Evelyn's POV
I stood in front of Lucian's chambers, my pulse racing so hard it made my throat ache. My fingers tightened around the neck of the wine bottle I held, and for a long moment, I just stared at the closed door, trying to steady my breathing.
The hall was quiet. Too quiet. Only the faint flicker of torches lit the narrow corridor, casting long shadows that trembled across the stone floor.
This was a terrible idea.
I knew it the moment I agreed to Aiden's plan. To walk into Lucian's den, smile in his face, and get him to drink something that would put him out cold long enough to take what we needed, his blood. The blood of a creature feared even by nightmares.
I took one last deep breath, squared my shoulders, and knocked.
Two slow, deliberate taps.
There was a pause before a voice drifted from inside, deep, low, and distant.
"Come in."
I pushed the door open.
