Scarlet
The weight of what I had just learned pressed down on me like an avalanche, suffocating and impossible to ignore. I needed answers. I needed to understand what it meant to be an Eterna—what it meant for me.
But there was only one place to get them.
My father’s family I swallowed hard, staring at the old book that still lay open on my bed. The words blurred together, but their meaning had already carved itself into my bones. My father had mentioned his bloodline’s connection to the Eternas, but he had also said that no true blood had been born in decades—maybe even centuries. That meant no one had ever considered this possibility.
Not even him.
The thought made my skin prickle with unease.
I pushed away from the bed and crossed the room, pacing. My father had cut ties with his
