Summons
The silver letter arrived at midnight, as all communications from the Vampire Court did. Dr. Elena Vasquez set down her medical journal and studied the elegant script that seemed to shimmer in the lamplight of her apartment. After five years as the city's leading hematologist, she thought she'd seen everything blood-related. She was wrong.
Dr. Vasquez,
Your expertise is required at the Obsidian Palace. A matter of utmost urgency concerning our Queen's condition. You will be compensated handsomely for your discretion and skill.
Come alone. Tonight.
Elena should have thrown the letter away. Should have called the police, or at the very least, her rational mind. Instead, she found herself driving through the fog-shrouded hills outside the city, following directions that led to a mansion that shouldn't have existed.
The Obsidian Palace rose from the mist like a fever dream—all Gothic spires and glowing windows that cast an otherworldly light across perfectly manicured gardens. As Elena approached the massive front doors, they opened without her having to knock.
"Dr. Vasquez." The man who greeted her was tall, pale, and unnervingly handsome. "I am Marcus, the Queen's advisor. Thank you for coming."
"I'm not sure why I'm here," Elena admitted, clutching her medical bag tighter. "Your letter was rather… vague."
Marcus's smile revealed just a hint of elongated canines. "All will be explained. Please, follow me."
They walked through corridors lined with portraits whose eyes seemed to track their movement. Elena's scientific mind catalogued everything—the perfect temperature despite no visible heating system, the way sound seemed muffled by invisible forces, the subtle scent of roses and something darker she couldn't identify.
"Dr. Vasquez," Marcus said as they approached an ornate door, "what I'm about to show you will challenge everything you believe about the world. I need your word that you'll keep an open mind."
Elena straightened her shoulders. "I'm a scientist. I deal in facts and evidence."
"Good. Because you're about to encounter both in ways you never imagined."
The doors opened to reveal a bedroom that belonged in a palace. Rich velvet drapes, antique furniture, and in the center, a bed where the most beautiful woman Elena had ever seen lay as still as death.
She was ethereal—alabaster skin that seemed to glow from within, long black hair spread across silk pillows, and even unconscious, an aura of power that made the air itself feel electric. But it was the complete stillness that made Elena's medical training kick in.
"She's not breathing," Elena said, moving toward the bed.
"She doesn't need to," Marcus replied. "Usually. But something is wrong, and we don't know what. She's been like this for three days."
Elena stared at him. "Are you telling me she's—"
"Queen Seraphina is the oldest and most powerful vampire in existence," Marcus said quietly. "And she's dying."