••{AZRAEL'S POV}••
The fire in the hearth burns low, embers cracking softly as I stare into it. The flames reflect in the dark glass of bloodwine in my hand, red catching gold, swirling slowly as I tilt the cup without drinking.
I never expected this.
I knew Rhiannon's blood was different. I knew it carried power. I just didn't know that the scent alone would be enough to ignite the entire court, to drag every vampire in the Empire of Night into a frenzy so violent it will echo throughout history.
And now the very thing I tried to prevent has come to pass.
They all know.
Every kingdom. Every house. Every noble with ambition in their veins now knows what my wife carries in her blood.
"You should've at least told me, Azrael."
My jaw tightens at the sound of my mother's voice. It's sharp but controlled. The kind she uses when her anger is barely leashed.
"How could you do something like this and not tell your own family?"
