CHAPTER 1

LAVINIA QUISPE POV

"Ready as I'll ever be, I guess," I said, and the words came out flat.

Mari's gaze stuck to my reflection in the ornate mirror. "You look like those ancient portraits of your mother on her Binding Day. You have her eyes and that complexion of alabaster. The small freckles, too."

I let out a small puff of air, already tired of the comparisons. “I guess,” I said, smoothing the heavy white robes over my torso. My mother, Rosa, had been tall and slender; I was shorter, with softer curves. The robes hung loose on my shoulders, but a tight crimson sash cinched my waist, and the thin fabric closely skimmed the rest of my body, outlining the pronounced curve of my hips. I wasn't powerfully built or intensely disciplined like a pureblood vampire noble. Why would I be? I’d been confined mostly to lessons on courtly etiquette instead of the rigorous combat training most young nobles underwent.

Mari's wistful sigh pulled me back to the present. "It must be nice to have such a glamorous destiny."

I gave her a pointed look. Mari knew exactly how I felt about my so-called "glamorous" life.

“It’s not all it’s cracked up to be,” I assured her for the thousandth time. Mari belonged to a respectable house; her father was Lord Quispe’s most trusted Regent. Their residence was one of the finer townhouses in the Abribi Covenant District. Of course, my family possessed the largest estate, complete with a sprawling staff. From an outsider’s perspective, I could understand the envy. And yes, pieces of my life were luxurious.

But I learned early that the gilded cages closing in around me were meant to keep me in, not the world out.

I hadn't been allowed to accompany other novices to the academy, but had been privately tutored to shape me into an acceptable socialite-a suitable fixture for my future consorts to parade around, just as my father intended.

“You shouldn’t be so solemn,” Mari chided softly. “Every female Fledgling in the Covenant would kill to be Bound to not one, but three beautiful Princes and you act like it’s a death sentence.

I sighed. "It's not the Princes I have a problem with."

Honestly, Zilo, Klaus, and Zack were the only things making this evening less terrifying and more nerve-inducing. They hadn't been close in years-not since our paths diverged after our relatively carefree shared childhood-still, it was infinitely better than being Bound to complete strangers from rival houses. That was a fate typically reserved for the daughters of less important Vampire Lords. The three men were the closest thing to brothers I had, which was perhaps a strange foundation for a Blood Union especially as they had become near-strangers in recent years.

I had told myself the distance was because of the propriety the Covenant demanded: it was all right for lesser vampires to mix and mingle, but another set of rules applied to me.

Deep down, I knew it was more than that. This night would bind the four of us forever, irrevocably. For me, it was simply trading ownership from my father to my consorts. But for them-strong, proud purebloods tethered only by the extraordinary bond that united them-it was a different kind of shackle: the end of the era of unbridled freedom that powerful young males from significant houses took for granted.

“When was the last time you even saw them?” Mari asked, her head cocked to one side.

It was an innocent question, but it felt loaded. I shrugged. “Zilo stopped by the estate last week to deliver a status report to Father.”

I toyed absently with the signet ring that dangled from a chain around my neck: all I had as a tangible keepsake of my mother, along with the portraits my father kept under lock and key. He had tried to eliminate every vestige of her memory after her death. But when I rubbed my thumb over the dark blue stone, the reminder made me feel as if a part of my mother was still present.

My mother had spoken dreamily about my Binding Day, about watching me walk down the aisle to be claimed by my Prince Charmings. Whenever I had asked about her own Binding Day, Rosa would get a strangely melancholic look in her eyes, so I'd eventually stopped asking. Her union with Lord Quispe had been arranged, of course, and unlike me and the Princes, there had never been a foundation of friendship to ease the way.

Therefore, in that sense, I counted myself as the lucky one; indeed, it was beyond my conscience even to contemplate complaining. It's always worse.

Mari gave me a sympathetic look, which was far from comforting because it let me know the ambivalence of my intended consorts was as obvious to everybody else as it was to me. "Well, I'm sure things will be different once you receive the Blood Mark," she said with a confidence I could only envy. A Sanguine Bond was supposed to unite consorts in theory, but as my parents proved, it was far from foolproof. It could just as easily be a prison as a true bond.

"Yeah," I said, without sounding half as convinced as I had hoped. "I am sure that it will."

A staccato, peremptory knock sounded at the door, and I suffered another strong spasm of apprehension. Our conversation had done absolutely nothing to settle my nerves.

“It is time,” the deep voice of the guard bellowed from the opposite side of the door.

"Duty calls," I said, pulling my robes a bit higher. I met Mari's eyes for a flash of solidarity, before she playfully swatted my hip and opened the door.

I followed the massive, armored guard down the back passageway of the Sanctuary. The instant we drew within earshot of the low, cultured murmur of the Covenant nobles waiting in the main hall, my nerves spiked-a sudden sharp surge of cold dread.

You can do this, Lavinia. It is no big deal. Just the most important day of your life.

I really needed to work on those pep talks to myself.

The Covenant's focal point was the Sanctuary of the Crimson Rite. These were among the most extensive and ancient domains of vampires, so taking part in elaborate ceremonials and complex court cultures was a must to keep them all together and not fight amongst themselves. As my father, Lord Quispe, always liked to say, "Bloodline Purity and Tradition are the keys to stability."

He was probably right about that. He was right on most things, even if he was often insufferable about it.

The Sanctuary was usually decked out to impress diplomatic visitors from Outer Coven Delegations, but as the great doors opened and I saw the sea of crimson candles scattered across the room, bathing the entire chamber in a warm, pulsing light, I realized they had spared no expense. I had attended other Binding Ceremonies, but none were this… elaborate.

One day, as the future Lady of the Covenant, it would be added to everything else that I was supposed to be a glorified court coordinator and ceremonial planner. I pitied the young novices whose ceremonies would fall into my hands.

There were even a few representatives from rival Covenants in attendance, for political reasons, I assumed. I had never met any of them beyond passing glances while quietly seated next to my father during formal meetings. But this day wasn’t about me. It wasn’t even truly about the Princes. Until they formally took the reins, we were all just glittering, high-born puppets held up as a glorious example to the rest of the Covenant—a monarchy of predators in designer finery.

I couldn't believe this was finally happening. As I started my slow, paced walk down the aisle, I saw the envy and yearning eyes of the younger female novices, no doubt fantasizing about their own upcoming marriages. Why not? Most of them would be allowed to choose their own partners, or at least have a say. The fact that I didn't actively hate the Princes was a blessing. Even so, if the choice were entirely mine, I wouldn’t consent to this so quickly.

I took another deep breath and continued toward the raised marble dais at the end of the hall. This was where the most sacred rites of the Blood were performed. Tonight was just one more example.

And there they were, waiting for me at the end of the aisle: Zilo, Klaus, Zack. Not quite real, but the sight did steady my nerves, just a little.

First to catch my eye was Zilo, who offered a soft, approving smile that immediately calmed my jangling nerves. He had always been a soothing presence, and though he must be harboring his own anxieties about this arrangement, he had never once shown it.

Klaus, to Zilo's right, was another story altogether. He was classically handsome, his face chiseled, his features smooth, but there was something guarded in his expression, in his dark eyes sweeping over me like some detached general inspecting a new armament. My stomach twisted with a familiar anxiety; Klaus had always been the most difficult to read, the most formidable-the one I feared disappointing the most.

Finally, there was Zack. He stood on Zilo’s left, hands clasped loosely behind his back. There was a flicker of something in his emerald-green eyes, unlike the others—a hint of simmering heat beneath his tranquil veneer. He gave the slightest of nods, and an unexpected wave of warmth washed over me.

I just need to make it to the dais.

At last, I finally stopped in front of the altar; Lord Quispe stepped forward-laconic and cold, his face stern, without a trace of paternal warmth. He took my hand in his, firm but impersonal.

“You have done well, Lavinia,” he said, his voice low, the words a cold command rather than a compliment. “Do not fail your Houses now.”

He presented me to the three Princes with the ceremonial words: "Here is the tie that binds our Covenants, the blood that will secure our future."

Zilo was first, taking my hand from my father's grasp. His touch was warm, in contrast to the opposite feeling presented by my father. “Lavinia,” he said, his voice a deep, resonant rumble that carried clearly in the silent hall. His thumb brushed over my knuckles. “Welcome home.” The simplicity of the words, the soft sincerity in his eyes; it was everything I needed right now. Anxiety and the suffocating political atmosphere faded away. This isn't about the Covenant. It's about us. Mari's words still echoed in my head: "things will be different once you receive the Blood Mark." Maybe she was right. Maybe a true Sanguine Bond could make this less a prison and more of a family. I looked at the three powerful men in front of me, my past friends and future consorts. What was the first thing they would ask me to do as their future Lady?