The ritual chamber still stank of ash and betrayal.
Ariana sat on the edge of the stone platform, cloak wrapped tight around her body. Her skin still tingled from the remnants of dark magic. Damien stood beside her, shirtless, wounds from the explosion already healing—but his silence said everything.
Someone had sabotaged the ritual.
Someone close.
"They knew the sequence," he muttered, pacing. "They knew when the blood would bind. That means it was someone from inside my inner circle."
Ariana flinched. "Esme?"
"She doesn't have the skill," Damien said. "Or the spine."
"Then who?"
He stilled.
A chill passed between them.
"Xander," Ariana whispered.
Damien didn't answer—but the fire in his eyes said enough.
---
In the upper halls of the Blood Keep, Xander stood before the ancient throne of their ancestors—watching the storm swirl over the mountains through stained-glass windows.
He held a shard of obsidian in his hand. Stained with blood.
Not his own.
"She survived the sabotage," said the vampire at his side—Tania, lips curled in distaste.
"Barely," Xander replied. "But that was only the beginning."
"She's human," Tania said. "She shouldn't be this strong."
Xander's smile was cruel. "That's because she isn't just human anymore. Not after that night."
"You saw the vision?"
"Oh yes," Xander said, turning to her. "The bond has begun forming, even without the full ritual. And it's weakening Damien. Softening him."
He flicked the shard into the fire.
"Which makes her the perfect target."
---
Back in Damien's private chamber, Ariana walked slowly around the ornate circle drawn in chalk and blood. Her voice trembled, but she didn't stop.
"Your brother will come after me."
Damien nodded. "He already has."
"Then you have to finish the ritual," she said. "Seal the bond. Mark me."
Damien's jaw tightened. "You saw what it did to Selene."
"I'm not Selene," she snapped. "Don't you dare treat me like some fragile doll. If you're going to keep me in this world, Damien, I want the power to survive it."
"You don't understand what that power costs."
Ariana stepped up to him, grabbed his face in both hands.
"Then show me," she whispered. "All of it. Your darkness. Your rage. Your past."
She kissed him—hard, full of fire and desperation.
And for a moment… he gave in.
His hands gripped her waist. He slammed her against the wall with a growl, pressing their bodies together like he needed her to breathe. His fangs grazed her throat. She tilted her head willingly.
But he stopped.
Pulled back.
"No," he whispered.
Her chest rose and fell. "Why not?"
His voice broke.
"Because once I mark you, there's no turning back. And if Xander gets to you after that… if he uses you against me…"
"I won't be your weakness," she said fiercely.
His eyes met hers—dark, torn, full of a thousand wars.
"You already are."