The Crimson Council
1520 Words
The church fell silent after Marcus's threat.
Rain hammered against stained-glass windows.
Somewhere in the distance, thunder rolled across Nocturne Falls.
Lily stared at the Alpha standing inches away from her.
He wasn't bluffing.
That was the terrifying part.
Marcus Blackwood didn't make dramatic threats.
He made promises.
And then fulfilled them.
Usually with claws.
Usually while covered in someone else's blood.
Which was honestly a terrible personality trait for a future boyfriend.
Assuming she survived long enough to have one.
"Fine," Lily said.
Marcus folded his arms.
Jace leaned against a pew, his injured shoulder wrapped in a bloodstained bandage.
Both men waited.
Like predators.
Like judges.
Like executioners.
God, her life had become weird.
Taking a deep breath, Lily finally spoke.
"I'm going to destroy the Blood Council."
Silence.
Marcus blinked once.
Jace raised an eyebrow.
"That's your plan?" Jace asked.
"That's the entire plan?"
"No."
Lily rolled her eyes.
"I'm not a Marvel villain. There's more."
She walked toward the altar.
Gathering her thoughts.
Then she explained everything.
The blood mark.
The secret messages.
The meeting with Caspian's messenger.
The serum.
The invitation.
The trap.
And finally—
The laboratory.
"The original research data is still inside the Council's core archive."
Marcus's expression darkened.
"The cloning project."
Lily nodded.
"The cells. The DNA templates. The failed samples. Everything."
Memories flashed through her mind.
Three dead girls floating inside glass tanks.
Three girls with her face.
Three girls who never got a chance to live.
Her stomach twisted.
"They'll keep making more."
Jace's jaw tightened.
"Unless we erase everything."
"Exactly."
Lily pointed at herself.
"The system requires my DNA to unlock the master files."
Marcus immediately understood.
"Caspian wants you inside."
"And I'm going."
"No."
The response came instantly.
Lily groaned.
"There it is."
"What?"
"The Alpha thing."
Marcus frowned.
"What Alpha thing?"
"The 'No' thing."
"You say it like it's a complete sentence."
"It is a complete sentence."
"It absolutely is not."
"It works."
Jace snorted.
Marcus shot him a glare.
The Rogue looked delighted.
Lily rubbed her temples.
Focus.
Save the world first.
Argue later.
"Listen carefully."
She stepped closer.
"The Council trusts me."
"No, they don't," Marcus said.
"Caspian trusts his ability to manipulate you."
"That's somehow worse."
"Agreed."
Lily sighed.
"But it gets me inside."
The church fell quiet again.
Because everyone knew she was right.
Eventually Marcus spoke.
"Then I'm going with you."
"No."
His eyes narrowed.
Lily pointed directly at him.
"You are six-foot-four, built like a murder weapon, and every vampire in North America knows who you are."
Marcus looked completely unapologetic.
"You'll be detected immediately."
"I can handle myself."
"That's exactly what I said."
Jace laughed.
Marcus looked annoyed.
Lily felt briefly victorious.
Then Jace pushed himself upright.
"I have a better idea."
That was never a reassuring sentence.
Ever.
Especially from Jace.
The Rogue smiled.
"Use me."
Both Lily and Marcus stared.
Jace shrugged.
"I still carry traces of vampire blood."
The church went silent.
Lily blinked.
"What?"
Marcus cursed quietly.
"You never told her."
"I never had a reason."
Lily looked between them.
"Would someone like to explain before my brain explodes?"
Jace's smile vanished.
Years of bitterness flashed across his face.
"When I served the Council, they experimented on me."
The humor disappeared completely.
"They wanted hybrids."
Lily froze.
"Half vampire. Half wolf."
Jace nodded.
"It didn't work."
His voice hardened.
"Not completely."
Understanding slowly dawned.
"You can pass as one of them."
"Long enough."
Marcus didn't look happy.
Actually, he looked ready to rip someone's throat out.
Probably several people's.
"I don't like it."
"Nobody asked."
Marcus growled.
Jace grinned.
The church suddenly felt too small for both of them.
Lily stepped between them before somebody started another Alpha war.
"Enough."
Both immediately looked at her.
Interesting.
Useful.
Possibly addictive.
She ignored that thought.
"Here's the plan."
Her voice became steady.
Certain.
Confident.
For the first time since discovering the supernatural world, she wasn't reacting.
She was leading.
"Caspian gets me inside."
She pointed at Jace.
"You infiltrate as staff."
Jace nodded.
Then she looked at Marcus.
"You stay outside."
Marcus immediately opened his mouth.
"No."
"Marcus."
"No."
"Marcus."
"No."
Lily stared.
Marcus stared back.
Thirty seconds passed.
Jace looked like he was enjoying a tennis match.
Finally Lily sighed.
"Fine."
Marcus looked victorious.
Then she continued.
"You stay outside and blow things up."
The Alpha paused.
"...continue."
There it was.
His favorite language.
Violence.
"Create chaos. Draw security away from the laboratory."
Marcus slowly smiled.
Dangerously.
Lily really needed to stop finding that attractive.
"Now we're talking."
—
The Blood Council headquarters looked less like a government building and more like a palace designed by a serial killer.
Black marble.
Red stained glass.
Massive gothic spires.
Stone gargoyles watched from every corner.
Everything screamed ancient wealth and questionable morals.
Lily stood before the entrance.
Alone.
At least visibly.
Marcus and Jace were already in position.
Hidden.
Waiting.
Watching.
The massive doors opened.
No guards.
No questions.
No resistance.
Just an invitation.
That somehow felt worse.
Inside, vampires lined both sides of the grand hallway.
Silent.
Motionless.
Observing.
Like she was royalty.
Or livestock.
Honestly, either was possible.
At the far end stood a man dressed in black.
Tall.
Elegant.
Beautiful.
Terrifying.
Lord Caspian.
The first thing Lily noticed was his eyes.
They looked exactly like hers.
That realization hit harder than expected.
Caspian smiled.
Warmly.
Proudly.
Like a father welcoming home a daughter.
Like none of the horrifying things he'd done had ever happened.
"My daughter."
His voice echoed through the hall.
"Welcome home."
Lily wanted to stab him immediately.
Instead she smiled.
Fake.
Perfect.
Years of customer-service training finally paying off.
"Father."
Caspian opened his arms.
Waiting.
Inviting.
Expecting.
Lily walked forward.
Every instinct screamed danger.
Every survival alarm in her body activated.
But she kept smiling.
Kept walking.
Kept pretending.
Then she embraced him.
The vampire lord smelled expensive.
Ancient.
Dead.
And beneath her sleeve, hidden against her wrist, a tiny silver needle slid into her fingers.
One movement.
One chance.
As Caspian wrapped his arms around her, Lily struck.
The needle disappeared into the back of his neck.
Deep enough.
Hidden enough.
Perfect.
Caspian never noticed.
The silver mechanism locked into place beneath his skin.
Twenty-four hours.
Then the poison would activate.
Twenty-four hours until the most powerful vampire on Earth died.
Lily stepped back.
Still smiling.
Still acting.
Still breathing.
Barely.
"Good to see you," she lied.
Caspian's smile widened.
"I've waited a very long time to hear that."
If only he knew.
—
Hours later, after endless introductions, ceremonial nonsense, and enough vampire politics to give anyone a migraine, Caspian finally escorted her toward his private wing.
The deeper they moved into the palace, the fewer guards appeared.
The more secure everything became.
The closer she got to the laboratory.
Exactly as planned.
Then Caspian suddenly spoke.
"You know..."
His tone changed.
Softer.
Almost thoughtful.
Lily's instincts immediately went on alert.
"What?"
The vampire lord glanced toward her.
"Your adoptive father surprised me."
Lily froze.
Her pulse accelerated.
Caspian continued walking.
Calmly.
Casually.
Like discussing the weather.
"Right before he died."
The hallway suddenly felt colder.
Much colder.
"What about him?"
Caspian smiled.
Not kindly.
Never kindly.
"He begged."
Lily stopped.
The word echoed in her head.
Begged.
"No."
"Oh yes."
Caspian's eyes gleamed.
"He begged me to spare you."
Lily couldn't breathe.
Every memory of her childhood surfaced.
Her father teaching her to ride a bike.
Helping with homework.
Making terrible pancakes.
Telling awful jokes.
A normal man.
A good man.
A dead man.
Caspian continued.
"I agreed."
The words hit like ice water.
Lily stared.
"What?"
"I agreed."
The vampire lord's smile widened.
"But I had one condition."
Something terrible was coming.
She could feel it.
Something capable of shattering everything she'd believed.
Caspian leaned closer.
"Your father needed Marcus to kill him."
The world stopped.
Lily's heart skipped.
"What?"
"He pretended to threaten you."
Caspian's voice remained calm.
Cruel.
Precise.
"He made Marcus believe your life was in danger."
Lily's hands started shaking.
"No."
"Marcus protected you."
Another step closer.
"Exactly as we expected."
Lily's pulse thundered in her ears.
"No."
Caspian gently touched her hair.
Like a loving father.
Like a monster.
"The Alpha killed him."
The hallway spun.
Everything she'd believed.
Everything she'd hated.
Everything she'd blamed Marcus for.
Shattered.
Caspian smiled softly.
"And from that day forward..."
His fingers slid through her hair.
"...Marcus carried the guilt of killing your family."
Lily couldn't move.
Couldn't think.
Couldn't breathe.
Caspian's voice dropped to a whisper.
"He believed he destroyed the one thing you loved."
A pause.
Then the final knife.
"Marcus killed your father."
His smile became almost tender.
"And I am the only one who ever truly tried to protect you."
Miles away, hidden inside a ventilation shaft overlooking the Council walls, Marcus listened through the communicator.
Every word.
Every lie.
Every twist of the blade.
His jaw clenched.
Hard.
Too hard.
Blood trickled from his palm as his claws dug into flesh.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
The crimson drops disappeared into the darkness below.
- Writer
