CHAPTER SEVEN — A House Built on Blood
980 Words
(Seraphina’s POV)
The first thing I noticed…Was the silence. Not the hollow, suffocating silence of the convent. Not the fearful quiet of girls waiting to disappear.
This silence was different. It was controlled and deadly. They led me out of the underground chamber through a separate passage—one I hadn’t seen before, it was Hidden.
Everything about this world thrived in the shadows. The air changed as we moved, it felt warm, by the time we reached the surface again…It no longer felt like a church.
It felt like stepping into another reality entirely. The doors opened and I walked into his world.
Luxury.
That was the first word that came to mind. Black marble floors, towering ceilings.
Golden accents that shimmered under dim, carefully placed lights.
Everything was beautiful and everything felt wrong, because beneath the beauty…There was something else, something ancient, something that didn’t belong to the living.
“Welcome,” a voice said smoothly behind me. I didn’t turn immediately, I didn’t need to. I already knew who it was. Lord Michael.
I turned slowly,meeting his gaze. Up here, in full light, he looked even more dangerous, not monstrous, not grotesque but refined.
Like a predator that had learned how to wear elegance as a disguise.
“You’re quiet,” he observed.
“I’m thinking.”
“About escaping?”
A faint smile touched my lips.
“If I wanted to run… I would have done it already.”
His eyes flickered with interest.
“Honest,” he murmured. “That’s rare.”
“I’m not here to impress you.”
“Everyone here is,” he said softly.
Our gazes locked.
A silent challenge passing between us.
“Take her to the west wing,” he said without breaking eye contact. “She’s not to be touched.”
Not to be touched.
The words echoed strangely in my mind.
Possession.
Not protection.
The guards moved immediately, I didn’t resist as they led me away.
But I felt it.
His gaze followed me.
Still watching.
Still deciding.
The west wing was quieter, less extravagant, but no less unsettling.
My room was… unexpectedly large with a soft bed and velvet curtains.
A mirror that stretched from floor to ceiling. A cage dressed as comfort. I stepped inside slowly, taking everything in. They left without a word, the door closing softly behind them.
I exhaled.
I was alone
Finally,I walked toward the mirror. Stopped in front of it.
And for a moment…I didn’t recognize the woman staring back at me dressed like a nun. Standing in a place built by monsters with eyes too sharp and alive.
“You’ve really done it now,” I murmured. No turning back.
A faint sound behind me, so soft, most people wouldn’t have noticed, but I did. I turned instantly and he was there. Leaning against the far wall like he had always been part of the room.
Silent, still and watching was Lucien Draven.
My body reacted before my mind did.
Every instinct on edge.
Predator.
Another one.
“You’re either very brave…” he said quietly, his voice low and smooth, “or very stupid.”
I crossed my arms slightly.
“Still deciding.”
His gaze moved over me slowly, not with hunger like the others but with suspicion. “You don’t belong here,” he said.
“You do?”
A faint smirk touched his lips.
“More than you.”
Silence stretched between us.
Tense.
Sharp.
“Who are you?” I asked.
He didn’t answer immediately.
Just watched me.
Measuring.
Then—
“Someone who knows exactly what this place is,” he said.
“Then you know I’m not here by accident.”
That got his attention.
A flicker of something shifted in his eyes.
“No,” he murmured. “You’re not.”
He pushed off the wall slowly.
Stepping closer.
Every movement was controlled and dangerous.“You didn’t cry,” he said.
“What?”
“In the chamber,” he continued. “Most of them do. Some beg.”
His gaze sharpened slightly.
“You didn’t.”
“I don’t beg.”
Another pause.
Then—
A quiet exhale.
Almost like amusement.
“That’s going to get you into trouble.”
“I’m counting on it.”
He stopped just a few steps away now.
Close enough.
Too close.
Up close, I could see it.
The difference between him and Michael.
Michael felt like power.
But this man—
He felt like control.
Like something constantly holding itself back.
“What do you want?” he asked.
I held his gaze.
Didn’t look away.
“The same thing you do.”
Silence.
For the first time…
Something real crossed his face.
Interest.
“Careful,” he said softly. “That answer can get you killed.”
“Only if I’m wrong.”
Another long pause.
Then—
He stepped back.
“Stay alive,” he said.
I frowned slightly.
“Is that a warning?”
“It’s advice.”
He turned.
Walking toward the door.
Then stopped.
Just before leaving.
“If he takes an interest in you…” he said without turning, “don’t mistake it for something it’s not.”
My voice came out quieter than I expected.
“And what is it?”
A pause.
Then—
“Ownership.”
The word lingered in the air long after he was gone.
The door closed softly.
And just like that…
I was alone again.
But not really.
Because now I know something important.
I wasn’t the only one hunting in this place.
And the man I just met…
Wasn’t my enemy.
Not yet.
I turned slowly, my gaze drifting back to the mirror.
Two predators.
One monster.
And me…
Standing right in the middle of it all.
A slow smile curved my lips.
Good.
Let the game begin.
- Writer
