Chapter 3

Julian shook uncontrollably.

His lips trembled. He couldn't force out a single word.

He remembered perfectly. Five years ago, after that attack, everyone told him a story. They said Tania risked her life. They said she ran into the sunfire to save him.

When he woke up in the dark, her face was the first thing he saw.

She held him and cried. She talked about how scared she was. She claimed she conquered her terror just for him.

As for me... when the Court doctors pulled me from the rubble, I was burnt crisp. I was barely alive.

I screamed in a pitch-black recovery room for three whole months. I hovered on the edge of death before I finally got a bit of my strength back.

Everyone thought I just got hurt running around blindly. Julian included.

He even yelled at me for it. He called me a coward. He said I only caused trouble. He said I was nothing compared to the brave, selfless Tania.

Now, the Blood Mirror shoved the bloody truth right in his face.

Tania went pale too. She grabbed Valerius's arm and scrambled to explain. "No... it wasn't like that... I was there too... I was just so scared..."

Valerius frowned.

He looked at my charred body in the memory. He looked at Julian's dead-gray face.

For the first time, a flicker of doubt crossed his eyes.

Cassian stood up. He looked totally stunned. "Is... is this true? Evelyn..."

My strength was draining.

Stabbing pain ripped through my head. It came wave after wave. It was worse every time.

I could feel my soul screaming. I could feel it weakening. But the Blood Mirror wouldn't stop.

It would keep draining my blood. It would play every memory tied to these three men. Or it would stop when I died.

The mirror flashed again. It started pulling the second memory.

This time, the red light locked onto Valerius on his throne.

His heart dropped. A sickening dread washed over him.

The scene shifted. It was the Lord's bedroom. It was three years ago.

Valerius lay in bed. He thrashed violently.

Black veins spiderwebbed from his heart all over his body.

His eyes were shut tight. His breathing was shallow.

"It's Deadblood Venom," the Court doctor announced. His voice was heavy with defeat. "I can't cure the hunters' deadliest toxin."

Valerius looked just as sick as Julian now.

He remembered this perfectly.

Three years ago, in a war with the hunters. He stayed behind to protect the escaping Court members. He got poisoned.

The whole Court was helpless.

Everyone thought he was a goner. They thought the Nightfall Court would lose their Lord.

In the memory, Tania knelt by his bed. She sobbed loudly.

Julian and Cassian stood nearby. They looked grim and serious.

And me? I was there too. I looked at the dying Valerius. Then, I turned and walked out.

When Tania saw me leave, she immediately turned to Julian. "Look at her, Julian. Valerius is dying. She doesn't even care."

Julian watched my back. His eyes were full of bitter disappointment.

The scene followed me. I sprinted out of the Court's territory. I dove into the abandoned catacombs beneath the black market.

It was a forbidden zone. It was full of mutant vampires.

The catacombs were full of danger.

Toxic gas hung in the air. No noble vampire would ever dare set foot there.

But I rushed in without a second thought.

Filthy water quickly swallowed my legs up to my knees.

I waded through the thick mud. Every step was a risk. Finally, I reached a rusty, mold-covered iron shack.

That was where I met the exiled dark alchemist.

He was as shriveled as a dead branch. But his eyes gleamed with a wicked light.

"What do you want?" he asked.

I dropped to my knees in the rat-infested muck. My voice shook as I begged. "Please, save my fated mate. He's infected with Deadblood."

The alchemist let out a harsh cackle. "I can cure him. But how will you pay? My help isn't cheap."

I looked up and met his eyes. "I'll give anything to save him."

The alchemist looked me up and down. A creepy smile crept onto his lips. "Alright."

"As a pureblood, you have the ultimate gift. You have immortal regeneration. You're tougher than most, and you heal faster."

"Let's make a deal. I save him. In exchange, you give your immortal regeneration to me."

"From today on, your body will be as frail as a human's. You'll feel freezing cold and starving hunger forever. You won't be able to take any physical damage. Every scratch will hurt a hundred times more."

"Do you accept?"