Chapter 1

Our blood-oath ceremony was on the horizon.

But my fated mate, Darius, told me he had to forge a blood bond with another woman.

Livia.

He claimed her life force was unraveling. That without his blood, she would fade to nothing.

I fought him. But the next day, he moved Livia directly into the Prince's Chambers in the Coven’s castle.

That was the suite reserved for the future Prince’s mate.

My suite.

He tried to soothe me, sinking to his knees, his crimson eyes pleading. “Once she’s stable, I swear I’ll break the bond. You are my only eternity. You always will be.”

But then Livia found me.

She showed me the fresh, golden mark on her wrist—the symbol of an Eternal Bond.

They had already completed the sacred rite. Long before Darius ever confessed to me.

My heart shattered to ash.

I dragged my nail across the calendar, carving a vicious X over the date that was supposed to be our blood-oath ceremony.

Then I opened the encrypted message from the Vienna Coven Academy.

“I accept. I’ll leave on the day of our ceremony.”

Chapter 1

Right before our blood-oath ceremony, my mate, Darius, said he needed to forge a blood bond with another woman. Livia—the woman who had supposedly saved his life.

“I have to forge a temporary, life-sharing bond with Livia. She’s dying, Isolde. Her life source is failing.”

Darius’s gaze was heavy.

My hands stilled over the Eternal Blood.

The potion was for our ceremony. It was meant to ensure the soul-link between fated mates would never fray.

And now, he was asking me to accept him bonding with someone else.

My fingertips began to tremble.

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“This isn't a request, Isolde.” His voice, laced with the authority of a Prince, echoed in the vast alchemy lab. “It’s already done, Isolde. I forged the bond this morning. In the forgotten sanctuary.”

“In the sanctuary…” My hand shook so violently the potion vial slipped and shattered on the stone floor. “That’s the place for our Eternal Vow!”

“I owe her my life.”

“I don’t care what you owe her!” My voice cracked like a whip. “A blood bond is sacred, Darius! It was supposed to be for us—”

“One year,” he cut me off, his bloodshot eyes wide with disbelief. “A life is on the line,” he snarled. “How can you not understand?”

“I promise, I’ll break it when the term is up. She’ll live, and you will still be my one and only eternal mate.”

I glared at him, my jaw tight. “I don’t agree. Not unless you want to tear our twin soul bond apart.”

Darius’s eyes finally turned to ice. “This isn’t a request, Isolde. A life is on the line. Don’t make me use my princely command.”

He promised, “It’s just a temporary bond. It won’t affect our link. In a year, everything will be back to normal.”

Then he turned in a flash of anger, his body dissolving into a blur of shadow at the door and vanishing down the hall.

A second later, the door slammed shut behind him, moved by an unseen force.

The oppressive weight of his princely fury lingered long after he was gone.

The next day, I stood at the entrance of the Coven’s castle. A black, stretch limousine glided silently to the curb.

My blood ran cold.

Darius got out of the passenger side and gently helped a woman so delicate, so fragile, from the car.

Livia.

She was so pale, it looked like a stiff night breeze could blow her away.

Darius’s arm was wrapped around her waist. The possessive way he held her froze the blood in my veins.

“Careful on the steps,” he said, his voice so gentle it made me want to scream.

It was a tone he had never once used with me.

I watched them walk into the building and step into the antique elevator reserved only for the Prince.

It went straight to the top floor.

To the Prince’s Chambers, the suite reserved only for the future Prince’s mate.

My suite.

Three hours later, Darius returned to our chambers.

I was waiting on the sofa, clutching a glass of long-cold wine.

“Is she settled?” My voice was terrifyingly calm.

Darius took off his jacket. “The blood-healer said she needs absolute quiet.”

“So you put her on the top floor.”

“It has the best defensive wards,” he said, avoiding my eyes. “It’s just temporary.”

I stood and walked slowly toward him.

“Darius, where were you last night?”

He stiffened for a second. “Dealing with the Hunter conflict. I told you.”

“All night?”

“It was more complicated than I expected.”

I moved closer, close enough to smell another woman on him—not on his clothes, but woven into his very soul.

The mixed soul-resonance was like a poison-tipped silver needle, stabbing straight through our soul-link.

A sharp, tearing pain shot through my soul, and I nearly buckled.

It wasn’t just Livia’s scent. It was deeper, more entwined.

It was the kind of soul-deep resonance that only came from an Eternal Bond.

He had lied.

He wasn’t dealing with a conflict last night.

He was completing the damned bond with her.

And now, he was trying to ask my permission for something he’d already done.

“Do you even still need my permission?” I stepped back, fighting the burn in my eyes.

“You have to understand, Isolde. A life is at stake.” Darius moved toward me, reaching for my hand.

“You’re my fated mate,” he insisted, as if that explained everything. “You’re supposed to be on my side.”

I snatched my hand back. “I need more time.”

“There is no time. She won’t last much longer.”

Just then, the private elevator to the penthouse suite opened.

Livia stepped out, draped in one of my white silk robes.

Her cheeks held a sickly flush, but her eyes were unnervingly bright.

She walked straight to Darius, draping herself against his chest like a vine.

“Thank you, Darius,” she said, her voice weak but sweet, her eyes locked on me. “I feel so much stronger now.”

Chapter 2

I didn’t sleep.

After Livia returned to the Prince’s Chambers, Darius went up with her.

“Her soul is still unstable,” was the only explanation he gave.

I sat in our empty suite, the feeling of their soul-merge replaying in my mind.

The fracture in our soul-link ached, a constant, painful reminder.

Then I remembered.

Three weeks ago.

That night.

Darius had said he was heading out to deal with a border skirmish with the Hunters. He didn't come back until the next morning.

I was so relieved when he finally returned.

His clothes carried the faint, ritualistic scent of myrrh, ancient wood, and consecrated earth—the unmistakable scent of a blood-oath rite.

I’d even asked him, “Were you at the sanctuary?”

He said, “Just passing by.”

I never imagined he would betray me. Betray our eternity.

Now I understood.

He had forged the Eternal Bond with Livia that night.

And I, like a fool, had been sitting here worried sick about him.

At dawn, my encrypted comm buzzed.

A message from Vienna.

“Dear Miss Isolde, we formally invite you to join our research project on primal blood magic. It is the highest honor for a blood-healer and the perfect place for your talents. Should you be interested, we hope for a reply within the week.”

I stared at the screen.

It was the opportunity I had dreamed of for centuries.

And it was my only way out.

When Darius walked in, I was packing my alchemy instruments.

“What are you doing?”

“Packing my things,” I said without looking up. “Since the Prince’s Chambers have a new occupant, I don’t want to be in the way.”

“Isolde, listen to me—”

“There’s nothing to talk about.” I stood up and met his gaze. “The blood-oath ceremony,” I stated, my voice dangerously calm, “is cancelled.”

The color drained from Darius’s face.

“You can’t do that.”

“I can,” I said, turning back to my packing. “I won’t be bound to a Prince who’s already given his Eternal Bond to another.”

“I told you, it’s temporary!” he roared, grabbing my arm. “I’ll break it in a year!”

“And then what?” I shook him off. “You think I’ll ever trust you again?”

A flicker of pain crossed Darius’s eyes. “Her life source is failing, Isolde. I can’t just watch her die.”

“Why?” I demanded. “Because you owe her? Owe her for what?”

Darius fell silent, his lips a hard, thin line.

“If you won’t tell me, then we have nothing to talk about.” I started for the door.

“Wait!” Darius stumbled after me, and his tall frame sank to one knee before me. “I swear to you, in one year, I will give you the grandest ceremony this continent has ever seen. All the ancient houses will be there to witness it.”

I looked at him, standing there.

I felt no pity. Only a bitter, absurd sense of injustice.

Were our five hundred years together, our fated bond, really going to end over a lie?

Was I really going to give up this easily?

In that moment of hesitation, the elevator doors opened.

Livia stepped out.

Seeing Darius, a fleeting, triumphant smirk crossed her lips.

She walked right up to me and deliberately pulled open the collar of her robe.

“Isolde,” she said softly, her voice full of fake concern, “I know you’re a blood-healer, too. Darius’s princely power is so strong. I’ve felt so much better since we forged the bond, but… it left this brand on me. Can you tell me if it looks right? As a healer, you would know.”

I followed her finger.

To Darius’s chest.

There, where a sacred sigil meant for me should have been, was an unholy mark.

It was more than a mark; it was a soul-brand, glowing with a faint light that repulsed me on instinct.

The center of the ancient family sigil, which should have been blank, waiting for my name to be inscribed during our ceremony…

Now had a name tattooed in arcane ink:

Livia.

A mark like that would take at least three weeks to settle.

I looked up, my eyes ice-cold, and threw a betrothal token I had made for him at his feet.

“Congratulations,” my voice was glacially cold. “It seems this ‘mark’ was made long before your ‘temporary bond.’”

Then, without a second glance at his shocked and questioning face, I walked back to my room.

I looked at the calendar, at the bright red circle around the date of our blood-oath ceremony.

Now, it was my departure date.

Thirteen days until my escape.

I opened the parchment message from Vienna and hit reply.

“I accept your offer.”

Chapter 3

Darius didn’t come back to our chambers that night.

I knew where he was.

The next morning, I opened the Coven’s internal feed.

The top post was a new announcement.

Prince Darius has taken a priceless Soul-Crystal from the Coven’s vault to maintain his blood bond with Livia.

The comments exploded.

“Our Prince forged an Eternal Bond with someone else?”

“But isn’t Isolde his fated mate?”

“I heard that woman, Livia, moved into the Prince’s Chambers.”

“Isn’t the blood-oath ceremony next week?”

I shut off the comm.

At noon, I met my best friend, Chloe.

“You what?” Chloe’s voice was so sharp it nearly shattered her wine glass. “You’re calling off the ceremony?”

“That’s right.”

“Are you insane? He’s your fated mate!”

“A fated mate doesn’t forge an Eternal Bond with someone else right before the ceremony,” I said calmly, sipping my blood-substitute. “And he certainly doesn’t get another woman’s name tattooed on the sacred sigil meant for me.”

Chloe gasped. “The sacred sigil?”

I slid my phone across the table, showing her the picture I’d taken of the sigil on Darius’s chest.

“That manipulative bitch!” Chloe slammed her hand on the table. “She played you!”

“Maybe,” I shrugged. “But it doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Isolde, you can’t just give up. Darius loves you.”

“Loves me?” I gave a bitter laugh. “Does someone who loves you complete an Eternal Bond with another woman behind your back?”

Chloe fell silent.

“I’ve accepted the offer from the Vienna Academy.” I said, standing.

“So soon?”

“If I stay any longer,” I told her, “I’m afraid I’ll do something I won’t regret.”

At eleven that night, I returned to our suite after an ancient texts symposium.

The gathering had been a success.

I’d met several vampires from Europe, including a few Princes I’d never seen before.

When the elevator doors opened, Darius was standing there.

His eyes were cold, his nostrils flaring slightly. “Where were you?”

“A symposium.”

“With who?” he pressed.

“Some colleagues.”

Darius stalked toward me like a predator closing in on its prey. “Don’t lie to me. I can smell another man on your soul. A Prince.”

His hand shot out, cupping my chin and forcing my head up, his lips almost touching mine.

It was a punishing, possessive gesture.

“So what if you can?” I stared right back at him.

A dangerous light flashed in his eyes. “Get away from him,” he snarled, his eyes flashing. “And go wash that Prince’s stench off you before you come near me again.”

“You have no right to order me around.”

“I am your fated mate!”

“No, you’re not,” I pushed him away and walked past him. “You’re Livia’s.”

I headed for our chambers, Darius close behind.

But he didn’t argue. He went straight to the armchair by the fireplace, sat down, and closed his eyes.

I knew what he was doing.

A mental link.

His expression softened, and through our strained bond, I could feel his whispered thoughts.

To Livia.

Our power will grow stronger. Healthier.

Our power.

He was already looking forward to it.

I turned to go back to my room.

“Isolde.”

His voice stopped me.

“There’s something I need to talk to you about. Regarding the ceremony.”

Chapter 4

I stopped and turned, my face an icy mask. “What now?”

“It’s about the Rite of the Crimson Fountain.” He opened his eyes, and they held an unquestionable command. “I need to postpone it.”

“Why.” It wasn’t a question.

“Livia’s soul is still unstable with the bond. The blood-healer said the pure energy of the Crimson Fountain would be good for her.”

He paused, seeming to search for the right words.

The Rite of the Crimson Fountain. The highest honor. The moment we were supposed to receive the blessing of our ancestors in the clan’s sacred blood pool.

“So I’ve decided… she will undergo the rite in your place.”

If she undergoes the rite.

He said it so casually, as if he were rescheduling a meeting.

It was the highest honor for a Prince’s mate, the moment you received the blessing of the entire Coven.

A sacred moment we had dreamed of together.

My heart was numb.

I couldn’t even feel the pain anymore.

I answered in the calmest voice I could manage. “Fine.”

My silence seemed to unnerve him more than any screaming match would have. “You… have nothing to say?”

“No.”

“…Good.” A flicker of relief crossed his face, as if he’d been expecting a much bigger fight.

He continued in a business-like tone. “I’m taking Livia to a private estate outside Seattle. You handle the ceremony preparations. And don’t bother me with the details unless the sky is falling.”

He cut the link.

I walked to my alchemy lab.

It was once filled with vials of Eternal Blood I had carefully brewed for our ceremony, stored in precious crystal decanters.

I had imagined using them to fortify our bond, to protect our eternity.

Darius had never once set foot in here.

He’d said he wasn’t interested in “all these bottles and jars.”

Now, they were meaningless.

With a strangled cry, I grabbed the first precious vial—a potion of stilled starlight—and hurled it against the stone wall.

The sharp crack of shattering crystal and the rich scent of precious elixirs filled the air.

It was a funeral for a future that had already died.

Each one represented a betrayed hope.

When the last shard of stardust potion had settled, I took out my phone and opened the calendar.

Over the date I had marked countless times for the Rite of the Crimson Fountain, I drew a heavy, red X.

Countdown: twelve days.

Chapter 5

For the next week, my comm feed was flooded with rumors.

Livia’s social media was on fire.

A picture of her lying in bed at the luxury Seattle estate, Darius sitting beside her, feeding her his own blood from his wrist.

A picture of her undergoing a strengthening rite in a blood pool, Darius at the edge, watching over her with a focused gaze.

A picture of her during a bond-strength test, Darius holding her hand tightly.

And the captions, dripping with false sweetness: “My Darius takes such good care of me. I’ve never felt safer.”

I didn’t need to read the comments.

“The Prince is so good to her.”

“This is what eternal mates look like.”

“Where’s Isolde? We never see her.”

“I heard she’s busy with her career.”

I turned off the comm and went back to packing.

On the third day, I drove to my parents’ estate.

“Isolde?” my mother said, surprised, as she opened the door. “What are you doing here?”

“I need to talk to you both.”

In the living room, my father put down his ancient tome and looked at me.

“What is it?”

“I’m going to Europe.”

“For a trip?”

“For work. The Vienna Coven Academy invited me to join a research project.” I took a deep breath. “I might be gone for a long time.”

My mother’s face fell. “What about your ceremony?”

“It’s been postponed.”

“Postponed?” My father frowned. “Why?”

“Darius has some things to take care of,” I said, feigning calm. “We decided it would be better to hold it later.”

My parents exchanged a look.

“Isolde.” My mother’s voice was gentle, but her grip on my hand was firm. “We’ve known you for five hundred years. Don’t lie to us. We can see the fracture in your soul from here. Tell us what he did.”

I closed my eyes. “It’s nothing, Mother. I just want to learn more while I’m still young.”

“Does Darius approve?”

“He’s very supportive of my career.”

Another lie.

My father was silent for a long time before finally nodding. “If it’s for your career, we support you.”

“But you must stay in touch,” my mother said, her eyes glistening with tears. “And take care of yourself.”

After leaving my parents’ house, I sent a message to Chloe.

“Can you help me pack?”

An hour later, Chloe appeared at the door to my chambers.

“Gods, what happened here?” she asked, staring at the empty living room.

“I’m moving.”

“Moving where?”

“Austria.”

Chloe sat on the sofa, studying my face. “Okay. Now tell me the truth. What the hell happened?”

I told her everything.

From Darius’s demand to forge the bond, to the defiled sacred sigil, to the cancelled Crimson Fountain rite.

When I finished, the room was dead silent.

Chloe’s face grew darker and darker.

“That bastard!” she suddenly exploded. “How could he do this to you?”

“He has his reasons.”

“What reasons? A life debt?” Chloe shot to her feet and began to pace. “Even if he owes her his life, he has no right to trample all over you like this!”

“Chloe—”

“No, I won’t accept this!” she whirled to face me, her eyes burning. “Five years ago, on the night of the Blood Moon, you reversed your own life force—nearly burned your soul to ash to save him from a hunter’s blade! And he has the audacity to forget that, all for her supposed ‘favor’?”

I turned my face away and said nothing.

Chapter 6

Five days until the ceremony.

Dressed in a formal black suit, I walked into the Coven’s council hall.

All the elders were waiting for me.

“Isolde, are you certain about this?” the Head Elder asked, his voice grave.

“I’m certain.” I placed the formal request on the table. “I am requesting to suspend the blood-oath ceremony.”

A hush fell over the hall.

“Why?” asked the Second Elder.

“Personal reasons.”

“Personal reasons?” The Third Elder stood up. “This concerns the alliance between two ancient houses!”

“That is a matter for the two houses,” I said, my voice echoing in the silent hall. “But my bond is my own. And my decision is final.”

A heated debate erupted behind me, but I didn’t look back.

When I returned to my residence, I saw the familiar black car.

They were back.

The elevator doors opened to reveal Darius and Livia inside.

Livia looked radiant, a healthy flush on her cheeks.

Darius’s arm was still protectively wrapped around her waist.

“Isolde?” Darius’s eyes widened in surprise when he saw me. “Where have you been?”

“Taking care of some things.”

The elevator rose in a tense, suffocating silence, the air thick with everything left unsaid.

“You emptied the alchemy lab?” Darius asked as he pushed open the door to our chambers and saw the barren room.

“I gave it all away.”

“Why?”

“I don’t need it anymore.”

Darius frowned but didn’t press further.

Livia walked out onto the balcony, feigning surprise. “Wow, it’s so empty. I bet it was beautiful before.”

“It was fine.”

“Isolde, I just want to thank you for being so understanding,” Livia said, her voice like honey laced with poison.

“How about we all have dinner together tonight? I’d like to thank you properly.”

I just stared at her.

At my coldness, Livia’s expression immediately shifted, and tears welled in her eyes.

“Did I… Did I say something wrong?” She turned to Darius, her voice trembling. “I just wanted to show my gratitude…”

Darius’s face instantly darkened.

“Isolde,” he growled, his voice edged with his princely command. “Get a hold of yourself. Livia is our guest. You’re making her uncomfortable.”

I looked at him calmly. “Fine.”

At dinner, a goblet of Sanctified Blood was served.

Darius had ordered it especially for Livia.

I recognized the botanicals immediately—their power only awakens when shared between two souls linked by an Eternal Bond.

He poured me a glass. “You should have some too. It’s good for you.”

I took the goblet and took a sip.

A foreign, nauseating energy immediately clashed with my own soul’s essence.

My body instinctively rejected it—a physical, painful proof of his betrayal.

Darius froze.

He’d forgotten.

That kind of Sanctified Blood was useless to me now.

My comm chimed.

Ignoring Darius, I walked out onto the balcony, sliding the glass door shut behind me before answering in a low voice.

“Miss Isolde? It’s the secretary from the Vienna Academy. Your passage on the ship has been confirmed.”

I hung up, my heart hammering. Just as I turned, a low voice cut through the darkness behind me, cold and sharp as a shard of ice.

“Who’s leaving?”

Chapter 7

I spun around.

Darius had appeared silently behind me.

He stood just outside the balcony door, like a figure condensed from shadow, his eyes like chips of ice.

The lingering pain from the energy clash had made me forget—a Prince’s hearing can cut through walls.

Thank the Night Goddess he hadn’t heard everything.

“A healer from the Southern Coven,” I said smoothly, not breaking stride as I walked past him. “She’s leaving for the Amazon to study primal bloodlines.”

Darius followed me, sitting back down. “Which friend?”

“You don’t know her.”

“Her name.”

“Why should I tell you?”

Livia coughed delicately. “Darius, don’t be so hard on Isolde. A girl’s secrets are important.”

Her words seemed to pacify him.

“Sorry,” he said to me, though his eyes were still full of suspicion.

But he didn’t press further, seemingly unwilling to sour the mood again.

His gaze softened as he turned to Livia, pulling a beautiful box from his jacket.

“What’s that?” Livia asked curiously.

“For you.”

Inside was a ‘bond amplifier,’ fed by his own heart’s blood and engraved with complex runes.

I could read them clearly: Darius and Livia, Eternal Blood-Kin.

“It’s exquisite,” Livia breathed, her fingers tracing the runes as she fastened it. “A betrothal gift?” she asked, her eyes wide with a perfectly rehearsed innocence.

“Mmm-hmm.” Darius fastened the clasp for her. “I’ve infused it with my princely power. It will protect your soul.”

He took out his comm and snapped a photo of her in the mirror.

“Smile.”

She smiled like an innocent child, her eyes sparkling with pure happiness.

Darius immediately sent the photo to her with the caption: My soul’s guardian.

“It suits you,” I commented.

Darius looked at me, a flicker of distance in his eyes.

The next afternoon, I went to an antique shop for some last-minute travel supplies.

As I approached the door, I heard a familiar voice from inside.

“Check the bond strength again.”

It was Darius.

Through the glass, I could see Livia lying on a diagnostic table, Darius standing anxiously beside her.

“Everything is normal,” the blood-healer said. “The bond is very stable.”

“Thank you,” Darius said, taking Livia’s hand. “The healer says our power will be very strong.”

I turned to leave, but the bell on the door gave me away.

“Isolde?” Livia called from inside. “Are you here to shop too?”

“Just passing by.”

“Wait, we can walk together,” she said, turning back to Darius. “I’ll be right out.”

Ten minutes later, they emerged together.

“How are the ceremony preparations going?” Livia asked innocently. “I hear it’s going to be grand.”

“The ceremony will proceed as planned,” Darius answered for me. “It’s just been slightly delayed.”

I looked at them and said nothing.

“Isolde, I know you must be terribly upset,” Livia said, taking a step closer to me. “But I hope you won’t give up on Darius. The one he truly loves is you.”

Her voice was sincere, her eyes brimming with tears.

“I don’t deserve a man as good as him. You are his fated mate.”

People on the street started to whisper.

“That girl is so kind.”

“She’s willing to suffer for someone else’s happiness.”

“Why does that Isolde woman look so cold?”

I turned and walked away.

“Isolde!” Livia called after me. “Please don’t misunderstand, I really don’t want to take him from you!”

She ran up, trying to grab my arm.

“I know you’re angry, but please, give us a chance to explain—”

“Let go of me,” I said, shrugging her off.

The moment my hand touched her, her gasp was pure theater. She didn’t just stumble; she launched herself sideways, a missile of calculated fragility aimed directly at the blessed silver crosses hanging from the antique shop’s doorknob.

“Ah!” she let out a piercing scream. Puffs of black smoke rose where her palm made contact with the silver, as if it were being eaten by acid.

It was a holy power a low-level vampire couldn’t withstand.

“Livia!” Darius roared, rushing to her side.

He saw her on the ground, then looked at my outstretched hand, his eyes burning with a rage I had never seen directed at me.

“What the hell did you do?!” he snarled, kneeling beside her. “She shares my blood!” he roared, his voice cracking with fury. “How could you lay a hand on her?!”

“I didn’t—”

“Enough!” Darius cut me off. “Apologize to Livia, in front of all these people! Now!”

Chapter 8

“I will not apologize.”

My voice cut through the murmuring crowd.

Darius froze. “What did you say?”

“I said, I will not apologize.” I pointed to a nearby building. “That building has a magical playback crystal. It recorded everything. Shall we review it?”

Livia’s face went white.

“No… no need to bother,” she said weakly. “It was probably just an accident…”

But her words were cut off by a pained groan.

“It’s a holy burn!” she cried, clutching her palm, her face growing even paler. “The power from that silver is too strong!”

Darius immediately swept her into his arms. “Hold on. I’m taking you to the healing center.”

He dashed across the street toward the center without a single glance back at me.

The crowd began to disperse, but the whispers continued.

“That Isolde is so cold-blooded.”

“The poor girl is hurt, and she won’t even say she’s sorry.”

“No wonder the Prince prefers the gentle one.”

I stood there, staring in the direction of the healing center.

Then I turned and walked away.

The next day was the final day before the ceremony.

In the morning, I had all my luggage shipped.

All that was left was a small backpack with essentials and my ticket.

The ship was scheduled for 3 p.m.

At ten that night, Darius finally returned.

“How’s Livia?” I asked.

“Stable,” he said coldly. “The blood-healer said if I hadn’t brought her in so quickly, her soul could have been permanently damaged.”

“That’s good.”

Darius walked toward me, his eyes still burning with rage.

“Tomorrow,” he said, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous command. “At the ceremony. You will apologize to her. In front of everyone.”

“What ceremony?”

“Our blood-oath ceremony.” He frowned. “Did you forget?”

I looked at him and suddenly wanted to laugh.

“You really think there’s still going to be a ceremony?”

“Of course there is. I’ve already notified all the elders.” Darius’s tone grew impatient. “For the honor of the Coven, you need to see the bigger picture.”

His comm suddenly rang.

“Darius, I don’t feel well,” Livia’s voice came through the speaker. “Can you come be with me?”

Darius shot to his feet. “I’ll be right there.”

He grabbed his coat and headed for the door.

“Nine a.m. tomorrow. Don’t be late,” he ordered without looking back. “The ceremony will start on time.”

The moment the door clicked shut, I let the silence envelop me.

Then, I walked to the window, and into the void, I chanted the vow I had rehearsed a thousand times in my heart, in the ancient tongue of the first vampires.

The air began to thrum, unseen magic gathering between my lips.

“I, Isolde, of House Volkov, do cast off the bond with Darius, of House Aleron.”

“Blood to blood, soul to self. By my will, the covenant is broken. By my heart, the tie is severed.”

As the final syllable fell, I felt the dull, pulling sensation in my chest snap.

He was gone. Completely.

I waited until dawn.

Sitting at my desk, I took out the ancient bloodline registry.

In blood-red ink, I drew a single, clean line through our names, and below it wrote one word:

Annulled.

Then I grabbed my bag and walked out of the place I had once called home.

On my way to the docks, I sent a message to the Head Elder.

Initiate the severance rite. The blood-oath ceremony is cancelled.

At 9:30 a.m., my ship had already left the port.

Behind me, the city—the Coven, my past—shrank until it was swallowed by the sea mist.

I imagined Darius in that moment.

He would be at the sacred altar by now.

Dressed in his most splendid ceremonial robes, waiting for his bride.