CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

T he four of them stepped out into the courtyard where what looked like a stadium had been erected. At the front was a stage with all the things Ben would expect at an execution.

“Wow, this is impressive,” Brianna said. “They put all this up tonight.”

“Not our first rodeo,” Craig explained. “Executions have been happening in our race for centuries.”

Ben often forgot Brianna was a new vampire, a former human. News of the Moretti commander mating had been vampire gossip a few months ago, and the gorgeous redhead was admired by many young females—and more than a few males, he suspected. Not that anyone would dare admit it to the big guy.

Ben hid a smile.

Brianna was beautiful, but in his eyes, no one was more stunning than Anna. From the moment he’d laid eyes on the blue-eyed blonde, she had stolen his attention and kept it. She was like a brilliant spark of light in the darkness, despite what she had gone through.

Despite not believing she belonged anywhere in life, Ben wished Anna could see she stood on her own podium. People navigated to her and loved her because of the way she saw life. She loved big, and he felt like he was going to lose something very special by walking away.

He watched Anna cast her eyes around the space and felt her nervousness. Ben took a step closer, and she moved away.

Goddamn her.

“Stop it,” he growled quietly. She send him an annoyed look.

Craig and Brianna moved away, so he took Anna’s hand discreetly, but she pulled it back.

“Ben, I told you. Stop.”

He gritted his teeth and bent down to face her. “This isn’t a mixer party; you don’t have to look single.”

Anna frowned at him.

“Don’t be ridiculous. That’s not what this is about. I just need to keep space between us,” she gritted out. “I...fell for you, Ben, and it hurt.”

Past tense? Was she over him already?

She looked away and folded her hands in front of her.

Ben shoved his own hands in his pockets, frustrated. He knew she was right, though. After today, he would leave her, but the deep need to have Anna tucked under his arm, safe and protected, showing everyone she was his was all consuming.

It wasn’t just that. Knowing she was pulling away from him, separating from him physically and emotionally, ripped at his heart. Ben wanted to scream no at her while also being angry as fuck at himself for being the source of her pain.

The stadium filled up with guests, and the four of them found their seats. Sofia and Lance walked up the steps toward them, and Ben caught his sister’s eye. She glanced between him and Anna and raised a brow.

He didn’t respond.

Lance pulled Sofia up against him and kissed her. “I’ll come back directly after, okay?”

Sofia nodded. “Have...be...my God, what does someone say in this instance?”

Lance smiled. “I got this, babe. Go sit.”

Ben stood. “Sofia.”

She turned and accepted his brotherly hug. He led her to the seat between Anna and Brianna. Craig sat on the other end.

“Thank you,” she said quietly and twisted her hands. Anna leaned over as he sat back down, and the two females entwined their fingers.

Ben stared at their digits, reflecting on what had brought them all to this moment. The two females he cared about most brought together by Stefano Russo, a monster he had despised for a long time.

The urge to push Lance aside and take the fucker’s head himself was strong, but the male deserved the honor. Ben couldn’t imagine how out of his mind and furious Lance had been knowing his mate was being sexually abused.

If anyone even glanced Anna’s way, he’d rip their head off. What?

He swallowed.

Christ.

Ben glanced at Anna. She gave him a small smile.

Maybe she was his mate?

These feelings were not normal.

Ben was used to feeling lust and attraction for females. Feeling protective of them was also part of being an alpha, but not to this degree. He was feeling murderous. And given what he did for a job, he was well aware of his ability to follow through.

And hell, it wasn’t as if his lust for Anna had disappeared. It hadn’t. Her dress, while modest, had crept up her thighs, showing her creamy, sexy legs, and his fingers were dying to slide gently over them. Even her breasts, which were tucked nicely inside her dress, were calling for him to suckle on her nipples. None of which was appropriate for an execution.

But tell his cock that. It twitched just being near Anna.

They watched Lance head toward the stage where the prince, princess, king, and queen were walking onto. Brayden and Willow stood to one side, Kate on the other, as Vincent stepped up to a microphone.

“Welcome,” King Vincent said, and the crowd clapped. It wasn’t out of celebration, more of acknowledgment.

“Tonight, we come together to witness the execution of our enemies. Those who have orchestrated violence toward and succeeded in harming our kind.” Vincent continued, “Thanks to our powerful and skilled warriors, we have caught these perpetrators, and today, they lose their lives as is the law of the vampire race.”

The crowd responded in different ways. Some clapped, some yelled in support, and some whistled.

“As your king, this is not something I decide on lightly. We have reviewed the evidence, and I have consulted with our representatives around the world. We may not be a democracy, but I have always been an inclusive leader who listens.”

Light clapping.

“The loss of any vampire is a dent to my heart in ways I could never put accurately into words,” Vincent shared.

Ben glanced around. No one had reacted to that. Sure, a king loved his people, but regardless, it was an interesting thing to say.

“My father took Roberto Russo’s head one hundred and thirty years ago when he challenged his throne, and today, I will take those of his sons,” the king said, looking somber but powerful. “The prince and I were present that night, when our father warned the Russo’s from their rebellious acts. They did not heed his warning, and tonight their lives come to an end.”

Ben’s eyes moved to Brayden, who stood close to Willow. She looked pale and not comfortable at all. The prince, though, was solid and sure. His support for his brother was clear on his face.

“Bring out the prisoners,” the king ordered.

Over the next twenty minutes, members of the army took the heads of the rebel vampires who had been involved with the deaths, rape, and destruction of Moretti property as part of the rebellion movement.

Anna had flinched but held her own as she watched.

And now, it was time for the final act. Ben tensed as the Russo brothers, Marco, Luca, and Stefano, were led on stage. The crowd around them hushed.

Anna gripped the side of her seat, and Ben’s eyes lifted to her face. She was pale. Beside her, Sofia’s jaw was clenched, her eyes filled with emotions.

And he just had to sit there like a fucking puppet.

Nope, not happening.

Ben watched as the Moretti warrior took Marco’s and Luca’s heads as the two of them shouted curses. Stefano Russo stood staring out at the crowd defiantly, void of all emotion except hate.

Their bodies were removed as Lance stepped forward, a sword in his hand hanging at his side.

“Stefano Russo, you are hereby charged with leading the rebellion forces which resulted in the deaths and suffering of dozens of vampires, kidnapping of the queen and princess, and multiple attempts to overthrow the crown,” the king announced.

Stefano slowly turned to face Vincent, and Lance kicked him in the back of the legs so he dropped to his knees.

“Fuck you,” Stefano spat. “None of you have any idea what is coming your way.”

The crowd began to shuffle uncomfortably around them, and Ben narrowed his eyes at Russo. The guy knew more than he had shared. He all but prayed the vampire kept his mouth shut and didn’t scare the populace any further. It was, after all, being broadcast across VampNet.

“Oh God,” Anna whispered, her mouth dropping.

Sofia let out an anguished sound.

Yeah, fuck this. Ben was not sitting by while these females suffered. Damn their pride.

He moved fast.

Lifting Anna off her seat, Ben pulled her into his arms and moved into her seat, placing her on his lap. Her arm draped around his neck, and she leaned into him. With his other arm, he pulled Sofia against his side.

“Don’t fight me,” Ben whispered quietly to them both, and they didn’t. Instead, the two females sunk into the protection of his body. He let out the breath he’d been holding and finally relaxed. As much as one did at an execution.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Craig turn to him. With the smallest movement, the commander nodded in respect, and they both turned back to the stage.

“Take his head!” Vincent ordered Lance.

“With fucking pleasure,” Lance cried and lifted his sword in the air.

The crowd went deathly quiet, and when metal met flesh and did what it was designed to do, vampires leapt to their feet and cheered.

Stefano Russo was a well-known and hated member of their race. Ben and the senior members of the Royal Army knew there would always be someone else to step into his shoes, among many other enemies, but you had to celebrate wins when they came along.

Being an assassin wasn’t exactly the type of job a mother would want for a son, but he eliminated the bad guys, and there was a great sense of achievement in doing what he did. He was keeping vampires and humans safe from some of the most evil beings that walked the earth.

Did he sleep well at nights?

Hell yes. He was a predator after all. An alpha predator. And yet, as he sat with Anna in one arm and his sister in the other, he’d never felt more important and needed in his life.

Sofia’s forehead fell against his shoulder, and he rubbed her back.

“It’s okay,” Ben murmured and stared into Anna’s blue eyes as they lifted to his. When a tear slipped out, he leaned and kissed it away. His head lifted, and he saw Lance approach.

“Sofia,” Ben said quietly. “Your mate approaches.”

She turned her head as Lance neared, and the SLC gave Ben a look of appreciation as he handed Sofia over to him. The large male wrapped Sofia in his arms and held her tightly.

Ben watched them.

He wanted that. He really fucking wanted that. Wrapping both arms around Anna, he leaned into her hair. “Do you understand now? Why I have to do this. There are more of them, Anna. I cannot sit by idly until they are all eliminated so they can’t hurt you again.”

She nodded against him. “Can you take me home, please?”

Yeah, he could fucking do that. With pleasure.

“Yeah, babe,” he replied and shot Craig a look, hoping he could read his mind. The vampire nodded, his own arm around Brianna, who was clinging to the guy’s enormous thigh.

Ben stood and glanced at the stage to the cleanup going on. Around them, vampires were celebrating while the king and queen exited stage right. Brayden was leading Willow behind them, and it was obvious the princess was just holding it together.

Ben doubted anyone would be concerned. Despite the fact that vampires were predators and the majority of them were pleased to see the end of the Russo’s, bloodshed was not their everyday past time, and many vampires had mated humans and knew the time it took for them to adjust to their culture.

Anna stood, and they took one of the side exits, heading back to her apartment, and Ben didn’t let go of her for one damn second.