Darkness Raging by Yasmine Galenorn

Author:Yasmine Galenorn [Galenorn, Yasmine]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2016-01-31T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

Nerissa found her tongue before I did. “You want me to marry Roman, too? What the hell? Menolly and I are already married.”

I winced, but Blood Wyne didn’t seem upset. In fact, her voice softened. “I know this is a shock, but trust me, I have good reason. Menolly, you are related to me because he has re-sired you. But I want your succession in the monarchy assured.”

That was a new one. “But . . . you are the Queen—and Roman will be the King after you, right? And what about your other children? Wouldn’t they resent me?”

All I knew was that Roman had seven brothers and sisters, and Blood Wyne had turned them all. The youngest two had been turned when they were twelve, before they hit puberty, and from what Roman had told me, they ran off and had never been heard from since.

His brother Caleb, until recently the Vampire Nation’s regent in western Europe, was a strikingly handsome, and equally violent, man. In a brief meeting a short time back, he had attempted to woo me away from Roman with the intention that we institute a return to the old days when vampires sought to be the scourges of the world. He had broken with Blood Wyne, and last we heard, he had resigned as regent and struck out on his own. But that still left four other siblings, including two who were total mama’s boys from what Roman told me.

Blood Wyne laughed softly, leaning forward. “What has Roman told you about his siblings?”

I glanced at Roman, who nodded for me to answer. “Only that two ran off long ago, and I met Caleb—we did not get along.”

“Yes, well, Caleb is no longer regent. He seeks to move against me, but I intend for him to be long dead before that happens. My twins, they were staked, long ago. A mother knows these things, and so does a sire, and I was both to them. Viktor and Encee are sweet boys who tag after my skirts. But they know perfectly well they are not fit to rule, and they are content to remain at home. In this monarchy, intelligence matters. The pair are loving, but they have no capacity for leadership. Anastasia might have taken the throne, but she prefers to play her part from behind the scenes. She told me once that she would do anything to help except to wear the crown. As she put it, ‘A crown brings with it attempts at assassination.’ And she is correct.”

That made six, and Roman was seven. “What about your eighth child?”

Blood Wyne glanced over at Roman, whose expression turned dour. He hung his head and shrugged. The Queen returned her gaze to me. “Our dark Paulette. To be honest, she remains imprisoned in my castle. A beautiful captive, as mad as she is immortal. I cannot bring myself to stake her, and yet she is thoroughly an animal. Her mind could not handle the years of life my blood gave to her and she slowly slipped into her predator.

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