Page 97 of The Vampire's Mercy
A gathering of nobles at court always ended in sex.
Goodness, how my fellow vampires and thralls had looked at me with such disappointment tonight. A clear rejection of my decisions without the nerve to voice them to my face.
But they didn’t get to question me. If I wanted an executioner as a thrall, then so be it. If they disagreed, they could happily join the others in the dungeon cells.
I still needed to question those wretched ones. What were their plans? To kidnap me? And did they know anything about the curse?
I crossed my legs, sitting for two hours before sensing a vampire approaching, his sandalwood scent cutting through the room.
A shirtless Vaughn arrived, streaks of blood on his skin. “Hello again, Your Majesty.”
“What are you doing here?”
He joined me on the platform, taking the seat to my right. “Walking off vigorous sex. Sarah’s a real goer.”
“Is she?”
“And tastes like pineapple.”
“I’m not in the mood, Vaughn,” I warned, before he regaled me with his sexual escapades.
“Got it.” He twisted in his chair to face me. “What’s going on in that head of yours?”
Along with Layla, Vaughn was a dear friend. He might be a tad unruly and smug at times, but I knew he had my back in all things. Never leaving my side, never questioning, swearing his undying allegiance again and again. He’d even called me about Paris before I’d arrived at Majestic Moon to tell me he’d tried making a move on him. He apologized, then told me to go for it.
What a shame he and Layla never got along.
“A lot,” I answered.
Vaughn’s fierce presence in the war alleviated a lot of the pressures on me, as did his support when we’d pitched the concept of the new world to the Global Council. Him and Layla argued beside me night after night, making the mortals see reason, all while struggling with their own traumas. Their own broken memories I inflicted upon them.
No vampire knew why we were here.
No vampire remembered where we’d come from.
I turned to meet his red gaze. “This curse revelation only makes it worse.”
He nodded slowly. “I have my people investigating it already.” He took my hand, giving it a squeeze. “I promise we’ll get to the bottom of this.”
I squeezed him back. “Thank you.”
“Always, friend. Always.” He took his hand back before slouching in the chair. “Have you interrogated the vampires downstairs yet?”
“No. I’m letting them stew for a while.”
“Bastards. They should all be killed.”
There were many factions of vampires across the world wanting to usurp me. Kick me from power, put someone else in place to rule while I stayed hidden to keep them alive.
All for a bloodier future.
There were others working in the shadows too, running illegal feedings. Behaving nefariously, covering up deaths, using violence and disturbing methods to extract blood from mortals.
Vaughn and his team of spies were searching the world for such activity, and were so far coming up empty. But when they were found, the punishment would be severe.
Maybe this was all my fault for being so distracted. Since the end of the war, my focus shifted to finding a solution to my broken mind, pulling me away from a lot of issues, making my kin feel as lost as me.
Vaughn let out a contented sigh. “Nice and quiet in here.”
