Her black crown rested on her brow, her cheekbones were stark, and her eyes…
Marius sucked in a breath and stumbled back.
An ocean of pain filled his sister’s black eyes.
He’d done that. Hurt her.
Holding his gaze, she didn’t conceal her anguish. She let him see everything, and by the gods, a knife to the heart would’ve hurt less.
He couldn’t bear it for long. After a few seconds, like a coward, he turned his head and studied his brother-in-law.
Like his wife, the king had donned fighting leathers. His wings were still out, shadows curled around his legs, and darkness emanated from him.
He, too, was staring at Marius.
Unlike the queen’s pain-filled gaze, Sebastian’s obsidian eyes were brimming with fury.
The king wasn’t alone. His fist was clenched around the back of Vivienne’s neck, and he held her like she was a rag doll, not a powerful creature of the night. Shadows bound her hands together in front of her, and she hung limply at the king’s side, her feet dragging on the floor. The only sign that she was alive was the single tear trailing down her pale, dirt-stained cheek.
Sebastian strode forward. Each step radiated with rage, reverberating through the empty throne room and echoing the too-loud beat of Marius’s heart.
When the king was a few feet away from Marius, he released his grip on Vivienne’s neck. She grunted, falling to the stone floor in a heap.
Marius’s heart ached.
The strong vampire who’d pinned Marius to the ground in Hoarfrost Hollow was nowhere to be seen. The black collar was still clamped around her neck, a gag was wrapped around her mouth, and fear shimmered in her black eyes.
He went to step toward his bodyguard, but the king barked, “Don’t!”
The command was laced with power and darkness, and it boomed through the throne room, freezing Marius in his tracks. He wasn’t a vampire, but the power in his brother-in-law’s veins would make anyone quake in fear.
Even though it pained him to do so, Marius dragged his gaze from Vivienne back to the king.
His head spun at the sight in front of him.
Luna had moved, and she stood behind her husband. Her wide, once-brown-but-now-black eyes were trained on Marius. A crimson tear trailed down her cheek. Her hand was engulfed in the king’s, who stood rigidly in front of her.
Protecting her.
From him.
The king’s stance was wide, shadows swarmed around him like snakes, and he had a wing curled protectively around Luna.
It was the anger rippling off the king in waves that had Marius’s breath catching in his throat. The air was thick, and breathing was practically impossible.
This was the first time Marius had ever been the subject of the king’s wrath, and it wasn’t an experience he would wish on anyone. To say that it was frightening would be a disservice to fear itself.
Now, he understood why Sebastian was called the King of Darkness. It wasn’t just because of his command over the shadows or the blackness of his gaze.
He was darkness brought to life.
And then, there was Luna.
If Sebastian Montquartier, King of the Vampires, embodied the night itself, his wife was pure, unadulterated power. It radiated off her where she stood, permeating the air. She was a queen in every sense of the word.
The king’s furious gaze was unwavering, and every part of Marius urged him to kneel before such power.
He did exactly that, shifting to his knees even as his weakened body protested the movements. Bowing his head, he dropped his gaze to the stone floor.
