The candlelight flickered across the chamber, painting their skin in gold.
Ariana lay tangled in Damien's arms, her head on his chest, listening to the deep rhythm of his undead heart. It didn't beat like a human's. It thrummed in intervals—slow, powerful, like a warning.
He was asleep. Or something close to it. Vampires didn't dream. But Ariana did.
And this time, her dream was not her own.
---
It began with a scream.
Clara's.
Sharp. Wet. Echoing in a stone room that smelled of rust and rot.
Ariana saw her sister tied to a metal table, wrists bleeding. A vampire she'd never seen before circled her—tall, scarred, with white eyes like polished bone.
> "She won't last long," he murmured, holding up a syringe filled with black fluid.
"But her pain is enough to rip her sister's soul wide open."
The vampire turned.
And for a flash—he looked straight at Ariana.
---
She woke with a gasp, heart pounding.
Damien stirred instantly, eyes snapping open. "What is it?"
Ariana sat up, shaking. "Clara. I saw her. Like I was inside her. I could smell the blood. Hear them. Damien—he's torturing her to get to me."
Damien sat up, jaw clenched. "You saw all that in a dream?"
She shook her head. "No. It wasn't a dream. It was real."
Damien stared at her for a long moment.
Then he stood and crossed to his weapons chest.
He pulled out a blade wrapped in shadow-forged leather and a small glass vial filled with glowing crimson.
"What's that?" she asked.
"A truth-blood. It confirms bond gifts."
He brought it to her lips.
Ariana drank.
The burn hit instantly—hot, electric, deep. Her body seized, vision flashing—
And then it was there again.
The table.
The vampire.
But this time—she could feel Clara's pain in her own flesh.
She screamed, nearly collapsing, but Damien caught her.
When her eyes cleared, he looked at her like he was seeing her for the first time.
"You have blood-sight," he said quietly.
"That's rare, isn't it?" she whispered.
He nodded. "Almost extinct. Most mates don't survive it. But if you've connected to Clara… that means she's still alive."
Ariana looked up, eyes glowing faint red.
"I want to find her."
Damien stroked a hand down her hair.
"You will. But there's something you need to know first."
He opened a hidden compartment in the floor and pulled out a scroll sealed in ancient wax.
Ariana tilted her head. "What is that?"
He met her gaze.
"A map of Xander's fortress. Stolen centuries ago. But there's a catch—he's hidden it behind blood wards. Only someone with blood-sight can see the true path."
Ariana's pulse quickened.
"You mean me."
Damien nodded.
"But using it will put you in his reach again. He'll know the second you touch the map."
Ariana stood, stepping into the firelight, unafraid now.
"Let him know."
Her voice was stronger than it had ever been.
"I want him to see me coming."