Free B00C8324IS EBOK by Bella Forrest Page B

and I’m going to do it whether you’re with me or not.”
    I didn’t know how he intended to do it, but I knew he meant every word. The coldness in his voice terrified me, but not as much as the fact that I suddenly felt a n almost animalistic urge to protect The Shade – no matter what.
    It didn’t make sense to me at all, but perhaps Ben was right. They m ust’ve done something to me at The Shade, because no matter how far away from the island I was, I remained its captive, and it felt like there was nothing I could do about it.
    The Shade became a part of me and destroying it felt equivalent to destroying myself.

Chapter 14: Derek
     
    The Great Dome was a large, round hall located at the topmost level of the Crimson Fortress’ west tower. It earned its name due to the dome-like, cavernous structure of its ceiling. It was never officially declared as the main center of all our governmental, judicial and military gatherings, but it became just that over the years.
    The dome was designed to show the hierarchy of The Shade’s Elite. Across the large oak doors, right at the front end of the room, the balcony stood. It had four seats – on a pedestal three feet above the ground was my father, the king’s seat. To its right, two feet above was my seat. On either side of mine were Vivienne’s and Lucas’ seats, situated one foot above the ground. 
    At the very center of the room was a round stage which served as “the stand” for who mever was addressing the council or being placed under trial.
    On either side of the stand and facing the balcony were twenty seats that included one representative for each of the Elite’s vampire clans. Above and surrounding the council seats were seventy-five seats arranged in an amphitheater-styled setting reserved for the Elite. Rarely was anyone who wasn’t a member of the Elite brought to the Great Dome – unless to stand trial.
    When I first paid the dome a visit, it was easy to see that it had rarely been used over the years, which left a lot to be said about how the kingdom was being run in my absence.
    I tasked Vivienne with the responsibility of modernizing the dome, since with all the changes I planned to execute in the kingdom, we were going to use the place a lot more. Given her keen eye for design and knack for getting things done, it took her five and a half days to accomplish the task.
    It was the same basic structure, but brought right into the twenty-first century, with flat screen monitors, and updated sound equipment. She completely refurnished the room – the ancient-looking thrones were replaced with comfortable recliners that still looked elegant and regal. Arguably the best alteration to the hall, however, was replacing the staccato roof with clear glass, so that the moon and stars always shone down on the hall.
    After almost “murdering” the majority of the Elite Council, as Cameron so aptly put it, I found myself comfortably perched on my recliner on the balcony, staring up at the dark sky. I was waiting for the council to show up, so we could discuss the results of the census.
    Eli was placed in charge of the census and since he was still trying to recover from the physical ordeal I put him through, he requested that we postpone the meeting for an hour. The request initially irritated me, but I figured he deserved the break. Not knowing what to do with my time, however, and not really up to spending it at my penthouse, dodging questions from the girls, I decided to go to the dome ahead of everyone else.
    I’d only been there for a couple of minutes when Vivienne showed up.
    “Derek.” She said my name flatly.
    That almost always translated into trouble. “You did a great job with this place, Vivienne.”
    “Yes. You ’ve told me several times.” She climbed her way up to the balcony, right up to my level.
    One look in to her eyes was enough to tell me that we were in trouble. I could have sworn I saw a dark gray haze stirring right at the