Page 126 of Our Sins in Blood (Coven of Sin 1)

Chapter sixty

What in the Hell is Vincent Feral?

WithVincenthaulingmethrough the corridor over his shoulder like I was some war prize, barely clothed and thrashing against him, we turned a few heads.

But if anyone was concerned for me, no one said shit.

In their defense, you didn’t get in Feral’s way. Period. Well, unless you were me.

Moving into the main hall, my chest squeezed when I realized we were heading toward the staircase. Was he taking me to his room?

When he strode past the stairs and shoved through the double doors of the council chamber, my heart sunk a little. Was I actually disappointed that we weren’t going upstairs? Realizing that I was a bit let down that he wasn’t taking me to his bedroom made some seriously troubling emotions unfurl inside me, complicated emotions that I didn’t feel capable of dealing with at the moment.

Inside the council chamber, Vincent finally set me on my feet, and I looked around to survey my surroundings.

I’d been here once before when I was brought to the Elders that first night. Now the place was empty. It was eerie, being in here with nothing but seven empty thrones and Feral, regarding me with a look in his eyes that told me it probably wasn’t the best idea being alone in here with him.

Any other girl in my position might be a bit shaken up by the fact that she’d been hauled over the shoulder of a possessive, blood-thirsty vampire while in a state of undress and taken to some secluded part of the mansion for God knows what.

But fucked-up me was only excited by the notion. My pulse launched into a full gallop, and my breath came out in uneven bursts.

I could feel Vincent’s gaze on me, stripping me down to my bones.

In an attempt to settle my nerves, I forced my attention to the large windows behind the thrones.

The red drapery was pulled back, the silvery sea serving as a breathtaking backdrop. The sight of the ocean still made my knees weak, having gone all those years with it being just outside of my bedroom window’s view.

Moonlight poured into the chamber, painting long shadows across the floor. The shadow of my father’s throne was the largest and stretched across the entire room, touching my toes where I stood by the entrance.

My gaze slithered up the shadow to rest on the throne, and I had to suppress a shiver. It was a creepy piece of furniture, made with black wood, with the backrest carved into a picture of a screaming woman. The woman had needle-sharp teeth, the wood stained with what had to be real blood. The velvet padding of the throne made up her dress, but the most gruesome feature of the whole thing was the real vampire teeth embedded into the wood to create a necklace for the woman.

The six other thrones of the Elders were way less elaborate, although I couldn’t help but look at the one to the right of my father’s, where I had seen Sterling for the first time. He’d been kind, the only source of relief during that meeting. I could even remember what he’d been wearing, a thick knit turtleneck sweater with a high collar that would have kept his mark hidden.

My attention jerked back to Feral as he strode to the other end of the room and sat on my father’s throne.

Folding my arms over my chest, I flung him a baleful glare. “What are you doing?”

“Look at me, Ruby. What do you see?”

A gorgeous monster who has no right being so damn beautiful.

Of course, I didn’t say that out loud. What I wanted to do was ignore his question and storm out of here. At least, that’s what I wanted to want.

But I couldn’t seem to pull my gaze away from the scene before me. Because holy fuck.

As always, Vincent Feral was as terrifying as he was beautiful. The moon sat in the sky just behind his head, creating a crown-like illusion. Shadows concealed his facial features, but his masculine frame was outlined in silver, which highlighted his raven tattoos and his black arm veins that stood out even more so against his silver-kissed skin.

The first time I’d seen my father’s throne, I knew Feral would look right at home in it. But I didn’t think he’d lookthisgood.

Like it had been made for him.

“So what?” I snapped, hating how I couldn’t keep my voice from cracking. “So you look good on the throne? How is this supposed to convince me that we belong together?”

He leaned forward and propped his elbows on his thighs. Fuck me, why did he have to look so damn good sitting where my father once had? And how Vincent looked shouldn’t matter in the slightest. But there was no denying that he slipped into the evil piece of furniture with his casual and cocky demeanor, like a tailor-made piece of clothing.

He didn’t just wear the throne well. As stupid as it was to suggest a chair of all things had any kind of sentience, it seemed to wear him right back.

“You said you want someone strong, Princess?Look at me. This throne is more than a fucking chair. Here sits the strongest vampire in the entire continent. This seat means enemies, powerful ones. It means allies who are just as dangerous if you say or do the wrong thing. It’s a responsibility you can’t even begin to fathom. You don’t understand what it takes to sit here for many years on end. It’s going to take a strong king to keep you alive, to keep you in power, and to keep you safe. That’s what I can offer you. Stability and safety. Do you think Corry can give you that? He wouldn’t last two days. Eros? He’d protect you from our enemies for a time, but what happens when he inevitably makes more enemies than he can stand to fight? Then there’s me—”

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