I squeezed his hand, shaking my head as much as his grip would allow. “Stop worrying about me. I’m as ready for this as I’m ever going to be.” And that was all I could really ask of myself.
Hearing someone delicately clear their throat, we all swerved to find Antonio. He smiled. “It is time.”
(Jared)
Five minutes later, Sam and I were standing hand-in-hand on the man-made podium of the parlour room while Antonio, who was in front of it with the Prelate, gestured for silence. It was the same Prelate that had performed the Binding ceremony. I hadn’t been kidding when I told Sam I was nervous, but luckily they were good nerves. Still, having all these people about to witness our Coronation and knowing that the whole thing was being shown live on V-Tube…it was a little unnerving.
“I realise that it is unusual for so many to be present at a Coronation,” began Antonio, addressing those witnessing over V-Tube. “But I think we can all agree that it was unusual circumstances that brought these vampires here. Their aid and support will never be forgotten. And neither will the actions of the pair you see here – Samantha Parker and Jared Michaels.”
Sensing Sam’s anxiety intensify, I comfortingly rubbed my thumb along her knuckles.
“I am sure you have all already heard the story of how she was willing to not only give up her bond with her mate but to sacrifice her own life for the lives of so many. I am sure you have also heard of how Jared defended his mate, avenged the harm that she and everyone here had suffered. These are people who will risk themselves for those who are under their protection, who will fight to the death if need be, who will avenge those that have suffered. I do not believe there is a bonded pair who would be better suited to rule and protect vampirekind.”
Antonio looked around the room then, addressing everyone. “And so I hope you will all follow and support them as I step down from my position and they rise as the Grand High Pair.” Sam’s hand tightened on mine as both Antonio and the Prelate joined us on the podium. They each laid a hand over our clasped ones, smiling.
The Prelate spoke then. “With everyone here as witness, do you, Antonio, relinquish your position as Grand High Master?”
“I do.”
“Samantha, Jared – will you both agree to lead in his stead?”
“We do,” she and I both said in unison.
“Do you accept their pledge, Antonio?”
Antonio smiled widely, proudly. “I do.”
The Prelate then recited a string of Latin and lifted our raised hands. And it was no more complicated than that.
Antonio’s smile widened as he stepped down from the podium and bowed. Everyone followed suit, including the Prelate.
Oh God, they’re bowing again! Sam was totally freaked out.
It’s all part of the formality.
When we step down, it’s going to be fun, not stiff and…weird.
Stifling a smile, I brushed my thumb over her knuckles again. When Antonio gestured for me to speak, I turned my attention to our audience. “Before I say anything else, I have to thank all of the people who came and joined us against Harry Covington. I also have to thank all of you for accepting Sam’s hybrid status. It was a change that was forced upon her, and she didn’t deserve to be punished for something that she’d never wanted by being hunted or targeted.”
To come after Sam would be to face the wrath of every single resident of The Hollow. Whether she realised it or not, they were as much her protectors as she was theirs.
“With regards to replacing Antonio, I’m torn about the whole thing. On the one hand, this position is an honour and it’s one that I’ll enjoy. But on the other hand, I’ll miss having Antonio as our Grand High Master. I’ll also miss my life as it is now…which is why Sam and I have decided that some changes should be made.”
The Prelate looked horrified by the prospect.
I squeezed her hand. “Want to take the floor, baby?”
She didn’t, I could sense, but I knew that she wouldn’t back out. We’d discussed in advance how this would go, and this was as important to Sam as it was to me. Taking a deep breath, she announced, “Jared and I won’t be isolating ourselves the way that rulers have done before us. It’s not in our nature to sit back and dish out orders while everyone else takes the risks. We like to be in the thick of things. That’s why, although we’ll no longer be Commanders within the legion, we’ll still be personally commanding the squad we have trained.”
Since I was watching all ten of the guys closely, I saw the effect that this emotionally had on them. Hell, not even the mostly emotionless Butch had been untouched by that, though he tried to cover it quickly by bowing his head.
Jokingly, Sam added, “I mean, really, how could we – in good conscience – hand over those awkward sods to another Commander?” The guys just laughed. “They’ll be thought of as the personal squad of the Grand High Pair. Oh and Fletcher, you’ll be remaining our PA.”
Unreal as it was, Fletcher was actually crying and dabbing his eyes with a tissue, while an amused Norm was patting his shoulder.
Sam continued. “The next few matters are kind of close to my heart. There will be no consorts within The Hollow from this night forward – anyone who knows me will no doubt find this amusing, but I don’t care.” And they did find it amusing; the entire room was laughing. “Bonk as much as you want, but if you want exclusivity, you give those girls – or blokes, in some cases – a better title than ‘consort”; that’s all I’m saying. I hope this will become a trend worldwide, but that’s up to you.
“As for anyone who doesn’t want their maker at the Binding ceremony, they don’t have to have them there – sod their rights. Also, the act of Turning humans against their will is punishable by death from this night onwards. Hey, if you’re going to take someone’s human life, why shouldn’t I take your vampire life?” And that was a pretty good point. It was a point a lot of people would agree with, since almost half of the population hadn’t chosen this life for themselves.
“And lastly…”
Lastly? She should have been done by now.
“As part of rebuilding the legion, I’ll be introducing an all-female squad.”
Smiling, I groaned. I shouldn’t have been at all surprised.
“My hope is that the females in this room by the names of Alora, Jude, Ava, Paige, and Imani will accept a place in that squad – you have all earned it.” Going by their pleased expressions, they intended to accept her offer. “Sebastian has agreed to help me scout for other additions to the legion as a whole. So if there’s anyone out there – male or female, Pagori or Keja or Sventé – who thinks they have what it takes, I look forward to meeting you. For now, though, I’m going to say goodbye so I can go spend some time with my mate.”
As everyone clapped and cheers rang out, I turned to face her. “An all-female squad, huh? I should have seen that coming.”
She smoothed out the collar of my shirt. “It will make things interesting.”
Before I had the chance to agree, Luther and Sebastian joined us on the podium, bowing – and, thus, freaking Sam out again.
“The bowing is not necessary,” she assured them.
Sebastian smiled at her fondly. “We just want you to understand that we have pledged our loyalty to you.”
“A few words of explanation could have cleared that up just fine,” she told him.
“We will serve you as we have served Antonio,” vowed Luther…who was just the person that I wanted to speak to.
While Sebastian chatted with Sam, I took Luther aside. “I wanted to ask you something. Your visions…do they always come true?”
My question clearly surprised him. “No. Most of them do, and most of them are extremely accurate, but not all. I have come to think of them as warnings rather than glimpses of what is coming.”