What I wanted to know was what this Tether actually did.
Sebastian huffed. “I know that! I would have asked the damned priest why he did this to us, but he’sgone.”
The queen looked up. “Ciro has left the castle?”
“He has,” the prince ground out. “My guards can’t find him anywhere.”
“Interesting,” the queen mused.
“Interesting is not the right word, Mother!” Sebastian snapped. “Why are you not upset about this?”
My gaze darted between the two vampires as I tried to remain out of this verbal match. Something told me that getting in between them was a bad idea.
“Don’t you dare question me, Sebastian.” Queen Marguerite darted forward, grabbing his neck. The prince froze and his eyes widened as bright red beads tainted his otherwise pale skin. “You may be the child of my blood, but I am still your ruler.”
A tense moment passed, and I barely breathed, let alone moved. Eventually, the queen released her grip on Sebastian. He didn’t move, but the wing that was cupping my shoulder twitched.
“My deepest apologies, Your Majesty,” Sebastian said softly. “I spoke out of turn.”
She nodded. “Yes, you did.” Raising a manicured brow, the queen studied the two of us.
Stepping back, she picked up the book she had been reading when we entered. “The question is, Sebastian, what are you going to do now?”
He raised a brow. “Do?”
Queen Marguerite rolled her eyes, fiddling with the ruby necklace hanging between her breasts. “Good gods. For a male who has lived for over three centuries, sometimes you seem to be as ignorant as a babe. Yes.Do. Are you going to sit around and mope, my son, or are you going to make the best of it?”
Pausing, she flashed her fangs in my direction. “Feeding from one’s Tethered companion is said to be an incomparable experience.” The queen tilted her head, pulling her lips back from her fangs. “Perhaps you need a reminder of how to feed? I’d be happy to give you some tutelage.”
I stiffened.Thatwas definitely not something I was interested in.
In a flash, the room darkened as shadows flooded out of Sebastian. He shoved me behind his wings, and I stumbled towards the door as an animalistic growl rumbled through his chest.
His voice was low, and he snarled, “That will not be necessary, Mother. Luna ismine.”
The claiming words rang through the air, and I stared at him. This wasn’t the first time he’d made such a statement, and anger surged within me.
I most certainly did not belong to him. I belonged to no one but myself. He could not claim me like some uneducated female who hailed from the snowy mountains of Eleyta.
Males might have been able to claim their females in Ithenmyr, but that country was backward. I was not going to allow that to happen to me. I might have been sold into this marriage, but I was still a person.
I opened my mouth to reply, but before the words could leave my mouth, Sebastian moved back in a blur. He grabbed my wrist.
His grip was gentle but firm as he tugged me behind him. “Goodbye, Mother.”
The queen laughed, the sound tinged with more than a little madness. “See you at the ball tomorrow night, my dears! Oh and, Sebastian?”
The vampire prince paused. “Yes?”
“I would advise that you keep the Tether a secret, my son. We wouldn’t want anyone getting any ideas about weakening my prince.”
Beside me, Sebastian nodded. His shadows swirled around us, pulling us into that thick darkness. This time, we were there for mere moments, but my stomach still twisted as he pulled us through the inky blackness.
As soon as my feet landed on the familiar cold stone floor of the bedroom, I gasped. Sebastian’s tight grip remained on my arm and my head spun as my stomach churned. If I’d eaten anything today, it would have come right back up.
The moment I got my bearings, I tried to yank my arm out of Sebastian’s grasp.
“Let me go!” I demanded.