When the noise finally died down, the hall looked like the aftermath of a storm… shards of broken glass from the chandeliers glinting on the black marble floor, faint scorch marks where blades had sparked, the heavy smell of iron and sweat hanging in the air.
The vampires who had attacked them now stood back, tense but silent, watching with a mix of resentment and shame. No one dared move until Queen Seraphine gave the signal.
She took her time. Every step she made back toward the throne sounded deliberate, echoing in the massive chamber. When she sat down again, the room seemed to exhale.
“Now,” she said, her voice even but cutting through the air like a blade through silk, “since you’ve proven you can survive a welcoming party… perhaps we can finally speak like civilized beings.”
Luk
