“Well, your secretive behavior is pissing me off! I’m trying to be patient and wait for you to talk to me, but you still haven’t said anything about…” I stuck two pointer fingers up near my forehead in a quick jerk—horns—and then dropped my arms. With the chain of the Original vampire amulet still in my hand, I swung the blood red jewel down at the lord who I had cared a great deal for—a man who was now dead. “You fuckingmurderedhim, Bel. I need to know why.”
“Dammit, you’re not ready to know yet!” His nostrils flared in fury. “I’m sorry, Gwen. But I’m not going to screw it up by telling you too early.”
I tapped my fingers on my legs. “Screw what up?”
King Belshazzar growled at me.
“Goddammit!” I shook my head and rubbed at my forehead with my free hand. “I am so goddamn mad at you right now. You make my head spin.”
Another growl.
“Growl all you want. I’m fucking furious with you.” I started pacing back and forth. “You’re damn lucky you voided those Original laws.”
My lover snorted. “Do you really think I’m the first person to kill a Royal and live afterward?”
Under my lashes, I tossed a glance at my father. Only he could see it with the way I was turned, but see it he did. His eyes narrowed slightly at the implication I silently threw his way. I turned and paced back in the other direction.
I shook my head. “I’m sure it’s happened before.” I pointed at the other lords. “But no one blatantly says they did it in front of others. So, yes, you’re lucky the law doesn’t exist anymore forinstantbeheading by the queen or king.”
He hummed. “It was good timing for him to have a congratulatory drink for us with his preferred scotch.”
In the silence of the room, I kept moving.
A single tear slipped down my cheek. I swiftly wiped it away, and argued, “You said you were an honorable man.”
“I am an honorable man.”
“Killing an innocent man is not honorable.”
He snorted. “How many of us are ‘innocent’ in this room? Everyone here who shouldn’t be charged at least once with a death sentence, please raise your hand.”
No one moved.
My lover lifted one lone eyebrow. “None of us are innocent, Gwen. We wouldn’t have made it to our positions in life if we were.”
I narrowed my eyes and demanded again, “I need to know why you did it. Fucking tell me! No more secrets.”
King Belshazzar hissed in frustration, and stated very,veryslowly, “You aren’t ready to know the truth. I won’t explain it right now.”
“You do realize that I’m now the sole ruler of the vampires. And Lord Pippin was a vampire.Mine.You have unashamedly told me that you killed one of my people.”
Lord Otto muttered under his breath, “Fucking finally. That took her long enough to say.”
Both of my brows rose at my lover. “See? Not everyone is going to be happy with the choice you made. In fact, you may be theonlyperson happy with your actions.”
“So be it.” King Belshazzar shrugged his left shoulder. “And if you want to charge me with his death, then that is your choice. As it is theirs. See? Honorable. That one I can explain easily enough if you don’t understand how that action is honorable.”
“Cut the smartass shit,” I muttered, tired.
He crossed his arms over his chest. Silent.
Damn. He actually listened.
I scratched at my cheek with my free hand, while I swung the chain back and forth and watched the amulet swing softly through the air. I did this for a full ten minutes while I processed everything that had happened and all that was said here.
Eventually, I spoke clearly, “Does anyone want to charge King Belshazzar with Lord Pippin’s death? And before you speak, this will be your official and only statement.”
Lord Xenon stated, “No, I do not want to charge King Belshazzar for the crime of Lord Pippin’s death.”
