Without a word, Ethan jumped from his spot and landed gracefully on the ground in front of the vampire.
“How dare you suggest such a thing,” he seethed, fury emanating from him as he prowled around the man.
Suddenly, the man’s demeanour changed. Something in Ethan’s gaze caused him to fall to his knees.
“I’m s-s-sorry. I didn’t mean it. Please forgive me.” He bowed his head as though submitting to a king.
With one swift movement, Ethan kicked the man hard in the ribs. “Get up,” he demanded.
The vampire fumbled quickly to his feet, his entire body shaking with fear. I almost felt sorry for him, but then I remembered his suggestion that they all drink from me and my sympathy faded.
“Apologise again,” Ethan commanded.
“I beg your forgiveness. I’m sorry a thousand times. Please, spare me,” he rattled out desperately.
Slowly, Ethan shook his head. “Not to me. Apologise to her.” He gestured up at me, and I inhaled sharply when the attention of the entire market fell on me. My palms grew sweaty as I gripped the railing tight.
“I’m sorry, my lady. Truly, I am,” the vampire said. “Please, accept my sincerest apologies for what I said. I’m merely frightened and—”
“That’s enough,” Ethan hissed, grabbing a hold of the collar of his jacket and flinging him into the crowd. “Anybody else have anything to say on this matter?” he asked, striding back and forth. Absolute silence answered him. “Very good.”
If I blinked, I’d have missed it, but his eyes flicked briefly to Lucas, who still stood by the market stall. Ethan gave him a barely perceptible nod, and Lucas slinked swiftly through the crowd to the dark-haired vampire. His hand slid to the inside pocket of his coat, and he pulled out a stake. Finding the vampire who’d spoken out against me, Lucas grabbed him by the throat and slammed the stake straight into his heart. Those standing close by gasped in shock, obviously getting the message. Anyone else who dared to threaten me would meet the same fate. I wasn’t sure how to feel about that, but my survival instincts kicked in. I’d much rather the vampires fear harming me than believe I was an easy target.
“I will suffer no more threats against my woman,” Ethan declared. “The punishment for this is death. I hope you all understand that now.”
There were low murmurings of assent, and nervous anxiety gripped tightly at my chest. Suddenly, it was hard to breathe. Ethan had to have a man killed for threatening me. Would it always be this way, or would the vampires eventually accept me as Ethan’s partner?
Having power wasn’t the cushy setup most people imagined it to be. You had to make hard decisions and do hard things. And I understood that. I got why Ethan had Lucas kill the vampire, but it still made my stomach twist with unease. I was so tired of all the death.
“The sorcerer Theodore is trying to incite us into violence again,” Ethan went on. “I will not allow that to happen because it is not the kind of ruler I intend to be. I am no Whitfield. An unhinged, power-hungry leader creates an unhinged, power-hungry populace, which is why I don’t hold your past violence against you. You were under the frenzied command of a blood thirsty tyrant, and your actions followed suit. But hear this. There is to be no more unnecessary harm done to any humans. In order to survive, we need to be able to live peacefully among the human population in a symbiotic manner, and that is the kind of environment that I will strive to create for all of you. I will put a stop to Theodore’s plans to ruin us. You have my word. And after that, we still endeavour to live in peace, and hopefully, prosperity, too.”
As I looked down on the vampires all listening intently to Ethan’s speech, I saw something change in them. They were taking in his words, and there was relief on their faces. They didn’t want to be at war, and the kind of city Ethan was describing appealed to their hearts. A grain of hope formulated within me. Perhaps Alora was wrong when she said it would be a little girl who finally brought peace to Tribane. Maybe, just maybe, it would be Ethan who did it.
Finn
You know what I think? I think it should be made illegal for anyone to ever have to be up this early in the morning. I was awake and dressed at the arse crack of dawn. I’d had my breakfast, and I was currently in the process of arming myself to the teeth. You’d be amazed by the number of weapons a fella could store on his person once he put his mind to it. So far, I’d managed five guns, seven knives, and several stakes. Yes, it was morning and there weren’t going to be any vamps around, but you could never be too careful.