VJ 12
“Right this
way sir.”
It's the middle of the day. It's not rare
that Nero send Sinclair for me but it is rare that he send for me in
the middle of the day. What's even more rare is I'm not meeting Nero
in his bedroom like usual. We are going to the royal study. It is a
room at the very top of the imperial palace. After 10 staircases I
feel my breath getting away with me. You would think by now Eden
would have elevators but I'm sure the architects wanted to keep that
old Italy feel going on.
Sinclair opens the door and I walk inside.
“Sir I've brought Santos as you asked,” Sinclair says.
“Good. Santos.
Come...sit.”
I'm a little concerned. This was way too
formal. I'm not the only one in the room. The first person I see is
Coco and almost immediately I know what this is about.
Three days ago Coco asked me to have my child. In exchange she wanted the child to be named as the heir to the throne. When I told her that I'd think about it she didn't take it well. When I see Coco sitting with Nero now the first thing that I can think is that she went behind my back.
“Coco came
to meet me,” Nero explains, “Told me about your
deal.”
My heart races. Nero had not yet discovered
that Justice was dead. I still hadn't told him what my father told
me. I still hadn't told him that Justice was gone for good. The fact
that Nero doesn't know makes this sound like some sort of plot.
Then there is Coco sitting there smiling as though she really accomplished something. I'm annoyed by her. I should have known everyone had a motive in Eden.
“I
never agreed to anything.”
“Well maybe it's
time you agree now,” Nero explains, “Because I think it
would be a good idea.”
I'm confused.
“What?”
Coco
is sitting in the seat next to me. She is smiling. Maybe she has
accomplished something after all. I'm confused as I looked at her.
“King Nero was just telling me how he would love for me to have a child for the two of you and he also agreed that the child would be the heir,” Coco tells me.
Nero is looking at me as though I should be happy about this. A part of me is happy about it. I'm shocked and surprised that Nero agreed to this so quickly. I'm blown away.
“Nero...you
and I aren't even married yet. Why would my child be your heir?”
“Be
realistic,” Nero explains, “It's only a matter of
time.”
“You're married to someone else.”
“Not
for long,” Nero explains, “I'm having the marriage
annulled.”
Nero wasn't having a divorce. He was having
the marriage annulled as though the marriage never existed. The idea
of finally being rid of King Aiden was something that I think I could
definitely get behind. That part excited me. The only problem with
all of this was Justice.
I can't hold my feelings back. Before I know it I'm looking at the desk. There is paperwork there. An agreement. I can tell. Eden loves their agreements. As I look down at the paperwork a knot grows in my stomach.
“Isn't this
what you want?” Coco explains, “I'll sign the child over
to you as soon as I have it. Nero and you can raise the child. All I
want is that the child be named heir.”
“I
can't do that to Justice.”
I couldn't do this
to his memory. Armando told me that Justice was dead but I saw no
body. Even if he was dead it was still so fresh to be plotting to
replace him. This all just seemed wrong and even though Coco is right
I wanted this at one point things changed. Nero had an heir already.
A long time ago I would have loved to raise a child with Nero. I
would have loved to have my child take over his father's place. You
don't always get what you want.
“We all know that
Justice is dead by now,” Coco states.
“COCO!” I scream at the top of my lungs.
She's always been like that. She just cared about her own intentions and never really cared about the feelings of everyone else. Justice's father was right here and she was just announcing what she thought everyone in Eden was feeling without even thinking about him.
“It's ok,”
Nero explains, “It's been a while. The Thirsts don't kidnap. If
it took Justice away it took him away to kill him.”
“No
one knows for sure that the Thirst took him away.”
Nero
looks over at me, “Are you saying someone else took
Justice?”
My mind goes straight to Armando. What if
Armando had kidnapped Justice? What if he was behind all of this. I
want to tell Nero what I think but there is still a part of me that
wants to protect Armando. Regardless of what he does Armando is still
my father. That is something that I just can't do so quickly.
So instead of ratting out Armando I just shrug.
“Are you really ready to let Justice go?” I ask.
Nero shakes my head, “No. I'll never be ready. I failed as a father. Instead of showing Justice love I treated him like Arie treated me. He was a prince before he was my son. I can't take that back but I can be different with our child. This is a chance for me to really raise someone right. And I know if the two of us do it together this child will grow up feeling loved. Isn't that what we want for the next king or queen of Eden?”
Nero is rubbing my hands.
“Yes.”
“So
sign the paper...” Coco tells me, “This is the agreement
that I had drafted. You and Nero get the baby and the baby gets the
throne.”
I look over at Nero. He's so certain he wants
this.
And isn't this what I always wanted? I always wanted a family with Nero.
I take a deep breath and I sign the agreement.
“Now...take off your clothes,” Coco states.
“What...”
I
look over at Coco. She gets up from her seat.
“Listen. You
two have to fuck and I'll finish you off.”
“Finish
him off? Wait...we can do artificial insemination,” Nero
explains.
“This child is
going to rule Eden. It won't be created in a test tube,” Coco
explains, “I refuse to get pregnant that way. King Nero did you
artificially inseminate Justice's mother?”
Nero stops.
He looks over at me,
“Only if you're OK with this.”
My heart is racing.
This was huge. This was really big. I signed the agreement though. I
said I agreed to it. I had to do it.
“Yes.”
“Well
you guys can do your thing and just let me know when you're
close...and I'll finish the job,” Coco states.
“Can't
you...I don't know...wait outside?” I explain.
“I won't have
time. Besides. This is business. It's not like I'm going to get
excited watching two sexy ass male vampires have sex right in front
of me. You know?”
Coco lets out a sneaky smile.
“Lets just do it. She has a point. I want my child to come into this world the most natural way,” Nero explains.
Nero takes off his shirt at that moment. He stands there in all his glory defying me not to be sexually attracted to him. It's hard not to be. Almost immediately my dick is hard in the chair. I turn to my right and notice Coco. She has on a dress and I watch as she crosses her legs tightly as she peers at Nero's chest. It's clear that she's turned on. She's damn near dripping in her seat.
And she's dripping for good reason. Nero is...sexy as fuck.
“You should
take everything off,” Coco tells Nero but adds in relatively
quickly, “It'll...you know...help Santos.”
“Can
you please not tell me how to have sex with my boyfriend?” Nero
tells her.
“Sure. I'll
just slip these right off. You know. Quick access...”
Coco
takes off her panties from underneath her rather tight dress. I have
to admit it takes some sort of skill for her to take them off so
quickly. Her panties drop to the ground and she stares intently at
Nero studying every vein, muscle and cut in his amazing chest.
“Can
you...just not say anything?” Nero asks her.
Coco tightens her
lip, “I'm not even here.”
“Nothing Coco.
Seriously,” Nero tells her.
It's hard for me not to see Coco in the room. Nero pulls down the blinds and shuts off the lights though. And he turns on a lamp. He pulls me towards the table casting shadows on Coco. I can barely see that she's in the room in the darkness. As Nero approaches me his body reflects the light of the lamp. He's taken off his pants and then his underwear. Nero is completely naked in front of me and the light from the lamp shines all over his body.
Nero leans over my chair and begins kissing me. His tongue is soft. I can feel the awkwardness though as Coco is watching. I can feel her close by. I can still see her shadow. I can hear her breathing harder and harder. I know she's there and I can't even focus on him kissing me.
“Are you
OK?” Nero asks me.
“Just.
Nervous.”
It's not just Coco. It was all of it. This was
the first step in Nero and me making our family. Nero was still
married. A part of me wants to tell him maybe we should wait until he
gets the annullment but then I feel like if I don't do this now I
probably won't ever get the chance. There was so many things I wanted
to do with Nero before I was put in the ground. I thought I had
forever. We were immortal after all. I was wrong.
This time I didn't want to be wrong.
Nero leans over
to me. His lips press up against the side of my cheek, “It's
just you and me in here. Ok baby. It's just me and you in here.”
Him whispering that to me makes me feel so much better.
Nero goes to his desk. He sits on it. He stares at me with those silver eyes. His perfect body is glistening in the lamplight. His thick dick is pointed towards the sky calling for me.
“Come ride me
daddy...until you nut.”
When he says that I completely
forget about Coco. I could care less if she's there or not. My pants
come down first and I go to my man. I face away from him letting my
back fall onto his chest. Slowly I lower myself on his dick. I don't
even need any lube. I don't need any spit. My ass is so wet just from
looking at his sexy body. His dick is precumming. It's almost like
our bodies were ready for one another.
I ride him
slowly up and down. Up and down. My body tightens around his dick. He
licks at the back of my neck, then at the side of my neck then turns
my head so he can slowly suck on my tongue. As I ride him his fingers
get to my dick.
“God that
feels so good...”
As I bounce on his dick I can feel it in my stomach. He fills me up. There is a pleasurable pain as Nero fucks me. He thrusts up as I push down. Each stroke it's like we are two worlds colliding into each other. He goes all the way inside of me and I pull all the way out only to collide into each other. His wet dick makes my ass moisten and my heart beast fast.
I grab his hand at that moment and all of a sudden I'm taking his hand and guiding him to beat my dick faster and faster.
Slow...we don't want to waste the nut,” he tells me.
I had almost forgotten why we were here. I remove my hand and allow him to jack me off. The pleasure is so deep that my mouth opens up. I'm panting. I'm struggling for air and he's watching me with those beautiful silver eyes of his.
And almost as though he can't resist he starts kissing me taking advantage of my open mouth to stick his tongue down my throat.
The hard strokes
and the slow tender kissing sends shivers down my body.
Someone else is
moaning.
It's Coco. I'm
sure in the darkness she's doing something of her own as she reacts
to us making love. I could care less though. I'm way too far gone to
give a fuck that she's there though.
Nero is making me feel
like I'm alone in this room. He's making me feel like I'm alone in
this world! He's worships my body. One hand on my dick. The other
hand slowly tickling my nipples. His thrusts are getting deeper and
deeper. His fangs are slowly cutting into the side of my neck. I can
feel my body tremble over him.
“I'm about to cum! I'm about to cum!” I'm screaming as he methodically rubs my cock.
That's when Coco comes out of the shadows. Her dress is hiked up above her waist. Her vagina is dripping.
“Wait for me...”
=========================================================================
Two weeks have passed.
“This is the big day,” Coco tells me.
She's excited. Two weeks ago after the sex with Coco. I assume that we should have done it more than once but Coco tells me she has a good feeling about it. She says the one time was enough plus she doesn't know how Nero would feel about sharing me again. With that I can agree with her. Nero is a jealous lover and I don't see him wanting us to have that threesome situation again.
I should have been excited but honestly the thought that I was betraying Justice didn't leave my mind. It's been over a month now and everyone just assumed that Justice was dead. The “Find Justice” chant in the streets had died down with a lot of other things.
“Would you
like me to come with you?”
“No...you should be
getting ready for the gala,” Coco explains.
The Halloween Masquerade was coming up. It was the biggest holiday in Eden. Everyone was beyond excited about it. The reason that Coco was in my bedroom now was to help me get ready for it.
“That's not
important,” I respond, “I think a kid takes
priority.”
“Actually no. The Halloween Masquerade
is the time of the year. Everyone who is everyone is going to be
there. You know what that means,” Coco tells me, “You
want to help me with this pregnancy...secure your marriage to
Nero.”
“Nero is not going to ask me to marry him
at the masquerade.”
“You so sure?” Coco asks
me.
“His marriage to Aiden isn't even annulled yet,” I assure Coco.
Coco's once happy face shifts a little a bit. She looks worried.
“What's taking
so long?”
“I don't know.”
“Well
maybe once I get tested news that I'm pregnant will hurry that
process along,” Coco states.
I give Coco a
hard stare, “No news. Even if you are pregnant we want to keep
this private.”
“Are you sure because Lucca says he
has a good way outlet with the media for me to announce my pregnancy
for you and Nero.”
“Coco. Please tell me you
didn't tell Lucca you were trying to have a child for Nero and
I.”
Coco gives me a hard look. I can't believe her. Her
silence at that moment says it all. Lucca has been trying to reach
out to me ever since Aiden let it be known that he really wanted to
take the throne from Nero and marry Arie.
“Lucca says
the Axis of Evil is going to act...before the masquerade.”
“Axis
of Evil?”
“Aiden, Milan and Arie,” she tells
me, “That's what Lucca is calling them. He says it's sticky.
Even people in the media are starting to call them that.”
I had no idea they had a nickname. Lucca had been leading back to back propoganda against Aiden. In the meanwhile he had also been trying to build me up. If this was coming from anyone else I would probably be grateful but Lucca was a snake. You didn't keep snakes near you.
“I can't
believe you trusted him,” I tell Coco shaking my head, “He
turned his back on me before. He turned his back on you before. Lucca
has no loyalty to anyone but himself.”
“Don't you
think I know that? He wants revenge. And I say let him do it. People
are actually liking you since your trial. I don't want to sound like
the bearer of bad news...but you weren't very popular before Lucca
started shaping your image.”
Coco may be right. It's
tough to agree with her especially when it came to Lucca but he'd
been helping me more than he'd been hurting me.
“No. There is enough tension with Aiden. Let's do this the right way,” I tell Coco.
Coco hesitates,
“Fine.”
“Coco...”
“I said
fine,” she replies, “But what if something happens to
Nero before he gets the marriage annulled? What if he doesn't name my
unborn child the heir?”
“Nothings going to happen
to Nero.”
She sighs at that moment, “You must not
know how far a desperate vampire would go.”
Coco leaves
me with that but all I can think about was that she may have a point.
She may have a fucking point about all of this and that seems to
scare the shit out of me.
The Masquerade ball is everything that I thought it would be.
The ball is held at a grand ballroom on the outskirts of the city in a building called St. Augustine's Basilica. It's a huge ballroom and everyone is dressed in costumes that they probably took years to come up with. Everyone who is everyone is there. I arrive a little bit late. I do it on purpose. The less time I could be at this ball the better. If Nero hadn't invited me then I probably wouldn't have wanted to come at all. When I arrive at the ball I am searching for Nero or at least Coco. I want anyone that I can recognize.
There are huge colonnades with Doric columns as I enter the hall. The focal point of the room is a large statue of King Arie in gold with a raised sword pointed towards the heavens. The steps that lead to the dance floor show vampire precision and beauty as the sharpness of the marble has been polished past anyone's ideal.
“A devil. How
fitting.”
The voice is one that I don't want to hear. I
turn around to see Aiden standing there. He has Milan with him. The
twins both have half masks on that are black and capes. I realize
they are referring to my red mask.
They approach me and immediately I just feel my heart get into my chest. At first I can't tell the difference between the two but after a second of seeing how they stare at me I know immediately the difference. Milan always looks at me with this hatred. It is this deep seeded hatred which lets me know he still blames me for the death of his lover over 100 years ago.
“You have a way of stealing the show,” Aiden notices crossing his arms.
“I didn't
come here for trouble.”
“You shouldn't have come
here at all,” Milan states.
“I was invited.”
The
two laugh at that moment. There is something off about them. Ever
since the trial I hadn't seen much of Aiden or Milan or even Arie for
that matter. I could only imagine the shit that they were up to. The
idea of calling them the Axis of Evil was actually spot on. All they
did nowadays was sit around and think of ways to get rid of me.
“You were invited by a fool who doesn't know how to lose,” Milan states.
“Are you
referring to King Nero as a fool?” I ask.
“And what
if I was?”
“Milan. You've seen first hand what I'm
capable of when I get upset...” I state, “Do you want to
really see me upset?”
I take a few steps towards him.
Milan isn't a fool. He takes a few steps back at that moment. He
looks scared to death and it's Aiden who puts his hands out at that
moment.
“Everyone relax. Ok?” Aiden states, “We
aren't your enemy Santos.”
“Speak for yourself,”
Milan tells his brother.
I laugh and cross my arms, “Relax Aiden. I won't murder your brother. Not in Eden...not when people are just starting to actually like me. Haven't you heard?”
“Lucca's been
busy,,” Aiden acknowledges, “Do you think that will make
a difference though Santos? Do you think people finally warming up to
you will make a difference at the end of the day? You're still the
son of Lilith, Santos. In the end we all know what has to
happen.”
Milan may have hated me but it's Aiden I was
worried about.
He has this
strange look on his face.
“What are you
talking about? What is going to happen?”
“I don't
want anyone to get hurt. You hear me? I really do care about you
Santos. Just have Nero step down. The two of you can go live in the
outskirts of Eden. I'll have a castle built just for the two of you.
I'll rule with King Arie and nothing will have to happen. I don''t
want to break Nero.”
“You're threatening him!
You're threatening him...”
I grab Aiden by the
throat. He doesn't even fight back. He lets me grab him. In fact
Aiden seems to welcome it. He's smiling. I want to rip that fucking
smile right off his fucking face. Who the fuck did he think he was
threatening Nero right in front of my face. Did he think I wouldn't
kill for Nero? Did he think I wouldn't END him and his fucking
brother for the person that I loved?
“Santos...there you
are.”
The voice is annoying. I know who it is almost
immediately.
It's Lucca. He
loosens my grasp around Aiden's throat. The person who Lucca is with
has on a mask but I know who it is just by the way she glides across
the room. Camilla is right on his other side. She grabs at my other
hand. The two of them lead me away from Aiden. Aiden is standing back
there smiling at me. He's taunting me.
“Get off of me,” I shake Lucca off.
“Relax. You can't let them get to you. This is the game. This is Eden. The moment you let someone get to you is the moment they win,” Lucca tells me.
“I don't take advice from you,” I explain.
Lucca and Camilla look at one another. They've always been able to communicate with just stares. I wonder what this stare means. I'm heated. I'm beyond heated.
“We deserve that,” Camilla adds in.
I don't want to
hear it. I ignore Camilla, “Where is Nero? I have to tell him
that the Aiden is planning something against him.”
Aiden
has to be planning to kill Nero. He has to be planning an
assassination.
“Don't be
stupid. Nero wasn't born yesterday,” Lucca tells me, “He's
well aware that Aiden is desperate. Haven't you noticed the
guards.”
“Yes...”
“Arie is
attempting to convince him to step down,” Lucca tells me, “My
spies say that Nero is actually considering it.”
“Giving
up his throne?”
“He wants peace. Nero has always
wanted peace. Arie is offering him sanctuary for you and Nero if Nero
steps down.”
Lucca points at where Nero and Arie are.
This was Aiden's plan? Have King Arie convince Nero to step down?
What about the baby that we were planned to take over for Nero? There
are so many things that are running through my head when I see Nero
and Arie sitting there talking.
“If Nero steps down would they...leave us alone? Would they let us live in peace together?”
I'm not 100 percent sure of it but after what happened with Nero, Coco and I, I don't think that he would step down. Aiden really felt like he had this in the bag. He wanted me to convince Nero to step down.
“You can't be
considering that,” Lucca explains.
I shake my head,
“This is all getting out of hand. Nero still is legally married
to Aiden. Aiden is fighting the annulment. Maybe if Nero steps down
then the annulment can go through.”
“Why would you
want to be married to him if he's not King?” Lucca asks.
This was a
serious question coming from Lucca. He looks like he is seriously
confused. For people like him title was everything. If Nero stepped
down and let Arie take over then Nero would be nothing. Lucca
couldn't understand that I wanted to be married to Nero regardless of
who he was.
“You can't
trust them,” Camilla states, “Aiden shows he isn't to be
trusted. He promised to marry me! Not Arie.”
I look at
Camilla. Her and Lucca would be the last people I would talk to about
trust.
“Arie may be
trustworthy though...even if Aiden isn't.”
I look over
at Arie. I had always had a certain level of respect for him. There
was a man who would give anything to save Eden. If he was telling
Nero that he needed to step down then maybe he had a point. Nero
wasn't nearly as dedicated to Eden as he should have been. Truthfully
Nero admitted that he would choose me over Eden. Nero admitted that
he wanted to leave with me.
I'm watching Arie talk to Nero and as I watch I'm understanding why Nero looks like he's really thinking about it. Let Aiden and Arie rule. If that's what they wanted so bad then let them have it.
“They can't be
trusted!” Lucca stated, “Aiden will have you buried the
moment that he takes over. Santos you can't be so stupid.”
“Stupid.
Who are you talking to?” I ask.
I am raging a little bit. Lucca is getting quite comfortable. No. He's getting quite desperate.
“I won't allow him to get away with embarrassing me,” Lucca states.
“What can you
possibly do?” I state, “If Arie can assure that nothing
will happen to Nero or me. I think that this deal may be worth
it.”
“You had a deal with Coco. I promise you.
Your baby should be the heir to the throne. This is about title. It
would be his or her birth right. You can't take that away.”
“This is way more important. This is peace,” I state.
I didn't even know if Coco was pregnant.
“Santos...where are you going?” Lucca asks me.
“I'm going
to tell Nero I'm OK with him stepping down.”
“SANTOS!
SANTOS!”
I ignore Lucca.
I cross the room. I may be taking a risk. Arie had buried me once when he was king and I was literally about to give him the power to make that decision again.
But did I want to be
King?
At the end of the day did I honestly want to marry Nero
and be King of Eden. I didn't even like the city to be honest with
you. Nero wasn't really dedicated to this city as well. What kind of
Kings would Nero and I make. Maybe it would be best if we did step
down. Aiden may have been a backstabber but at least I knew that he
cared about Eden.
I was definitely sure that Arie did.
As I approach the table I'm greeted by a smile from Arie.
“Santos. I'm glad you made it. You look stunning,” Arie tells me.
Just at that moment Arie smiles at me, genuinely bows and takes a step back.
“Thank you sir,” I tell him.
“I should let the two of you speak. I'm sure you have a lot to discuss,” Arie states.
Nero smiles at me as Arie walks away. Nero pulls out a chair for me.
“Here you go babe...” Nero states.
“You sure I can sit at the right of the King? That is usually Aiden's position,” I state.
Nero smiles at me
slowly, “You're the only one I need to the right of me. Don't
ever doubt that. Regardless if I'm king or not. Which is why I have
to speak to you actually.”
I scoot my chair closer to
Nero. Across the room I see Arie. He's standing with the Countesses
Livia and Roxanne. He's watching us from the side of his eye. Not too
far away from him are the twins. They are whispering amongst
themselves. Then I see Lucca and Camilla. All the players seem to be
out and they all seem to be very busy.
“Serious talk and I haven't even gotten a dance from you yet,” I state.
Nero smiles, “That's
all I keep thinking about too. Maybe that's the problem. I can't
focus on this throne Santos. All I care about is you.”
“I
know what you mean. Heavy is the head that bears the crown,” I
state.
“Too heavy.
Maybe it's time to lighten that load.”
“Arie wants
you to step down.”
“He doesn't seem angry about
it,” Nero explains, “He says that he'll let me and you
live in peace. I don't want the throne Santos. I never did. I trust
Arie won't harm you unless he has to.”
“Did you
give him an answer?”
“I wanted to talk to you
about it first.”
“So this would mean
peace?”
“Yes. We can retire. Let Arie deal with
the Thirsts. Let him deal with Lilith. Let him deal with all that
shit. It can just be me and you. We'll worry about where we want to
have sex next, what foods we want to try, how many kids we want to
have. Those are the things I want to worry about Santos. That's
all.”
Kids.
“Arie...what
about Coco?”
“We'll tell her the deal is off,”
he explains, “If she isn't OK with having our child we'll find
someone else.”
He made it sound so easy.
What if it
was?
“OK.”
“OK?”
Just
walk away from it all. Walk away from the drama. Walk away from the
anger. Walk away from the responsibility. I wasn't ready to be the
husband of a King and Nero never wanted it. We didn't need it. At
all.
“Tell
him,” I state.
Nero leans over
to kiss me. Just as he gets up to walk over to Arie there is Lucca.
Nero and I turn as we notice Lucca hoping up on the stage where the
band is performing.
“Good afternoon everyone!” Lucca announces on the stage.
We look over at
Lucca. He's up there with his little sidekick Camilla. The two of
them have huge smiles on their faces. I'm confused by it. What the
fuck are they doing up there?
“Lucca and I
would like to take this time to make an announcement. Actually we'd
like to invite someone else up on stage to make an
announcement.”
Nero looks over at me. I shrug. I don't
know what Lucca and Camilla are up to. No one knows. All the
important people are int his room right now wondering just who Lucca
and Camilla thought they were to jump on stage and make an
announcement. This broke protocol. Lucca and Camilla always cared
about image. This had to be important for them to go against that.
That's when I
see them welcoming a third on stage.
Coco!
All I can do is
whisper, “Fuck.”
Lucca and Camilla surround her.
You would think they were lifelong friends. How could Coco be so
stupid to trust those two after all they'd done.
“What is she doing?” Nero asks me.
I don't have time to answer.
“I wanted
everyone to help me celebrate my pregnancy,” Coco states, “I
have decided to carry a child and heir to the throne for King Nero
and his soon-to-be husband Santos!”
My mouth drops open.
Fuck.
Just at that moment Vigorosa comes out. No doubt Lucca arranged all of this. Cameras are flashing. They are going off. The cameras now turn to Nero and I. We just so happen to be holding hands at that moment. No one would have noticed if Coco didn't put all the attention on us.
Nero doesn't know how to react. I don't know how to react either. I'm sitting there feeling like an idiot. Why would Coco do this? Why would she announce her pregnancy to the ENTIRE city before she even told me?
Nero wasn't even divorced from his husband yet for godsakes.
The Axis of Evil doesn't waste time. Any other day and I would have been happy to see Aiden look like he's about to break down completely. Today was different though. We were on the verge of peace.
We were so close
that I could taste it.
“This is how
you repay me?” Arie asks Nero, “THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY
ME!”
Aiden shakes his head, “I'm still married to
you Nero and you are planning a child with someone else.”
“This
is unforgivable!”
We can't take it back. The entire city knew that Nero and I were planning to have child of our own now. The entire city knew that Coco was carrying our baby. The entire city knew that Nero was planning on divorcing Aiden and marrying me.
Roxanne is the
one who is calming them down, “You will lower your voice when
you speak to King Nero.”
Arie finally has
gone over the edge. He doesn't even pay attention to Roxanne. She's
usually able to keep order but right now she could be no one to him.
Arie's fangs are showing, “I promised to take over your
role and keep you and this FUCKING DEMON you are in love with safe!”
“How dare you talk about Santos like that?” Nero states.
That's when it
happens.
Nero slaps Arie.
It is the slap heard around Eden. The cameras get it. The nobles in the room shriek. Arie was respected. He was beyond respected. All hell was breaking loose. People were screaming. I mean Arie had a fucking golden statue in the front of this very basilica. Nero smacking him was a mistake and Nero is so upset that he doesn't even see it that way.
Arie's fists balls up.
“You cannot hit the King back,” Roxanne tells him.
She's saying what we were all thinking. The charge would be death if Arie hit the king back. As much as I didn't agree with Arie I did respect him. I didn't want that to happen to him.
Arie looks at
Roxanne, “I challenge him to Combat Sanglant.”
More
gasps.
Combat Sanglant was the vampire fight to the death. An ancient fight. The last one happened over 100 years ago.
“You can't
challenge the King of Eden to Combat Sanglant,” Roxanne states,
“This is law.”
Arie looks over at me, “I'm
not challenging Nero. I'm challenging Santos.”
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chapter in advance go to www.crushedcrown.com