when we are in session, Miss Claire Donadieu shall be known as Lady Claire Allard, Duchess of Roselyn.”
That was her name now.Claire Allard. But she had so much more than just my name, but my heart. My soul.
Claire appeared more than shocked at her new title, which caused a small smile to curve up one side of my mouth. A show of softness just for her. She was, after all, my lady.
When I turned back to the assembled, my lips were pulled tight. My niece looked incensed and I snarled to still her tongue.
“She is the lady of this castle, and you will show her all due courtesies and respect.” I grabbed my cane and slammed the point down hard on the marble floor, breaking the silence. “Did you hear me? This is your new duchess.”
Chapter 48
