Drayton
“Let me down. Let—” I jerked at the cuffs as guards began unbuckling them.
“Fuck. Hurry. Just—” I twisted, not taking my eyes from Marian.
She was sitting on the ground, and her back was to me.
I’d seen her fall. If I wanted to be honest, my world had stopped in that moment.
To see her wrath. To see the glimpses of her profile during the carnage.
… Marian was not okay. Elec had run up to her at one point.
I saw the worry on his face. Whether it was for her or the situation, I didn’t know.
I didn’t care. He was worried, and that spoke volumes.
That would have been the last emotion he would have allowed anyone to see, and yet, he couldn’t hide his feelings in that moment.
Something was wrong, and I didn’t like it.
“Hurry. Up!”
My yell caused Marian to jump, but she didn’t turn to face me. Other than the jolt of her body, she didn’t move off the floor. She sat there, rocking, growing still, and then rocking some more.
“She was glorious, wasn’t she? I saw the way you watched. You liked what you saw.”
My top lip pulled back through the spike of rage.
“You destroyed her.”
“You liked it.”
I put everything I had behind jerking against the arm cuffs.
“You’re wrong. She didn’t deserve to be forced to do that.”
“I’m rarely wrong. Marian wasn’t forced to do anything.
She asked for this. She wanted it. What you see …
” The Unavowed shrugged. “It’ll pass. She may look defeated, but she is thriving.
This didn’t destroy her, Drayton, it started the process of rebuilding her.
I just poured the foundation. How you help her build from here is up to you. ”
My feet were freed, and I clenched my fists repeatedly as they moved to my hands.
The moment the straps were free, I winced, racing forward through a pain that nearly brought me to my knees.
There was no me—there was her. There was an us.
Marian and I may have hated each other, but we weren’t separate now that we were married; we were one.
“Marian.”
I came up from behind, slowing as I lowered to my knees and moved in front of her.
Green eyes were barely visible behind her large pupils.
I watched wide eyes take me in, but it was seconds before she came to life and saw me.
Blood-soaked hands lifted to my cheeks but lowered as she frantically searched my body.
“Oh, Drayton. Oh, God. What has he done? He’s marked you. That’ll scar.” She paused, letting her hand hover inches from my stomach. “We are the shadows above kings. Isn’t that part of his creed?”
“Yeah. It’s nothing. It doesn’t matter.” I lifted her hand, taking in the gashes from the knife.
“You’re bleeding. These cuts are bad. Your dress is covered in blood.
You’re … covered in blood.” I quickly rose and grabbed a knife, shredding the silk of her dress to cut a long strip to secure around the hand that was bleeding.
Without thought, my hand lifted, cupping her face so I could run my thumb over the red that was already smeared over her cheek.
Marian immediately turned into my touch, and her eyes closed.
Full lips parted, and I couldn’t stop the way my body reacted as she nuzzled more into my palm.
My heart was racing, feeling everything.
God, I couldn’t deny how strong the love still was.
That knotted my stomach as flashes of her revenge kept blinding me.
“Seems I’m ordering you to your bedroom at the perfect time. I’ll have our doctor address your wounds before the consummation begins. Shower, and he’ll be there shortly.”
Guards approached, and I helped Marian stand, pulling her into my side as I winced through the fire that completely engulfed my chest and stomach. No matter how much I tried to stop the sounds of pain from coming, they kept leaving me at random moments.
“I know you don’t want to do this.” I stopped, trying to control the anger that came with us being forced. “We’re going to make this as fast and painless as we can. I promise.”
Marian glanced at me but stayed quiet as we were led down the long hall.
When the door was opened and we were ushered inside, I couldn’t stop from rolling my eyes at the new décor that had been added during the short time we’d been in the great hall.
The comforter and sheets were changed to a dark red and black.
Even the material had gone from cotton to silk.
Candles were so plentiful that they could have left the lights on for as bright as they lit the space.
Where I was aggravated, Marian swept inside in a relaxed daze.
It had me furrowing my brow as I watched her walk straight to the bathroom.
The guards left and I followed, seeing as she stopped in front of the mirror.
Mostly blonde hair was drenched in blood.
She had the red substance smeared over one side of her face from pushing back her hair, and there was spray spattering the other side in random spots.
The lace sleeves and bodice of the gown held more blood than white.
She looked like she’d just walked out of a horror movie.
With the smile that slowly stretched across her face, I was starting to think that’s exactly where we were.
“Marian?”
A laugh had her shaking her head as she kept her focus on her appearance.
“Did you see what I did to them? I didn’t think it was enough but look at me.
” Again, she laughed. “I brought them with us. I took their lives, and here they are. Right here, on this dress.” Her hands lifted, and her bottom lip trembled.
“I said they’d pay. I-I told her I wasn’t a mouse.
I’m not afraid. I’m a shark. I told her that.
She didn’t believe me. Not really. They saw, though. They saw…”
“Marian.” I stepped forward, turning her to face me. Her lips trembled again as tears filled her eyes, but she continued.
“I’m glad they’re dead. I want to kill them again. I didn’t have a plan. I didn’t know what to do, only that I wanted them to feel my pain.”
“They felt it. We all felt it. We saw it.”
“Her stare widened. “You did?”
“…Yes. We saw.”
The tears fell, and she sniffled, standing taller. Her teeth were beginning to chatter. They were joining the suddenly jerky movements that left her twitching.
“Let’s get this dress off you so we can wash away the blood.”
“Wash it away?” She stepped back. “I’m not washing it away. This is my blood now. I killed them. It belongs to me.”
My lips parted through the confusion.
“You don’t want to take off the dress and shower?”
“What’s the point? I’m about to get bloody all over again.
This night is born of blood; it will end in blood.
If they want a show, they’re going to get one.
In this dress. Just like this. Me, you, covered in our vows.
We are the shadows above kings.” She smiled.
“Drayton, we are the shadows… above kings. Do you know what that means?”
I licked my lips, not able to think past the part of her wanting me to fuck her in her bloody wedding dress.
I shouldn’t. I should give her romance and foreplay.
Anything to get her in the mood to make this less painful.
What she spoke of was just as she said, a show.
It was raw, dirty, and savage, just as I imagined fucking her over those guards’ bodies.
I was going to have her in the next best thing—a dress covered in their blood.
“What does it mean, Marian?”
She blinked through thoughts that seemed to steal her away.
“It’s brilliant, really. The king can never escape the shadow.
The king is at the top of a monarchy. The shadow is above, behind, watching, waiting, stalking the one it is tied to.
This creed isn’t just some doctrine or code members have to say to get into some special club.
This is a revolution. It is a prophecy to fulfill.
Laws didn’t just eliminate an entire bloodline, Drayton.
Families did that. They’ve used time to try to cover their actions.
They used history itself to try to rewrite them.
The shadow above kings is… it’s… hidden, silent.
You can’t escape what you don’t see. What you don’t understand.
The Unavowed, he’s not the king, but he doesn’t have to be.
Kings rule for all to see. They are in the light.
The Unavowed, he’s stronger than a king.
Even amongst the elite above ground, they must know of his power.
It’s there with them… and here… with us.
It breeds and lives in darkness. He has the dark, Drayton, and with the right people at his side, like us, he could win the light. We could help him win.”
“Did I say I like her? I really, really like her.”
The Unavowed walked around the corner of the bathroom door, nearly filling up the space as he leaned against the doorframe.
“I bet you do.” I paused. “We’ll be getting this over with. We’ll worry about a shower afterward. Your doctor can help us with our wounds when we’re clean.” I glanced at Marian. “You’re sure you want it this way?”
Marian didn’t answer. She stood straighter, scanning The Unavowed’s face before speaking.
“Who’s bearing witness?”
He smiled. “I’m feeling generous. Your choice. Who would you like, Mrs. Pennington?”
“Penny.”
“Absolutely not. She’s in trouble for what she pulled tonight.”
“You said it was my choice.”
“Pick someone else.”
I gestured towards The Unavowed. “I take it you’re not sticking around.”
“I am not. I have my own future wife to deal with.”
“You won’t hurt her?”
A soft laugh filled the space from Marian’s question. “I can discipline her without hurting her.”
“She has scars all over her arms. Did you do that?”