The water swirls crimson as I scrub the dried blood from my hands.
My reflection in the bathroom mirror is unfamiliar—eyes too wide, skin too pale, the faint glow of the pendant around my neck beating like a second heart.
His heart.
I grip the sink as another pulse runs through me—Mateo's feelings seeping into mine. Cold control. Barely contained tension. I sense a metallic tang, like the sharp edge of a blade.
It's him. It's real.
This isn't some figurative "link." It's a blood-bond, alive in my chest.
I dry my hands and put on the black dress Valentina chose for me. Sleeveless, high-necked, with silver embroidery in the shape of a serpent. Appropriate.
The second I close the clasp, the pendant tightens. I flinch as a jolt surges through my spine—like Mateo's breath touches my neck.
I'm starting to resent how stable he is. How composed. How in control.
I head toward the council chamber two floors down, boots echoing on marble.
Inside, the room smells of wax, cigar smoke, and politics. The Serafino council stands on both sides of a long, carved table. Matteo stands at the far end, back straight, hands clasped behind him. When I enter, he doesn't even look up.
I'm already invisible. Or owned.
Valentina nods to me from her spot by the door.
The oldest councilman, Gregori, examines me closely. "This is the girl?"
Mateo's voice cuts through the murmurs. "This is Ivy Rossi. Bound by oath. She answers to no one but me."
Whispers break out. "A Rossi? Are you crazy?" "She's a nobody." "This violates every tradition—"
Mateo raises a hand.
Silence.
He looks at me. "Tell them what you are."
I force myself forward. "I am Ivy Rossi. Fighter. Survivor. And I'm the one who drank your heir's blood and lived."
They stare. Some with disgust. Some with barely hidden curiosity.
Gregori leans forward. "And if we order you to prove that bond?"
Mateo's eyes narrow. "You'd be dead before she reached the blade."
Tension crackles across the room.
That's when I feel it—his anger. Like cold fire under my skin.
I clench my fists to keep from reacting. My breathing feels foreign. My thoughts blur at the edges. His control isn't slipping—it's consuming.
The meeting ends without another word. Mateo walks past me without a glance.
Valentina touches my arm. "Come. You need rest."
"Where's my sister?" I ask.
"She's alive. That's all you need to know."
No. It's not.
Hours later, I lie awake in the estate's south wing—stone walls, barred windows, and a camera I pretended not to notice. The pendant burns against my chest, every beat syncing with his.
It's worse now. I can feel him thinking.
He's reviewing reports.
He's angry about an ambush on a shipment.
He's… worried about me?
The sensation vanishes before I can grasp it.
I throw off the blankets. Enough of this.
I creep down the hall barefoot, past guards who barely glance at me. One wrong word from Mateo and I'd probably disappear.
But I know how to move silently.
Valentina said the locket was kept in the private vault beneath the estate. Rumors say it strengthens the bond—maybe even lets the connected individuals control each other.
If I can get to it, maybe I can *reverse* it.
I slip into the service elevator and descend.
The lower level smells like old stone and formaldehyde. Two guards stand at the vault. I wait until one steps away to light a cigarette.
The other nods as I approach. "Clearance?"
I show the pendant. "He wants me to test the locket personally."
He hesitates.
I lean in. "Do you want to be the one who tells him no?"
He steps aside.
I slip inside.
The vault is colder than the rest of the house. Magic vibrates against the walls like static.
In the center: a pedestal. On it sits the Serafino locket—black iron shaped like a serpent swallowing a gemstone. It beats with the same rhythm as my own pendant.
I reach out—
The moment my fingers touch it, everything explodes.
My vision floods with light.
Glimpses of Lena—tied to a hospital bed, wires attached to her arms. Mateo kneeling in blood. Fire. A massive stone gate inscribed with runes.
I gasp.
The locket falls into my palm, burning hot.
I clutch it to my chest and stumble back.
Alarms blare overhead.
The vault lights flash red.
The door slams shut behind me.
Locked in.
I spin, heart pounding.
Then I feel him—Mateo.
Not just emotionally now. Physically. Inside my chest. Inside my mind.
"What did you do?" His voice crashes into my skull like a thunderclap.
I drop the locket and fall to my knees. "Get out of my head!"
"You opened the seal," he growls. "You don't understand what's inside that thing—"
I scream.
Magic coils through me, dragging me down into memory or vision—I can't tell the difference anymore.
The last thing I see is a woman—eyes glowing gold, smile full of blood—reaching toward me.
And whispering my name.