Chapter 13:The Locket
208 Words
Ten years had passed since the night Blackwood was saved.
The town had changed.
Where there had been fear, there were now festivals. Humans and vampires walked the streets together. Children grew up hearing stories of the Moonborn Queen and the Vampire King—not as a frightening legend, but as a story of hope.
Nina stood on the balcony of Blackwood Castle, watching lanterns drift into the night sky.
Beside her, Devin rested his hands on the stone railing.
"You still look surprised every time you see the town celebrating," he said.
She smiled.
"I still remember when people were afraid to walk past the cemetery."
"So do I."
He looked at her.
"And I remember a stubborn human who followed a vampire into a cemetery because she wanted answers."
Nina laughed.
"You mean the vampire who told me to go home and then dramatically disappeared?"
"I thought it was impressive."
"It was ridiculous."
Devin smiled.
"Perhaps."
She leaned against him.
After all these years, his touch still felt like something impossible.
Like a dream she was afraid to wake from.
But then the castle bells rang.
Not the celebration bells.
The warning bells.
Both of them froze.
No one rang those bells unless there was danger.
- Writer
