"You're insane!" Selis shouted. "This woman is our chance to end the war with the vampires once and for all!"
"You're the insane one!" Lucian's roar echoed through the chamber. "Naïve, blind! As long as vampires exist, there will never be peace!"
Their eyes locked, fury clashing as hard as their swords.
"Then what are you going to do?!" Selis demanded.
Lucian bared his teeth, voice low and deadly. "I'll kill this woman. And then I'll kill every last vampire left breathing—even if I have to do it myself."
The words hung in the air like a death sentence.
Selis's blood ran cold. For the first time, she realized the terrible truth: Lucian wasn't just fighting for peace. He was fighting for extinction.
The wide stone chamber groaned as if the walls themselves were holding their breath. The torches sputtered, casting their light over the chained woman at the center—the infamous Emerald Blood.
