CHAPTER 27: The Summit of Shadows
The summit began beneath a crimson sky.
Storm clouds rolled low over the palace spires, and though no rain fell, thunder rumbled like a warning. Even the crows had abandoned the battlements. I stood at the top of the stairs beside Lucien, dressed not in silk but in armor.
Lightweight. Black. Laced with red and gold flame motifs.
Lucien wore his crown for the first time in weeks. He hated it, but today, we both knew he had to look like a prince. A ruler. A man who could claim not just power but loyalty.
Below, the courtyard swelled with nobles from every region of the vampire kingdom. Carriages lined the palace steps, each bearing a family crest fangs, swords, bloodied roses, black suns.
And somewhere among them… was a trap.
“They won’t strike today,
